Bleaching dyed hair

leopard_barbie · July 2012

Hi guys,

Just wondering if anybody's has much success bleaching dyed hair? I hate how dark mine is and want to get it a lot lighter, seen a few bleaching kits on Amazon and just wondering if anybody has has any success using anything like this over hair that's been dyed as opposed to on their natural hair colour?

Thanks in advance!

afteil · July 2012

my hair has been (almost) every shade of the rainbow; and i recently decided to take it from a medium/ dark brown (the medium was hair that was dyed that faded, dark brown was roots) to a snow white blonde. I havent used a bleaching kit from amazon, i use powdered bleach and a developer, but i assume thats pretty much what was in the kit. i found that it worked fine, though my hair lifted in a few different shades, so you would do the first round of bleach on everything, and the second round on the spots that came out darker or more orangey. then you use a toner to remove the orange and yellows to give you a more blonde color. the only problem is that once you bleach your hair, you might have to deal with it being a little wonkey, because putting another dye on top to get it the color you want might not stay and might wreck your hair a bit. (i did 2 bleachings and a toner in one sitting, and ill have to do 2 more and a toner again to get to platinum). id invest in a good hair mask- i got one n only's argan oil rejuvinating mask from sallys beauty supply and it worked pretty well, and use it for about a week before trying to put another color on or continue bleaching. hope this helps.

dad106 · July 2012

I think this would be best left up to the pro's and not some experiment that you do on your own.

delilah47 · July 2012

When I was in my 20s, I dyed my hair black and kept it that way for a few years. When I tried to bleach it out, it turned green. Luckily, my (at that time) mother-in-law was a beautician. She had me use a strong color stripper, which turned my hair bright orange, then wait a few weeks and use some intense conditioning. After that, I had my hair colored back to a light brownish. If I were you, I would go to a professional and have them do it. It will probably be expensive, but it will probably save you some grief in the long run.

PS: I'm sure they have new and better products now. The color stripper was called Metalex. You can imagine what that would do to your hair.

leopard_barbie · July 2012

my hair has been (almost) every shade of the rainbow; and i recently decided to take it from a medium/ dark brown (the medium was hair that was dyed that faded, dark brown was roots) to a snow white blonde. I havent used a bleaching kit from amazon, i use powdered bleach and a developer, but i assume thats pretty much what was in the kit. i found that it worked fine, though my hair lifted in a few different shades, so you would do the first round of bleach on everything, and the second round on the spots that came out darker or more orangey. then you use a toner to remove the orange and yellows to give you a more blonde color. the only problem is that once you bleach your hair, you might have to deal with it being a little wonkey, because putting another dye on top to get it the color you want might not stay and might wreck your hair a bit. (i did 2 bleachings and a toner in one sitting, and ill have to do 2 more and a toner again to get to platinum). id invest in a good hair mask- i got one n only's argan oil rejuvinating mask from sallys beauty supply and it worked pretty well, and use it for about a week before trying to put another color on or continue bleaching. hope this helps.

That does help, thankyou! Yeah I know I'm never gonna get it an even colour all over, my problem at the moment is that the ends are much darker than the roots. I am gonna put another dye on top (I have it red, want it a lighter/brighter red) but it's probably a good idea to wait inbetween bleaching and dying.

afteil · July 2012

i dont even mind it being different shades lol, i think it makes it auto look like i have highlights and lowlights=P i had the help of a friend of mine (who i knew before she went through beauty school) to show me how to do it...i think we waited a little over a week and i used an overnight hair mask twice before trying anything again.

BVannillie · July 2012

I've done this far too many times, and can definitely give you advice.

First, seriously consider going to a professional. Doing it yourself will damage your hair and you need to decide if you really want to take that risk. I do my own hair because I cannot afford a professional, but if you can, you should.

Ok, dark hair can be very tough, and there's no quick fix I'm afraid. I had dark brown hair back in January and I'm still in the process of going platinum.

