Can I get this color out?!

[MoonLightFairy]

Hi!
I have dark blonde hair and last summer I used Natural Instincts non-permanent hair dye to dye it. I never dyed my hair dark before and since I have light hair I figured it would be best to try something that would wash out instead of growing out in case I look like a freak :D I used Egyptian Plum. Now I knew getting into this that it would probably take longer to come out since I have light hair and its almost a black color. But here I am almost 7 months later and the color is still there! It's very faded yes, but it still has that plumy color to it. It doesn't look bad I'm just sick of it! I want to get it out because I want to do something new and there is an event that I am going to mid Feb where I will be wearing a dress and maybe pics so I REALLY want to get it out. Don't like seeing the two colors. I bought some clarifying shampoo the other day but not sure how it's working or if it is. I want to do as natural as possible, no bleaching.
Can anyone help me? :(

[MoonLightFairy]

No one????:(

[SwordWomanRiona]

Sorry I can't be of any help, I've only used henna, so I don't really know how you could treat your dye problem. I'm a bit puzzled, though. I've thought about using semi-permanent hair dyes before (but never have), and the instructions said they washed out in three months at the most...
Maybe this one takes more time to fade out? Maybe it's much more noticeable because you have light hair? For now, the only advice I can give is DON'T bleach!!!! That could damage your hair a lot and I think it is preferable to let the dye fade away with time (or try your shampoo, or something like that) than ruin your hair.

[claireozzy]

Have you tried a colour stripper? I know in the us you have colour fix which is supposed to be really good, i know it can take out jet black permanent colour so should be able to help you.

[FluffSpider]

Some hair masks/conditioners are notorious for seeping out dye-give it a shot. they're the ones not formulated for dyed hair
Also, have you considered going over it with a semipermanent of your natural colour? you're saying it's pretty faded already...

[Sundial]

I'm wondering if honey lightening can lift the color off

[MoonLightFairy]

Sorry I can't be of any help, I've only used henna, so I don't really know how you could treat your dye problem. I'm a bit puzzled, though. I've thought about using semi-permanent hair dyes before (but never have), and the instructions said they washed out in three months at the most...
Maybe this one takes more time to fade out? Maybe it's much more noticeable because you have light hair? For now, the only advice I can give is DON'T bleach!!!! That could damage your hair a lot and I think it is preferable to let the dye fade away with time (or try your shampoo, or something like that) than ruin your hair.
I know, its said 28 shampoos :\ I don't know why its taking forever. Even though my hair is light shouldn't it still be gone? I don't want to bleach my hair and I won't :)


Have you tried a colour stripper? I know in the us you have colour fix which is supposed to be really good, i know it can take out jet black permanent colour so should be able to help you.
I've looked into a stripper ;), but have read some bad things about it and I hear it really damages your hair and scalp.

Some hair masks/conditioners are notorious for seeping out dye-give it a shot. they're the ones not formulated for dyed hair
Also, have you considered going over it with a semipermanent of your natural colour? you're saying it's pretty faded already...
I have thought of dyeing it over, but since it's kind of a redish color and my hair is lighter didn't know if maybe it'd get kinda funky looking.

I'm wondering if honey lightening can lift the color offHmm, I'll look into it

[Shermie Girl]

I'm sorry to be the bearer of bad news but the only way you are going to remove the dye is with a chemical colour remover. There are no "natural" methods for successfully removing chemical hair dye.

Loreal makes a good colour remover. It is relatively inexpensive, highly effective and if used correctly shouldn't ravage your hair. I won't sit here and lie to you and say that there will be zero damage. But, if you follow the directions to the letter and do strand tests first!, you should be able to get the dye out and have hair that is in pretty good condition. I have used that brand remover in the past and had good results.

If you have long/thick hair, remember to pick up two or more boxes of the colour remover, you don't want to be stuck midway through the process without enough of the remover to saturate all of your hair. :eek:

You will not be able to restore your natural colour by removing the dye. The peroxide in the dye lifted out your natural colour before depositing the plummy shade. Using the colour remover will finish that job, stripping all of the natural colour from the hair shaft. You will have to dye your hair back to your natural color, to get it all to match, again.

Your only other alternative is to slowly grow and trim away the dye.

Good luck. :D

[Viechen]

Hey, sorry I cannot be of any help on how to remove the color but I can tell you that I used to use the Egyptian Plum to color my hair because it took a looong time to wash out (I have had it slightly fade nut still keep the base color for over 6 months)... Which is what I was looking for at that point. I think my advice would be to try some of the things mentioned above and if none of that works go get it fixed by a professional. DO NOT USE A BOX DYE TO LIGHTEN IT! I tried that at one point and got yellow roots because it is not strong enough to lift the plum color...
:) Best of luck and please keep us updated on how it goes!

