Prepping Hair For Manic Panic

[MadeiraD]

I use manic panic on my bangs and being here has inspired me to use it to maintain my purply black as well.

From what I understand, manic panic (and other temporary dyes) won't cling to dirty hair (or won't cling well) I'm a co-washer, does this mean I have to wait till after I clarify to get good results?

Also can I do a caffeine rinse after this (when I wash it out)? If I want to do a vinegar rinse to fix it do I do that before or after the caffeine?

[Verdandi]

A friend of mine did manic panic on dirty hair (not clarified) and ended up with a uneven result, like it stuck better on some parts than others.
Manic panic is rather conditioning, so a clarifying wash when you want to use the colour would probably not be that damaging or drying. (What I wish they made a conditioner, like their colours but witthout the.. uh... colour, my hair is amazingly soft after applying the dye)

Since the vinegar rinse is done to lock the colour in, I'd di that before the caffeine.I have no knowledge about caffeine rinses at all, it just seems much more logical to lock the colour in before applying anything else to it :)

[MadeiraD]

I'm pretty sure on all but the blondest hair their virgin snow toner (or their pastelizer) wouldn't leave any noticeable color

[antler_tines]

I always clarified my hair and made sure it was bone dry before dying it. As far as the caffeine rinse, what is it made of? If its coffee based then I would assume it would be fine to use after dying your hair. Coffee is somewhat acidic which should help seal the hair shaft and maybe help seal in the color.

[ooglipoo]

What is the caffeine rinse supposed to do?

[jrmviola]

I used the purple on clean hair and couldnt get it to stick unless i globbed it on and let it sit for an hour, then when i rinsed the excess out it barely had any purple sheen at all. I dont remember exactly what i did except i followed package directions. But my hair doesnt really take anything up anyways easily...

[sumidha]

Yeah, you're supposed to do it on very clean hair for best results, I'd think about doing a one time shampoo before applying it. I'm not sure about the caffeine thing, but the vinegar rinse will help smooth down the cuticle and make the dye stay, theoretically, so it should be done right after you rinse the dye out. :)

[seamstress]

It will stick to conditioned hair, but manic panic has a tendency to almost completely wash out of my hair within a week and a half no matter what. If you don't bleach first, the dye color will be changed by your natural color, and if your hair is particularly dark, it might just be highlights in the sun. To help it stay, leave it in for as long as you can. It doesn't have peroxide, so even if you leave it on for an hour or two, it won't melt your hair or anything.

[elea]

what works for me (directions or manic, same):
shampoo hair gently, rinse, let dry. (conditioner or others stop manic/others chemical dyes to get into the hair)
put head in paint pot.
let set for 2 hours (queue watch movie, clean house, have tissue ready because the phone always rings and you not necessarily want it coloured lol)
remove the paint with conditioner (shampoo takes more colour off and the conditioner gives me softer hair).
let dry and that it it. (well aside of... you know... hands and bathroom *;OP )

if i just had to bleach the roots, it fades faster but otherwise it lasts over a month for me.

[Zebra Fish]

This is how it works for me:
- shampoo gently with diluted SLS-free shampoo once and dry hair on air
- when it is dry, put MP and have it on head as long as I can (have time) stand it (1-2hrs)
- wash it off with water only (maybe put a LITTLE conditioner just on ends (last 5-10 cm) - depends on how I feel the hair that time)
- vinegar rinse - wait few mins and than cold water quick rinse
- air dry

Clean the mess I made :p
Last time I dyed around 15th January, and the colour still holds the same (no bleach or any kind of pre-traeted hair, lets say MP on virgin light brown hair). I'm supposed to dye again because of the growth, but I'm kind of lazy xD Never done caffeine rinse, but I would do it after vinegar, as others also suggested.

[Rosetta]

Sorry for being OT, but as everybody's talking about caffeine rinses here, could someone please point me to a thread about that? (I only found some old threads with the search function...)