Ombres and color melts are my favorite hair colors to do. Not only are they pretty, but the challenge of making them flow beautifully from one color to the next is fun and fulfilling.
I've always loved sunset colors, and would probably paint my house an ombre sunset if I didn't rent. The yellowy-orange and bright pink skies fading in to purple brings me so much joy, and even 45 years later when I catch a sunset I will still stop whatever I'm doing to admire the colors and watch the transitions. So it's really quite surprising that it took me nearly 10 years of dying my hair to even try a sunset ombre.
I had done ombres before. Mostly darker purples, blues and greens. They were always pretty straight-forward: grab a section, paint on a color, then the overlap the next color a bit, repeat, boom you're done. Sometimes I would alternate the color I started with in a section, creating more color variation. These combinations seemed more forgiving with transitions, and my best guess is because they are darker.
In my first attempt at the sunset ombre, I thought simply layering from lightest color to darkest color would create the best ombre effect. I was wrong and ended up with hair that looked more like thick horizontal stripes than a blended sunset. Even with the slight overlap in colors, the color did not stick the way I wanted it to.
The next time I tried a sunset ombre in my hair, I thought that pre-mixing the colors to creating the between-colors was the way to go. The results were better, but it was also a lot of work. It also resulted in inconsistent colors through my hair, because I did not initially mix enough between-colors to do my entire head. It looked alright, but wasn't quite what I was going for. It also took way too long. Between the amount of time it takes me to bleach my hair light enough, pre-mix between colors, and then apply it easily took me twice the time it normally takes to dye my hair.
In making these mistakes, I did find the best way to do sunset ombre hair that blended nicely while also not taking an extraordinary amount of extra time to do. I hope you find these tips helpful when trying your own DIY Sunset ombre hair dying at home.
Preparation
Make sure you have the right colors
This can be tricky if you don't have experience with the colors or brands already. Some colors are stronger than others. So one pink might overpower an orange, whereas another might get swallowed by it. I've tried several variations of colors and brands to help provide guidance.
In this DIY, I used La Riche Directions Fluorescent Yellow, Fluorescent Orange, Cerise, and Deep Purple.
Get your hair as light as you can
I know this seems like a no-brainer, but it's very important for the sunset ombre. For darker colors you could probably get away with levels as low as 4 and 5 (think light brown and medium brown), but for this I wouldn't even try until you reached 9 or 10.
The more even-colored and light your hair is the more vibrant the colors will be. The more neutral the better, but a yellow undertone should still work.
Before you start
A quick note before you start: I’m sharing the process that works for me based on my own experience coloring my hair at home. Hair condition, starting color, products, and results can vary. Always follow the instructions and safety warnings provided with your bleach, developer, and hair dye, including patch and strand testing when recommended. If you’re unsure whether your hair can safely handle bleaching or coloring, talk with a licensed professional before getting started.
Make sure your hair is clean and dry. Clean so oils haven't built up yet, and dry because if your hair is full of water already it won't absorb the dye as well. I also suggest your hair only being washed and not conditioned, because some conditioners seal hair, but that's up to you.
Separate your hair in to four sections
This can seem like a pain, but it will really help it move faster in the long run. Split your hair straight down the middle like you're doing pig tails. Ponytail one side. On the side that's free split in half from right behind your ear up to the top of your head. Put those in pony tails. Repeat on the other side. I have so much hair, I also split the back ponytails horizontally again, so I end up with six ponytails. Clips are much easier to use, but ponytails work, too.
Protect yourself!
I promise you do not want a pink forehead or purple hands. As cool as it sounds it really creates more conversations with strangers than you'll likely care for. Put vaseline on your hairline, forehead and ears. For good measure, and because of experience I also put it on my cheeks, chin and neck. If you don't have vaseline, diaper cream works just as well. Regular hand lotion helps, but does not eliminate the dyed skin issue. And for your hand's sake please wear gloves. You can get them at the dollar store. I'd also suggest a towel or cape wrapped around you, and clothes you don't care about.
