How to use GDS Hair Dye Shampoo
Ten minutes in the shower.
Two or three washes.
Gloves on, wet hair, a visible layer over the grey, ten minutes, then rinse until the water runs clear. Full coverage on heavy grey builds over two or three washes. Patch test 48 hours before every use — this is a permanent oxidative dye (PPD in Black, PTD in the browns, resorcinol in all three).
Wet hair, worked through like a shampoo. A visible layer over the grey — if you can see hair through it, add more. Roots, parting and temples first, then the lengths.
Wait ten minutes, rinse lukewarm. Three is the label minimum and where most "lighter than I expected" comments come from. Ten is the target; stubborn white can go to fifteen.
Full coverage builds. Colour lands on the first wash. The second lands darker, and heavy or resistant grey usually needs a third. From there it's roots-only every two to four weeks.
Five things to have sorted before the first pump.
Patch test, every time
A dab behind the ear, 48 hours, uncovered. Any redness or itch means stop. Repeat before each use, not only the first.
Gloves on first
It stains skin and nails for days — the most repeated complaint in the reviews, almost always from bare hands.
An old towel
Tile and porcelain rinse clean with soap. Cotton keeps the colour.
Nothing to mix
The developer is already in the formula. No tray, no second bottle, no timer app.
Scalp hair only
Not beards, not brows, not lashes. Facial skin reacts far more readily to the dye intermediates (PPD in Black, PTD in the browns).
Wet hair, ten minutes, seven steps.
The whole thing happens in the shower. There is nothing to mix and no second bottle — the developer is already in the formula.
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01
Gloves on Before you touch the pump.
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02
Wet your hair, squeeze out the excess Damp, not dripping. Water running down your neck carries dye with it.
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03
Pump a visible layer, not a film A parting and the temples take a few pumps. All-over on heavy grey takes several times that. If you can see hair through it, add more.
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04
Work it through like shampoo Start where the grey is — usually roots, parting and temples — then bring the lather through the lengths.
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05
Wait ten minutes10 min Three is the label minimum and where most "lighter than I expected" comments come from. Ten is the target. Stubborn white can go to fifteen.
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06
Rinse lukewarm until it runs clear Hot water opens the cuticle and lets colour escape.
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07
Skip the conditioner Six plant oils are in the formula: avocado, macadamia, jojoba, olive, grape seed, camellia. Dry as usual.
Longer gives deeper colour. It does not make the product gentler — the allergen contact is the same, which is why the patch test matters more than the timer.
Wet hair for touch-ups, dry hair for heavy grey.
Wet hair · everyday
The gentler method. Lather in the shower, ten minutes, rinse. Use it for roots and touch-ups once the first full application is done.
Dry hair · first application on heavy grey
No water diluting the dye, so it takes more evenly and lands a shade deeper. Same gloves, same amount, ten to fifteen minutes. Rinse the same way.
Colour lands on the first wash. Full coverage builds.
Wash 1
Colour lands. How much grey it covers depends on how much grey there is. Scattered grey gets close; heavy white stays lighter.
Wash 2 · next day
Lands darker than the first because the pigment builds. This is where most people with 60 to 70 percent white land the result.
Wash 3
Full, even coverage on resistant hair. From here it is roots-only every two to four weeks as the line shows.
The result is permanent in the chemical sense: colour forms inside the hair shaft and does not rinse out. It leaves only as the hair grows. Roots-only use makes a bottle last four to six months; all-over on heavy grey runs closer to a bottle a month. Our bottle calculator walks through it.
Match the hair you have now, not the hair you want.
Black
Lands exactly as dark as it says and does not go warm. Also does not forgive a shade you did not want.
Ships as GDS BlackDark Brown
The safer brown. Pick this over Brown if you are more than half grey; it settles without turning brassy.
Ships as Couture Deep BrownBrown
Sits on a warm base. Reads reddish when there is a lot of white under it or when rinsed early. Give it the full ten minutes.
