Streaked Hair

Hair color before application
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Q: I was wondering: I have black hair, and I've already tried to dye it once to light brown (home kit) but it didn't show. That was about 6 months ago.
 
If I went to a professional and streaked my hair red or blonde would it show? Or would it just fade? And on average how much does it cost to get your hair streaked professionally?
 
A: It's most likely that your problem with the home kit color was that the color kit was a deposit-only color. This means that the color formula was not designed to lighten the natural color before adding a new color to the hair.
 
Since your hair is black already (the darkest possible shade of color) the hair will need to be lightened before any other color added will show. The amount of lightening that needs to be done will depend on the color you want to show. A professional will be able to tell you exactly what will need to be done and help you achieve the look you desire in the streaks for your hair.
 
As for the cost of such streaking, I can't possibly advise you on what this will cost because I don't know where you live. The prices for hair coloring services vary from region to region, city to city and often from salon to salon in any given city.
 
For example, in my area (I live in a suburb of Atlanta, Georgia, United States of America) there are hundreds of salons in the metropolitan area. The prices of highlighting services at a professional salon range from U.S. $35.00 to U.S. $125.00 for the same basic services. Generally, the services will cost what the customers will pay.
 
Your best bet is to do a little legwork, visit or phone some of the salons in your area and ask about their pricing for highlighting services. Find a price you are comfortable with and make sure you feel confident of the skill of the stylist who will be performing the services. A little homework on your part can mean you will get the results you want at a fair price.
 
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See also:
 
How to color hair
 
Highlights and highlighting hair