What is a toner (blonde)?

[Verybadhairday]

My hair was originally highlighted blonde, then I decided to go natural but dye it a light ash brown (this was all done professionally) to make the growing out phase easier (my hair is dark ash blonde, lightens in the sun hopefully)

It's been a year since I last dyed, but the brown has faded a lot into a very brassy blonde
I do not want to re dye it unless it's my last choice (I would die it blonde but not my roots, sort of ombre style I guess)
I really can't stand the orangeyness of most of my hair, and wondered if a blonde toner would help?

What is a toner/how long do they last and do you use them by themselves

Thanks for any help!

Oh and I am trying a violet/blue shampoo too, so don't suggest this as a compromise to my situation ;)

[jojo]

A toner is used to stop brassiness in bleached/highlighted hair. Hairdressers normally do a toner after putting highlights/bleach in to give it a more natural look. They do fade over time but you can buy toning shampoo's and conditioners which work very well. I used to use this one http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Redken-Blonde-Glam-Platinum-Toning-Conditioner-/110452345104 and the conditioner when my hair was highlighted and it stopped brassiness and made my hair lovely and soft. Its expensive but I only used once maybe twice a month so it lasted.

[Rini]

Ah toners, an area in which I am quite experienced :D

First of all you need to figure out what is bugging you the most: gold/yellow or orange reflect. "Brassy" can mean either. Once you figure out what it is you are trying to eliminate, use the appropriate toner either blue-based, violet-based or a bit of both (usually called a "pearl" toner). For reference (based on the complimentary colours on the colour wheel), blue based toners will help to eliminate orange and violet-based will eliminate yellow.

Now that you know what toner you need, choose one which is preferably deposit-only. You can get them with a weak developer, but it's harsher on your hair and the deposit-only ones work just as well and you can apply them as often as you need without damage.

Some good deposit-only toners:
Goldwell Soft Color 10P - pearl toner, more of a drabber and can give a grey cast if left too long
Goldwell Soft Color 10V - violet toner to eliminate yellow. I used to mix 10P and 10V together
(both of the above are mousses that come in a blue can and are applied directly to dry or damp hair, left on for as long as you need and then rinsed out. You can also apply heat when it's one for more concentration)
Wella Color Fresh Silver series - there are three shades in these: light pearl ash, violet, deep pear ash
Pravana color silk degrees botanical hair colour in platinum - neutralizes gold
Schwarzkopf Igora Color Gloss mousse in IceFlower - works in the same was as the Goldwell ones

The above are toners that I've tried myself or researched and read reviews. There are many others which I've tried (including Napro, Fudge, Roux) which were ineffectual and not worth the time/cash. There is also a Surya Henna Cream called "Silver Fox" which I haven't tried yet, but looks interesting. The other thing that comes to mind is Goldwell Elumen which many people have used to counteract the orange from henna (check out the Elumen thread in the Conventional Products thread...it's huge!)

Hope that helps! Good luck :)

[Maria_L]

First of all, I would like to say that I never tried this myself. But a friend of mine got this advice after she had an unsuccessful bleach and ended up with yellow hair.

Buy a semi-permanent hair dye like Manic Panic. It should be the complementary colors of the shades in your hair you want to counteract. If your hair is too yellow, use a purple dye, if your hair is too orange, use a blue dye. Then mix a small amount of dye with your conditioner (start with only a really small amount so you don't end up with purple hair. You can alway mix it more intense the next time). And leave the color-conditioner on for something like 30 min. When the color starts to fade and the hair starts to turn yellow again, just do another application.

[Verybadhairday]

A toner is used to stop brassiness in bleached/highlighted hair. Hairdressers normally do a toner after putting highlights/bleach in to give it a more natural look. They do fade over time but you can buy toning shampoo's and conditioners which work very well. I used to use this one http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Redken-Blonde-Glam-Platinum-Toning-Conditioner-/110452345104 and the conditioner when my hair was highlighted and it stopped brassiness and made my hair lovely and soft. Its expensive but I only used once maybe twice a month so it lasted.

Sounds like toners could be of good use to me then :) The fading thing sounds good incase something goes wrong (normally does with me:o )
I'll look into that product, thank you :)



Ah toners, an area in which I am quite experienced :D

First of all you need to figure out what is bugging you the most: gold/yellow or orange reflect. "Brassy" can mean either. Once you figure out what it is you are trying to eliminate, use the appropriate toner either blue-based, violet-based or a bit of both (usually called a "pearl" toner). For reference (based on the complimentary colours on the colour wheel), blue based toners will help to eliminate orange and violet-based will eliminate yellow.

Now that you know what toner you need, choose one which is preferably deposit-only. You can get them with a weak developer, but it's harsher on your hair and the deposit-only ones work just as well and you can apply them as often as you need without damage.

Some good deposit-only toners:
Goldwell Soft Color 10P - pearl toner, more of a drabber and can give a grey cast if left too long
Goldwell Soft Color 10V - violet toner to eliminate yellow. I used to mix 10P and 10V together
(both of the above are mousses that come in a blue can and are applied directly to dry or damp hair, left on for as long as you need and then rinsed out. You can also apply heat when it's one for more concentration)
Wella Color Fresh Silver series - there are three shades in these: light pearl ash, violet, deep pear ash
Pravana color silk degrees botanical hair colour in platinum - neutralizes gold
Schwarzkopf Igora Color Gloss mousse in IceFlower - works in the same was as the Goldwell ones

The above are toners that I've tried myself or researched and read reviews. There are many others which I've tried (including Napro, Fudge, Roux) which were ineffectual and not worth the time/cash. There is also a Surya Henna Cream called "Silver Fox" which I haven't tried yet, but looks interesting. The other thing that comes to mind is Goldwell Elumen which many people have used to counteract the orange from henna (check out the Elumen thread in the Conventional Products thread...it's huge!)

Hope that helps! Good luck :)

This definitely helps, thank you!
I'd say it's more of an orangey problem, so I'll look into the more bluey products. For the products you've used, how long are they effective for/how often did you 'top it up' as such?
thanks :)


First of all, I would like to say that I never tried this myself. But a friend of mine got this advice after she had an unsuccessful bleach and ended up with yellow hair.

Buy a semi-permanent hair dye like Manic Panic. It should be the complementary colors of the shades in your hair you want to counteract. If your hair is too yellow, use a purple dye, if your hair is too orange, use a blue dye. Then mix a small amount of dye with your conditioner (start with only a really small amount so you don't end up with purple hair. You can alway mix it more intense the next time). And leave the color-conditioner on for something like 30 min. When the color starts to fade and the hair starts to turn yellow again, just do another application.

I think I have heard of others doing this, in theory it does sound good. However I worry that I would accidentely end up with a purple hue all over my hair :eek:. I think I'll try the conventional products out first, then perhaps look into this if I need something stronger
Very interesting, thank you :)

[Rini]

This definitely helps, thank you!
I'd say it's more of an orangey problem, so I'll look into the more bluey products. For the products you've used, how long are they effective for/how often did you 'top it up' as such?
thanks :)



It's going to depend largely on what method you use with the toner you choose. ie, if you leave the toner on for longer and apply heat then you are going to get a longer lasting and more intense result. The Goldwells used to last a good 2 weeks for me (I only wash 2 to 3 times a week) before I felt the need to do it again. The Schwarzkopf lasted for a shorter time, but then I felt that the schwarzkopf one was not quite as intense to start with. I have read several accounts of the Wella ones lasting up to 10 shampoos....so that sounds more promising. It's something you need to play with, and it's OK because none of the toners I suggested will damage your hair one bit. HTH!!