Hair Dye

Henna is one of the oldest and most popular ways to change your hair color, but for such a commonly used dyeing agent, there's comparatively little information around on why, how, and when henna is a good choice and when it isn't. If you're contemplating coloring your hair with henna instead of a peroxide or ammonia-based dye but don't know whether you're making the right decision, here's a quick, easy guide to the pros and cons.

Everybody has a "eureka!" moment once in a while, where you realize exactly what you want and how to get it. When it comes to your appearance, though, things often require a little more thought. After all, there's nothing more personal than your body, and some regrets can last a lifetime or cost you some major cash to fix. See the 10 beauty decisions you should always give at least a couple good nights' sleep when you keep reading.

Colorist Johnny Bueno may be best known for creating Real Housewife of DC (and infamous White House dinner attendee) Michaele Salahi's perfect buttercream blond. But he's also created a whole host of other gorgeous hues, and innovative color techniques are his specialty. To find out about what the new season's cutting-edge color trends will be, just keep reading.

Check out this excerpt from OnSugar blog Face Your Addiction:

By the time I was in college I'd tried practically every hair color out there, from Fudge's Raspberry Beret to Manic Panic's Green Envy. I should have just worked at Sally's or something, but I'd take my lunch money to buy my staple developer and bleach. At the time, my hair was long and curly, so I had my Ronald McDonald red 'fro moments, but I guess me living in hippie, surfer-ville Santa Cruz, CA, I wasn't much of an oddity. I always wanted true, snow-white platinum, but that was only possible by means of weaves. My grandmother eventually got silvery salt and pepper gray hair, but not at an early age. All I knew was that it was beautiful, and if I could wear all these different colors, it was harmless fun.

All that said, I realized that in all the experimenting, I'd never (intentionally) gone gray. Earlier this year I saw pictures of Kelis, and then a few of my beautiful fellow blogger Nymphette, and figured why not? This seems to be a growing trend of gray on younger folks. Yes, I now live in the Bay Area (still more conservative than Santa Cruz), and yes, I work in corporate America, but what are they gonna say? "Your hair isn't a natural color?" Um, yeah, no. So I just did it!

To see how her experiment turned out, just keep reading. Got a styling story to share? Then why not start your own OnSugar blog?

When you want to save money on hair color, there are plenty of good, easy drugstore options. But the hair color aisle can be confusing, and not all box dye is created equal. I've been coloring my own hair since I was in seventh grade, and in that time I've learned a little bit about which products really do what they say. So to see my favorites for changing your hue at home, just keep reading.

Some kids draw on the walls, mine color their hair. My daughter and son think being blond is "too boring" and took changing things up into their own hands . . . and heads. Since we exhausted wigs and hair pieces and dye has been vetoed, my 6-year-old let a red marker bleed onto a carefully selected clump of her hair (Julia Roberts style), and a few days later my son drew a blue circle on his head. A $3 pack of washable markers made them happy until shampoo washed away their artistic expression.

As a dark, natural blonde, I'm a big fan of semipermanent box color. It lets you brighten up a shade and look truly "blond" without requiring you to bleach. Usually, I'm a Clairol Natural Instincts kind of girl, but this time around I decided to give Garnier HerbaShine in Medium Ash Blonde ($8) a try. The results? Pretty, but way darker than previous experience (or the box) would have had me believe. So what's a girl to do? Find out how to lighten up when you keep reading.

Many of us will, at least once, go red with our hair. But the experience can be a glorious one or a total disaster depending on how your shade interacts with your skin tone and eyes. So how can you make sure you get a flattering hue? Color experts Vickie Vidov and Kristina Barricelli — they're the ones who keep Julianne Moore looking so ravishingly red — have great advice on selecting a shade that will accentuate all your best features. To see their tips, just keep reading.

Summer sun, surf, and heat can fade hair color, but it doesn't have to be that way. Stylists Vickie Vidov and Kristina Barricelli of Manhattan salon Gemini 14 specialize in keeping color looking healthy and vivid. (That's why stars like Miley Cyrus can be found popping in.) To get their advice on doing just that, just keep reading.

Most of us, at one time or another, will get restless with our hair color. Depending on the shade you choose, though, it can be an extremely satisfying or a pretty traumatic experience — especially if you're doing the color at home. So to help you get a cool new brunette shade with ease, we've found some sweet hues for your hair and skin tones. To find out which one is right for you, just keep reading.