Bleached hair ruined - PLEASE HELP!

[Blondieee]

I got a balayage a couple months ago and I hate it. The color is not what I was wanting. My hair is extremely dry and is not curling and is extremely frizzy. I wish I would have listened and not got it bleached.

I don't want the blonde anymore. My hair clearly needs some help so I'm going to get a trim and dye it with Redken Shades EQ so it can get some moisture. I haven't been using any heat not even a blowdryer which I never use anyway, I've been using Olaplex 3 once a week, and using a deep conditioning treatment. I just deep conditioned my hair a couple days ago and it looks like a bird's nest. Redken Shades EQ rescued by hair last time I went blonde and had this problem. It brought moisture and life back to my hair. Don't like my natural hair color, it's watered down tea. And bleaching it got me not blonde but more watered down tea. Should have just went with the medium brown using Shades EQ.

[Cate36]

I got a balayage a couple months ago and I hate it. The color is not what I was wanting. My hair is extremely dry and is not curling and is extremely frizzy. I wish I would have listened and not got it bleached.

I don't want the blonde anymore. My hair clearly needs some help so I'm going to get a trim and dye it with Redken Shades EQ so it can get some moisture. I haven't been using any heat not even a blowdryer which I never use anyway, I've been using Olaplex 3 once a week, and using a deep conditioning treatment. I just deep conditioned my hair a couple days ago and it looks like a bird's nest. Redken Shades EQ rescued by hair last time I went blonde and had this problem. It brought moisture and life back to my hair. Don't like my natural hair color, it's watered down tea. And bleaching it got me not blonde but more watered down tea. Should have just went with the medium brown using Shades EQ.

I can't help with the colour.. but check out the khair-pep thread and see if that product helps your hair in combination with the olaplex ) which I would be using more than once a week if you.. and over night. I've had good results from it and my hair has also been v damaged..

In terms of colouring, I wouldn't attempt to do anything myself ever again... but others can perhaps comment on that.. most important thing is getting your hair back into good condition...

[spidermom]

It's really a good idea to give coloring a rest and give your hair some deep treatment TLC. You'll be glad you did!

[cjk]

Dyes cause damage. Synthetic dyes in particular. Were I in your shoes, I would stay away from another chemical treatment, as the damage might worsen.

If you insist on coloring, I've read that henna and other natural dyes work along a different mechanism and can actually improve the health of the hair. I've never tried them, myself, so maybe someone else could guide you. If nothing else, it might be worth reading up?

But if your hair is so fried that even Olaplex isn't helping, doubling up on chemical treatments is going to be risky. If you do it, I hope it works!

[spidermom]

Exactly. Porous, damaged hair takes up color differently than relatively healthy hair. I remember a former LHCer who tried to dye her hair dark blonde after bad bleaching, and it came out black.

[Ju]

How far up your length does the balayage travel? Perhaps you might cut some of it out and then microtrim for sometime if you are looking to remove all the damaged hair.
For the time being, I'd make sure to deep condition frequently (to keep it the best it can be and also ensure that the damage doesnt travel up to the unbleached stretch of your hair) and learn to love it as it is until it can be the way you prefer it to be.

[LillyBlossom]

Hair dye, no matter how high quality or how gentle you think it is, will damage your hair further. If it is mixed with peroxide (which shades eq are) then it will damage your hair further, its not going to 'rescue it'. You're better off going to the salon and getting a stand alone SALON olaplex treatment (not the stuff you can take home, but the actual 'in salon' treatment).


If it were me there would be no way I'd DIY colour it with anything that contains or needs to be mixed with peroxide, if it is damaged as the others have said it will react to the colour differently and you could end up with dark dish water colour hair. If you feel like you can't walk out the house with it, then you could put a direct dye on it, like adore.

Bare minimum cover it in coconut oil (or avocado oil) and sleep in it before washing it out the next day.

[MusicalSpoons]

If you really still want to dye, you could try the deposit-only route. That means no developer and no lifting of the cuticle; it also means it will fade and you'll have to redo it sooner but as far as I understand, most of them are applied mixed with conditioner so your hair will have a nice deep treatment every few weeks. If you think of attempting it though, strand test first!

(Following on from the above suggestion of herbal colouring: henna and indigo are very permanent; henna will turn your hair orange, and indigo+bleach=green. You could look into cassia or sedr though, for conditioning benefits without irreversible colour.)

