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Thread: Can You Dye Black Hair Red?

  1. #1

    Default Can You Dye Black Hair Red?

    Even though I don't have grey hair now...I sometimes wonder about the future when I will. I have black hair and am wondering if I can dye my hair dark red without too much damage? Maybe in like five or six years.

  2. #2
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    Default Re: Can You Dye Black Hair Red?

    You would have to first lighten your hair first before you can add in the red to your hair. That means that you do need to use some kind of bleach. Just putting a straight up color on black hair won't do anything. Black hair is just too dark to have any other lighter color show thro.

    However, these days many haircolor brands have now made products that can both lighten your hair and deposit the color all in one step. These products contain both the bleach and the color all mixed into one. I would definitely go to a professional salon to get it done, because they will use better quality products.

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    Member SpeakingEZ's Avatar
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    Default Re: Can You Dye Black Hair Red?

    Is your hair naturally black or dyed? I had dyed black hair about 5 years ago and had it professionally dyed to achieve red highlights--a lot of bleach damage for color that lasted 3 days. The red just fell right out. When I finally grew the black dye out of my light brown hair, I was able to dye my hair red. (I now use henna.) So I'm pretty sure it was the black dye inhibiting my color choice.

    On the other hand, my mother has black hair naturally and successfully dyes her hair red to this day.

    (Just throwing it in there, too, that the red dye I was using contributed to the hefty damage I'm now trying to grow out. My mother maintains at shoulder length. Tread wisely.)
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    Default Re: Can You Dye Black Hair Red?

    Putting a red dye over black hair at best will give you a reddish tint, although it's not really a common result.

    Lightening your hair would definately have to be involved to achieve a red colour, but if you're not thinking about doing it for five years or so then you have plenty of time to gradually lighten your hair with very little damage or grow out hair dye (if your hair is dyed).

    There will be some bleach damage involved in lightening black hair but if you do it slowly rather than suddenly bleach your hair as light as possible in a week, your hair would be able to come out of it less fried and damaged.

    But since you're planning to go dark red then it won't take a lot of lightening, you won't need white hair to achieve a dark red whereas if you were planning on going bright red you would need a light base.
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  5. #5

    Default Re: Can You Dye Black Hair Red?

    Well check this out. If you have naturally black hair, and you're not thinking of doing the red for several years, you can attempt honey lightening (http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/...read.php?t=148) once or twice per month and gradually lighten your hair a few levels to get the red to show up, because it simply will not work on black hair. You'll need to achieve at least a medium to light brown to get an auburn or deep cherry.

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    Default Re: Can You Dye Black Hair Red?

    It can be done, like others have said. In fact, you could go this route too - just slowly lighten your hair with lower volume developer. Leave it on for a little bit every other day, with protein treatments in between, and your hair will lift in stages. The darker your natural hair, the redder it will become through the lift levels. Once you have it sufficiently lightened - to your standards, then you can wait a few days and go over it with some red pigment.
    Bleaching ones own hair and then coloring over it is something maybe best done the 1st time by a pro or at least someone who's done it before. But yeah, I don't see why you couldn't. How is you hair's condition?

    * not at all saying this idea is better than any other, it's just the only one I've tried.
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