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View Full Version : Color dilemma and a huge request (with some pics)



Kikina
December 23rd, 2013, 02:58 PM
It's silly how everybody around me first said "Oh, no don't ruin your hair! What don't you like about the color?"
And now they are all like "Oh no, it actually looks so great on you, this is your color, you are pale and it suits you perfectly!"
This. Is. Just. Painful.
I recently started thinking about going back to my natural color. Well, not exactly but I want to leave my hair be for some time after I dye it one last time with the closest color I find. I'm not really into roots.
I started dyeing my hair about a year and a half ago. My hair color used to be something of really cold dark brown (not black) and now it varies from bright red to copper, ginger or auburn every time I redye it. I LOVE it, but I think I'm really tiring my baby and it doesn't want to grow as fast as I want. It's obvious that dyeing already grown natural hair is much better that growing it while constantly dyeing.
Let's be honest, I don't think I will cope with my natural color for more that 3-4 months (mid-January to mid-April for sure), but I like to thing that my hair is going "on a vacation". I''m planning to give it the ultimate treatment and try to make it as long as possible for that short time.

Here is my old color, if you ignore the highlights and the curls (when I used to torture my baby so often):
http://i857.photobucket.com/albums/ab135/Kikina42/DSC_4929_zpsa3c5a56e.jpg

Now it is mostly like that but after the first wash or two it looks really natural:
http://i857.photobucket.com/albums/ab135/Kikina42/13-04-24d_zpsf11c6e1f.jpg

When the dye wears out, it may even look like that:
http://i857.photobucket.com/albums/ab135/Kikina42/13-12-13_zps7b519bb0.jpg

I really need a lot of advice from you, so please share everything you know:
Will that rest worth it for the given time?
How do I fake the dark natural color I have (without using black dye or without easy-fading one)? I know I need to grow bigger roots, but then what?
If I wear my hair dark and then again go back to red, will I damage it more than if I just stick to the red?
Is it possible to reach tailbone with dyed hair EVER? I mean if I am really, really assiduous?

I also need to pick out some growing methods. I know that LHS is full of it, but I feel my hair rather healthy and strong. It is regular 1c ii with a bit coarse strands, neither dry nor greasy. It has developed a slight tendency for split ends, but I'm getting a micro trim soon. I also happen to have layers, unfortunately.
I need ideas for INSANE growth because I need to to catch up in no time. I ask all of you here with similar hair to share what works best. And I mean everything: best products, hairstyles, combs and brushes, techniques, vitamins, routines, some little tricks... etc.

bythesea
December 23rd, 2013, 07:31 PM
I had bleached blonde hair and highlights for a long time. When I decided to start growing my hair out I got a box of semi-permanent dye that matched my roots and just used that and then let my hair grow. It did start to fade, so I had to redo it once (again, with semi perm dye) but I liked that it faded.

The key is to just not dye your hair again. If you look at my past posts, you'll see I was asking tons of questions about dying my hair again but I just decided to not do it! If you make the decision to stop dying it, you just have to stick with it. If I were in your shoes, I'd stop dying my hair and let it grow to tailbone length. Once it gets to your goal length, then you can decide if you want to dye it again!

As far as whether or not it will damage your hair more to go brown then red again... it's a possibility. Maybe just dye a light brown color so that if you do decide to go red again you could just dye over it and NOT have to bleach it first.

FoxyGhost
December 23rd, 2013, 07:40 PM
My hair is very similar to yours. I'm a natural dark ash brown and I dye to copper red. My hair is nearly tbl and has been even longer in the past. I used to dye the whole length every time because red fades so fast. I got tired of the damage at the ends and wanted to grow even longer but I can't get rid of the red hair. I started just dyeing the roots with permanent hair dye ( loreal feria copper shimmer) and using henna and vegetable based dyes to combat the length fade with minimal damage. The only problem with using henna is you have to like henna red and stick with it. I used to go from auburn to deep red to copper but I can anymore. I find copper suits me best so I'm ok with it.

restless
December 23rd, 2013, 09:46 PM
Will that rest worth it for the given time?