Ships as Couture BrownWhich shade for how much grey, and why Brown goes warm, is in the shade guide. The bottle that arrives may carry the Korean-market name on the front; both ingredient lists are set out side by side on About the label.
Two labels, one bottle.
The export label you may know and the Korean-market label we ship, side by side for each shade. Same line, same formula, same size — only the name on the front differs.
BLACK
BROWN
DARK BROWN
What produces most of the bad results.
No gloves. Stained hands for days.
Rinsing at three minutes on heavy grey. Lighter, patchier; brown reads warm.
A film instead of a layer. If you can see hair through it, add more.
Brown on mostly white hair. Goes brassy. Dark Brown is the safer call.
Hot rinse. Pulls colour back out.
Beard or brows. Not what it is for, and not where you want an oxidative dye.
Skipping the patch test because last time was fine. That is exactly how sensitisation announces itself.
Patch test 48 hours ahead.
Every time, not just the first.
A small dab behind the ear or on the inner elbow, left uncovered for 48 hours. Any redness, itching or swelling means do not use it. Black is built on PPD; Brown and Dark Brown on PTD (toluene-2,5-diamine), a close relative that cross-reacts — sensitisation can appear after years of trouble-free use, which is why the test is repeated before each application.
Ammonia-free, paraben-free, and still a real permanent dye.
The colour comes from a primary intermediate — PPD in Black, PTD (toluene-2,5-diamine) in Brown and Dark Brown — with resorcinol and two more couplers, developed by hydrogen peroxide and alkalised with ethanolamine instead of ammonia. That is what covers grey and what carries the allergen risk; there is no version that keeps one without the other. We grade every ingredient and publish the list rather than a "free-from" claim.
● high · ● mid · ● low — our screening's assessment, not a safety determination
The full declared lists for every shade, each ingredient graded, are on the ingredients page. How a dye shampoo does this chemically, and why "PPD-free" on other brands is not the safety badge it looks like, is in our piece on hair dye shampoos and the PPD question.
Quick answers.
Do I use GDS hair dye shampoo on wet or dry hair? +–
Wet hair, worked through like a shampoo, is the everyday method. Apply to dry hair for more intensity on white, wiry or heavy grey.
How long do I leave GDS hair dye shampoo on? +–
Ten minutes is the target. Three is the label minimum and often too light on heavy grey; stubborn white hair can go to fifteen minutes. Beyond that there is little extra colour to gain, and the allergen contact is the same either way.
Does GDS hair dye shampoo stain skin? +–
Yes. It stains skin and nails for a few days, which is the most repeated complaint in the reviews. Wear the gloves. Surfaces rinse clean with soap and water.
Will one wash cover all my grey? +–
Plan on two or three washes for full coverage. Scattered grey gets there sooner than heavy or resistant white hair, and the second wash lands darker than the first because the pigment builds. The dry-hair method on the first application shortens the gap.
Do I need a conditioner after GDS hair dye shampoo? +–
No. The formula includes avocado, macadamia, jojoba, olive, grape seed and camellia oils. If your hair runs very dry you can add one — choose a colour-safe conditioner so it does not fight the next application.
How do I patch test GDS hair dye shampoo? +–
Apply a small dab behind the ear or on the inner elbow, leave it uncovered for 48 hours, and do not use the product if there is any redness, itching or swelling. Repeat the test before every application. Black contains PPD; Brown and Dark Brown contain PTD, a close relative; all three contain resorcinol.
Can I use GDS hair dye shampoo on my beard or eyebrows? +–
No. It is formulated and tested for scalp hair only. Facial skin is far more reactive to PPD and PTD, and the eyes are close by.
Where does it ship from, and how long does it take? +–
Made in Korea and dispatched from Seoul within one to three business days with a tracking number. After dispatch, typically seven to fourteen business days to the US, Canada and the UK, and five to twelve to Australia, Hong Kong and Singapore.
Black, Brown, Dark Brown.
Every ingredient graded on the product page.
Ships from Korea within one to three business days, tracked. Patch test 48 hours before every use.