Remove Dark Hair Dye

Going from a natural blonde to a brunette can be fun and fairly simple to accomplish, but what happens when you discover that darker shade of color just isn’t you? If you’ve dyed your hair anything darker than two shades from your natural hair color, it’s not going to be easy to remove. Why? Darker hair dye is one of the most difficult colors to remove because the color’s pigment penetrates deep into the hair shaft. Even though the color is difficult to remove, it’s not impossible.



Warning: Removing dark hair dye requires bleaching, which can weaken and damage hair. If you’re not prepared to handle the results or if you’ve used a henna dye on your hair, please visit your local salon where they can correct the color.



Before you begin, look for an at-home hair color removal kit that is available at most beauty stores and anywhere hair-coloring kits are sold. Wear the gloves provided with the kit and an old t-shirt. Follow the instructions that came with your kit for mixing the bleaching powder.



Step 1

Divide hair into four sections and pin each section up and out of the way. Unpin a section and apply the bleach mixture from root to end using the applicator brush provided with the color removal kit.



Step 2

Lift the hair and apply the mixture in the same manner. Pin that section of hair out of the way.



Step 3

Continue to apply the bleach mixture to the remaining sections of hair using the same technique as you did with the first section of hair.



Step 4

Although it’s not necessary, you can cover your hair with a plastic shower cap to prevent the bleach from getting everywhere else. Leave the bleach mixture in for 40 minutes.



Step 5

After 40 minutes, check your hair’s shade. By now your hair color should be white. If it still looks orange, leave the bleach mixture in for 10 more minutes.



Step 6

By now, your hair color shade should be white. If it still looks orange, you will need to apply a toner to reduce the orange discoloration. You must first remove the bleach mixture from the hair using warm water.



Step 7

Once you have rinsed the bleach from your hair, shampoo, rinse and towel dry your hair.



Step 8

If your hair is still orange, you will need to use a toner. To use the toner, follow the manufacturer’s instructions and apply the toner in the same manner as you applied the bleach mixture.



Step 9

Leave the toner in for 10 minutes or the indicated time from the manufacturer’s instructions. After the 10 minutes rinse the toner from the hair. You don’t want to leave the toner in for any longer that the indicated time or you could wind up with purple hair.



Step 10

After rinsing the toner from your hair, you will then want to shampoo and condition your hair as you normally would.