If I wear my hair dark and then again go back to red, will I damage it more than if I just stick to the red?

My thoughts on two of your questions:
1: Honestly I dont think your hair sees the brown dye as a type of "rest" in any way, itīll just be yet another dye and generally dye puts a strain on your hair. In what way would it be a rest? Do you dye your hair monthly now but with brown hair youd only dye it once in four months? Do you also bleach your hair before you insert the red dye now? It sounds like you plan on dyening your hair brown and then take awesome care of it for a short while to gain lenght, but why not do it now instead? You can still do that with red hair and since it seems that you dont really wanna keep the brown anyway then Id just let it be. Then lenght will come in time, start being kind to your hair today already.

2: Would you need bleach when you go from your dyed brown to red again? Then Id definitly say thats more damaging than just letting it be as it is now.

But then again- its your hair and YOU are the one who should be pleased with it. Not me, not any one else here and not the people who say youre prettier in brown/ red suits you best; nobody. Do what makes you happy and have fun :)

0xalis
December 23rd, 2013, 10:27 PM
Both are beautiful! For the sake of your hair I would go with natural, but it's up to you!

Flor
December 23rd, 2013, 11:33 PM
Well, frankly, if you don't want to go back to your natural color, then I don't see a point in a few months rest with dyeing back to brown.

You may be perfect candidate for henna, actually. You might wanna look into it and consider a strand test. On the last pic your hair looks bleached to some degree, so henna won't do that to you, obviously. But it would give you that coppery firey-in-sunlight hue.

As for tips for healthy growth. Well, the forum is full of them, you just have to read. It's all trial and error and what works for one, doesn't work for another. It's up to you to decide what you want to try.

Kikina
December 28th, 2013, 03:55 PM
Thank you all for the replies. I have decided not to go brown again, at least for the next couple of years, probably.
And yes, I do bleach my hair, but I go through the whole length once in 2-3 dyeing sessions.
I have already started to take care of it. I stretched shampoo-washing a bit, totally ruled out heat tools. I only use blow dryer when I'm cold or in a hurry, which rarely happens and I usually just blow a bit in my roots to avoid headaches. I've put into use olive and argan oil (mainly for my inversion method experiments) and sometimes co-wash. I also do braids when going to bed. I believe my hair feels remarkably healthy
The only thing that I can't remove as a habit is combing my hair when wet, but I try my best to be gentle using wide toothed comb just to put it in place. I really have a thing for combing/brushing, though, so I do it a lot on dry hair.
I really consider using henna, but my mum doesn't seem to be a big fan of it. For a while I guess I will stick to dyeing, but she claims to have chosen less harsh dye to prevent excess damage. I still haven't found if that's the truth, but do you think I can compensate for now?

durgidog
December 28th, 2013, 04:22 PM
Plenty of people grow very long hair while bleaching/dyeing and it sounds like you're treating your hair well. Coconut oil can help a lot when used while dyeing hair, you'll find plenty of info on that on the forum and all over the web. Make sure you deep condition after every session. I don't think the dye process is as damaging as the bleaching process, so really scrutinize the products you're using to lift color. Other members may have some advice on what bleach would be the mildest.

If you are co-washing have you given up some silicones and sulfates in your routine? Sulfates are harsh and silicones can mask damage, although cones can also be helpful in growing out damaged hair.

I love henna and if it weren't for your mother's feelings I would suggest it as well. As your ends get longer you can assess the damage and at some point maybe you will decide to stop bleaching, you can always dye without bleach and achieve an auburn on your natural color. Good luck!

durgidog
December 28th, 2013, 04:27 PM
Also, protein fillers are recommended on frequently dyed hair before coloring, I imagine other members have experience with them and can share some advice. You could use a red one to boost your color:

http://www.sallybeauty.com/on/demandware.store/Sites-SA-Site/default/Product-Show?pid=SBS-636302&dwvar_SBS-636302_color=%2310+Red+Red

ETA: Although I don't know if using coconut oil with a protein filler is advised or not, hopefully other members will know the answer to that.

