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View Full Version : Help! Why did my hair lose its color and get thinner?



Yedda
October 4th, 2010, 10:12 PM
Hi everyone,

I have been growing my hair back into it's natural color, and it seems to have lost it's color! I'm not happy about it, as I loved my dark brown hair. Also, the strands and hair overall seem to be thinner.

Here is a link to a before and after. The one with the darker hair is my natural color, and I think it's pretty obvious the other one is how it's faded. At the very end I may still have a few highlights from before, but my whole head of hair has changed for the worst :(

http://s601.photobucket.com/albums/tt91/lcrowton/Hair%20before%20and%20after/

What could be causing this and how can I fix this? I am thinking it may have something to do with diet. The only other thing I can think of is aging, but it's only been a few years.


:confused:

If I can't figure this out I am probably going to start coloring my hair. I don't want this faded hair!

RachelRain
October 4th, 2010, 10:15 PM
I would say dying, maybe, because I know when I stopped dying my hair I lost my blonde streaks (although I was happy about that!) and my hair is now much lighter than it used to be, but I think your hair also lightens or darkens with age just as much as with sun exposure. Do you spend a lot of time outside in the spring and summer?

Sylvanas
October 4th, 2010, 11:06 PM
Why, oh why would you want to change that beautiful colour? It suits you so well, and your hair is shiny and pretty. It doesn't look thinner to me, just looks longer (which naturally weighs it down). Dying the hair can make it more puffy, bleaching even more so. The two pics are taken in completely different lighting, so that could have something to do with the difference you're noticing as well.

If you're gonna dye it, please keep in mind the upkeep you'll have to deal with. It'll look like you're starting to go bald when the lighter roots show up. If you really dislike your colour that much, maybe you could use a semi-permanent dye in a similar shade, just to brighten up the colour a bit? Also; I don't know what your haircare routine is, but Conditioner Only makes my blonde hair look a couple of shades darker.

MissManda
October 4th, 2010, 11:29 PM
I don't think your hair looks thinner, either. :) Even if you do not like the lighter shade your hair has become, I think it looks very beautiful on you. If you want your dark brown color back, though, you could always try dying it. If you don't want to use chemical dyes, maybe you could try henndigo?

Roscata
October 5th, 2010, 12:39 AM
If your hair is virgin (never been chemically colored/treated) then the sun is most likely at fault, if you have used chemical dyes on your hair then it is just washing out with time and a lot of them have a bit of bleach in mix which leaves your hair lighter after the color washes out. I've had the same problem, only I ended up with orange hair... link to photo (http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a207/ioana2adelina/TheLongHairComm/IMG_0267.jpg)

If you want to fix it I suggest henna combined with indigo, it's natural and won't burn your hair (if you get good henna). There are a lot of posts and articles on how you can do that, what to watch out for and how to get the color you want.

It sucks that you don't have the color you want to have. I hope it all works out for you in the end.

Yedda
October 5th, 2010, 06:20 AM
I would say dying, maybe, because I know when I stopped dying my hair I lost my blonde streaks (although I was happy about that!) and my hair is now much lighter than it used to be, but I think your hair also lightens or darkens with age just as much as with sun exposure. Do you spend a lot of time outside in the spring and summer?

Thanks Rachelrain. I am almost never outside, so I don't think the sun exposure is a factor. It's changed color over the last three or four years. That's why it's kind of odd to me, because I'm still pretty young.



Why, oh why would you want to change that beautiful colour? It suits you so well, and your hair is shiny and pretty. It doesn't look thinner to me, just looks longer (which naturally weighs it down). Dying the hair can make it more puffy, bleaching even more so. The two pics are taken in completely different lighting, so that could have something to do with the difference you're noticing as well.

If you're gonna dye it, please keep in mind the upkeep you'll have to deal with. It'll look like you're starting to go bald when the lighter roots show up. If you really dislike your colour that much, maybe you could use a semi-permanent dye in a similar shade, just to brighten up the colour a bit? Also; I don't know what your haircare routine is, but Conditioner Only makes my blonde hair look a couple of shades darker.

