About Good Dye Young
Besides their love of puns, what is there to know about Good Dye Young? Firstly, they sell hair dye. Secondly, they are founded by Hayley Williams—yes, the Hayley Williams of Paramore! Very cool.
Who’s surprised that the brand is popping off on social media? With 260k followers on Instagram, 113k on Facebook, and 70k followers on Twitter, plus even 30k subscribers on YouTube, it’s safe to say they’ve put effort into growing their image.
They’re also talk of the town in Forbes, NYLON, Allure, Bustle, Refinery29, and many other notable publications. Good Dye Young is a hip, young brand that’s changing the hair dye industry one vegan, sustainable color at a time.
This Good Dye Young hair dye review will show you the ins and outs and the ups and downs: more background on the founding, bestseller products, shipping and return policies, customer testimonials, and more FAQs will be answered.
Overview of Good Dye Young
Hayley Williams, her iconic colorful ‘dos, and her bestie/hairstylist/makeup artist, Brian O’Connor, founded Good Dye Young in 2015.
The two co-founders paired up to create the brand because they share the same philosophy of self-expression. They love how effective hair can be as a creative outlet and want you to love it, too.
GDY sells quite a wide, wacky selection of products: semi-permanent dye, lightener, hair makeup, hair care, tools, and even branded merch apparel.
You can shop the store for all your semi-perm hair dying needs, and, in their words, become part of “a community bonded by self expression, limitless inspiration and flair for bold color.” And who wouldn’t want to be a part of that?
Good Dye Young has made a conscious effort to be sustainable: the brand’s packaging is all recyclable and minimalistic, plus the products are vegan and cruelty-free. They are also above-average in efforts to be inclusive of all hair types and styles.
The company is based in—*read this in a country accent*—good ol’ Nashville, Tennessee.
That’s the bio on GDY. Now take a look at these highlights from our Good Dye Young hair dye review, via a short and sweet pros and cons list:
Pros
- A variety of products to choose from, including dyes, lighteners, hair makeup, hair care tools, and more
- Hair products are made without peroxide, PPD, ammonia, or animal-derived ingredients
- Free shipping on orders over $30
- Rewards program
- Positive customer reviews
- Sustainable packaging
Cons
- More expensive than other brands
- No free returns
- International shipping can be pricey and slow
Keep these points in mind as we review the products themselves. Understanding a brand’s best-sellers is a surefire way of getting to the crux of what they do best.
Good Dye Young Hair Dye Review
GDY sells many semi-perm dyes and other hair care and tools. This Good Dye Young review will show you some of their brightest, most vibrant, and awesome shades.
But first, some info on the dye, and you’ll want to pay attention now because this applies to all the shades. Ready? Okay. First, you should know that the dye is:
- Semi-permanent. It lasts about 4-6 weeks, depending on how often you lather up in shampoo.
- Thick like a conditioner and made with natural, plant-based moisturizers like essential oils and sunflower extract
- Made with no PPD (paraphenylenediamine), making it much safer for allergy-prone folks
- Made with no ammonia or peroxide for a gentler treatment on your poor strands
- Safe for curly, wavy, and straight hair, and also for already chemically-treated and color-treated hair
Another thing to note is that it’s most suitable for already lightened hair that’s at a level 8-10. This is because lighter hair will allow those beautifully bold pigments to shine through more than they would on darker strands with more pigment already in them.
Also, the products smell just lovely. The fragrance is made of Bergamot essential oil, citrusy and bright, and overall, way better than a toxic peroxide smell.
Each box contains a 5 fl oz tube of color designed for easy application. With the thick, creamy formula, it’s typically enough for a head of medium-length hair.
If your hair is high-density, extra thick, or extra long, you should get two boxes to be safe. Remember: less is not more here. You don’t want to end up splotchy.
A box of Good Dye Young semi-permanent hair color is $18, so that’s the price for all of the colors listed down below. With that in mind, what are the best-selling shades that people’s heads are enjoying most? Let’s take a peek.
