Possible way to protect hair from conventional peroxide damage

[ktani]

I'm sorry I didn't reply sooner; I must have forgotten to subscribe to the thread and I just saw this message.

I had recommended overnight oiling to my friend, but it wasn't an option this time. As for how much she used, it was probably a "medium" amount - enough so that the hair looked greasy, but not so much that I would consider it heavily oiled. Basically, she placed a small amount between her palms, rubbed them together, and then worked it through her hair.

I should note that she allowed the coconut oil to soak in for an hour and half only for the first bleaching; we did not let the coconut oil really soak in for the subsequent bleachings - just reapplied after rinsing the previous bleach batch out and then immediately applying the next (freshly mixed) batch of bleach.

My friend has bleached her hair one more time since then, and this is what she had to say:

"By the way, tonight is the first time I've let my hair dry without putting any product in it, and because of that I never really had a sense of what the post-bleach/color texture was like. I mean, I knew the coconut oil had helped; I could tell it wasn't totally fried, which is what I expected. Mind you, before I applied the brighter pink dye, I (using coconut oil again, of course) bleached it once more with a 40 volume developer. I felt like it was still too golden and that took a lot of the rest of it out. And even with THAT, 4 bleachings total, I was shocked when I felt my hair without product. It's SOFT AND SILKY. I had no idea it felt as good as it does. I'm not kidding when I say it may actually feel BETTER than before I bleached it. O.o

That sh*t WORKS!"

So, a strong endorsement for coconut oil! Thanks again!

Somehow I do not think I can use her last line as a quote often, lol.

Thank you so much for replying and no worries about the time lag.

My confusion now is about how and where to classify your report for her. In your first post she says she has damaged hair. In this last post, it is not clear to me if she thinks she some from after the 4 bleachings or not (if there is I am trying to determine what kind and how extensive it is) or whether her hair was damaged prior to the bleachings. I hope that I am being clear, lol.

[Themis]

Somehow I do not think I can use her last line as a quote often, lol.

Thank you so much for replying and no worries about the time lag.

My confusion now is about how and where to classify your report for her. In your first post she says she has damaged hair. In this last post, it is not clear to me if she thinks she some from after the 4 bleachings or not (if there is I am trying to determine what kind and how extensive it is) or whether her hair was damaged prior to the bleachings. I hope that I am being clear, lol.

Hahaha!

Her hair was virgin and undamaged prior to the bleachings, but she uses commercial products and is not "into" hair care or hair health. In its virgin state, her hair is very fine and somewhat thin and almost always looks lank and slightly oily.

I believe that she is saying that her hair feels better now than it did prior to the bleachings (i.e., no damage). I suspect that what might have happened is that the bleaching did in fact damage her hair somewhat (it would have to in order to lift out the color), but that in the process it also stripped off years and years worth of accumulated silicone and other product build-up... leading to the impression that the hair is softer, silkier, and healthier than pre-bleaching.

That's my theory anyway. So I would probably classify the results as "minimal damage" or "some damage" - which after 4 bleachings in short period of time is still very impressive, in my opinion. She has not reported any breakage and is very happy with the results.

I do think it's worth noting that her hair is very short.

[ktani]

Hahaha!

Her hair was virgin and undamaged prior to the bleachings, but she uses commercial products and is not "into" hair care or hair health. In its virgin state, her hair is very fine and somewhat thin and almost always looks lank and slightly oily.

I believe that she is saying that her hair feels better now than it did prior to the bleachings (i.e., no damage). I suspect that what might have happened is that the bleaching did in fact damage her hair somewhat (it would have to in order to lift out the color), but that in the process it also stripped off years and years worth of accumulated silicone and other product build-up... leading to the impression that the hair is softer, silkier, and healthier than pre-bleaching.

That's my theory anyway. So I would probably classify the results as "minimal damage" or "some damage" - which after 4 bleachings in short period of time is still very impressive, in my opinion. She has not reported any breakage and is very happy with the results.

I do think it's worth noting that her hair is very short.

Thank you for the fast reply.

Lightening does not always or have to = damage but in this case, I will still put all of your posts in Report Post III, lol.

[Dolly]

OK, it has been about 8 weeks since I last colored, and my grays were showing badly, so I did it yesterday (I always keep a box or two of my color on hand).

It was a spur of the moment decision, so I did not do an overnight coconut oil soak this time. Instead, I saturated my hair, roots to tips, with coconut oil and left it for 30 min, then colored.

I still had excellent results, even with the shorter time frame of the soak. This method has made a believer of me, in that you can chemically dye and still have healthy hair. My hair is soft, shiny, and just beautiful. I would post pics, but that would be redundant and time-consuming, and things are busy here right now. If you look at my last pictoral results in this thread, the results this time are exactly the same.....no damage, no dryness, just silky smooth, with VERY vibrant color.

[ktani]

OK, it has been about 8 weeks since I last colored, and my grays were showing badly, so I did it yesterday (I always keep a box or two of my color on hand).

It was a spur of the moment decision, so I did not do an overnight coconut oil soak this time. Instead, I saturated my hair, roots to tips, with coconut oil and left it for 30 min, then colored.

