5.1 how can I dye my hair an unnatural color like jet black, fire engine red, primary purple, etc.?


General info.: If you have naturally dark hair, you will have to bleach your hair to some extent if you want to get truly bright, unnatural colors. Putting purple dye on dark hair, especially untreated hair, will result in pale highlights or tints at the most. If you have never bleached or lightened your hair before, you might want to have a professional do it for you at first. After you bleach, then you can apply the purple hair dye and it should show up. Most unusual color hair dyes are temporary, though some may permanently stain very pale hair.

Bleaching: Bleaching can damage your hair. The extent of the damage depends upon your hair's condition and how light you try to go with the bleach. If your hair is naturally dark and you want to get bright color without possibly damaging your whole head of hair, bleach small streaks all over your head. A professional can do this, or you can do it at home by using a frosting cap -- it's a rubber cap with tiny holes all over and it comes with a crochet-hook type tool (available at beauty supply stores). You put the cap over all your hair and pull small strands out through the holes. This is the only hair that will get bleached. After the strands are bleached out, you can dye them your favourite color.

Black hair dye: Even if the label says "temporary," black hair dye will always stain hair, especially bleached and/or blonde hair, to some extent. Black hair dye can also be very difficult to bleach out of hair.

Red hair dye: Most any red hair dye will fade faster than other colors, whether the brand is labeled temporary or permanent.


From: Zevaluz
How long semi-perm dye lasts depends on a lot of things:

1. The porosity and damage done to your hair. The more damaged it is *typically* the longer the dye will stay in. The lighter it is *typically* the longer the dye will stay in. The exception is if your hair has been so stripped that the dye has nothing to 'adhere to.' Some semi-perm will go darker on lighter hair, but a good general rule is to think of it like cellophane -- it adds a coating to your hair and reflects the level that your hair was bleached up to beforehand.

2. The dye itself and how it reacts to *your* hair. Manic Panic washes out for me almost completely in about 5-6 washings. (If I'm lucky). I've never tried Punky Color. Special Effects washes out (not completely, I get *bored* of it before it completely rinses out) in about 20+++ washings. My hair likes Special Effects and seems to reject Manic Panic.

3. Pre-dye preparation. Clarify your hair under heat the night before, and then wash with a normal cleansing shampoo and don't condition. Why? Clarifying gets out the gunky stuff from conditioners and hard water. I have heard that if you clarify *right* before you color it can affect the pH of your hair and affect how well the color is taken in.

4. Processing time. I don't know even one person who really leaves it in for that scant 20 minutes that they tell you to leave it in for. Use your own judgement, but I'd put a plastic cap over it and leave it in for as long as you can. Applying low heat also helps the color absorb more, it opens up the outer layer of hair more.

So, there's a *lot* of factors that are involved with predicting color outcome. The best way to test is with a strand test.


From: Zevaluz
All about developer (used for permanent dyes):

It's been about 7 years, so I could be wrong on this one. But I remember being instructed to use a 10 volume when going darker. As for less deposit with the higher numbers, it's only a generalization. You'll still get the blonde tones in a high lift blonde that's made for use with a 40 vol developer. But it can also tend to affect the color being deposited at times.


From: ^v^leathe
The volume of developer indicates how strong it is and how much "lift" (lightening power) you have. 10 volume is for semi-permanent results or going more than a shade or two darker, since (as we should ALL know by now) even a semi-permanent in a black is rarely ever going to rinse out. 20 volume (6% hydrogen peroxide) is for staying the same level and sometimes one level lighter. See, if you put a color the same shade as your own onto your hair with 10 volume you are simply depositing more color onto the hair and that can cause it to actually get *darker.* Think of it as laying one transparency over another, if you start out dark and lay another equally dark colored transparency over it you get a darker color. 30 is for up to 2 shades lighter and really resistant hair (usually with a LOT of gray), and high lift blonds. 40 is almost exclusively high lift blonds it really damages the hair. Most of us can go with 10 volume because we go dark, often and we like to change the colors a lot.


From: mari
Permanent dye likes Dirty Hair or rather, a Dirty Scalp and hair that is free from styling product buildup (i.e., alcohol... you *are* mixing chemicals on your head; same for bleach). Anything with peroxide can penetrate the hair shaft. You need that oily scalp to protect it from the harsh dye. Most bleaches and dyes want you to put it on dry hair.

Manic Panic, Punky Colours, and Directions likes CLEAN hair that is UNCONDITIONED. Conditioning closes the hair shaft. CLEANING removes stuff that would get in the way of the dye settling in. Because a veggie dye CANNOT penetrate the hair shaft by itself, it needs it to be open... ready and willing. Veggie dyes say to put it on towel-dried hair. And you should normally leave on for 10-14 hours... or at least I do. It stays better that way. 5-15 min... --NO WAY... haven't we all seen 101? where the chickie w/the bleached hair tried the 15 min routine and it washed straight out.

If MP or PC doesn't take to your hair its because 1) it is too dark or most likely 2) the shaft is not damaged enough to hold it. If you hair is naturally light, it can "take" the PC color, but it will not hold it good if it is not lightened from bleaching and thus damaged.


From: Darren Grant
To all the people who have questions on how to dye their hair a funky color and have it last, I, as a hair artist, would recommend: generally, having a professional do it because we have access to excellent color lines like Farmesi, who does have outstanding permanent colors. Another way to go is to use the Punky Colors and overlay them with Sebastian's Colourshines or one could have Sebastian's Colourshines straight because it is pure color that will only deposit color and condition and it does not fade as fast as Punky Color, Manic Panic, and Kool-Aid. One concern that I have for those people out there who are coloring on their own, is keeping the integrity of the hair because bleaching is needed to achieve the maximum results, I couldn't STRESS any more to use professional products to keep the hair healthy. When doing so you will probably find that your color will stay in a lot longer.



back to 4.15 dress up inexpensively or
on to 5.2 dye my dark hair white

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