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Hair dye mistake - help!!!

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vespergirl

vespergirl

Ideal_Rock
Joined
Jan 29, 2007
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5,497
So, instead of spending $150 per month on professional highlights & color, I decided to use a home color kit yesterday to save a little cash this month for the holidays.

I bought Clairol Natural Instincts demi-permanent (I wanted something that would eventually wash out if I didn''t love the color) in the same color as my natural hair. The color I bought, Navajo Bronze, was described as "light caramel brown," which should match the natural color of my hair. I have some blonde highlights that were growing out, so I wanted the same color just to blend in the highlight roots in my hair.

Well, after coloring yesterday, instead of "light caramel brown," I ended up with "dark red auburn." I am really annoyed, since the box said it was for either dark blonde or light brown hair. How could it make my hair two shades darker, and so red?!?!?

So, this morning I scrubbed my hair twice with Neutrogena Clarifying Shampoo, and it toned down the brassy red a bit, but it''s still pretty dark. Any suggestions, besides washing the hell out of it, on how to get back to my natural color? It''s supposed to wash out after 28 shampoos, but I normally only wash my hair every two days anyway, so I feel like this is going to take forever ....

Also, any suggestions on home hair color kits that I can use in the future?
 
oh no! Sorry no specific advise but I''ve used the same product and also found it comes out much darker (medium brown came out dark dark brown). I think you might have to just keep washing-at least it isn''t permanent.
 
SOrry you''re unhappy. Isn''t there a number on the box that you could call for some advice??
 
Date: 12/2/2009 11:15:44 AM
Author: janinegirly
oh no! Sorry no specific advise but I''ve used the same product and also found it comes out much darker (medium brown came out dark dark brown). I think you might have to just keep washing-at least it isn''t permanent.
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Janine, did yours eventually wash out, or did it stay dark forever? Now I''m worried that if they lied about the color, they may also be lying about how long it lasts ...
 
Good idea, Shiny - I may call them this afternoon to complain. At the very least I would like my money back
emsad.gif
 
Aw been there done that. My advice is to just be patient, even permanent color fades pretty quickly in the first week or so, so I''m sure a demi-permanent will fade just as quick if not quicker.

I would stop scrubbing it though or you''re going to strip all the natural oils from your hair as well.

Give it a few days of normal care and I bet it will start to fade. Sorry you''re unhappy.
 
Also I had a similar shocking experience with getting my hair permanently dyed trying to match my natural color so I could finally stop dying my hair and it was SUPER dark and I was really really upset and secretly mad at my cousin who did it.

Lo and behold, about a month later it had naturally faded and was EXACTLY my natural color. A lot of times it is much darker than advertised at first because the company knows it will fade significantly over the first week or two.

If I had just been patient and knew that it would fade that much I would have saved myself a lot of time being upset and angry.
 
years ago i had a similar incident and i was advised to do a hot oil treatment, leave it on for awhile, put towels on my head that i didn''t care about, and sit for awhile to ponder the error of my ways. yes, it pulled a lot out but some remained.

mz

ps what they describe on the box is i believe for use on untreated hair. you already had streaks. its going to "grab" differently. that''s why we need those professional colorists. sigh.
 
Get a very strong shampoo like Prell and scrub the living heck out of your hair! Or you can get a Malibu treatment at a salon.

Those home kits seem to always come out one shade darker than they show on the box. So next time, maybe try a lighter shade? I would be so annoyed!
 
Been there, done that. *sigh*

I literally dyed my hair bright pink once (was supposed to be auburn). I hopped in the shower and washed my hair about 15 times. Let the suds sit on there. Did a hot oil treatment as an apology to my hair, which also seemed to leech some of it out. And then waited. By the end of the weekend it wasn't as bad, but my hair doesn't grab color that well to begin with.

I'd say call the number on the box - there should be someone to talk to. Or hightail it to the nearest salon to see if they can help lift some of the color (never had this done, but I've heard it can be).

ETA: Those demi-permanent dyes never seem to come even close to the color they are supposed to be!
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Prell and patience.
 
Good god, woman, THE HOLIDAYS ARE NOT THE TIME TO JACK AROUND WITH YOUR HAIR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Now that I''ve gotten that out of my system, I''m very sorry you''re going through this and I hope you get the situation resolved soon. Hugs.
 
my hair is naturally platinum blonde (light blonde plus white lol) and so I put like a 9-9.5 on it to darken it to a light blonde and when I was in europe I used the same color I used back home but my hair was dark blonde and looked horrible. It was a permanent color but it still eventually (months) washed out to about the color that it would have been in the past.