[Anywhere]

You could always try hot oil treatments or SMTs? My temporary color was pulled completely out after a 12 hour SMT. (but I wanted the color to stay so I was upset.)

ETA: on my box of semipermanent stuff (Clairol Loving Care) it warns that it does not wash off of lighter hair in the 6-12 shampoos printed on the box. It might not completely fade for you using natural ways. :shrug:

[xoxophelia]

Unfortunately Natural Instincts is still holding on to my hair over a year after I used it and my hair had blonde natural highlights and I went to nearly black.

Mine has faded a whole lot too but my advice would be to either get a profressional to help you remove the color, try it yourself after a strand test, or wear some type of updo with your dress depending on how long your roots are.

I am personally taking the slow and patient route and just trimming it off since mine faded enough to be managable for me.

[Lostsoule77]

I used natural instincts about once a year. They've always washed out on me. In Nov '09 I dyed my hair black for a Halloween party. It is still in my hair. I called the company and they said since it was more than 2 shades darker than my natural color it would take more time or I would have to have my hair stripped to get it out! I called them about 11 months out from dying.

My friend is a hair dresser and she told me to try laundry detergant. Wet your hair and wash it with laundry detergant, leaving the detergant in for about 5 minutes. She said it's really drying so make sure you do a deep condition immediately following. Also it may take 2-3 times of doing it to get it all out. Just put the detergant where the dye is and space out when you do it by a couple regular washes.

Unfortunately for me it didn't work where the dye hasn't faded at all, but it DID work where it was faded. I've done it twice and most of the area on my hair that the dye was lighter it lifted and I had used black dye! She used it on her daughter's blonde hair to remove a pink strip she put in and it came out in one use. I'd give it a try and see if that can't help you. Good luck

Sorry for the long post.:)

[FullMoonTrim]

I was going to suggest that you lighten it a bit with the honey treatments. But I think Shermie Girl's idea looks even better!

Can you post a picture? I would love to see the color. You could show a picture when you just dyed it and one of it now..
:) I love pictures!

[MoonLightFairy]

I was going to suggest that you lighten it a bit with the honey treatments. But I think Shermie Girl's idea looks even better!

Can you post a picture? I would love to see the color. You could show a picture when you just dyed it and one of it now..
:) I love pictures!
I was thinking about that ;)
I'll be back :D

[FullMoonTrim]

I was thinking about that ;)
I'll be back :D
Yay!!! I'll check back later to see :)

[MoonLightFairy]

Day after...only pic I could find
[FONT=Palatino Linotype][SIZE=3][COLOR=Indigo]Today. Kinda hard with the flash
http://i253.photobucket.com/albums/hh66/xoxo926xoxo/DSCN1862.jpg

[MoonLightFairy]

I know it sounds cheap, and hey I am lol But wont it cost more (I'm planning on getting it done professionally) to go there with the color in my hair? Won't they have to take it out first? Cause I want to dye my hair a lighter shade of blonde.

[FullMoonTrim]

I know it sounds cheap, and hey I am lol But wont it cost more (I'm planning on getting it done professionally) to go there with the color in my hair? Won't they have to take it out first? Cause I want to dye my hair a lighter shade of blonde.
Hey, thanks for the photos! The color looks nice. It will take the right approach to lightening it without damaging it too much. What is your natural color?

[oktobergoud]

I hate to tell you this but it won't wash out completely, it never will! And red is the hardest colour to remove, so you really need to bleach it! Things like Color Oops mostly work on freshly dyed hair, but your hair has been dyed so long ago that it won't work anymore! I don't think honey lightning treatments would work..

Anyway, all I can think of is that it's going to be very damaging to get that hair to a nice shade of light blonde.. or blonde at all :S (and I speak from experience!)

The colour isn't bad though, do you really want blonde hair? I think red would look nice as well, you could use henna and it would be so pretty!

[MoonLightFairy]

Hey, thanks for the photos! The color looks nice. It will take the right approach to lightening it without damaging it too much. What is your natural color?
You can see some of it on the left in the picture, its a dark blonde.

[MoonLightFairy]

I hate to tell you this but it won't wash out completely, it never will! And red is the hardest colour to remove, so you really need to bleach it! Things like Color Oops mostly work on freshly dyed hair, but your hair has been dyed so long ago that it won't work anymore! I don't think honey lightning treatments would work..

Anyway, all I can think of is that it's going to be very damaging to get that hair to a nice shade of light blonde.. or blonde at all :S (and I speak from experience!)

