Notes On Going Bright Red

I seem to go on a bright scarlet hair kick every few years or so and in the time between I always forget all the nuances on pain points.  I thought I'd actually jot them down so I can avoid forgetting.  I don't like purple-red.  I sometimes like orange-red, sometimes magenta-red and mostly bright red(just unbright enough to avoid getting told things by old ladies).

Every time I run into the same disappointing problems(quick fading, uneven fading, not bright enough), so I thought I'd log all my notes together so I can stop remaking errors.

Lowest Maintenance/Brightest True Red Hair: L'Oreal Feria Power Red Ruby Rush
It won't stain your pillowcases(assuming you rinse thoroughly), fairly easy to use.  Definitely not as bright as the box, but still *red* with no purple. 

Cheap Root Touch Up:  Root touch-up kits are nice but at $5-$7 and usually not bright enough.  Revlon Colorsilk is super cheap and has a 1:1 ratio of colorant to developer.   I usually find the conditioner in Colorsilk to be a little disappointing, but for this purpose it's fine.  Revlon ColorSilk Lumnista Light Red is a good color for roots.  10MLs of colarant and developer left on for 20-30 minutes makes nice bright red roots.  One box of dye will give you 4-5 applications.  Don't mix it ahead of time, buy a little measuring cup at Sally's and make your dose right before you need your red roots.  Once you've measured and mixed your goo, use a dye brush from an old touch-up kit or a nice brush from Sally's.  If you were crazy on the economizing, you could probably get away with 7MLs of colorant and developer.

The Dye is Fading Fast: You have red hair.  Sorry.

The Dye is Fading Unevenly: Protein Filler helps by filling in the gaps all the life stress has done to it.  People have a lot of methods for applying but this is what works for me.  Buy a smallish(3 ounce) squirt bottle with a trigger handle for ease.  Buy neutral protein filler.  Spray on the bottom part(where the fading generally occurs) until moist.  Let sit for 20 minutes and dye in whatever fashion you prefer.

Refreshing Color:
Color Depositing Shampoo:  Either buy stuff like Davines or Watercolors or make your own by mixing some semi permanent dye in your shampoo.  Either use the good stuff or make your own.  Don't buy the cheap stuff.  It just isn't worth it(though, it's possible something amazing could come out).

Semi Permanent Dye:
I don't really know if one is better than the other.  Manic Panic seems to fade faster than others.  I've used a ton of them(save Joico and Fudge) and they all seem about the same in duration.  I'll try Joico next time.
NRage, SFX, ION Color Brilliance, Adore, Fudge(UK based, so pricey), Joico, Color Jamz

Permanent Dye(about once a month):
L'Oreal Hi Color HiLights with 20 or 30 volume developer(amount according to package).  I need about 1 tube.  Red/Magenta is wild, Red is pretty crazy and Red/Red Hot is a nice professional "VERY RED."

If I want something more muted(most of the time), I can make my dye with 1/2 a tube of L'Oreal Hi Color and 1/2 a tube of L'Oreal Hi Color HiLights mixed with 20 or 30 volume developer(amount according to package).