Orange hair disasters

There are a number of reasons you can end up with a horrible orange head of hair when you were aiming for a nice blonde. How to fix the disaster depends on a variety of factors which would take quite a while to plow through, we’ll concentrate on the more common ones.

It is a common misconception by many people that hair color grows out quickly. The truth is that the hair color is there until it is cut out, even if it has faded and is nigh on indistinguishable from your natural color at the roots. To find out if your previous color is still on your hair answer this rather frightening question:

If you were to shave your head immediately after coloring, how long would it take your hair to grow back to the length it is now?

Whether the answer is six months, a year or a couple of years that is how long your previous color will still be in your hair from the time you last colored it. Before you color again you need to be aware of the effect your new color will have on the old one. Tint cannot be covered with a lighter tint and bleach will often leave the hair more gingery on darker colors, especially warm shades.

If you have no previous color on your hair and it is naturally very dark it is never going to be subtle blonde after the first application. Your hair color is determined by the level of different natural pigments; to lighten your hair the tint or bleach has to either remove (bleach) or cover (tint) those pigments which are darker than the target shade.

Black is the first pigment to be removed or covered, assuming it is present in the hair, then brown, red and yellow in that order. If your hair has come out orange then not all of the red pigment has been removed or colored. However, never be tempted to leave the product on your hair for longer than the instructions stipulate; bleach will carry on lifting more pigment from your hair but the peroxide will also cause more damage and could blister or burn your scalp; tint will only ever lift a few shades and will just stop working, although the peroxide will still cause more damage.

High strength peroxides damage the hair more and can blister the scalp if used incorrectly, this is why shop bought home kits have a lower strength peroxide than a stylist can use in the salon. Therefore, you are not going to get a lift of more than three or maybe four shades with shop bought products.

The best thing you can do if this is the situation you find yourself in is to use a temporary toner in a shade opposite orange on the ‘stylist’s color star’. Opposite orange is ash/blue which would seem to be the obvious answer; however, as a stylist with twenty years experience, I would recommend finding a shade with a hint of violet to avoid the dingy greenish color that is often associated with a true ash shade. Invest in some intensive repair treatments and make an appointment with a stylist to get the shade you really want without the drama.