The colour isn't bad though, do you really want blonde hair? I think red would look nice as well, you could use henna and it would be so pretty!
My natural color is a blonde, I just want a lighter shade of it. It's what I have been doing for years except highlights, its looks best. And how do you know how good red would look you can't see my face! :p

[MoonLightFairy]

My hair is pretty close to this
http://cdn1.iofferphoto.com/img/item/626/893/91/14913608_tp.jpg

[UltraBella]

Well, I can't give you an easy solution for getting rid of the color, but I can solve your mystery as to why you are retaining so much color. You DID NOT use a semi-color. Clairol Natural Instincts is a Demi-color. It does not contain ammonia, but it has a peroxide developer. So your cuticle was opened to allow the dye to penetrate. A semi-color contains no ammonia and no peroxide, it does not open the cuticle, it just coats the hair strands and washes out between 6-12 shampoos. Your 28 day wash out is what tipped me off, so I looked up the ingredients online and sure enough, peroxide. And the website says that for your natural color you should never put such a dark color on, it is not one of the color options when you select your natural color because it is too dark.
I am not sure how you are going to remove it without bleach but hopefully this helps you understand what happened atleast.

And I do have to respectfully disagree with Shermie Girl, the peroxide did NOT lift out your natural color. This is a deposit only color with a weak peroxide developer. It opens the cuticle letting the new color bond but it did not strip your natural color. Demi colors do not lift, they only deposit.

[MoonLightFairy]

So what could a professional hairdresser do?

[oktobergoud]

A professional would bleach it, really. In my opinion that would be the only option. It doesn't matter that your own hair is really light, the thing is, the colour around your hair is still dark and red! And bleach will have to break off all that colouring before it will get a bit lighter. Sure, it does help your hair has been coloured only once, since it will have less layers that needs to be stripped, but it still needs to be bleached to get light. And since your hair is now a dark red, that's going to be quiet difficult! I'm not sure if you are familiar with bleaching, but it goes from orange to dark yellow to lighter yellow, pale yellow and then white/platinum. But since you have so much red in your hair it will turn out orange and it will be really, really hard to get the orange out. Once you have done that, it will be uneven and needs to be toned etc. Long story short: it would be a pain in the ass, and damaging.

But that's what I THINK, I'm not a professional of course. I think the best thing you can do is go to a professional hairdresser and just ask what they would do :) Then you know for sure!

(And now I have no idea what your face looks like, sorry! I just meant that the colour overall would look pretty, since you already have a nice red base. Sorry for not being clear!)

I have tons of experience of bleaching my hair from red to platinum, I've done that many times and it is possible.. but only because I have a pixie haircut ;)

[oktobergoud]

Oh and maybe the hairdresser can make it lighter gradually by using highlights.. but that's going to take a while though, but it would be the less damaging way I guess!

[UltraBella]

A hairdresser would lift the color out with bleach. It's the only way to strip the darker color. Then you can use a permanent color, a light blonde for example, to redeposit color. I disagree that it is going to be orange, it's pretty easy to lift past the brassy stage and any experienced professional will have no problem doing so.
Highlights are just bleach as well, so your process is still the same, you would just be doing it gradually and it will cost you more in the long run.

[Coan-Teen]

Also since you're hair has grown out a good bit it will be easier for a hair dresser to match to your original color. I agree with UltraBella that a professional is your best bet for a good result. I'm not saying you couldn't manage it on your own but it would probably require a bit of trial and error. Since you are on a budget, like all of us, I think the cheapest option is to go in and get the entire color-treated area fixed in one go.

I hope that helps, and remember, for those of us with light colored hair, there is almost no such thing as wash out color. I have used many semi-permanent dyes and all of them have left color in my hair that I had to grow out because I was unwilling to bleach. As UltraBella pointed out you did use a demi-permanent, but this is just a fair warning from a fellow blonde. Wash out color is a dicey business. Good luck.

[MoonLightFairy]

waaaah its getting me angry:mad:
Want this color out now! Ugh! And I don't want to bleach or strip my hair :(

[UltraBella]

Your other option is to keep growing and trimming, someday all the Demi-color will be trimmed off without the damage of bleach. However, bleach isn't horrible on everyone's hair. I bleached my copper red out last spring and only ended up with a two inch trim for it to feel fantastic again. Then I went and put the copper red back six months later ! I cant make up my mind. Once again, I am sick of it but this time I am just going to tone my whole head with a neutral color in a Demi, no bleach. Because you went so far from your natural color level you just don't have many options for lifting it.
It really will be okay, whatever you decide :flower:

[MoonLightFairy]

Anybody know anything about a Malibu treatment?