But please, for the sake of your hair, leave synthetic dyes alone now :flower: any type of developer (including used for toning) will cause more damage, even if the initial conditioner or salon treatment makes it feel better - it will only be hiding damage, not making it better, honestly. Wearing it up in protective styles, securing it using hair-friendly accessories (not hair elastics) will keep it from unnecessary extra damage and help take your mind off it - win-win :)

[Jo Ann]

Dying one's hair doesn't "moisturize" it, Blondieee.

Your best bet will be to ignore the color it is now and go with deep moisturizing treatments--keep the protein down to minimal. It sounds more like your hair has had a protein overload to me, and moisturizing it (including a moisturizing shampoo, double conditioners and deep moisturizing treatments, as well as a leave-in plus lightweight oil) will do you better in the short and long runs than rushing off to dye it.

Your hair's been though enough already, and it's telling you that. :flower:

[lapushka]

Exactly. Porous, damaged hair takes up color differently than relatively healthy hair. I remember a former LHCer who tried to dye her hair dark blonde after bad bleaching, and it came out black.

When my hair was porous, a light brown dye came out... no kidding, soot-black. It looked burned!

Don't do it.

Just TLC from now on, nice conditioning treatments, and yes check out the olaplex and khairpep threads on here.

Maybe join the bleach grow-out thread and grow it all out.

There's only so much your hair can take! :flower:

[Wendyp]

You will have to stop commercial color to have long healthy hair. try switching to henna blends or cassia blends, nightblooming has some wonderful ones. I would suggest doing olaplex in salon or redken ph bonder in salon for a while. The roo method is really helping my damaged ends as well.

[Sarahlabyrinth]

Take Lapushka's very sensible advice.

[lapushka]

You will have to stop commercial color to have long healthy hair. try switching to henna blends or cassia blends, nightblooming has some wonderful ones. I would suggest doing olaplex in salon or redken ph bonder in salon for a while. The roo method is really helping my damaged ends as well.

Henna will make hair red! I don't think she wants that.

Cassia will make bleach blonde a yellow color, and I don't think she wants that either.

[2gaits]

Maybe a shorter cut? I know giving up length is tough but if it is that damaged badly nothing will fix it and since you don't care care for the color it might be better to start over. Embrace healthy over length for awhile and regrow.

[MusicalSpoons]

Cassia will make bleach blonde a yellow color, and I don't think she wants that either.

I don't know, it would be blonder than, what was it, 'watered down tea'? :shrug: (I don't know what a cassia/amla mix might do :hmm: )

[kitcatsmeow]

If you can’t stand he color, you can color it again it blend it. I would make sure it’s something that won’t need a lot of touching up. It will do some damage but not much more than what’s already done by the bleach. Just use a 20v developer nothing higher. Also mix olaplex in your hair color (or make sure you request it if you go to a salon) Continue with the olaplex conditioner and I recommend protein treatment. Almost all bleached hair can benefit from a protein treatment. I suggest something like Paul Mitchell Awapuhi and ginger intensive keratin treatment. It’s a two part that includes a deep conditioner.
Trim as needed and leave it alone!

[kitcatsmeow]

You will have to stop commercial color to have long healthy hair. try switching to henna blends or cassia blends, nightblooming has some wonderful ones. I would suggest doing olaplex in salon or redken ph bonder in salon for a while. The roo method is really helping my damaged ends as well.

Um, not exactly true. I have very healthy colored hair. I only color it 3x a year but it’s still very healthy.

[cjk]

I don't know, it would be blonder than, what was it, 'watered down tea'? :shrug: (I don't know what a cassia/amla mix might do :hmm: )

Just be careful with color choice. My grandmother used to dye her hair yellow. We used to joke that it was hair by Ronald McDonald.

Blonde is not yellow.

[MusicalSpoons]

Just be careful with color choice. My grandmother used to dye her hair yellow. We used to joke that it was hair by Ronald McDonald.

Blonde is not yellow.

Indeed. That's why cassia, just like all the other herbal dyes, requires research and strand testing. It is used to tint light hair blonde; yes OP's hair is bleached but it also has blonde pigment in (presumably).

[Cate36]

Henna will make hair red! I don't think she wants that.