Good Dye Young Riot Review
Described as “Hayley’s signature shade,” Riot is for all you pop-punk Paramore fans out there (this Good Dye Young reviewer included). Also, it’s for all those who are fans of orange hair. It’s bright, it’s neon, it leans more red than yellow, and it’s fiery hot.
On blonde hair, Riot is bright and neon as shown on the box. Dark blondes will get a darker, slightly muted orange, and brunettes will get a brassy tone.
Good Dye Young Ex Girl Review
Ex Girl is an awesome hot pink. It’s unapologetically pink, in fact. This is the color you want when you’re looking for a bold, edgy sort of femininity that pushes the boundaries of ‘normal’.
If you apply this color on platinum or yellow blonde, you’ll get the closest to the color on the box: bright, neon hot pink. On dark blonde, it’s a dark magenta. On brunette hair, it’s closer to a reddish-brown.
Good Dye Young Kowabunga Review
Kowabunga is a funky color that only the boldest of bold hair-dye fans will get. It’s green. And loud. They literally call it “radioactive,” so you know this isn’t gonna be your average shade of green.
On platinum-to-yellow blondes, the color is the most bright, neon, as highlighter as it gets. Dark blondes, you’ll get a darker green that’s still vibrant and awesome, just less neon. Brunettes, you’ll end up with a greenish, swampy brown.
Good Dye Young PPL Eater Review
PPL Eater has a cool name, but that’s far from the only cool thing about it. This shade is bright purple and, quite frankly, awesome. You’ll feel like a rockstar with this stuff.
This purple shade has a blue base, which you should know beforehand because that’s sort of what you’ll see once it starts to fade.
PPL Eater is also a fantabulous shade because it’s particularly inclusive. On dark to platinum blondes, it will look almost the same: a bright, medium purple. On brunettes, it will still be purple, just a darker shade.
Good Dye Young Rock Lobster Review
Rock Lobster screams “look at me!” If you love to stand out from the crowd, this will surely do the trick. Most dyed redheads will have a darker, more muted shade, but Rock Lobster is a bright red as wild as the song by the B-52’s.
It’s different, but oh, the makeup looks you could pair with this… red lipstick… bold pink-red eyeshadow looks… the creative possibilities are endless.
On platinum or yellow blondes, Rock Lobster is bold and neon as promised. Dark blondes get a darker red, less neon for sure, and brunettes end up with a reddish-brown.
Good Dye Young Peach Fuzz Review
Peach Fuzz is a lovely almost-pastel orange. If you want to try on orange without the commitment of a bright highlighter shade, or, on the flip side, if you feel like going less bold and bright for a change, then check out Peach Fuzz.
On platinum blonde, the color is the one on the box: peachy orange, a little muted, almost pastel. Yellow blondes end up with a brighter yellow-orange that still leans orange.
Dark blondes and brunettes who use Peach Fuzz add a slightly brassy tone to their locks — without it looking like you bleached your hair and then completely skipped out on the toner and purple shampoo part (ie. not a good look).
This shade is weirdly complementary to darker hair, but this Good Dye Young hair dye review is here for it.
Good Dye Young Stoned Pony Review
Stoned Pony is an icy lavender with silver tones. It looks quite different depending on what your natural hair is to begin with, but the color on the box (and the color you’ll get on platinum blonde hair) is a bright, light purple.
On yellow blonde, Stoned Pony gives you a seriously stunning silvery purple tone that stands out from other purples. It’s subtler but still packs a punch.
Honestly, this shade doesn’t show up well on darker hair. They recommend you lighten your hair beforehand if you want that true silver lavender shade, otherwise, your hair will look mostly the same. Light color on top of dark hair = a waste of hair dye.
Who Is Good Dye Young For?
That’s the thing: Good Dye Young is formulated to work for most hair types: straight to wavy to curly hair, chemically-treated hair, and color-treated hair.
So don’t count yourself out if your hair has already been put through the wringer — but do be careful, and do read the label warnings always.
If you’re allergic to PPD or are just afraid that you might be and don’t want to burn your scalp off, don’t fret: you won’t find it anywhere near GDY’s colors. This hair dye is a lot safer than most on the shelves made with cheap ingredients that put you and your lovely locks at risk.
