Dying Hair - Removing Color

[Jo]

Okay, here''s a new topic - although I''m thinking that readers here may be too young to relate. Here goes anyway...

My hair is 50 percent gray (yuck, hate it) and I''ve been coloring the roots forever. I see a hairdresser to have it professionally done about every six weeks. In between that time, so that I don''t look like a freak of nature, I do color the roots myself with the Wella Color Charm product and 20 volume peroxide.

Over time it seems that the color builds up and my hair looks VERY dark, almost black. I want to keep my hair in the browns. The brown dye which covers the gray, I swear, builds up and voila I''ve got BLACK hair.

Does anyone have any suggestions for lifting out some of the built up color? One hairdresser used Evisol and it fried my hair (too harsh).

Help! Suggetions?

 

[Lorelei]

Hey Jo, I used to be a colourist so maybe I can help. First a question - are you overlapping the colour each time when you do it, or are you taking care just to do the roots? If so take care to do the roots only as colouring over existing dye will increase the hair's porosity and it will grab the colour more and get darker. You can lift the colour a little by shampooing very carefully and making sure IT DOES NOT GET IN YOUR EYES, using 2 thirds shampoo and one third 3% or 10 vol peroxide. If you have 20 vol, dilute by half with water. Leave the shampoo on hair for about 4 mins, then rinse and condition thoroughly. This should lift it a little. Also when you next colour, use the next shade lighter than the one you usually use e.g if you use medium brown try light brown, if light brown , dark blonde etc. Most colours will come up quite dark so it is a good policy to choose the same colour one shade lighter than your target colour. Condition your hair like mad intensively and really try to do THE ROOTS ONLY when next colouring and avoid spreading the colour through the rest of your hair. Bear in mind greys will either grab colour or resist it, your sounds like the more porous type which will grab it. I have used the Wella Colour Charm myself and it is a good colour but very matt I found, maybe change brands to a L'oreal as their colours tend to be more translucent. Hope this helps!

 

[Jo]

Lorelei - Thanks goodness I can talk to someone in the know:

Yes, I only color the roots, but I swear the color must grab on the way out.

Shampoo/peroxide combo for lift - Should I wait until some gray roots grow out, then then use the shampoo/peroxide combo first, followed by lighter shade of Light Brown on the roots?

How long can I wait before going back to my original Medium Brown?

How often can I use the Shampoo/peroxide lift? Don't want to have trashed hair. I also perm my bangs every six months.

You mentioned Wella is matt. What does that mean? Also, L'Oreal is transluscent??

BTW, my hair has some white - sometimes I have trouble with coverage...

 

[Lorelei]

Your'e welcome! You can do the peroxide combo now, then with normal shampooing that should lift the colour up naturally - the peroxide will give it a head start, no need to wait for regrowth. This method won't trash your hair. Wait until the colour has faded and you have some regrowth before you colour again and try the shade lighter - if you want a medium brown result use a light brown as they do come up one shade darker - a med brown can actually be a dark brown. You can do this peroxide shampoo every couple of weeks, but I would think twice only would be best, you shouldn't need more than that. When I say matt, if I can remember the chemistry side of colouring - it's been a while

the matt colours have a more heavily pigmented base with the colour molecules and generally lots of ash pigments added. This has often been the case I have found with many Wella colours, especially the professional Koleston range and the Colour Charm I have used. The L'oreal colours tend to be more translucent and don't look as flat as the Wella, more shiny and not as " harsh" looking. It is just a difference in the formulation.

With the coverage problem, with the next colour you can leave it on the roots longer if the grey is resistant, I often used to leave the colour on for an additional 10 minutes for clients with this problem. The colour won't go darker, nor is this harmful - the colour will only go as dark as the formulation permits, this will allow the colour molecules time to penetrate the greys and cover better. Also start a really intensive conditioning regime, shampoo only once when you shampoo and always condition well and leave it on to work. Blot hair gently with a towel and blast with a hairdryer until it is three quarters dry before styling. This helps save a lot of heat damage which can be caused by stressing the hair by styling from soaking wet. Do an intensive condition weekly and make the most of shine serums to help protect hair and leave in conditioners. By doing this, you will find your hair will accept colour more evenly and last longer. Another thing to try if the colour is still too dark and isn't covering the roots is to try using 9% or 30 vol peroxide with the colour. This will enable the colour to penetrate the greys a little more and stop the colour from going too dark, but confine this to the roots only. If ever the ends need a refresher, add some water- half and half to the colour remainder and take through the rest of the hair for 2 - 5 mins then rinse. If you need any more help let me know, but I hope this helps! BTW do you mean L'oreal Effacol colour stripper? That stuff is LETHAL, no wonder it fried your hair!!!

 

[portoar]

What shade of brown was your hair (before it started going gray)? I have light brown hair (light enough that some people put it in the dark blond category) and am 50% or more gray. It''s gotten to the point where it looks mousy/colorless.

A few months ago, I started getting highlights. That way your hair doesn''t look fake. I''ve been really happy with the results, and because it''s highlighted, you don''t need touch ups between highlights. Also, with repeated highlights, your hair will eventually take on more of the color, without showing a heavy demarcation line when the roots start growing out between highlights. You will still see some gray allover, but a lot more color. I think some gray showing would look great with the diamond earrings you''re getting! OTOH, you live in LA so gray hair may be a big NONO.

I think that rather than putting more chemicals on your hair, you might want to just let the "blackened" hair grow out. While doing this, why not try the highlights. They will blend the old black hair with the new hair growing in. Eventually you will have a more natural look. Just my 02c.

