How to Get a Great Hair System
Color Match Every Time

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Just as important as proper density, base selection and styling is to the natural appearance of of your hairpiece, choosing the appropriate hair system color can mean the difference between hair god and hair helmet. The good news is that if you remember a few simple rules of thumb, you'll be well on your way to a color that’s perfect (and natural) for you.

Understanding Hair Color Graduation

Did you know your hair graduates? Your natural growing hair has a color graduation of highlights and gray percentages, generally growing darkest in the back, eventually lightening toward the front, or “the frame” of your face. If you have gray hair, the highest percentage of gray is found around your temples and the face frame. Some say its nature’s way of softening our wrinkles when we age.

Gray percentages is the amount of gray hair in your system vs. another color (i.e. 60% brown/40% gray hair system) and can play a crucial part in achieving an age-appropriate color appearance.

Think Synthetic Gray for Added Realism

We normally recommend using human hair for the most natural appearance, but you'll always have a choice between human and synthetic hair for your hair replacement system. In fact, if you're thinking of adding gray to your system, a combination of human and synthetic hair may be the way to go.

Human hair systems will reflect light better than synthetic hair and look more natural in sunlight. It’s real hair, after all! But why synthetic hair for adding a touch of gray?

Remember that synthetic hair can’t be colored as easily as human hair and that human hair is prone to color fading. So having a dual human/synthetic hair system allows you to color correct the human hair in your system without changing the gray percentage hair in your system.

• Problem: You have both human brown and gray hair in your system. You hit the beach all summer and notice that your hair color has faded from the sun. With an all-human, brown/gray hair system, you can’t color correct the brown without coloring the gray. And vice-versa.
• Solution: Use color-resistant synthetic gray for a realistic gray percentage and you can color the brown hair without damage to the gray strands!

The Two Most Popular Options for Getting a Natural
Color Match Every Time

If all of this color talk seems, ahem . . . heady, don’t fret! There are two surefire ways to help us match the hair system color that’s right for you:

• Take samples directly from your own growing hair
• Use a color ring/swatch (Find the HD ring in our handy Custom Fitting Kit)

Option #1
Take a Sample From Your Growing Hair
(Best Option)

Why is this the best option? Because nothing beats natural, obviously. Your natural hair will allow us to match your true color graduation from the source!

For best results, plan to take samples from 3-6 areas:

• Back: As close to the center of the back of your head as possible
• Sides: Approximately 1-2" above the top of your ear
• Temples: At the front most part of your hair on the sides
• Crown: The back, top of your head (if possible)
• Top: The front, top of your head (if possible)
• Front: At the hairline or bang area (if possible)

Taking a good hair sample is easy but it's important to give your hair tech enough to work with! Each sample must consist of approximately 100-200 hairs and be about 2-3" in length (or about 1/2 the amount of hair in one of the swatches on a color ring).

NOTE: Do not cover your hair samples with tape. Even clear tape will alter true light reflection and throw off color accuracy. Also, random clipings won't work! Light reflects differently on tiny clippings so the color can appear different.

Option #2:
Use a Color Ring to Choose Your Color

Taking a razor to your hair not appealing to you? Our ring of natural hair contains 100 to 150 pre-blended color swatches. All you need to do is choose the colors that best match your growing hair.

Choosing from a color ring is simple:

• Pick the closest three to five color swatches from the hair system color ring
• Through process of elimination, choose the proper color swatch that best matches your own growing hair

Did you know that not all color rings are created equal? That’s right. You may have a color ring from another hair replacement company, but that won’t work for choosing the color of your Hair Direct system. From colors to swatch coding, everything is different. When choosing your color, be sure to use the HD Color Ring.

Choose Your Color in Natural Sunlight

The sun has long been the Jeckyl and Hyde in the color of every hairpiece.

The Upside: Have you ever pulled a suit out of the closet thinking it was black, only to get outside and realize it was actually navy blue? That’s natural sunlight for you. It reveals all. And when it comes to picking the perfect hue for your hair replacement system, that big mass of hydrogen and helium in the sky will be your friend.

The Downside: As good as the sun is at helping you choose the right color for your hair system, it’s just as good at stripping that color away. It’s called oxidation.

Oxidation: The Number One Threat to Hair System Color

Okay, now that you’ve figured out this hair color matching and sample taking, it’s time to start thinking about maintaining your hair system color. Remember when we discussed how human hair systems fade over time when exposed to the sun? That process is called oxidation (A chemical reaction that fades the color in your hair when it’s exposed to UV light.) It does more damage to your system than almost any other natural element.

In a perfect world, oxidation wouldn’t exist, hair system maintenance wouldn’t be needed, and your hair replacement would always look as great as it did when it was first attached. However, in the battle of appearance vs. durability, something has to give. This means your hair system will begin showing signs of wear after a short period of time.

The great news is that you can minimize this damage and keep your system looking its best with a variety of oxidation-fighting hair system products.

Still reading? Good for you! Here's a few more color-related resources for you and your beautiful hair system...

Watch Video Tips for Coloring Your Own Hair

You’d be surprised how easy it is to color a human hair unit. In fact, here you can watch a quick coloring video guide produced by one our very own clients.

Join the Discussion & Talk Color with Other Hair Wearers

With more than 5,000 members, if you've got a question you can probably find it in our forums. Everyone is super-friendly, helpful, and they all know what it’s like to wear hair.

Shop for Oxidation-Busting Products

As your system ever taken on a reddish tint during the summer? That’s oxidation. It’s a nasty, sort of inevitable, but totally preventable and correctable part of hair wearing.