PDA

View Full Version : Will using toner on my virgin brown hair help me get an 'ashier' color?



curiouskitty
February 6th, 2015, 12:44 PM
So here's the thing.

I want to achieve a very ashy, cool dark brown color. My hair is all pretty much virgin at the moment.
My problem with it is, it turns kind of brassy red when I'm in the sun. I have some red and gold undertones all mixed together with my dark brown hair, and I want to go for a cooler, more monotone color (not necessarily go lighter or darker).

Will purple shampoos and toners help get the reddish tone out of dark virgin hair? I understand it's usually for bleached hair and for blondes, but I figured some of you on here might have had experience with this.

xox

CD
February 6th, 2015, 01:02 PM
Toners are used on porous, pre-lightened hair. The color is absorbed into the hair shaft because of the porosity. A glaze/semipermanent would be a good choice for your hair.


Callie

Hopeful65
February 6th, 2015, 01:05 PM
I will be watching for answers to this. One of my daughters has dark brown hair that gets red tones from the sun or damage. She's always on a quest to banish the red.
I myself had always been trying to cancel out brassiness in my (back then) bleached hair. I've used Manic Panic Virgin Snow, which worked pretty well, but of course that's on very light hair.
In my experience purple shampoos are harsh and dry your hair out. But they do make purple conditioners too.
I'm thinking one of the purple Manic Panic colors mixed in your shampoo or conditioner could help. But I'm not an expert on this.
Green is on the opposite side of red on the color wheel (not aiming for you to end up with green hair, mind you!) but maybe a little bit in some conditioner?
Hopefully someone will know.

arr
February 6th, 2015, 01:15 PM
I always thought toner was the same thing as demi permanent color. Anyway i have this exact problem and ive had good success using Clairol Radiance Translucent Color Gloss in Light Ash Blond. It sounds like it would be too light but the colors run dark and i have dark brown hair too. Just last night for something different i used Wella Color Charm Demi Permanent haircolor in Medium Ash Blond. I had previously used Light Ash Blond but it was too light so it didnt do anything. I felt the medium came out a little dark so next time i plan on mixing equal parts of the light and medium. Or i may just go back to the Clairol.

Anje
February 6th, 2015, 01:24 PM
Colorwheel-wise, I imagine blue or turquoise would be better at getting rid of red tones than purple. (The usual logic is purple to combat yellow tones, blue to combat the orange that brunettes often see when they lighten their hair.) I like the suggestion of stirring a little vegetable dye (Manic Panic, Adore, Special Effects, Directions, etc. Whatever floats your boat.) into your favorite conditioner and using it from time to time to tone your hair.

curiouskitty
February 6th, 2015, 01:51 PM
Thanks for the wonderful replies, everyone!!


Toners are used on porous, pre-lightened hair. The color is absorbed into the hair shaft because of the porosity. A glaze/semipermanent would be a good choice for your hair.

Callie



I always thought toner was the same thing as demi permanent color. Anyway i have this exact problem and ive had good success using Clairol Radiance Translucent Color Gloss in Light Ash Blond. It sounds like it would be too light but the colors run dark and i have dark brown hair too. Just last night for something different i used Wella Color Charm Demi Permanent haircolor in Medium Ash Blond. I had previously used Light Ash Blond but it was too light so it didnt do anything. I felt the medium came out a little dark so next time i plan on mixing equal parts of the light and medium. Or i may just go back to the Clairol.

I was considering trying out a glaze at one point. I'll definitely look into that. The problem I have with semi/demi permanent hair colors, is that once it fades - it doesn't matter what color it is - my hair always ends up redder than when I started. My hair is naturally very porous and absorbs just about anything (but also dries out like crazy). Perhaps the damage that the chemicals in semi/demi dyes cause brings out the red undertone? Porous hair can really be a female mut.