Is there any chance you can embrace the color and tell everyone you were wanting a change for the season? :D
 
LOL! I think we all have hair disaster stories to tell...those of us who aren''t pros anyway. Though I bet Italia has some disaster stories to tell about people she''s fixed!

I dyed my hair blue/green once...lesson learned=Ash blonde + Golden blonde = Kermit the frog!
 
vesper, I''ve had this happen to me a good number of times (and I got tremendously upset as a result) My girlfriend who owns her own beauty shop warned me that most boxed colors will tend to turn peachy or reddish. So I tried to stay away from boxed color.

When I pressed the Clairol people for an answer for how to at least start to break the bond on the color? They told me dishwashing liquid, but also warned me that it would be drying and damaging to my hair and that I should condition between each washing. It does help to start breaking down the color, but I still was left with much darker hair then I wanted and also the reddish tone stayed. To try to kill the brassiness, buy Clairol''s "Shimmer Lights" shampoo and leave it on for a full five minutes before rinsing it out. It does help, but nothing will really correct your color until you recolor again - by a professional, or go to a beauty supply shop and buy professional grade color.

Dani is also right. I found that my grandmother''s old fashioned hot olive oil treatment helped an awful lot before I went into the shower and washed my hair with dishwashing liquid.

If you try the dishwashing liquid routine, make sure to use a lemon based one and not an orange based one which has orange dye in it. That would defeat the purpose.
 
Ugh, that sucks. I''m almost positive that I used the same color on my hair. No matter what the box says, rule is you ALWAYS go lighter than the shade you want. I''ve never followed that rule and every hair dying (even ones at the salon) turn out darker than I want. One year, due to a foul up by a colorist, my hair turned black (and it''s normally light brown) and I was attending a wedding a week later - wearing a black outfit. Ended up looking goth! lol I felt ridiculous.

Anyhow, go to a salon and see if they can fix it rather than goofing around with products at home!!!

Good luck.
 
Not just any dishwashing liquid...Dawn. We use it to strip the wax off of cars when we''re doing a full detail for a car show.
 
Date: 12/2/2009 1:08:50 PM
Author: purrfectpear
Not just any dishwashing liquid...Dawn. We use it to strip the wax off of cars when we''re doing a full detail for a car show.
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* quick threadjack*

PP you detail cars too??? Thats one of my hobbies and I have a Megs polisher too, Dodo waxes - all the gear!
 
Not anymore, but I used to do some car shows from time to time. My car club had big details days when we would strip everything and clay the car, then use all sorts of special products that were outrageously overpriced. Those cars sure look sweet afterwards.
 
I second PP. Several years ago I used a box that said "strawberry blonde" on my blonde hair, and ended up w/bozo orange. I called my friend who''d taken cosmetology classes and she said to use Dawn and wash it over and over. It didn''t take it all the way out, but it helped a lot. Then it was a really pretty dark auburn color that I liked. It was hard on my hair, but it bounced back just fine. Maybe since yours isn''t permanent color, it will come out better w/the Dawn.
 
Date: 12/2/2009 11:46:47 AM
Author: monarch64
Good god, woman, THE HOLIDAYS ARE NOT THE TIME TO JACK AROUND WITH YOUR HAIR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Now that I''ve gotten that out of my system, I''m very sorry you''re going through this and I hope you get the situation resolved soon. Hugs.
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LOL!!!
emteeth.gif
Thanks monarch, you gave me the laugh that I really needed today. You are so right! The reason that I decided to skip my salon appointment this month is because I have the best little 3 year old guy in the world. I was reading a magazine this week that had an ad for Smile Train, a charity that fixes cleft palates on children in the third world. My son was looking over my shoulder, and was really interested in the picture of the baby with the cleft palate. He kept asking me, "Why does that baby look like that? Is he sick?" When I explained that he needs an operation to fix his cleft palate, my son asked, "Can we help him?"
emangel.gif
So, I decided to take some of my monthly budget to donate $250 to Smile Train for the surgery - and to skip the salon appointment that the money would have gone to instead. I am just so proud of my little guy
emsmile.gif


Back to my hair - one of my girlfriends called this morning, and told me that she had success with a product called "Color Oops" that removes dye from hair after a bad dye job. She said it worked on removing permanent brown dye from her blonde hair when she decided to go darker. Because I used semi-permanent, it should bring it back to the color it was before I colored yesterday. So, I ran right out & bought a couple of boxes. When DS goes down for his nap this afternoon, I''m going to try to get my hair color back to normal. I will let you guys know how it goes ...
 
