I really could use some advice

[MakeLoveNotWar]

So last night I went into my salon to get my roots touched up and it was the worst mistake I have ever made! Before I could stop her, the stylist was lightening parts of my hair for block color, even though I made it perfectly clear I only wanted my roots fixed. SO she's putting this lightener on and by the time she rinses it it's already lightening. Then she asks another stylist how to fix it and they decide to put color over it to match it with the rest of my hair. I'm feeling pretty wary by now because I'm worried this is really damaging my hair. Of course it doesn't match and they say the only way to fix it is to dye my whole head darker and that way it will cover the weird parts and make it all match.

My hair feels so horrible I want to cry! :( The ends feel so dry and horrible, and there are a ton of splits. The color is also a bit too matte for my taste. So much for looking nice to see my boyfriend for the first time in a month. I'm kicking myself for even going in the first place and I swear by my tattoo that I've learned my lesson! My question is...is there any way I can fix this horrible straw-feeling? I really would hate to trim because I feel like I'm finally making progress. Sorry for the long rant, but I could really use some help. :(

[halo_tightens]

Ugh, how maddening that she didn't listen to what you wanted! I'm growing more and more convinced that I need to just never step into a salon as long as I live.

I'd try a nice, long SMT for starters.

[SunshineHair]

I hope you didnt pay her for messing up your hair..I am so sorry that happened.

You may want to give your hair a trim, soak it in conditioner after, keep deep conditioning weekly and try to keep looking forward.

And I am pretty sure your boyfriend will not be thinking that much about your hair!!

[Sabayon]

I've found that an overnight SMT is pretty amazing after lightening. I also might try a protein deep treatment. I've used ion effective care treatment from Sally's with fairly great results. While you are there you can get a temporary color like Jazzing to color over the lightened part without damage so you can buy your hair some time for your hair to recover before going back for a matching permanent dye.

[wishbone]

That really sucks that they ignored you and then went on to put your hair through all of that :(

For the dryness, lots and lots of moisture. SMTs are good for this, but even just plain old conditioner works well. Smother your hair in it, wrap it up in a heat cap/towel and leave it for a couple of hours. Try this once a week, or more if your hair feels like it needs it. A hair mask i like using is L'oreal elvive nutri gloss hair masque (in the pink tub), its pretty much my go to when my hair feels dull or rough. Oiling the ends more would help too i imagine, coconut oil is supposed to help prevent protein loss.

[Nightshade]

A SMT or a good long soak in a cone-free conditioner would be good.

Also, since they washed your hair they may have slathered some super-cone stuff on your hair. If your hair doesn't play nice with cones, that may be adding to the crunchy feeling, so clarifying may be in order before you do a deep moisture treatment.

There's more tips in the damaged hair article in my siggy, but hopefully you won't need most of them :)

[boomygrrl]

I'm becoming more and more disgusted with hair salons lately. They don't listen to people when they say I just want a trim...they don't listen to people that say I just want my roots touched up. Ugggh!

Sorry you're going through this. With some deep conditioning and maybe a temporary wash out dye to even out the color (what was suggested by Sabayon), hopefully things will start looking better for you.

[GoddesJourney]

That's a bummer. I self-trim for don't color for that reason. I used to dye my own hair and I got pretty good at it, but it ate my hair eventually and it didn't grow for a long time. I think you'll be fine if you follow some of the previous advice.

[redneckprincess]

Im so sorry you had to go through that, but you could look at the bright side..."At least they didnt get the sissors after you!!"

I would do a good long deep conditioning treatment...SMT works best for me..good luck ☺

[myrrhmaiden]

SMT! Also, a friendly friend (SimplyViki) posted this link to me at a critical juncture and it has been working wonders on my very over-processed straw-like ends. It even works on my ends, and that's really saying something. There are sample packets too if you just want to try it first.

My last trip to the salon was much like you described. So horrible they were to me and my hair. *hugs* I have not to this day gone back into a salon.. You will be okay. Just pamper your pretty hair. :)

[MakeLoveNotWar]

I can't begin to tell everyone how grateful I am for the support and suggestions. Everyone is so helpful and it made me freak out about it less and tell myself "It can be fixed! It can be fixed!"I will definitely try a SMT and if anyone has any other suggestions, I would love to hear them! :cheese:

[FrannyG]

You've gotten all of the suggestions that I would have given, but I just wanted to say that most of us have been there at one time or another, and we do understand. :grouphug: You go and take care of that hair, and I'm sure you'll find that it's much better than you think. :blossom:

[pumori]

What I did when I used to bleach my hair was put Mane n' Tail conditioner (the horse stuff) into my hair and used it like a hair mask, I just let it sit with my head covered. It actually says on the bottle that you can use it as a leave-in or rinse-out conditioner. Handy! But that restored a bit of the moisture and got rid of the crunchy dry feeling :) Hope this helps!

[Fractalsofhair]

Yikes, that sucks! But then again, I've been told by stylists that they're cutting my hair and putting a little bit of a shine serum/conditioner when they're putting in foil highlights. That was a scary, scary thing to deal with. Just do some deep conditioning, and in the future, dying your hair at home isn't that bad of an idea at times... Or find a better stylist!

[Shermie Girl]

If your hair likes cones, a good shine spray/drops will help to boost shine and enhance the various tones in your colour, helping it to not look so flat or matte. :)

[justgreen]

As a regular bleach head, SMT is a miracle worker. I don't even add the aloe gel anymore, just my favorite conditioner mixed with honey, half and half. Slather over wet hair, cap it and go to bed, rinse it out in the morning. It saved my hair five years ago.