Dyed Hair Auburn But Wanted Strawberry Blonde

Question

Hi,

I have dyed my hair myself for over 20 years.  I have always dyed it blonde.

I just recently dyed it a darker brown with a deeper red, almost auburn color.  I really wanted more of a strawberry blonde instead.  Can you please let me know what I need to do to go from auburn to lighter strawberry blonde and how fast can I do this?

Thanks,

Answer

Dear Linda,

I would suggest you consider waiting at least two weeks before dying your hair again.  Most reds will fade quickly in the first few weeks after the dye has been applied.

You can speed up the natural red dye fading process by washing hair in very warm water with a volumizing shampoo.  Volumizing formulas used with very warm to hot water will pop open the cuticle and cause the dye to be lifted up and washed out.

[caption id="attachment_592" align="alignright" width="167" caption="Strawberry Blonde With Long Hair"]

Some deep conditioners will also help to speed up color loss along with frequent use of hot blow dryers, hot irons or similar hot tools.

If your hair doesn't fade to the lighter strawberry level you like within a few weeks then you can work on achieving a more strawberry hue.

Keep in mind that when you go from darker to lighter your hair may need to be lifted first to remove the darker color before applying a lighter strawberry blonde shade on top of your newly lifted base.  In essence you will most likely need to do a two step coloring process.

Don't forget to give your hair time to recover from each process.   Keep in mind that as you work on lightening your current shade to apply a deep conditioner as needed to keep hair from becoming damaged or dried out.

Best wishes,

Karen Marie Shelton

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