Also, the brand is vegan and cruelty-free, so you can rejoice with that knowledge. The natural, plant-based ingredients are gentler on your hair, too.
Comparison: Good Dye Young vs. oVertone
Good Dye Young sounds pretty cool on their own, but how do they match up to a competitor? oVertone is a big deal in the hair color market these days, so let us compare the two and see what sets them apart.
Firstly, here are a few things GDY and oVertone both have/do:
- Thick, creamy, conditioning formulas of semi-permanent hair color
- Fun, bright, bold shades
- Vegan and cruelty-free
- Ammonia-free
- Also sells other hair care and dye-related products
Now, what makes oVertone different?
- The dyes are hair masks with color in them
- Color lasts up to 20 washes – which may be longer or shorter than GDY’s 4-6 weeks depending on your hair wash schedule
- No international shipping – only US and Canada
So, there you have it. oVertone is probably better suited to people who want less of a dye and more of a tinted conditioner, and also, though it depends on how often you wash your hair, it fades faster than GDY for most people.
Good Dye Young Reviews: What Do Customers Think?
You didn’t think we’d write a Good Dye Young hair dye review without showing you customer ratings, did you?
We took a look at reviews on the brand site and off, from Influenster and Sephora, and these were our findings…
On the brand site, people describe themselves as “beyond ecstatic” about the dyes.
Unfortunately, we only have one star rating to show you, because the site doesn’t have individual reviews for shades, but 347 customers rated the Semi-Permanent colors 3.8/5 stars.
One customer who bought Ex-Girl wrote about being pleasantly surprised by the dye:
“I wasn’t sure what kind of pink this was going to be, but in the end I’m so happy I went with it! It turned out perfect and I’m in love. Definitely not neon pink, but a mixture of hot and a deeper pink! I also didn’t even have to get it to a level 10 to get it extremely vibrant!”
Others said that their fresh ‘do got them “so many compliments” because of how soft, shiny, and pigmented it is.
Over on Influenster, people were equally happy with the brand, saying such sweet things as “the scent is nice and the ingredients are clean,” and “I felt like I was living my Hayley Williams dream,” which is obviously a big point in the plus column.
Have a look at the Influenster ratings of some of the bestest best-sellers in this Good Dye Young hair dye review:
- Riot – 4.7/5 stars from 26 ratings
- Ex Girl – 4.3/5 stars from 38 ratings
- Kowabunga – 4.6/5 stars from 10 ratings
- PPL Eater – 4.2/5 stars from 20 ratings
- Rock Lobster – 4.8/5 stars from 11 ratings
The “soft, shiny, bright” hair you could get from the dyes has people glowing in their recommendations of GDY. One newly pink-haired customer wrote this about Ex-Girl:
“This is no filter! My hair is lifted to an 8/9 and I left this color on for about an hour! The smell of the essential oils is so amazing. The natural formula is something that really made me interested. I can’t wait to try the other colors.”
And another testimonial — this Good Dye Young review of Riot was nothing short of gleeful:
“I LOVE this hair dye! It’s long lasting, smells amazing and hydrated my hair after bleaching. … I don’t get too much bleeding in the shower … The dye also didn’t stain my skin. I was able to clean it up with coconut oil. I cannot recommend this dye enough!”
Although quite a few customers mentioned how the company is more expensive than drugstore brands, they did say that “the quality can’t be matched” and it’s “totally worth it,” so we’ll take it.
On Sephora, the Semi-Permanent Hair Color has a modest score of 3.3/5 stars from 268 reviews.
Most reviews are positive. Over half of the reviews are 4 or 5 stars — mostly 5s!
One review of the Blue Ruin Blue said that the intensity of the color is, *ahem*, “INSANE.” They testified that this stuff will last for weeks without fading much, so if you’re a fan of bold, unapologetically vibrant color, it’s for you:
“Really really a lot of color, my hair is naturally blonde and I had bleached it and dyed it blue with a hair mask, but it was fading so I got this to intensify the blue. … Really good color and no teal/green tint to it like some other blues so it’s good.”