I still had excellent results, even with the shorter time frame of the soak. This method has made a believer of me, in that you can chemically dye and still have healthy hair. My hair is soft, shiny, and just beautiful. I would post pics, but that would be redundant and time-consuming, and things are busy here right now. If you look at my last pictoral results in this thread, the results this time are exactly the same.....no damage, no dryness, just silky smooth, with VERY vibrant color.

Thank you so much for the report and the reference to you prior report with details. Only 30 minutes! Fantastic!.

The difference from what I read in terms of such great results and timing is that the heavier the oiling the better the results and that now a reduced timing can be needed as well.

[Dolly]

Thank you so much for the report and the reference to you prior report with details. Only 30 minutes! Fantastic!.

The difference from what I read in terms of such great results and timing is that the heavier the oiling the better the results and that now a reduced timing can be needed as well.

You're very welcome! I am just pleased to know that I can get the same great results, even with such a short pre-soak time.

[ktani]

You're very welcome! I am just pleased to know that I can get the same great results, even with such a short pre-soak time.

These are the pictures from your Report #18, where you first got no dryness at all, with a heavy oiling, http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/...&postcount=682.

And here is where you reported that you were getting even better dye uptake with the heavier oiling, and the confirmation of that from those around you in real life, in your Report #26, http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/...postcount=1169 as well as by professionls, on the condition of your hair with the pre-treatment, http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/...postcount=1171. Your fiance's verdict on increased dye uptake with heavy coconut oil pre-treatment, from your Report #35, http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/...postcount=1200.

From the reports, the pre-treatment time in general depends on the process used, for example, a demi colour, with less peroxide in it, would require less time than a permanent colour or bleach.

For heavy oilings before bleach, to be on the safe side, I would recommend as much time as possible. For a semi-permanent colour with argan oil added on top of a deep (but not heavy) coconut oiling, 3 hours was reported to give even better results, than an overnight coconut oiling alone on fragile fine hair, so even less time in my opinion, would be required with a heavy oiling.

I have added your report to Report Post II, bringing the total of no damage reports so far to 41, including the 1 by pm only, which is not listed.

[Dolly]

These are the pictures from your Report #18, where you first got no dryness at all, with a heavy oiling, http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/...&postcount=682.

And here is where you reported that you were getting even better dye uptake with the heavier oiling, and the confirmation of that from those around you in real life, in your Report #26, http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/...postcount=1169 as well as by professionls, on the condition of your hair with the pre-treatment, http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/...postcount=1171. Your fiance's verdict on increased dye uptake with heavy coconut oil pre-treatment, from your Report #35, http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/...postcount=1200.

From the reports, the pre-treatment time in general depends on the process used, for example, a demi colour, with less peroxide in it, would require less time than a permanent colour or bleach.

For heavy oilings before bleach, to be on the safe side, I would recommend as much time as possible. For a semi-permanent colour with argan oil added on top of a deep (but not heavy) coconut oiling, 3 hours was reported to give even better results, than an overnight coconut oiling alone on fragile fine hair, so even less time in my opinion, would be required with a heavy oiling.

I have added your report to Report Post II, bringing the total of no damage reports so far to 41, including the 1 by pm only, which is not listed.

Thank you ktani! You are so thorough, and I appreciate this thread....otherwise, I would have never been tempted to try pre-dye oiling!

People who do not know me are always asking about my hair color.....none of them can believe that my hair could be this healthy looking with repeated use of permanent color.

[ktani]

Thank you ktani! You are so thorough, and I appreciate this thread....otherwise, I would have never been tempted to try pre-dye oiling!

People who do not know me are always asking about my hair color.....none of them can believe that my hair could be this healthy looking with repeated use of permanent color.

You are most welcome!

Thank you for your support.

Without people like you, this thread would have remained theory. The field testing has been most important and I have learned along with everyone who has reported.

[CrystalTips]

Hi Ktani

This is my first post here on the long hair community! I had to post as I am totally fascinated by your findings regarding coconut/argan oil as a pre-treatment to colouring! I am very grateful for the amount of effort you have put into this research.

I have been having my hair highlighted/coloured since my teens (let's just say a loooong time! LOL) and I am sure it is damaged - it must be! I absolutely plan to try this the next time I go to my salon for highlights and root colour (2-3 weeks). I have tint highlights every three months and semi-colour on roots (to cover grey) every 6 weeks. I am also very curly and follow a cowash routine (no sulphates or silicones).

I'm hoping my colourist will be up for trying this out - as I will need lots of info from him on the colour he uses on my hair (ingredients, brand, chemical mix etc) so that I can report back accurately.

I plan to do an overnight oiling (reasonably heavy - about 2 tbs) with virgin coconut oil (have already been using it on my hair for the last month or so in order to guage how much oil my hair soaks up) and then a further, lighter application of virgin coconut oil and argan oil in the morning - 3 hours or so before the colour (It takes me about an hour and a half to get to salon on the London underground - I will stink of coconut oil - LOL).

If there is anything you need to know from me beforehand - or anything you or anyone else thinks I should ask my colourist - please let me know and I will find out.

Once again, thanks so much for all your efforts and thanks to everyone who has contributed to this research - it's brilliant!