Restoring Bleached Hair

[Cinnamonqueen12]

Hi all,

My friend and I recently made the snap decision to dye our hair the other day. She went with a really deep red, but I wanted something a bit more fun. The only trouble is that my hair is a really dark brown, and I henna on top of that, so in order to get any color, I needed to bleach.
It took two bleachings and a trim to get all of the henna off, apparently it doesn't strip well, and then I got a really deep royal blue color. This is the first time I have ever bleached my hair before, and as much as I love the color, I'm horrified by what the bleach has done to my hair! It doesn't quite feel like straw, but I can tell it's damaged, and even though I'm not sure if I want to continue bleaching out my roots as they grow. But for now, I'm more concerned about how to get my old hair back.
I just got my hair dyed on Friday, so I'm letting the color sit for a few days before washing it, but once I do I want to start doing conditioning treatments. I read on here that coconut oil will strip the color, and I definitely don't want that, so I was wondering if anyone has any suggestions on how to keep bleached hair healthy, if that's even possible. I have tamanu oil and jojoba oil that I have heard are good for hair, but I don't want to try anything that might make the color fade faster. Does anyone have any recipes for conditioning bleached hair, or any opinions on the coconut oil? Thanks!

[khryz]

Once hair is bleached, it will never go back to what it was before, but it can still feel soft and nice. :)

I usually do a protein treatment after I bleach, like Joico bio-restorative reconstructor or Giovanni 2chic brazilian keratin + argan oil, followed by a moisture treatment like an SMT. Others also recommend Olaplex and Aussie 3 minute miracle (3MM).

ETA: I also use a sulfate-free shampoo so the color doesn't strip off too soon, and baby my ends with camellia oil. You may also want to get your hands on hair masks for colored hair. :)

HTHs!

[bilbolongtail]

Hi, over on the blonde hair thread I've recently learned about an Opalexing treatment to restore damaged hair. Might be worth reading up on it.

[lapushka]

Most bleached heads need lots of protein. Be sure to still follow up with a regular moisturizing conditioner. Make it a nice deep treatment.

[diddiedaisy]

I'm a bleacher. Your hair will never go back to what it was pre bleach, but there are a number of things which can help put some strength back into it.

Firstly, if you can take coconut oil use it for overnight soakings. It doesn't have to be drenched but enough to look oily. This will penetrate your hair shaft to improve porosity issues and elasticity.

Secondly, use olaplex no3 once a week. This puts some of the broken bonds back together to strengthen your hair. I leave it on overnight.

Thirdly, I like Philip Kingsley Elastisizer. It leaves hair feeling really soft and moisturised. Again I leave this is overnight.

Fourthly, moisturise, moisturise, moisturise.

Lastly, protein. I can't take too much protein as it makes my hair brittle, so you may want to start this on a low level. It's easy to get into the trap of adding protein because it's brittle when really you need to step away from the protein and add more moisture. It's a difficult balance to get right, but you will need some protein, just be careful not to overdo it.

[khryz]

For me I know I went overboard on the protein when my ends feel velcro-ish. Throw in a SMT and my hair is back to normal again without having to lose length. I do a mini S&D to get rid of damaged ends.

@diddiedaisy I've heard so many good things about Olaplex. Is it equivalent to a protein treatment? I'd like to give it a try but 1. it's really expensive and 2. I already have a lot of products.

[diddiedaisy]

For me I know I went overboard on the protein when my ends feel velcro-ish. Throw in a SMT and my hair is back to normal again without having to lose length. I do a mini S&D to get rid of damaged ends.

@diddiedaisy I've heard so many good things about Olaplex. Is it equivalent to a protein treatment? I'd like to give it a try but 1. it's really expensive and 2. I already have a lot of products.

No olaplex is not a protein treatment, it just repairs broken bonds. I don't know how to put links up but if you go to their website it explains it. I get mine off eBay as it's cheaper, you just need to make sure you use a reputable seller.

To me I think it's worth the expense as it does last a long time. I know what you mean about the product junkie bit though. I've got enough conditioner to last me nearly a year, about seven tubs of hair masks, 6 types of leave ins, the list goes on hehe.

For protein treatments I use redken anti snap. This bottle I have had lasted nearly a year up to now.

[meteor]

You've got some excellent advice here, already. :)

I'll just add a few things: since you've already double-processed your hair with bleach to remove henna (which does take a lot of bleach :( ), and the condition is already pretty compromised, please consider investing in a powerful protein treatment: Aphogee 2-Step would be my first bet. Alternatively, something like Joico K-Pak Reconstruct or Redken CAT and gelatin DIY masks (http://science-yhairblog.blogspot.ca/2014/04/gelatin-protein-treatment-recipe-update.html) may help.

Check out Olaplex, it can work as a standalone treatment on compromised hair, though ideally, Olaplex # 1 should have been added straight to your bleach - we have a long thread on it, with reviews: http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=124721

Bleached hair is porous, and it does well with products rich in hydrolyzed proteins (to temporarily patch-repair cuticle) and oils, ceramides, 18-MEA (all fatty acids).
Consider stretching washes, doing heavy pre-poo oiling soaks, adding oils to conditioners, doing oil rinses and things to seal moisture in porous hair (e.g. LOC routine).

Obviously, hair is dead, so there is no way to restore it back to virgin state, one can only temporarily patch-repair it, but since damage is cumulative, there are a lot of things you can do to protect your hair and prevent it from further damage: containing hair in updos, sleeping on silk/satin, not over-washing, over-brushing or over-manipulating it, avoiding all heat and chemical treatments, protecting it from UV rays and wind with hats/scarves/buffs, etc.

Here is a great article about rehabilitating damaged hair by Nightshade that I think should be of help - Damaged Hair: Understanding, Preventing & Rehabilitating: http://web.archive.org/web/20120125071723/http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/vbjournal.php?do=article&articleid=79

I know it's too late in this case, but in case other people are reading this: if you plan on bleaching hair, please consider doing it over a heavy coconut oil soak - we have reports of it helping buffer some damage (more on this: http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=10495)

[Cinnamonqueen12]

Thank you all so much! All of this info is great and I can't wait to start! One thing that I was wondering about is using any type of oil on my hair, since I have heard that it can make color fade faster. Does anyone have input on this this?

[meteor]

Thank you all so much! All of this info is great and I can't wait to start! One thing that I was wondering about is using any type of oil on my hair, since I have heard that it can make color fade faster. Does anyone have input on this this?

Hmm, not sure. I know that some home remedies for speeding up color fading do mention soaking hair in oil, but I don't know how successful that is, since then, wouldn't everybody just oil their hair as an easy and hair-friendly color-removing technique, when one gets tired of old dye? :hmm:

If you only bleached your hair (without added dye), you have nothing to worry about in terms of color fading, as you didn't add any artificial pigments. Oiling can only make it (temporarily!) darker, until you wash oil out.
But if you put some color on top of bleach (even if it's just a toner), then it will be slowly fading, for example, every time you wash your hair or expose it to sun.
Try not to over-wash it (and don't clarify too often), cover hair with sun-hats/buffs when outside and this should really help slow down the color fading process. The degree and speed of color fading depends a lot on the dye (the specific type of dye, and also the specific pigments and their sizes), your hair's porosity, and the hair care.

[*Stella*]

I use coconut and other oils on my hair and it doesn't fade the colour any quicker than regular washing (assuming you are washing the oil out)
Co washing with cool water will help to prevent fading, if you must shampoo use sulphate free and dilute before application, keep it on your hair for the minimum time.
Finishing with a cold blast or vinegar rinse can also seal in colour