Q&A for How to Dye Your Hair With Coffee

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Does putting coffee in your hair make it darker?

Mindy Nguyen
Holistic Cosmetologist
Mindy Nguyen is a Holistic Cosmetologist and the Owner and Founder of Mai Blossom Organic Salon, an organic hair salon in San Diego, California. With more than 35 years of experience in the beauty industry, she specializes in combining Eastern philosophies with Western science to provide organic hair coloring and holistic hair styling.

Mindy Nguyen

Holistic Cosmetologist

Expert Answer

Definitely! If you have light brown to medium-brown hair, a coffee dye job can make your hair a half or full shade darker. It just depends on how dark the coffee is and how long you leave it in for.

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Question

Can I put coffee on dry hair?

Mindy Nguyen
Holistic Cosmetologist
Mindy Nguyen is a Holistic Cosmetologist and the Owner and Founder of Mai Blossom Organic Salon, an organic hair salon in San Diego, California. With more than 35 years of experience in the beauty industry, she specializes in combining Eastern philosophies with Western science to provide organic hair coloring and holistic hair styling.

Mindy Nguyen

Holistic Cosmetologist

Expert Answer

Absolutely! Slowly pour the cool coffee into your dry hair, using your free hand to massage it into your dry locks. Then, use a wide-tooth comb to distribute the coffee from roots to end. Squeeze out any extra liquid and cover your hair with a shower cap. Leave the cap on for 45-60 minutes before rinsing it out.

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Question

How can the coffee dye be made thicker? Mine is too runny.

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This answer was written by one of our trained team of researchers who validated it for accuracy and comprehensiveness.

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Use less water to brew your coffee so there's less overall liquid (it will make the coffee stronger, too). Also try adding more conditioner and grounds to the mixture to thicken it.

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Does it work on grey roots?

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Coffee can blend gray roots into brown hair, but it will take several treatments to get full coverage.

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I have black hair that would be white by now if I didn't consistently dye my hair to cover the white roots. Can coffee dye my white roots darker?

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Coffee can definitely darken your white roots a bit, but it most likely isn't strong enough to blend them in with black hair (at most, coffee usually darkens hair by about 1 shade).

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Question

Just found out about these natural alternatives!! Can I use coffee to darken hair I just lightened using heavily chemical lightening dye (Schwarzkopf Nordic Blonde)?

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The coffee method works best for hair that hasn't been recently treated with chemical dyes, bleach, or other products. It does still work if the products you previously used were natural, though.

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Is coffee absolutely safe to use as hair dye? No foreign chemicals that cause allergies or itchiness of the scalp? Just being sure cause I'm allergic to ordinary hair dye. Thank you.

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Organic coffee is safe since it has no additives in it (non-organic coffee may irritate you). However, everyone is different! Try using it on a small, hidden patch of hair before dyeing your whole head. If you don't notice any irritation after 24 hours, you're good to go!

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How can I make my hair darker naturally?

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As well as using coffee (explained in the steps above), other ways to darken hair naturally include: Mustard oil, walnut shells, amla powder, black tea and henna powder. For information on using these and other ways to darken your hair naturally, see How to Naturally Darken Your Hair .

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How do you dye your hair with coffee or black tea?

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The method for dyeing your hair with coffee is explained in the steps above. For dyeing your hair with tea, you'll need to decide between using black tea or a herbal rinse. For black tea, (best for brunettes), steep 3 black teabags in boiling water for 5 minutes, then allow to cool. Apply to the hair with an applicator (usually a squeeze bottle), then leave in for 1 hour before rinsing out with cool water. Sage can be added to the steeping tea to help cover gray. For more details, refer to: How to Dye Your Hair with Tea, Coffee or Spices .

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Question

What does coffee do to your hair?

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As well as being able to dye your hair, coffee has other external hair uses. For example, the caffeine in coffee can help to both soften and add shine to hair if used when washing hair. When using coffee grounds on the scalp, they can act as an exfoliant on the scalp and may stimulate hair growth. However, drinking coffee is not a miracle for hair loss; although caffeine can stimulate hair follicles to help hair growth in a modest way, it cannot aid hair loss.

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Can coffee be used to dye hair?

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Yes, coffee can be used to dye hair temporarily; it works best for light brown hair and isn't as effective for dark hair. It's a gentle and non-permanent dye but it can still cause stains, so care is needed when applying it. The above article outlines how to apply the coffee for dyeing your hair.

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Question

What can I use instead of conditioner?

Community Answer

You can use coconut oil or olive oil, which would work well in place of conditioner.

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Can I use this method on white hair?

Community Answer

It should work on almost all hair colors, excepting darker hair colors (such as dark brown, black, etc.).

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Question

Does the darker color the coffee gives you fade? If so, after how long?

Community Answer

It will probably come out in a week or so, depending on how frequently you wash your hair.

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Question

Which one is organic coffee and which on is inorganic coffee

Community Answer

If coffee is organic, there will be a label on the container when you buy it.

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Can you leave the coffee in your hair overnight or will it make your hair dry?

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Don't leave the coffee in your hair overnight. You will wake up with dry and brassy orange hair.

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Will my scalp be affected if I use this method on short hair?

Community Answer

No, you should be completely fine.

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Does it matter what type of coffee is used?

Community Answer

Yes, look at the ingredients on the coffee, if it says 100% pure coffee then go for it. Any additional ingredients in the coffee (such as Chicory) could possibly alter the effect. Brand does not matter, ingredients do.

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Question

Can peroxide be added to the coffee?

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No. Coffee darkens and peroxide lightens, so using them both together would be counterproductive.

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Question

Is coffee dye toxic to my body?

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Community Answer

No. It's a natural way of dying your hair, and is completely safe to use.

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Does this work on bleached hair?

Community Answer

Yes.

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I don't want to use conditioner so what should I do?

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It may not work correctly if you do not follow the instructions.

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Question

How do I brew coffee?

Community Answer

Pour water into your coffee maker, then add a filter and fill the filter with coffee.

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Question

Will my hair become brown permanently?

Community Answer

No, it won't. Dying your hair isn't permanent as your hair will grow out and your original color will begin to show at the top of your head (at the roots).

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How long will coffee make your hair darker?

Community Answer

For about a week depending on how many times you repeat it. If you repeat it before the week is over it should last longer.

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Question

Should I mark a blue deck with blue and a red deck in red?

Community Answer

Yes! If you mark a red deck with blue and vice versa then it is clear that it is marked. So when marking it, mark it the color of the deck.

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Question

My hair is dirty blonde/light brown. How much will coffee darken my hair?

Community Answer

My hair is the same, and after this my hair was two shades darker. It depends on how strong and dark the coffee is that you used.

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How long will it last?

Community Answer

It would only be temporary.

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Can I use instant coffee grounds mixed with conditioner?

Community Answer

No, this won't be very effective at dying your hair.

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