Thank you, that is very sweet of you.:blossom:
I'm not planning to dye it yet. I want to see if there is a way I can get it to grow out dark again. I am still thinking it may be diet, so I'm hoping if I improve my diet it may bring my natural color back. (I don't know if this is possible, but I'm hoping!)

When my hair was darker it wasn't thick, but it seemed like it had more volume, and wasn't as "stragely" or "stringy." The dark color is naturally, and I have not dyed my hair for quite some time now, and it seems to just be lying flat.


I don't think your hair looks thinner, either. :) Even if you do not like the lighter shade your hair has become, I think it looks very beautiful on you. If you want your dark brown color back, though, you could always try dying it. If you don't want to use chemical dyes, maybe you could try henndigo?

Thank you kindly MissManda.:D :o
If I cannot figure out something internally I can change, I may do a little research on the hennidigo.


If your hair is virgin (never been chemically colored/treated) then the sun is most likely at fault, if you have used chemical dyes on your hair then it is just washing out with time and a lot of them have a bit of bleach in mix which leaves your hair lighter after the color washes out. I've had the same problem, only I ended up with orange hair... link to photo (http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a207/ioana2adelina/TheLongHairComm/IMG_0267.jpg)

If you want to fix it I suggest henna combined with indigo, it's natural and won't burn your hair (if you get good henna). There are a lot of posts and articles on how you can do that, what to watch out for and how to get the color you want.

It sucks that you don't have the color you want to have. I hope it all works out for you in the end.

Thanks so much Roscata. I did dye my hair and get highlights, but it seems like the color growing out of my scalp(which should be virgin) is lighter and duller itself. This couldn't be due to dying, could it?
I suppose sunlight is possible, but the most sunlight I get is driving home from work. I never go outside! (Look at my skin color if you don't believe me :)

I have been trying molasses soaks for color as well.


Thanks for everyone's feedback:)

Kris Dove
October 5th, 2010, 06:29 AM
Dyeing definitely puffs your hair and makes it a wee bit thicker- you could get a similar effect without colour temporarily by using cassia (see the natural products boards for more info), but it is a bit of a faff to use.

jojo
October 5th, 2010, 06:35 AM
I know a lack of zinc in the diet can cause thinness and colour loss, but your hair looks lovely to me xx

Yedda
October 5th, 2010, 08:45 AM
Dyeing definitely puffs your hair and makes it a wee bit thicker- you could get a similar effect without colour temporarily by using cassia (see the natural products boards for more info), but it is a bit of a faff to use.

Thanks Kris Dove. I used cassia once. Now that you mention it, I think it did give me a little more volume. I have a few packets left, I just haven't had much time. I think I will be doing a treatment this week.


I know a lack of zinc in the diet can cause thinness and colour loss, but your hair looks lovely to me xx

Hey Jojo, thanks :D I will have to make sure I'm taking my multi-vitamin. I am usually pretty good with that.

spidermom
October 5th, 2010, 11:02 AM
It looks like you have a shade of blonde now, which I admit is pretty odd since I've never heard of anybody changing from dark to light. It usually goes the other way. Blonde hair can look very different depending on the light. I have a few pictures where my hair looks sort of milk chocolate color, others where it's bright golden blonde. Try getting a picture under the same light conditions as the "before" picture and see how it looks.

Juneii
October 5th, 2010, 11:06 AM
but you look fabulous with the lighter hair!

Yedda
October 5th, 2010, 12:08 PM
It looks like you have a shade of blonde now, which I admit is pretty odd since I've never heard of anybody changing from dark to light. It usually goes the other way. Blonde hair can look very different depending on the light. I have a few pictures where my hair looks sort of milk chocolate color, others where it's bright golden blonde. Try getting a picture under the same light conditions as the "before" picture and see how it looks.

That's a good idea. I'll take another picture in similiar lighting to see how it looks. Thanks Spidermom.


but you look fabulous with the lighter hair!

Thank you:) You guys make me feel better about it. I have been feeling like I'm starting to look a lot older because my hair is fading.