WITH the coronavirus lockdown now in full swing, and hairdressers and beauty salons closed, many woman are now forced to take matters into their own hands when it comes to sprucing up their looks. 

And with nothing but time on your hands while in self-isolation, there is no better time than now to try your hand at DIY hair colouring – because how else will you get the pick me up you need.

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Jack Baxter, Session Stylist and Influential Colourist, recently told Fabulous that it's "more important than ever that we take care of our wellbeing and mental health as well as our physical health", and that's true – especially because there'll soon come a time that we'll be itching ti get out (if that time hasn't come already).

He said: "In my opinion our hair is a big part of of our wellbeing and if our hair doesn’t look or feel it’s best it can have an impact on your overall self esteem and wellbeing."

Although, Jack advised to steer clear of supermarket dyes, and said: "I recommend using the Josh Wood at home hair colour system if this is something you want to try.

"The reason I recommend this brand is because I know and trust that the products are of a high enough quality."

Quick tips to consider

• Buy two boxes – imagine doing half your hair and realising you've run out. Avoid this dilemma but having a back up, just in case.
• Do a patch test  – hair dyes are made up of chemicals afterall, so it's always best to test it out to avoid an allergic reaction.
• Protect your hairline – By this we mean keep it clean and untouched from dye by swiping some lip balm or vaseline along your hairline where you don’t want any dye to go.
• Brush your hair before starting  – this will make it easier to section and create a smoother surface to apply the dye
• Section your hair – the professionals will always section your hair into four parts. Down the middle, and then from ear to ear across the back of the head. Dye the front sections first because these are the most visible, so need the full processing time.
• Don't use the provided bottle – while most would grab the bottle provided, it won’t give you a salon finish. Instead, play colourist and use a mixing bowl and a colour brush to apply the dye.
• Use a toothbrush – If you're a fan of Pinterest you would have seen how well this works at giving you natural looking highlights.
• Start from the top and work down – the roots will always need longer to develop, so start here and comb through the ends
• Don't shampoo – when washing out the colour, don't use shampoo at first – just water – but when you do wash with shampoo for the first time, opt for a sulphate free product to avoid a change in the colour.

Touching up and choosing the right colour

For those who want more options to work with colorist and stylist Jennifer Covington-Bowers offers some tips in keeping your hair looking fresh and new and recommends simply touching up where needed, rather than targeting your entire mane.

She recommends trying a root touch-up kit such as L’Oréal Magic Root Cover Up which is available in several shades, and, “it’s foolproof because it washes out.”

But you are looking at completely changing up your look, London’s leading hair colourist, Josh Wood told Bazaar that that right shade is completely dependent on your skin tone.

If you're opting for a brunette change, he said: "Cool and ashy tones look great on fair skin that contains some red undertone as the ash in the hair will naturalise contrasting tones in the skin. Additionally, a rich mocha would look great on someone with a darker skin tone as it complements the natural warmth within the skin."

• L’Oréal Magic Root Cover Up, £6.99 from Superdrug – buy now 

How to dye your own hair

Fabulous spoke to celebrity Hairstylist Timothy David, and he offered up a few easy tips in ensuring you get the best colour from home.

He suggested contacting your colourist or stylist (if you have one), who should be able to give you the mixing ratio and number or code for your hair colour.

He said: "If you can contact your stylist I am sure they would be happy to give you the mixing ratio and number for your hair colour. I would normally do this for clients that are not solely highlights or balayage, as this can get too messy.

"Personally I give my clients who are usually tints or tints with highlight that just need to touch up immediate greys that are on show.

He also insisted on testing the colour at least 48 hours before by "taking some colour from the tint and apply behind your ear to make sure you haven’t or haven’t developed any allergies to the colour if it has been along time between colours"

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When it comes to mixing the colour, Timothy suggests using a whisk to make sure you mix the colour until there are no lumps, and once it's smooth, separate your hair into four sections using a tailcomb.

Using a colouring brush, he instructed to dip the bottom 3mm of the brush into the colour and apply gently onto the grey hair or roots, dipping each time into the colour bowl each time you apply – to prevent over lapping your colour.

To avoid any colour disasters, he said: "I only really advise clients to apply on hairline and parting, and usually 3cm from the parting on each side."

And once applied onto the part," I would use the tail comb to take another straight section usually leaving around 3mm from previous. Making sure your lines are straight," he added

Should you wait it out?

While some of us can't bare the thought of going without a fresh colour, some experts don't recommend dying your hair at home, and instead suggest waiting it out.

Tom Baxter, Owner of Tom Baxter Hair and OSMO ambassador suggested staying away from box hair dyes altogether as most are "full of ammonia".

He told Fabulous: "You may not know the underlying warmth of [your] natural hair colour so when mixing that with the incorrect box hair colour, [you] could cause more harm than good and will end up having to spend more time and money correcting any mistakes or damage that has been created."

If you do decided to take your beauty maintenance into your own hands, we also shared how to remove your lashes at home  and shared with you the best way to cut your own hair, too.

All ‘non-essential’ shops are now closed – here’s the list of what can open.

The extreme measures were announced by Prime Minister Boris Johnson tonight as he ordered Brits to stay home to take the pressure off the NHS and help beat coronavirus.

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