I have medium brown hair with blonde highlights and I want to dye my hair dark brown but ....?

Question

Almost everytime I dye it back to my natural dark hair it turns red and I end up having to dye it 2 or 3 times. I do NOT use permanent only semi! Any brands or suggestions I should look for when I go buy a color box? I really want it to go dark brown without any reddish/orange tones to it! Thanks

Answer 1

The thing people forget is that for every level of hair color there is an underlying pigment to that color. It is known as the base of the color. Think of black being a level 1 and light blonde as being a level 10. So from 1 to 10 each color has a predominant underlying pigment. Black has a violet/red base. Dark brown has a red/violet. Medium brown has red base. Light brown has a red/orange base. Dark blonde has a orange base. Med. blonde has a orange/gold base. Light blonde has a gold/ yellow base. (These bases are pretty close might be off a shade depending on what color line is used and one is trained under.

The point is that when you are trying to go darker, a dark brown naturally has a red base to it. It will want to pull red or enhance the "warmth" of the color. As some suggested, you do need to use an ash color to counteract the red or warmth of the color that you tend to pull. The problem with using semi-permanent colors is they tend to be more translucent. Which can be wonderful for someone who wants a lot of different tones to reflect through the color. BUT, if you really want to get a nice true dark brown, at least this once, you'll probably want to go with a permanent color with 10 volume. Then from there you can probably get away with using a semi=permanent dark ash brown. NOW having said that... the problem to deal with now would be the highlights. You are not going to be able to use what I suggested above, straight, all over your hair, because those highlights need the missing base pigment in order to hold the color you put on them, as well as not turn a funky muddy color. Since they are blonde, all of the base pigments are gone. In order for those blondes to hold the dark brown color, they will need base pigment. Let's see....the blondes are needing a bit of gold, some orange and some red, maybe a bit of violet in order to hold the dark brown color. This is where tint-backs can get tricky and this is where you would want to have it done professionally by a stylist/colorist who KNOWS what they're doing. The blondes throw a whole different worm into the can so to speak. So many people think if they just go get a box and throw on their natural color, that is what will do the trick. Wrong! It is so much more involved than that. If you can't afford to go to a colorist, AT LEAST go to a reputable beauty college to get it tinted back to the dark brown that you are desiring. An interesting fact (at least where I live) the beauty colleges do a pretty good job with tint backs and color corrections from botched home jobs just because they are cheaper. People don't want to go to the salon and pay double or triple the price, so they go to the colleges. Hence, they get a lot of experience at doing these types of services.
Good luck with whatever you decide.

Answer 2

It probably turns red because you might have a red undertone to your hair. Or the dye you used with the blonde/brown was a golden tone. Golden pulls red, ashe takes out red. You want a permanent dye that has an ashe to it like dark ashe brown. I use Garnier and Feria or a beauty store dye when I do mine. I'm blonde but when I color highlights or a brown it comes out red or strawberry blonde because of my undertones. You could also use a color remover, I have done that before. Walmart sells Clariol haircolor remover, you put it on and wait an hour or so, it changes your hair to orange, yes orange BUT then you color over the orange and the color will be true. I got to a light ashe blonde that way before. It does dry your hair but if you use a good conditioner you will be ok. The dyes I mentioned above bring out true colors, so if you want dark brown, go with a Feria, Garnier or beauty store dark ashe brown.

Answer 3

Get Garnier 100% Color. You could try color # 433, # 401 or # 366 for dark brown colors. It's an excellent brand, I ues it and the color doesn't fade at all. Your hair won't turn red just as long as you don't choose to use a color that's more than 2 shades lighter than your natural color. But since you want to go darker, you shouldn't have to worry about your hair turning red. It's permanent but it's not harmful. Check it out!

Answer 4

Does no one know of any semi-permanent dyes? O.K. Jenna, I know of two brands that work well trust me I've used them on my self, my mother, and, my sister and they work pretty dam good, they leave your hair shiny and smelling fresh, it may come out looking pretty intense, but it lightens in a few days, so if you plan on going to a party or something do it a few days before hand. O.K. enough said you can try ColorSpa by L'Oreal or Natural Instincts by Clairol I recommend using Natural Instincts, it gives better results. I gave you two options depending which one is available where you live, and they both last 28 shampoos and they wont leave your hair with reddish or orange tones.

Answer 5

the best thing to do is STOP buying grocery store dyes. go to a beauty supply store and buy a real bottle of color cost is approx 2.50 to 3.50 a bottle and then get the developer I recomend a 30 volume. To get rid of the brass tones you need to buy a brass toner. ask the clerk she will know what you need. the reason your hair grows back brassy is because grocery store dyes have metals in them that strip your natural color out. every time you dye your hair you strip out essential nutrients that your hair needs to survive.

Answer 6

The only way I can think of is to use permanent hair dye.

Answer 7

You could do that, but any time you darken your hair or change the color of it, what colors of clothing you can wear, will change, too. But unless you want to really throw away your money, you should do your own hair dying, forget the salons.

Answer 8

Have your local salon color your hair. There are no grantees that a box color will work for you if you don't want red color. I like using Paul Mitchell Color in my salon.!

Answer 9

I have brown hair and I have Blonde highlights. Possibly you should try lighter blonde, this might look better than brown, brownish just looks kind of trashy.

Answer 10

to cut the red and brassy color hues, use an ash color. i love and use preference by lo real