More customers wrote promising things about how the health of their hair wasn’t compromised, the colors lasted a while, and even if it did fade, it faded to an ideal, slightly muted color that came out looking just as great.
One fan of Riot wrote this exciting Good Dye Young hair dye review:
“it was really red in the tube so when i put it in, it was a little concerning but it washed out to the exact color i wanted. it’s very vibrant and my hair feels soft and healthy. always looking for pigmented safe cruelty free dye, and so far so goooood with riot”
And all in all, reviews were on GDY’s side. Customers were mostly in agreement that the dyes were intense and bold in the best way, gentle on hair to keep it soft and shiny, and long-lasting.
Is Good Dye Young Worth It?
All things considered — cool celebrity founder, bold colors that stay bold, gentle vegan ingredients, cruelty-free, good customer reviews, creamy conditioning formulas — we have to go with yes, Good Dye Young is worth it.
While their products might be pricier than the dyes you find on drugstore shelves, it’s clearly a better option for the health of your hair.
Without harmful ingredients that are in most dyes, it’s a whole lot nicer to your strands. Think about it: no ammonia, peroxide, parabens, sulfates, or PPD. Win x5.
With positive reviews, you can trust that GDY satisfies most of their customers. Plus, the unique colors alone make this brand worth it, because you don’t find shades like Peach Fuzz, Riot, and Rock Lobster everywhere. Basically, go wild, go crazy, go bold — we dare you.
Good Dye Young Promotions & Discounts
We’re sad to report that we don’t have any real promos or coupon codes to give you, but we can tell you these three things:
- Sign up for an account to collect DYEmonds rewards
- Spend $30 to get free shipping in the US
- Follow them on social media to get updates on the latest deals — they’re on pretty much all the usual platforms
Where to Buy Good Dye Young
Good Dye Young isn’t available in many places, which makes them more special in our opinion. You can find the brand here:
- GoodDyeYoung.com
- Sally Beauty
- Sephora
And possibly other local beauty stores near you.
FAQ
Who owns Good Dye Young?
None other than Paramore’s lead singer, Hayley Williams, owns Good Dye Young, along with her co-founder, bestie, and stylist, Brian O’Connor.
Are Good Dye Young Products Vegan and Cruelty-free?
Yes and yes! Our Good Dye Young hair dye review found that all the products and fully vegan and cruelty-free. You can dye your hair a wacky color without worrying that a rabbit has done the same.
Is Good Dye Young Packaging Sustainable?
Good Dye Young’s packaging is sustainable, indeed. You can (and should) recycle their materials. The brand site even provides a simple guide to how you dispose of the packaging, so check that out for all the deets.
Can you purchase Good Dye Young at Retail Stores?
You betcha! Good Dye Young is available at these retail stores: Sephora, Sally Beauty, Walmart, and Urban Outfitters.
What are Dye Happy Rewards and do they Cost Anything?
Dye Happy rewards are your way to saving coins. It doesn’t cost you to join, but it does cost you a good deal if you don’t. All you have to do is sign up for an account on the site, and you’ll be earning points, or “DYEmonds,” with every purchase. Go, you!
What is Good Dye Young’s Shipping Policy?
Good Dye Young ships within the US and internationally. You’ll get your tracking info once your package of goodies ships.
For the US, shipping is usually pretty quick, and they deliver via these methods:
- US Flat Ground (5-7 business days) – $10 flat fee or free on orders over $30
- USPS/FedEx Priority Mail (2-3 business days) – $26
- FedEx Overnight – $65
Internationally, packages may take up to 4-6 weeks to arrive, so chill, get cozy, be patient, my friend.
What is Good Dye Young’s Return Policy?
If you haven’t used or opened the product within 30 days of receiving it, great news: you can return it. The catch: you will have to pay for shipping.
How to Contact Good Dye Young
So. You’ve learned more from this Good Dye Young review. You’re intrigued. Or maybe puzzled. Perhaps reluctant. Or even exuberant. We don’t know. But if you’re looking for more answers, you can reach out to the brand through the following methods of contact:
- Email: info@gooddyeyoung.com
- Fill out the Contact Form on the website
- Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter — they actually respond!
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