[UltraBella]

Mailbu treatments are mainly for clarifying if you have hard water, mineral buildup from tap water, etc.

[MoonLightFairy]

I have a friend who is going to school for hairdressing and she said they can put green in to get the red out because it neutralizes it. Plus since its a school I can get it done cheaper! :cheese:

[Shermie Girl]

I have a friend who is going to school for hairdressing and she said they can put green in to get the red out because it neutralizes it. Plus since its a school I can get it done cheaper! :cheese:


I hope it works and that you are happy with the results. Good luck with your tresses. :D

[hairfanatic]

MoonLightFairy, PLEASE OD NOT DO the chemical/Bleach or any of those dyes, try equal amounts of head and shoulders and baking soda leave it on for a few min maybe up to 30 minutes follow by deep conditioning every 3 days it worked for me when i went from bleached blonde to a number 2 hair lighten to about a 4-5 in about 3 weeks hope it works for you

[Clarisse]

I have heard that heavy oiling can strip some of the dye from the hair :)

[WritingMum]

Try the SMT. See if it helps. It won't hurt, right?

[MoonLightFairy]

Ugh she asked her teacher and she said that the shade is too many levels darker from my natural for it to work. So I am gonna have to slowly dye it lighter colors since I don't wanna bleach or strip. So we're gonna find box colors to save money and probably do a brownish color to cover the red tint then go lighter.

[kwaniesiam]

Ugh she asked her teacher and she said that the shade is too many levels darker from my natural for it to work. So I am gonna have to slowly dye it lighter colors since I don't wanna bleach or strip. So we're gonna find box colors to save money and probably do a brownish color to cover the red tint then go lighter.

DO NOT DO THIS!

You cannot "slowly dye it lighter colors". That is essentially bleaching, only in a far messier, time consuming, damaging process. Any time you lighten your hair, you are bleaching. It doesn't matter what the package says, if color is being lifted from your hair, that's bleach.

Box dye will NOT get the color out to where you want it, you'd be safer just to bleach it once and be done with a low level developer, like 20 vol and toning it to the correct shade. It will be less damaging in the long run than putting multiple applications of box dye on your hair with contain 40 vol. developer. Don't go the cheap route when it comes to color correction, especially if you do not know what you are doing, box dyes are not predictable and you will end up with more of a mess than what you started with. Please leave it to a pro if you aren't 100% sure of how these chemicals work and will react to your hair. Color does not lift color. You will only trash your length and end up with a very muddy color that will be even more damaging and costly to fix in the end.

If you are determined to do this yourself my suggestion would be to get a powder bleach and 20 vol. developer from Sally's. Apply once to your length until you reach a color a shade or two LIGHTER than what you are aiming for, if your length is brassy afterwards then go with a beige or neutral tone, avoid anything ash because it has a tendency to pull green. Then apply a demi-permanent color to tone it to the correct shade. Do not try to tone before lightening, otherwise you will just end up with the same brassy red colors all over again. Always tone after lifting. If you have any questions PM me.

Edit: I just re-read your post and it said you used a semi-permanent color. Try mixing equal parts of a clarifying shampoo with bleach that has been separately mixed with 20 vol. developer. In other words, mix the bleach, then half it with clarifying shampoo and scrub your length with it until saturated and cap it to remove the color, this is called a soap cap. You may have to do it more than once but it will break up the dye and slowly lift it out. You still may need to tone it in the end however.

If you don't want to lighten your hair, your only other option is to just grow it out and cut it off.

Edit 2: Read the rest of the thread, I agree with UltraBella. That was a demi, it will never fully wash out on its own. Only chemical intervention will fully remove that color.

[MoonLightFairy]

DO NOT DO THIS!

You cannot "slowly dye it lighter colors". That is essentially bleaching, only in a far messier, time consuming, damaging process. Any time you lighten your hair, you are bleaching. It doesn't matter what the package says, if color is being lifted from your hair, that's bleach.

Box dye will NOT get the color out to where you want it, you'd be safer just to bleach it once and be done with a low level developer, like 20 vol and toning it to the correct shade. It will be less damaging in the long run than putting multiple applications of box dye on your hair with contain 40 vol. developer. Don't go the cheap route when it comes to color correction, especially if you do not know what you are doing, box dyes are not predictable and you will end up with more of a mess than what you started with. Please leave it to a pro if you aren't 100% sure of how these chemicals work and will react to your hair. Color does not lift color. You will only trash your length and end up with a very muddy color that will be even more damaging and costly to fix in the end.