Arciela
December 28th, 2013, 04:58 PM
I think both colors are beautiful but if I had to pick I would say natural :flower: It looks so pretty!

swearnsue
December 28th, 2013, 05:54 PM
For fast hair growth I recommend diatomaceous earth. It gave me a real boost in growth for about 2 months and then I went back to normal. I still take DE though for other health reasons.

Laccaria
December 28th, 2013, 06:47 PM
My hair is very similar to yours. I'm a natural dark ash brown and I dye to copper red. My hair is nearly tbl and has been even longer in the past. I used to dye the whole length every time because red fades so fast. I got tired of the damage at the ends and wanted to grow even longer but I can't get rid of the red hair. I started just dyeing the roots with permanent hair dye ( loreal feria copper shimmer) and using henna and vegetable based dyes to combat the length fade with minimal damage. The only problem with using henna is you have to like henna red and stick with it. I used to go from auburn to deep red to copper but I can anymore. I find copper suits me best so I'm ok with it.

That is ingenious! I too have naturally medium/darkish brown hair, and feria copper shimmer is my absolute favorite red color for my hair/skin tone. But, it does fade like crazy, and the constant re-dying really is rough on the ends after a while. When I looked into henna before it looked like henna over my natural color would be too dark/burgundy-toned for what I prefer for my hair. Plus, henna sounds like waaay to much work for monthly touchups. I could, however, see touching up the roots with the copper shimmer (which lightens my hair several levels) as needed and hennaing just a few times a year. Going to have to look into this idea. Thanks!

ravenheather
December 28th, 2013, 09:31 PM
I would totally henna if I were in your shoes.

ErinLeigh
December 29th, 2013, 01:06 AM
do you bleach the whole length every 2-3 dyes or just the roots?

Kikina
January 10th, 2014, 02:46 PM
Hey guys, thank you for the attention. I think there is no point in starting a new thread, so I'll just write here.
I really like the idea of henna, but I realised that since I won't probably use it soon, I can make the best of the fading.


do you bleach the whole length every 2-3 dyes or just the roots?t
2-3, sometimes 3-4 but over the difference gets sillier, because in the beginning my hair has this magenta'type of dark red before it washes out to the usual red.

I am, in general, the absolute ombre hater, but that is mostly because IMO dark sharply turning into platinium/golden blonde looks silly. But, recently realised that, if it's done right, the slowly fading red color might look really nice.

My idea is some kind of a reverse-ombre, in which, instead of bleaching my ends, I will leave them fade as much as they want to, while slowly darkening the upper parts. I think it is something that might work better if I do it in the process of, let's say, 3-4-5 dyeing/bleaching sessions, I believe it is an alternative way of slowly causing less and less damage while still being redhead/

I will try to be more specific about my idea:
-My hair is red right now. Not firey, screaming red, nor ginger. It's just... red.
But it will fade out after some time and all of it will go light copper red. Then:
-I'll dye/bleach only 2/3 of thee length, completely leaving the ends.
It will probably look something like this:
http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-NG5SayYFE3c/Ubs4bwU9MqI/AAAAAAAABuc/J5jix8f74hE/s1600/001.JPG
I'm not really fond of that exact, but I know it will wear out and looks less... pink.
-Do the same, but this time with less than 1/2 of the length and with a bit darker and less intense color, while the rest of it keeps fading and blending.
-Repeat until reaching a pretty dark scalp hair going down to pretty light ends. Then I will just maintenance it without bleaching with some dark auburn tones.
-Probably at some point I may bleach the last 2-3 inches or less, just to finish the look, but I can do that to them after they start getting in need to be cut to prevent future regrets.

So what do you think?
from roots to ends: dark auburn > red (the one that looks most natural, but still not ginger) > ginger (natural. not orange) > strawberry blonde
Will that make me at least a bit of a firehead? ;)