S.O.S Hair dye disaster

[AllaboutEve]

Any tips on how to remove semi permanent hair dye (the red/orange kind!)
A very upset teenager I know would be eternally gratefull!!!

All advice would be most welcome!

 

[mysterygal]

Been in some pretty bad hair disasters myself, and they're absolutely no fun!
You may need to take her to a salon. I know I"ve seen products at Walgreen's , and I assume they'd be at other stores as well, that are made for stripping the hair. I wish you good luck!

 

[Kim_B]

I've heard that using a clarifying shampoo or baby shampoo speeds the process up - I often keep it handy when I dye my hair to clean up any messes. It won't totally remove it but it's better than using one of the stripping products.

If that doens't work very well, I'd head to the salon. Expensive, but they'll know what to do!

 

[GOK]

I've heard that even having the salon strip your hair is really bad for it, so I'd say that if she really can't live with it, what about overdyeing it or putting in some hi/low lights instead?

Apparently Pantene ProV is very good at stripping hair colour but of course, it does take a little time. Whatever road she goes down, make sure she uses an intensive conditioner afterwards and be very gentle with her hair.

Failing that - at least it's cold enough to wear a woolly hat!

 

[Grnidwitch]

With the drug store hair dye strippers, you have to re-dye. My mom had a hair color mishap and thought to use one of those products. After reading the box, she decided to just live with it.

 

[Rebecca D]

When I was 17 I colored my hair with an awful copper color that clashed with my skin coloring and was so bad it actually made me cry. So I ran to the store and bought a hair-stripper kit that turned my ugly copper hair bright orange. Then I colored my newly fried hair and it turned to some light shade of orange you'd never find in nature. Those kits are terrible - stay away from them!

If she can go darker, I'd suggest coloring over it. Better yet, go to a salon and have a professional color over it.

 

[Emmababy]

I was told by my hairdresser to use Head and Shoulders, because the acidity in it strips the colour faster. However, red pigments are the hardest colour to shift from hair.

 

[Kim_B]

I was told by my hairdresser to use Head and Shoulders, because the acidity in it strips the colour faster. However, red pigments are the hardest colour to shift from hair.

Yep - red is the most difficult color to maintain b/c the molecules are larger and have a more difficult time absorbing into the hair, but once it's in there, it's not going anywhere without some coaxing, especially after a few treatments.

 

[AllaboutEve]

I have seen the "disaster" (she got home about an hour ago) and it's not completely awful. It's admittedly pretty red but not quite as bad as she said.

Thankyou all for your advice, I think that the suggestions made here teamed with what her friends have recommended have resulted in a plan for her see her hairdresser and to use either Head and Shoulders or Pantene in the meantime.

Thank you to all the ladies from both of us!!
(oh to be a teenager !!! )

 

[AllaboutEve]

Yep - red is the most difficult color to maintain b/c the molecules are larger and have a more difficult time absorbing into the hair, but once it's in there, it's not going anywhere without some coaxing, especially after a few treatments.

I had a hunch that red is the most resistant colour to remove, luckily she has only used this dye once, so hopefully it won't be too long before it starts to fade. Thanks Kim!

 

[BettyValentine]

This is totally not scientific ... but my little sister used all sorts of sun-in products to make her hair blonde, then she used a temporary red color that bonded to the blonded hair and stuck fast. She looked like spumoni. (brown roots, blonde at the middle, red ends.)

Then she got lice at camp (This is just a great story, isn't it?) and the lice shampoo pulled the red right out of it.

I can't guarantee results, but it was kind of neat when it happened.

 

[fortworthgal]

I've been coloring my own hair for years and have had a couple disasters here and there (one was salon-induced). I've used the OTC stripping kits with success.

If her hair is just too red, wash it with a stripping shampoo such as Prell, or possibly even Dawn dishwashing liquid. Then I would use a shampoo for brunettes to tone it down, such as John Frieda Brilliant Brunette, or Aura Clove shampoo.

 

[r lush]

oh how I had had this advice last summer! I attempted to go from a black/red color to a blonde. I finally went to a salon to get it fixed, but for several months I had the worst orange red hair color! (and muli colored to boot ) I completely understand that frustration. I have learned my lesson and I leave it up to the experts now.