Depending on whether your hair is dyed dark or natural, you should get a colour stripper. It only works on dyed hair though. I used Colour B4 Colour Remover Extra for Dark Hair.

http://www.google.co.uk/products/catalog?hl=en&q=b4+colour+remover+for+dark+hair&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.r_cp.r_qf.,cf.osb&biw=1920&bih=903&um=1&ie=UTF-8&tbm=shop&cid=2316290370716582551&sa=X&ei=9GL5T5vqF4-w8QOOnJnCBw&ved=0CG4Q8wIwAg

This will lift the dye out of your hair. If you've been dying for a long time, it won't work as well, but it should still give you some lift, which will mean less bleaching later on. If your hair is naturally dark you will have to bleach from scratch.

Next you need a bleach kit. A bleach kit with blue bleach powder is best for reducing brassiness. I used Jerome Russell Bblonde Powder Bleach Highlift. (if you choose to use this make sure you get a pack that has the peroxide cream and the powder, as the packets all look similar and you might pick up the wrong one).

The thing most people mess up is that they think they can go from dark to light in one sitting, which usually involves them putting the bleach on for longer then an hour. DO NOT DO THIS. I did this once and my hair disintegrated. And no I'm not joking or over-exaggerating.

Leave the bleach on for an hour, or for however long the packet says, as some are different. Most of all, pay attention to your hair. Pull at the ends every ten minutes, if they are stretchy or break off, you need to wash the bleach off. Sticky, stretchy ends means the bleach is breaking down the hair.

If after the allocated time your hair isn't the colour you want, don't panic. Unfortunately it can take many bleach sessions to get to the colour you want, but it's easier to keep the hair healthy then to over process it. So remember, if your hair is looking a bit orange, DO NOT LEAVE THE BLEACH ON LONGER. Sorry to use caps, but some people still chose to do this even after the warnings because they think they know better or they think they can just wing it and get lucky and it always ends badly.

If your colour has lifted well you might not need to bleach again. If your colour is stubborn you will need to re-bleach, but you will also have to rest your hair. Take two weeks to deep condition it, and then if your hair is feeling ok, give it another go.

Like I said, I have done this more times then I should have done, have made every mistake in the book, and though I'm not a professional I have a decent grasp of what to do. So if you have any questions or you want some clarification on something, just ask.

Good luck!

trud72 · July 2012

yes you can as long as it's not to close inbetween dying!(days)! lol try to give your hair a little break now and again!:bigsmile:

grrrlface · July 2012

Go to a professional. They will get you an even colour using the correct % developer for your hair and current colour also give you the correct advice on what you can do to maintain it. They might not even be able to get you a platinum colour on the first go with previously dyed hair.

It involves a lot of purple shampoos and toners. It's expensive to maintain platinum hair, if that's what you're after. The brassiness is always incredibly hard to keep out of the hair without doing using a toner every week or so. Then when your roots grow back! It's very hard to stay on top of! (Or it was from my experience anyway!)

If you're dying it platinum to go a bright colour (like red, blue, green) then you have to remember you hair needs pigment so that the colour can stick in the hair, if there's no pigment it will come straight out. Depending what colour you want to go you will need to pigment with a suitable semi permanent colour.

paulaviki · July 2012

I used to be a hairdresser and also worked for a huge professional product company for 5 years. Changing colours is achievable but it depends on so many factors. Bleaching your own hair is much more difficult that using normal dye on it, as it can easily be uneven as an end result, for example bleach will always lift quicker at the root because of the heat from your head, so you should aplly to mid lengths and ends first.

That's why it is best to get a professional to do it. They should do a full consultation first discussing your hairs history and then take cuttings to carry out strand tests and see if the result you want is possible without wrecking your hair.

I've been every colour and when I've gone from dark back to red or blonde I've always done it gradually by having lots of highlights until the majority of my hair is light.

tuneses · July 2012

Get it done. I've failed everytime, it's not worth doing it yourself.

FuneralDiner · July 2012

My sister is a hairdresser and I asked her the same question.

She advised waiting till my natural hair colour grows back, chopping off the dyed hair and then bleaching. Dyed hair colour is very difficult to remove with bleach, especially if it's very dark, and if you're able to get rid of it completely, your hair will be in such poor condition by then.

wgn4166 · July 2012

Dont do it yourself. Go to a pro. My friend did this and it burned up her hair and lots of it fell out.

Bleaching dyed hair

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