If you are determined to do this yourself my suggestion would be to get a powder bleach and 20 vol. developer from Sally's. Apply once to your length until you reach a color a shade or two LIGHTER than what you are aiming for, if your length is brassy afterwards then go with a beige or neutral tone, avoid anything ash because it has a tendency to pull green. Then apply a demi-permanent color to tone it to the correct shade. Do not try to tone before lightening, otherwise you will just end up with the same brassy red colors all over again. Always tone after lifting. If you have any questions PM me.

Edit: I just re-read your post and it said you used a semi-permanent color. Try mixing equal parts of a clarifying shampoo with bleach that has been separately mixed with 20 vol. developer. In other words, mix the bleach, then half it with clarifying shampoo and scrub your length with it until saturated and cap it to remove the color, this is called a soap cap. You may have to do it more than once but it will break up the dye and slowly lift it out. You still may need to tone it in the end however.

If you don't want to lighten your hair, your only other option is to just grow it out and cut it off.

Edit 2: Read the rest of the thread, I agree with UltraBella. That was a demi, it will never fully wash out on its own. Only chemical intervention will fully remove that color.
So your telling me the hair dressing teacher is wrong?

[Debra83]

So...what's happening? Pics? :confused:

[UltraBella]

Kwansiesiam, you just beat me to it !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I was just typing that you can not "dye it lighter".
OP, this is going to have a harsh developer and your results may be far more damaging than just bleaching to start with and toning afterwards.
And I second that box dyes are VERY unpredictable.
There is NO reason to do a brownish color over the red color and then go lighter. That just means you have even more color to lift and are setting yourself up for more damage.
I am sorry, but that advice was terrible !

[MoonLightFairy]

Edit 2: Read the rest of the thread, I agree with UltraBella. That was a demi, it will never fully wash out on its own. Only chemical intervention will fully remove that color.
No, it was semi

[kwaniesiam]

So your telling me the hair dressing teacher is wrong?

If you were told that you can apply lighter colors of box dye to lighten the color back to your natural, then yes. You cannot lift a color with another color. I've gone through beauty school and I did not always agree with my teachers when it comes to chemical processing.

Once you apply a peroxide containing dye, the structure of your hair color has been permanently altered and your natural color is gone. You can achieve a shade very close to it, but you will not restore your natural hair.

Putting green over red can result in a neutral brown, that is how the color wheel works. I almost never put a straight ash (green) tone over red though, as the green tends to pull much stronger and you end up with an ashy, muddy, result. You mentioned in your post your goal is a blonde shade. How light are we talking? A picture would be helpful if you can find one. If you want to get to blonde from where you are now that I saw in the picture you posted, you will have to lighten it before you tone otherwise when you do go back in and lighten it, you will end up with brassy hair all over again.

[UltraBella]

No, it was semi

I am sorry, but you are mistaken. Natural Instincts Egyptian plum is a Demi color, not a semi color. And the box says non-permanent, which is what a Demi color is still categorized under, but it 100% does have a peroxide developer. A semi does not have a peroxide developer. This makes all the difference in the world.

[MoonLightFairy]

I am sorry, but you are mistaken. Natural Instincts Egyptian plum is a Demi color, not a semi color. And the box says non-permanent, which is what a Demi color is still categorized under, but it 100% does have a peroxide developer. A semi does not have a peroxide developer. This makes all the difference in the world.
Its advertised at Semi

[kwaniesiam]

Its advertised at Semi

Some companies do not distinguish between semi and demi, though they should, especially in the case of box dyes. Based on the ingredients of the dye, it was not a true semi permanent color. Semi permanents do not have any peroxide developer while a demi does.

A semi works by staining the outside of the cuticle, while a demi penetrates in to the hair shaft with the aid of a developer and alters the melanin in the strand, much like a permanent color. It will fade, but never completely.

[MoonLightFairy]

If you were told that you can apply lighter colors of box dye to lighten the color back to your natural, then yes. You cannot lift a color with another color. I've gone through beauty school and I did not always agree with my teachers when it comes to chemical processing.

Once you apply a peroxide containing dye, the structure of your hair color has been permanently altered and your natural color is gone. You can achieve a shade very close to it, but you will not restore your natural hair.

Putting green over red can result in a neutral brown, that is how the color wheel works. I almost never put a straight ash (green) tone over red though, as the green tends to pull much stronger and you end up with an ashy, muddy, result. You mentioned in your post your goal is a blonde shade. How light are we talking? A picture would be helpful if you can find one. If you want to get to blonde from where you are now that I saw in the picture you posted, you will have to lighten it before you tone otherwise when you do go back in and lighten it, you will end up with brassy hair all over again.
Her teacher said if I were to go there that they would have to dye it a few times over time to get it lighter, but since that was going to be expensive she said we could use a box color. and I'm not trying to get the color out by dying over it....duh? lol I'm trying to dye it back to a color close to my original. She said the green wouldn't work for me, something to do with the level of my hair color. Even though in the end I do want to make my hair a little lighter than my original, right now I'm just focusing on getting my hair all one color and closest to my natural as possible.