 

[CanadaDoll]

Try dyeing it again a different color, with the red it will be different than the box, I did that with one of mine and managed to salvage a bad color, and condition, condition, condition!
To have it removed I recommend you take it to a professional, who knows the proper care for that sort of treatment, as it can be brutal to the hair.
Hope it all works out, and a big hug to the sufferer of the dye, I know how unpleasant it is

 

[Cherry_Bombb]

I would be OH SO CAREFUL with any sort of bleach or strippers!! I had dark hair and was trying to go back to my natural blonde once. I followed the directions on the box to the "t". It didn't matter. My hair actually started breaking off close to the root due to too many chemical processes at once. I agree with either over dying it or going to a salon. And definately in the meantime, use a heavy conditioner.

Ivory dish soap removes pigment from hair gently. My nana used it the second she saw her hair going grey. She never wanted to be grey, she wanted white hair. Ivory stripped her hair of color rather quickly. So maybe shampoo with Ivory and condition heavily?

But from experience, unless she wants a really bad haircut to go with her newly (and not happily colored) hair, I recommend taking her to a professional!!

 

[AllaboutEve]

Thanks ladies for all of the kind suggestions and sympathy for my suffering teen!

She has bought a box of Dark Brown Semi to see if that calms it down, but I have told her to go and see the hair dresser first as I am not sure if she should put anything else on it incase it goes from bad to worse!!

I think that she may just have to tough this one out for a while, armed with some shampoo and plenty of conditioner.

I suppose it's all part of growing up!

 

[GOK]

Thanks ladies for all of the kind suggestions and sympathy for my suffering teen!

She has bought a box of Dark Brown Semi to see if that calms it down, but I have told her to go and see the hair dresser first as I am not sure if she should put anything else on it incase it goes from bad to worse!!

I think that she may just have to tough this one out for a while, armed with some shampoo and plenty of conditioner.

I suppose it's all part of growing up!

Oh, it is and if that's the worst thing that's going to happen, then you won't have too much to worry about!

All of mine went through phases of bleaching their hair, dyeing it....you name it! When Ziggy was 11 he decided he wanted to look like Spike from Buffy. Luckily, being pale auburn, his hair bleached really well. From there he wanted multicoloured spikes - spray colour was brilliant for the job! After that, he went green, then pink (!), then scarlet, then black! Luckily his school was pretty progressive and didn't mind a bit. His headmaster actually gave him a certificate for having the most amazing hair in the school! Mind you, he also got one for being the most accident prone, after breaking his collar bone and then his wrist in short succession! And yes, at 17, he still skateboards! lol

Back OT - I suspect the hairdresser will advise her to leave it for a few days, maybe even a week or so, before applying another colour. I'm no expert but I reckon the hair needs a chance to chill out a bit first. I'm sure I've read on the packaging of some of the products that you shouldn't use them within X days of using others. Mind you, if it was a semi, it might be different.

I would say I hope she has learned her lesson but actually, I'd be lying! Experimenting with one's identity and look is all part of growing up, establishing ourselves and not just accepting what we were born with. So good on her - long may her experimentation reign!

 

[mysterygal]

teen experimentation;lol I think I had my hair just about every color, and not at all on purpose...the worse one's was the time I dyed it black, mom hated it, hair got stripped and ended up being clown red/orange...then I got the urge to do the burgundy thing...ended up being crayon purple. Hence, the hair thing really never goes away...I still get the bugs, but the colors are less out there :

 

[Kim_B]

To be honest the first time I ever dyed my hair was when I was 23! I had used Sun-In when I was a teen, but that's as far as I went. I was too scared to mess it up! The only color I've ever dyed it has been red - the first shade was a purpley-red color which was quite nice but now I've grown to love this brownish-red (think Rita Hayworth or Ann Sheridan red). I've always thought it would be fun to have pink hair, but I know that wouldn't sit well with a lot of people I know!

 

[ohairas]

As a hairdresser I second the dishwashing soap a time or two, and then trying a brown shampoo or conditioner. Then leave it to fade away on it's own.

Depending on what kind of condition and what color her hair was before depends on how long the color will last. Red fades quite fast actually... but it will fade to more of an orangy/gold hue eventually. If it is a "TRUE" wash out color her original shade should come back over time, about 8 weeks.

Strippers will ruin the hair. If you must take the dye out I strongly suggest you find a salon that offers Pravana brand color. It's the only line that has an actual color remover that will not harm the hair. After it's used tho, you still have to put another shade on top to equalize everything.

Best wishes,
Nikki