Cassia will make bleach blonde a yellow color, and I don't think she wants that either.

Yes steer clear if you want my advice.. one mistake with Henna, and you will never ever ever get it out.. you'll have to live with it for a few years until the damage totally grows out enabling you to redye..

My best best advice to you, is spend just a few weeks using olaplex and other treatments to get it in the best condition within the shortest amount of time, then search for a hairdresser that is very experienced with damaged hair, who can slowly assist you to change the tone.. hair with your current colour, is better than no hair..

[lapushka]

Yes steer clear if you want my advice.. one mistake with Henna, and you will never ever ever get it out.. you'll have to live with it for a few years until the damage totally grows out enabling you to redye..

My best best advice to you, is spend just a few weeks using olaplex and other treatments to get it in the best condition within the shortest amount of time, then search for a hairdresser that is very experienced with damaged hair, who can slowly assist you to change the tone.. hair with your current colour, is better than no hair..

So painfully true, especially if it's been damaged, just TLC, that's all it needs!!!

[JessJess]

For now just leave your hair be no colour no chemicals! I bleached my hoar and hated what it did I used oils bond fusions deep conditioner and yeah it looked and felt better for a few day then the effect wore off and I was back at square one
The only thing that has made my bleached hair conditioned and moistureised was using my natural oils! Yup I washed with water only for 5 days and my mids and ends have never been better!!! Yes your roots get oily but you use that to distribute and condition the rest of your hair
Give it a go! Iv actually given up a products because I feel they did nothing for me
My elasticity has gone through the roof ever since I use my sebum as my conditioner
Good luck x

[lapushka]

For now just leave your hair be no colour no chemicals! I bleached my hoar and hated what it did I used oils bond fusions deep conditioner and yeah it looked and felt better for a few day then the effect wore off and I was back at square one
The only thing that has made my bleached hair conditioned and moistureised was using my natural oils! Yup I washed with water only for 5 days and my mids and ends have never been better!!! Yes your roots get oily but you use that to distribute and condition the rest of your hair
Give it a go! Iv actually given up a products because I feel they did nothing for me
My elasticity has gone through the roof ever since I use my sebum as my conditioner
Good luck x

Hey welcome to the forum! :flower: :)

[Arciela]

When this happened to me and my hair was so fried I couldn't even stand feeling it touch my skin..I used a deposit dye only called Pravana Vivid colors I think..it made it dark brown..like really dark, and since then it faded to a reddish color, close to my natural one luckily. After that I did a big chop (from classic to shoulder) and cut off an inch every month or so (my month's growth) until all the dyed parts are gone. I'd say in 4 more months or so I will finally be dye free and my hair is now healthy again and so much better. I highly suggest not putting any more chemicals on your hair. :flower:

[Sparkles122]

When this happened to me and my hair was so fried I couldn't even stand feeling it touch my skin..I used a deposit dye only called Pravana Vivid colors I think..it made it dark brown..like really dark, and since then it faded to a reddish color, close to my natural one luckily. After that I did a big chop (from classic to shoulder) and cut off an inch every month or so (my month's growth) until all the dyed parts are gone. I'd say in 4 more months or so I will finally be dye free and my hair is now healthy again and so much better. I highly suggest not putting any more chemicals on your hair. :flower:

When did that happen? How long did it take you to grow out the dye?

[Cate36]

For now just leave your hair be no colour no chemicals! I bleached my hoar and hated what it did I used oils bond fusions deep conditioner and yeah it looked and felt better for a few day then the effect wore off and I was back at square one
The only thing that has made my bleached hair conditioned and moistureised was using my natural oils! Yup I washed with water only for 5 days and my mids and ends have never been better!!! Yes your roots get oily but you use that to distribute and condition the rest of your hair
Give it a go! Iv actually given up a products because I feel they did nothing for me
My elasticity has gone through the roof ever since I use my sebum as my conditioner
Good luck x

If only I could bottle my sebum and use it as a hair mask.. my hair is so dry.. my scalp is never oily no matter how long I try and wait between washing..

[lapushka]

When did that happen? How long did it take you to grow out the dye?

It takes 1/2 inch a month. ;) No, it takes a long time. If you have dye to grow out, why not join the dye grow out thread, and keep track of your progress there. Or, have you found it already. I'll link it for you!
https://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=51155