[MoonLightFairy]

Some companies do not distinguish between semi and demi, though they should, especially in the case of box dyes. Based on the ingredients of the dye, it was not a true semi permanent color. Semi permanents do not have any peroxide developer while a demi does.

A semi works by staining the outside of the cuticle, while a demi penetrates in to the hair shaft with the aid of a developer and alters the melanin in the strand, much like a permanent color. It will fade, but never completely.
Ugh, its all the box's fault.

[UltraBella]

Its advertised at Semi

Where ? I have looked at the box online and it plainly states non-permanent color, lasts through 24 shampoos. That is a Demi color. It states no ammonia, it does not state no peroxide and peroxide is listed clearly in the ingredients. No where on the box do I see that it says semi. And it absolutely CAN NOT contain peroxide and be a semi color.

ETA: Took me too long, I see you have a good explanation above...........

[kwaniesiam]

Her teacher said if I were to go there that they would have to dye it a few times over time to get it lighter, but since that was going to be expensive she said we could use a box color. and I'm not trying to get the color out by dying over it....duh? lol I'm trying to dye it back to a color close to my original. She said the green wouldn't work for me, something to do with the level of my hair color. Even though in the end I do want to make my hair a little lighter than my original, right now I'm just focusing on getting my hair all one color and closest to my natural as possible.

I'm sorry but I would never trust an instructor in the field of cosmetology that said you could just use a box dye. There is a reason we stylists go to school for a year to learn not only how to apply the color, but understand the chemical components of it and how they work and react to other chemicals on the hair. By going over it a few times to get it lighter, she most likely meant that there would have to be more than one application of bleach to get it light enough before applying the shade that would allow it to match your natural color. The level of your hair color refers to how light or dark it is, generally 1 or 2 being black and 10 being platinum blonde.

You said you would be applying multiple applications of box color to get it lighter, that is dyeing over it repeatedly to get the color out.

The best advice I can give you is to go to a salon and have them correct it, tell them you want to get your length to match your roots as closely as possible. Please do not try to do this yourself, corrective color is very advanced work and can have truly disastrous results if you don't truly understand what you are working with. This is not the type of process you can be frugal with, otherwise you'll end up wasting a lot of money in the end and not have the results you want. Good luck.

[UltraBella]

I'm not trying to get the color out by dying over it....duh? lol I'm trying to dye it back to a color close to my original. She said the green wouldn't work for me, something to do with the level of my hair color. Even though in the end I do want to make my hair a little lighter than my original, right now I'm just focusing on getting my hair all one color and closest to my natural as possible.

I honestly think we are just confusing you and I don't think you understand the coloring/bleaching process at all. I am sorry if we are making this sound complicated.
What you stated above IS NOT POSSIBLE. You can not dye it back to a color close to your original. Your natural color is light, your box color is dark. You can not lighten your now dark lengths by dying your hair. Hair dye of a lighter color will not lighten your Egyptian plum. You can bleach your hair lighter, you can not "dye" your hair lighter.
I think the educator's advice, if your friend understood it correctly, is very very bad advice and will not work and will only further damage your hair more than one application of bleach will.

[MoonLightFairy]

Maybe it wasn't on the box but I did see it somewhere. it could have been a mistake. I looked at colors online alot before I decided on that one, maybe an ad or the section in the store.

[kwaniesiam]

Maybe it wasn't on the box but I did see it somewhere. it could have been a mistake. I looked at colors online alot before I decided on that one, maybe an ad or the section in the store.

Regardless of what type of dye you used, I strongly advise you leave the correction in the hands of a pro. It will save you a lot of trouble in the end, we don't want you to ruin your hair :flowers:

[MoonLightFairy]

I honestly think we are just confusing you and I don't think you understand the coloring/bleaching process at all. I am sorry if we are making this sound complicated.
What you stated above IS NOT POSSIBLE. You can not dye it back to a color close to your original. Your natural color is light, your box color is dark. You can not lighten your now dark lengths by dying your hair. Hair dye of a lighter color will not lighten your Egyptian plum. You can bleach your hair lighter, you can not "dye" your hair lighter.
I think the educator's advice, if your friend understood it correctly, is very very bad advice and will not work and will only further damage your hair more than one application of bleach will.
Ugh, you're right, it doesn't make sense. I didn't really think about it just figured they would be right (so unlike me) just desperate I guess.
I'm soo pissed it dyed my hair! I almost did the blond first too ah!