I hope this works for you! If not, I have two pieces of advice for now...call your hairdresser post haste and buy some headscarves!! And, for future reference...because I've been there...and this applies to everyone...NO RADICAL HOME HAIR COLOURING!! LEARN FROM OUR MISTAKES! If you ever feel your resolve slipping on this matter, hit me up for some pictures of what I like to call The Great Disaster of '07.
 
I color my hair at home because I got tired of shelling out hundreds of dollars at the salon every couple of months. That said, I will not use boxed colors. After much research, I found an online store that sells professional products to the public. Extended Lengths

I think Redken Shades EQ would be a good product for you. It is a demi permanent and is often used as a toner.

I also found a blog with lots of instruction from a pro on how to color your hair at home. Killer Strands

To remove color - do an online search for a product called Vanish Hair Color Remover.
 
Okay, how fantastic are you to donate your hair money like that! You rule.

And I really hope the color oops works out for you!!!
 
Aww, your little guy is precious!! At least you have dark hair for a greater purpose!
 
Date: 12/2/2009 1:42:56 PM
Author: vespergirl

Date: 12/2/2009 11:46:47 AM
Author: monarch64
Good god, woman, THE HOLIDAYS ARE NOT THE TIME TO JACK AROUND WITH YOUR HAIR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Now that I''ve gotten that out of my system, I''m very sorry you''re going through this and I hope you get the situation resolved soon. Hugs.
Click to expand...
LOL!!!
emteeth.gif
Thanks monarch, you gave me the laugh that I really needed today. You are so right! The reason that I decided to skip my salon appointment this month is because I have the best little 3 year old guy in the world. I was reading a magazine this week that had an ad for Smile Train, a charity that fixes cleft palates on children in the third world. My son was looking over my shoulder, and was really interested in the picture of the baby with the cleft palate. He kept asking me, ''Why does that baby look like that? Is he sick?'' When I explained that he needs an operation to fix his cleft palate, my son asked, ''Can we help him?''
emangel.gif
So, I decided to take some of my monthly budget to donate $250 to Smile Train for the surgery - and to skip the salon appointment that the money would have gone to instead. I am just so proud of my little guy
emsmile.gif


Back to my hair - one of my girlfriends called this morning, and told me that she had success with a product called ''Color Oops'' that removes dye from hair after a bad dye job. She said it worked on removing permanent brown dye from her blonde hair when she decided to go darker. Because I used semi-permanent, it should bring it back to the color it was before I colored yesterday. So, I ran right out & bought a couple of boxes. When DS goes down for his nap this afternoon, I''m going to try to get my hair color back to normal. I will let you guys know how it goes ...
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vesper, I''ve never colored my hair, so I have no advice for you, but I just wanted to say how amazing your DS is, and how amazing YOU are for donating to such a deserving organization!!! Definitely gave me the smile *I* needed this afternoon!!!
16.gif
 
Yay, it worked!!!!!

I have to say that Color Oops is an amazing product - I am so impressed with the results. I used the "extra strength" formula. You apply it for 20 minutes, and then you''re supposed to shampoo with clarifying shampoo, then rinse for 20 min. Shampoo again, rinse 5 more min. Shampoo & rinse twice more, then apply conditioner. That was the longest shower I have ever taken.

But now, not only is my hair a much better color, but it still feels healthy! I was honestly scared that all my hair was going to fall out. The color now is actually the color that was shown on the original box - light caramel brown - not the dark primary red that I had this morning. And, the two colors of highlights that I had before have actually evened out - my hair looks much better than it did before I started all of this home coloring mess.

I will say that it is definitely a warmer color - more like an ambery caramel - but I was going for a warm color anyway. I don''t know if this would make your hair orangey if you are trying for a cool tone, but since I like a bit of warmth, this is really working for me.

Anyway, I just had to plug "Color Oops" - it''s rare that a product works as well as it says it well. Now hopefully my hair doesn''t all fall out tomorrow
emwink.gif


I also want to plug the Smile Train charity that my son asked us to donate to - for a $250 donation, you pay for the full cleft palate surgery of one child in the developing world. I did a little research on it, and even though $250 is a lot of money, it instantly, and permanently, changes the life of a child for the better. The charity trains local doctors in how to do the procedure and sends them the medical supplies they need to perform the surgeries. I really like the idea that it''s a charity that impacts a child in such a profound way, with immediate results - check out their website if you guys are interested ...
 
You''re awesome for donating that money to charity. I tried Natural Instincts before and it barely showed up on my hair (but my hair was natural and must not grab colour well).
 
I am so glad that it all worked out for you, and since I color my own hair, I will have to keep this Color Oops in the back of my mind, just to be safe!
 
riding on the Smile Train plug: do not forget to get a matching employer grant if your employer or your husband''s employer does such things.

glad the hair situation is under control.

mz
 
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