I will be watching for answers to this. One of my daughters has dark brown hair that gets red tones from the sun or damage. She's always on a quest to banish the red.
I myself had always been trying to cancel out brassiness in my (back then) bleached hair. I've used Manic Panic Virgin Snow, which worked pretty well, but of course that's on very light hair.
In my experience purple shampoos are harsh and dry your hair out. But they do make purple conditioners too.
I'm thinking one of the purple Manic Panic colors mixed in your shampoo or conditioner could help. But I'm not an expert on this.
Green is on the opposite side of red on the color wheel (not aiming for you to end up with green hair, mind you!) but maybe a little bit in some conditioner?
Hopefully someone will know.


Colorwheel-wise, I imagine blue or turquoise would be better at getting rid of red tones than purple. (The usual logic is purple to combat yellow tones, blue to combat the orange that brunettes often see when they lighten their hair.) I like the suggestion of stirring a little vegetable dye (Manic Panic, Adore, Special Effects, Directions, etc. Whatever floats your boat.) into your favorite conditioner and using it from time to time to tone your hair.

Yeah, I was hesitant about using purple shampoos because I was told that it is quite drying on the hair. Green! Now I haven't thought of that. It would totally cancel out the red, if done right. Hmm... Manic Panic's green shades are pretty potent - maybe I should go for a bluer green? Or blue, as Anje has suggested? Again, my hair is very porous (even for its curl type), and sucks up color like nothing else. If it ends up turning green or blue, it will be very noticeably green/blue... which is what I'm kind of scared of. Definitely want to stick to vegan, natural dyes if I can, though!

Anje
February 6th, 2015, 02:02 PM
My gut says not to go with green. For one thing, some of those blues get a bit green with time. For another, you also have gold tones that might go nuts with something too green. Blue would be the first thing I'd try in your position.

Make sure you have some old or dark towels. These dyes are known to drip colors for some people. :)

MINAKO
February 6th, 2015, 02:46 PM
i can recommend revlon nutri color to tone hair or freshen up color, they have something called fondant shades and i remember there is a very pastell-ish cyan blue, that would be what iimagine to work with those orangy reddish undertones. theres is a lavender shade as well, but that would probably be better for straight up yellow brassy tones.
althought this is just a tinted conditioner treatment, i would dillute it further, especially the bright ones are pretty intense.

Horrorpops
February 6th, 2015, 05:50 PM
I have had friends who've experienced success toning down brassiness in their brunette hair with toners like the nordic blonde one by Schwartzkopf. Its the sort of thicker toner that you shampoo then apply it in the shower for 3-7minutes then rinse and condition. When I use it I sometimes mix it with my conditioner but this is for bleached tips of my hair. It is pretty subtle and doesn't go too purple but as PP suggested a blue might potentially be better for red tints. Good luck :)

JellyBene
February 7th, 2015, 10:54 AM
Colorwheel-wise, I imagine blue or turquoise would be better at getting rid of red tones than purple. (The usual logic is purple to combat yellow tones, blue to combat the orange that brunettes often see when they lighten their hair.) I like the suggestion of stirring a little vegetable dye (Manic Panic, Adore, Special Effects, Directions, etc. Whatever floats your boat.) into your favorite conditioner and using it from time to time to tone your hair.

I'm with Anje here, a violet (bluey purple) or even turquoise would be great! I'd need to see a picture of your hair to be sure though, if you can post a picture I can tell you what color you'd need to neutralize it :) I like the idea of stirring some manic panic turquoise into your conditioner, if you want to go for the more violet option you can use this http://www.joico.com/products/color-endure-violet-shampoo/ they make a matching conditioner too. It's not harsh in the slightest, has fairly TLHC friendly ingredients and actually smells great (which is more than can be said about most violet shampoos).

JellyBene
February 7th, 2015, 10:58 AM
Sorry, I just realized you already have pictures on your profile, sillly me! After taking a look I say no to the turquoise, you would get a blue green tone, overkill. You should be just fine with a violet! Either the one in the link in my previous post or mixing a small amount of a purple/blue or even a slight combo (but more purple than blue) into your normal conditioner.

LarissaLuna
February 16th, 2015, 11:41 AM
What about a very very little bit of green direcitons in your conditioner? It could neutralize the red and, if not, you can wash it out.