[Debra83]

Kwaniesiam and Ultrabella, what do you two think of the advice given earlier about laundry detergent? Could that work on Henna?

[kwaniesiam]

Kwaniesiam and Ultrabella, what do you two think of the advice given earlier about laundry detergent? Could that work on Henna?

I honestly have no idea about the laundry detergent, I've used dish soap to fade Manic Panic before but never detergent. Since henna binds with the keratin in the hair shaft it is VERY hard to remove chemically or otherwise. It depends on how many applications of henna we're talking about and how much lighter you want to go. The best henna lightener method I've seen so far is Nightshade's Sun-in method.

[Debra83]

I honestly have no idea about the laundry detergent, I've used dish soap to fade Manic Panic before but never detergent. Since henna binds with the keratin in the hair shaft it is VERY hard to remove chemically or otherwise. It depends on how many applications of henna we're talking about and how much lighter you want to go. The best henna lightener method I've seen so far is Nightshade's Sun-in method.

Yeah, I've got that one logged away as well. I'm still liking it dark, but every once in awhile, I get that blond itch again!!! sorry for the hijack.

[MoonLightFairy]

Regardless of what type of dye you used, I strongly advise you leave the correction in the hands of a pro. It will save you a lot of trouble in the end, we don't want you to ruin your hair :flowers:
Who knew hair was so complicated?! So.....highlights is bleaching?:confused:

[kwaniesiam]

Who knew hair was so complicated?! So.....highlights is bleaching?:confused:

Yes, highlights are done by applying bleach in small sections :)

There are several forms of bleach, some are powders mixed with cream or liquid peroxide developers. There are also cream bleaches mixed with developers and high lift colors that will lighten virgin (undyed or otherwise processed) hair.

Just an FYI, any time a stylist refers to de-colorizing, lifting, or lightening, that is bleaching.

[UltraBella]

Kwaniesiam and Ultrabella, what do you two think of the advice given earlier about laundry detergent? Could that work on Henna?

I think it will dull the henna and dry out the hair. Same as dish detergent, etc. But it wont remove it.
I would rather have one application of a low volume bleach than repeated washings of anything that harsh.
In fact, on Thursday one of my stylists is bleaching in highlights for my me and then cutting my hair. Not sure how much shorter yet.

>>>> To the OP, I was dying my hair a level six copper red for years. Now I would like to get close to my natural shade of a level 8 ash blonde. Not easy. Last week I toned the red with a neutral level 7 - it's the equivalent of a light brown with no red tones, but no ash tones either. I would never use an ash tone alone, green undertones are not my friend. So now I have a combination color, it's brown instead of copper red but it still has a hint of copper. My next step is to foil in highlights, that means bleach, and then tone those highlights to match my natural color. As my roots grow in and I foil in more and more natural colored highlights over time, my roots and length will start to blend together. So, you are not the only one with color issues, mine just happen to be not quite as difficult.

[MoonLightFairy]

Yes, highlights are done by applying bleach in small sections :)

There are several forms of bleach, some are powders mixed with cream or liquid peroxide developers. There are also cream bleaches mixed with developers and high lift colors that will lighten virgin (undyed or otherwise processed) hair.

Just an FYI, any time a stylist refers to de-colorizing, lifting, or lightening, that is bleaching.
I used to get highlights, but I never really thought about it. I thought bleaching was many steps and complicated and she just put goop on foil and bam!

God! So much is hidden and the lies! Hair dying is scandalous!

Anyway to make hair grow faster? lol

[Debra83]

I think it will dull the henna and dry out the hair. Same as dish detergent, etc. But it wont remove it.
I would rather have one application of a low volume bleach than repeated washings of anything that harsh.
In fact, on Thursday one of my stylists is bleaching in highlights for my me and then cutting my hair. Not sure how much shorter yet.



Thanks!...and hopefully, you're not going too much shorter...your hair is gorgeous!

[UltraBella]

Thanks!...and hopefully, you're not going too much shorter...your hair is gorgeous!

It might be significantly shorter and more of my beloved layers. Keep going back and forth on it........

[Chibbylick]

and you have the decided advantage of employing your stylist! Lucky UltraBelle!

This kind of stress is why i'm a renegray! Good luck!

[fluffybunny]

I'm trying to dye it back to a color close to my original.

Hi,
I think you're misunderstanding some of the basics of hair dye. You started out with a light shade. Then you added the red/brown color to it, which is darker than your natural shade. You can't dye it back to your original color any more, because your original color was quite a bit lighter. Adding more dye will only change the shade or darken it. So that's why the green trick won't work. If you add green it will go from red to ash brown, but it will be even darker than it is now, since you will have added more color.