Get your colors ready
It also makes it a lot easier if you have all of your colors open and set up. If your brush is too big to fit in the hair dye pot, put the colors in disposable bowls or plates. I do not suggest using reusable plates or bowls, especially plastic. Unless of course they are your designated "hair dye" bowls. In my experience, even if they don't get stained, they never really lose the "hair dye" smell. And personally, once a bowl has been used for hair dye, I don't want to eat out of it later.
Dye your hair sunset ombre!
To be fair, its more like a reverse sunset. Because my ends tend to stain and my roots lighten really well, I like using the lighter colors in my roots. This is one of those instances where "hot roots" are a good thing.
Section by section
I learned that this ombre needs to be done all at once in one section. That means you'll place the yellow, orange, pink and purple then move to the next section. This way instead of doing all of the yellow roots first and risking them drying up before even getting to orange, the dye will still be creamy and easier to blend.
Section process
I like to start in the front. I unclip a front and separate out a 1/4 inch horizontal section right above my ear and clip up the rest of my hair. I then move up my head and repeat in all sections so the hair I just dyed is lying on the already dyed hair.
Painting the sunset ombre
With your brush or fingers, get some yellow dye and work it deep in to the root. Then with your fingers grab your hair section and pull any remaining yellow down about 1/3 of the way down your hair length. It will get lighter as you pull it down. Add orange to the section about 1/4 the way down your hair, so it overlaps the yellow. Again with your fingers grab the hair section and pull down about 2/3 length of your hair. Get a little bit more yellow and put it right above the orange and rub your fingers up and down blending the yellow and orange.
You'll then grab some pink and overlap it at the very end of the orange section where the orange is lightest. Again pull the remaining pink down the length of your hair, leaving only about 2-4 inches that are not pink. Get a little bit more orange and put it right above where the pink and rub your fingers up and down blending the orange and pink.
Put the purple on the tips and rub your fingers up in to the pink. Get a little bit more pink and put it right above the purple and rub your fingers up and down the length of your hair, blending the pink and purple.
After using purple you'll want to rinse or wipe your gloves off.
Repeat
You'll work from bottom to top in quarter inch sections, repeating the same process above in each section. Make sure to rinse or wipe your gloves off after using purple or it will mix with the yellow.
Now we wait
Once all of your hair is has dye on it, use a logo-free plastic bag or shower cap to lock in moisture. The longer it stays moist, the easier it will move in to your hair. I like to leave bright colors like these on for as long as possible. I've slept with bags or plastic wrap on my head before, but I don't recommend it. The manufacturer recommends 15–30 minutes; I personally have left mine on longer, but follow the directions on your product. In my own experience, longer processing times have resulted in more vibrant color that seems to last longer.
Rinse
Once you've waited as long as you can stand, rinse your hair with luke warm water. Or cold if you can stand it. I don't wait until the water runs completely clear, as purple tends to bleed forever. I wait until its clear-ish, and then add conditioner and rinse.
Drying
I suggest air drying. If you can't wait, make sure to use heat protectant spray before blow drying on low heat. Heat fades hair color, and you want to keep it as long as possible, right?
Ta-daaaa
And that's it! Now you get to enjoy your beautifully blended sunset ombre hair.
How Does it Fade?
I wanted to show you a progression of how it faded, so I went back through and pulled some pictures that showed the color pretty well. I thought for sure that the Day 7 picture was edited or enhanced, so went back through 5 million pictures to find the original. Turns out it wasn't. This is the original picture and my hair was really that bright.
Day 21 was taken in different lighting--was I in IKEA?--so anyways, it looks a bit more reddish than it probably was. But still gives you an idea of the fade progression.
And Day 40 is one of the reasons I really love Directions Hair dye. It takes a long time to fade, and even when it does, it stays so pretty! If you look closely you can see the dark growth...and bubbles, lots of tiny bubbles.
Share your results
Did you do it? If you did, I'd love to see your results! I'd also love to hear feedback about what did not work for you or if something was confusing.
Thank you for following along with your favorite home hair colorist—with more questionable confidence than credentials
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