 

[portoar]

BTW, my stylist uses 2 or 3 colors for the highlights, which looks great. I also have some white hair, more around the temples. I don''t fight it it, my stylist leaves some of the whiter streaks and that itself is striking. Actually, I get a lot of compliments on it.

 

[Lorelei]

That's a good suggestion Portoar, but I think Jo wants to go back to a medium brown colour, plus highlights would take a lot of strong bleach probably to lift the dyed brown out and she is fearful of harming her hair more. Also the results can be unpredictable with such a dark shade of colour and the contrast in colours might be too great.

I am glad you got such good results with yours - personally I love to see some grey with the mixed highlights and have also done some grey clients a whitish silver with bleach and toners in the past, they LOVED IT

Also Jo you might want to have a chat with your colourist and see what she suggests, as she knows your hair and how it reacts and can gauge the condition etc.

 

[portoar]

Actually what I meant was why not just highlight the new hair growing out, not the already over-dyed parts. That would blend it. I wasn''t clear. I''m also not a hair stylist and don''t know anything about how to correct "color gone wrong" -- definitely defer to you the expert! But, IMO, it''s hard to get a good look trying to cover all the gray when you start having more than 50%. It just looks fake and is really hard to maintain with the new hair growing out . . . also she says she has some white hair, as do I, and believe me, white hair is just stunning!

 

[Lorelei]

Do you mean to add darker colour streaks/ lowlites to the grey coming through? That would be an option. I think the secret is with more than 50% grey to keep it looking natural is not to go too dark, your skin changes colour and lightens as you age and a lighter shade is more flattering. Many make this mistake. There are some ladies who absolutely hate any hint of grey and will put in the maintenance to avoid it, a friend of mine has steely grey hair which we have highlighted in the past and it looks beautiful! I think grey hair look it''s best with a little tweaking to emphasise it, maybe lightening the darker hair at the back to blend, or some pale ash scattered through to add some softness - all sorts of options if the client likes the grey but wants to jazz it up a little!

 

[portoar]

That''s exactly what I meant. . .

 

[Jo]

Oops, made a mistake. See next post...

 

[Jo]

portoar - Thanks for the ideas. I''ll bet your hair looks great. I''ve seen that done with light brown hair as yours. Unfortunately, mine is white, gray, very dark brown. When the time comes I''d like to go ALL silver/platinum (goes with my jewelry, haha!).

Lorelei - Again, many thanks for the tips. I''m indeed going to give them a shot. I actually went into Fredric Fekkai in Bev Hills, $$$. They''re the ones who used Effacol

You know much more than they do!!

I wouldn''t mind giving my hair more shine. Would you suggest going with a L''Oreal product? Would the L''Oreal cover the gray/white as well even though it''s translucent?

 

[portoar]

Jo, good luck with it, and let us know how it turns out!

 

[Lorelei]

Frederic Fekkai?????????

Goodness!!!!! I am a L'oreal gal I guess Jo, I was trained with it and have always used it in preference to any other colours. The L'oreal Excellence and Preference ranges are good and should cover grey well without that harsh greeny black matt " tint" that the hair can take on. Have a look at the new Brilliant Brunette products by John Frieda, try the shampoo and conditioner and the glossing cremes. Also I am a huge fan of hair shine sprays, I use Clynol Hairshine but I don't know if you can get it in the States

it's marvellous! Basically I find to get a really glamourous shine, you need to pamper your hair like crazy, the translucent colour will help as they reflect light better, is to cheat like mad with shine serums and sprays. Also the better you condition your hair, the more evenly the colour will take and the longer it will last. Hope this helps

 

[Jo]

My gosh Lorelei, I feel like I''m talking to someone with ESP!! That black greenish tint is what I''m experiencing even though I use a mixture of half Medium Bronw and half Light Golden Brown....I wasn''t understanding why those colors were gradually turning blackish until I talked to you. Can you recommend a good L''Oreal brown color that won''t go red?

Also, can you think of a spray shine (I totally believe in smoke and mirrors!) that I can get at a beauty supply? I''m sure I can find something at Fekkai for a gazillion dollars.

 

[Lorelei]

HE HE HE!!

I would try either of the L'oreal brands I mentioned in a light brown at first. Safer to try a little lighter. If this isn't dark enough I would mix it with ( same brand) one quarter medium brown. If a little darker is needed still, next time try half and half or one third. I am trying to think of what you could get for shine sprays, but I am in England.

At beauty supply see if you can get Clynol Hairshine or the other name for it Clynol Moonlight, this is my best hair weapon

It makes my blonde hair shimmer like an old movie stars

If not, any one would be ok I am sure, it is a shine spray, glossing spray you want so have a look at the various brands. At the drug store, see if there is the John Frieda shine spray in the little plastic bottle, this is part of the frizz ease range. Also serums are great as they flatten the hair's cuticle and help reflect light. If you stick to the plain L'oreal colours such as dark blonde, light brown, medium brown etc these won't go red. Avoid chestnuts, warms coppers etc. If a little warmth is needed stick to the shades with a little gold in them. For example if a little warmth is needed you could mix 3 quarters light brown with one quarter light golden brown etc which would give a touch of warmth to the colour. Or 3 quarters light brown, one eighth med brown and one eighth light golden brown, you can adjust the mixes to what you want quite easily. Always mix the same brand with the same brand, don't mix L'oreal colour with Wella for example as the formulations won't match. Also don't forget to to a sensitivity test a couple of days prior when you get your new colours.

 

[Jo]

Lorelei - I really appreciate your help. Much mor fun to spend the $$ on diamonds

THANKS!!!