The only way to go lighter is to lift color out by bleaching, then once you get to the level of darkness of your original color, add toner to change the shade. So to get back to your natural color, you have to bleach.

And please follow the good advice already given-- let a professional do this for you. "Color correction" isn't a job for amateurs with box dye. It's just not a DIY-friendly operation.

[Malibu Barbie]

Please listen to these fine ladies, they aren't trying to steer you wrong. I color every month. I have been so many colors. The reason my hair is in such good shape is because I never tired to do anything myself. I always had the help of a great colorist.

Don't let a beauty school student try it either. I can tell you the awful things that happened to me when I let someone from the beauty school mess with my hair,(I was in college and was ask if they could work on my hair, mistake) they just don't have the experience yet.

If you don't have the money now save up and do it right. I have a friend that lost her tailbone hair when she tired to dye her hair back to blonde from a box. It turned bright orange she had to cut it off.

I have been red, brown and I'm a natural dark blonde. Good luck. I hope it all works out for you.

[darklion]

I haven't read everyone else's responses but lemme tell you... Natural Instincts did a number on my hair too. I went to the beauty salon and they had to strip it three times to TRY to get it back to my color and they still failed. They had to dye it something close to my real color. I have red hair... they got nowhere close.
I've never colored my hair since.

[brok3nwings]

well.. im sorry to tell you but 7 months with blonde hair and semi dye is not a huge amount of time... i have done it and it does fade completely or almost completely but you have to be patient. And my advice is... dont mess it up until then :)

[MoonLightFairy]

Well, I'm going to my hairdresser tomorrow to get her opinion on what I/she can do for me hair. Probably what I should have done a while ago :p

[Demetrue]

I've had really good luck removing both permanant and natural instincts hair dye with the original strength Color Oops by Developlus. NOT Color Fix and NOT Color Zap which both damaged my hair noticeably. The Color Oops seemed a lot more gentle than the other two strippers and my hair felt okay after I did it. I then used a porosity equalizer and redyed my hair with a permanant level 9 neutral blonde color and it looked fine.

[Shermie Girl]

Kwaniesiam and Ultrabella, what do you two think of the advice given earlier about laundry detergent? Could that work on Henna?


No. Detergent might slightly fade henna, depending on how many applications you have done and how much saturation you have. Detergent can't remove henna. Yes, I know this because once upon a time, when I was trying to remove henna, I tried it. No joy. Just dry hair. :p :lol:

The only way to completely remove henna is with scissors. Bleach can fade it a bit, as Nightshade did with Sun In but if you are trying to remove the henna completely, the bleach will destroy the hair before the henna is thoroughly removed. :)

[mysro]

use honey & the peroxide boosters :)

it will probably help.

[Toadstool]

Moonlight fairy, Hope the hairdresser was helpful.
Ultrabella's advice sounded excellent.
I have had some success removing colour using Head and Shoulders shampoo. But I don't know if it works for everyone.

[Toadstool]

. Bleach can fade it a bit, as Nightshade did with Sun In but if you are trying to remove the henna completely, the bleach will destroy the hair before the henna is thoroughly removed. :)
This is how I melted my fringe off.

[MoonLightFairy]

Saw her today. Shes not 100 percent sure how it will come out so she took some hair to test it first. But she feels she feels confident it making it work. I have an appointment tomorrow. :D

[annieangel149]

Saw her today. Shes not 100 percent sure how it will come out so she took some hair to test it first. But she feels she feels confident it making it work. I have an appointment tomorrow. :D


kool! i will be keeping my fingers crossed for u that you will have a beautiful colour that u love :D:cheese:

[UltraBella]

It's great that she took a strand test ! Can't wait to know how your appointment goes !

[MoonLightFairy]

It's great that she took a strand test ! Can't wait to know how your appointment goes !
Yeah she's good. She's older so she's had alot of experience and still takes the update classes. She's cool too because she's gonna put in the computer its a color/highlight instead of recolor/fixing because it costs less :eyebrows:

[Shermie Girl]

I can't wait to see how it all comes out. I hope that your strand tests are a success and your hair comes out fabulous. :D

[Demetrue]

I hope it comes out great! Let us know!

[MoonLightFairy]

She bleached the test piece...it came out orange lol it was pretty though :p She toned it. Its gonna take a couple of times, but it blends better.

[UltraBella]

Really hoping for a picture or two once it's all done :)

[MoonLightFairy]

Kind of a random side note. But my hair has been so soft and feels much healthier ever since I got it done. :D

[Shermie Girl]

So... How'd it go? :drama: