In ancient times, men from Greece used soaps of a specific kind to lighten the color of their hair or redden it because it was identified with attributes of honour and courage. Later in the world, old people used hair color primarily as a method of covering their grey hair. Women colored their hair to look younger and soon enough men started the ritual as well.
However, hair color has come a long way from then. It is now a full-fledged business run by competitive brands from all over the world. It now plays a huge part in the fashion business and in the lives of normal people around the world. Men and women all around the world color their hair to accentuate their personalities and to express themselves and of course, to look good. In truth, hair color has become a revolution of expression and eccentricity.
Hair color, till the 1900s, was made from natural dyes and herbs. It was not popular among chemists back then, who thought hair color was a waste of time, and did not really sell the product. Chemist, Eugene Schuller, however, created a hair dye using a new formula called paraphenylenediamine. Thus, he created the first commercially safe hair dye product. His company, French Harmless Hair Dye Company changed its name a year later to L’Oreal, which is now the largest and most famous among its competitors.
Hair color basically consists of hydrogen peroxide and ammonia. These two ingredients are what enable commercial hair color to last for a longer time than any other natural dye. Also, hair dyes has several other ingredients, basically alcohols that dry the hair.
Some do not believe in using hair dyes, that it causes more harm than good. But others, along with hair specialists, believe that with proper care and application, hair color is perfectly safe. However, hair color does have its drawbacks and it’s off sides, contrary to the people who say they are perfectly safe.
Some say that coloring hair increases the number of grey hairs and damages it. People with sensitive skin either have to take extreme precautions or avoid coloring their hair all together. Some have even stuck to the older, more herbal hair dyes, claiming that even though they do not last that long, they are less harmful to the hair and to people with sensitive skin. Hair dye Companies work constantly, devising ways to make commercial hair color less damaging and more efficient.
Today, people are coloring their hair like never before, with more and more people coloring their hair every day. In America, 75% women now use hair color ideas as opposed to the meager 7% in the 1950s (who colored their hair to avoid showing their grey and often used the same color as their natural hair).
It is a bigger trend now to change the color of one’s hair entirely or highlight the ends to accentuate their personality. In India, however, traditional hair styles is just as popular as the commercial ones not only because of their natural ingredients, but also because herbal hair dyes are cheaper than the commercial mega brands and thus appeal to the people in the lower strata of the community.
Whether natural or commercial, it is clear that hairstyle has become one of the hottest trends around the world. Whether they are basic tones of black and brown, or more vibrant shades of red, blue, and even pink, different hair shades is now one of the main ways men and women of the world express themselves and their personalities without saying much at all.
