Dyeing
gray hair
People say it is harder to dye gray hair. There is no hard evidence
that gray hair is more resistant to dye, but many anecdotal reports
suggest this is the case. Why gray hair should be more resistant
to accepting permanent, oxidative dyes is unknown. It may be that
the thicker, coarser hair that is the nature of gray hair is less
permeable to the dye chemicals. The permanent dyes must penetrate
through the cuticle of the air to the cortex to deposit the dye
product. A tougher cuticle may reduce the degree of chemical penetration
into the hair.
Unfortunately there is little that can be done about this. A longer
dye application may increase the amount of dye penetrating into
the hair shaft, but increased exposure to the dye chemicals also
increases the risk of permanent hair damage and breakage. More frequent
application of the dye is also not such a good idea. It is best
not to dye hair more frequently than once every three weeks. You
can dye more frequently than this is you make sure you only dye
new hair growth and avoid re applying the chemicals to already dyed
hair. This can be done in a salon by an experienced stylist, but
it is very difficult to do this at home on your own. If you need
to cover up new gray hair in between permanent dye applications
it is best to use temporary touch up dyes and colorsticks.
Remember that if you dye your gray hair very dark brown or black
color the new gray hair growth will be more noticeable. The dark
colors make for a high degree of contrast with gray hair which is
very noticeable. A better approach is to use a lighter or softer
color. Less contrast between the gray hair and dyed hair means the
gray roots will be less noticeable. So even though your original
hair color may dark brown or black, a lighter color dye is better.
Finally you might consider giving up permanent dyes completely
and using semi permanent and temporary dyes to give gray hair some
highlights. This in itself can give a good result with less risk
of hair damage and relative ease of use.
Pre
bleaching and toners
If you want to change your hair color to a significant degree,
if you want to go from dark brown to peroxide blond, then pre bleaching
and toners are required as part of the permanent dye process. With
pre bleaching, ammonium based hydrogen peroxide is mixed with a
hair lightener and applied to the hair. This bleaches out pretty
much all of the color - don't get a shock when you look in the mirror!
Pre bleaching also increases the hair fiber porosity and this allows
more absorption of the toner later on.
Sometimes just bleaching the hair will give the desired color.
After bleaching the hair color will be straw/like or reddish. However,
a toner is almost always used after bleaching to neutralize the
bleaching process and the resulting color. Toners are special permanent
dye formulations in blond shades that confer just a little color
to bleached hair. The combination of pre bleaching and toning is
sometimes referred to as a "double process".
Note that pre bleaching significantly weakens the structural integrity
of hair fiber. Peroxide used as the bleaching agent attacks the
primary constituent of the hair fiber, keratin. Keratin proteins
impart structural integrity to the hair fiber. When keratin becomes
damaged the fiber loses elasticity, resilience, and tensile strength.
Damage is more likely to occur to this highly processed hair. The
degree of damage depends on the degree of bleaching involved. More
bleach or a longer time duration of application so the more significant
damage to the hair will be. You should take extra care of the processed
hair using a mild shampoo and a deep conditioner. You should not
be surprised if the hair becomes dull, dry and straw-like, there
is almost always some degree of damage development in such highly
processed hair.
When extensive bleaching is required, say to go from dark brown
to pale blond, several applications of bleach may be required. These
applications should occur with several days between each application
to give the hair at least some chance to recover between each process.
Inevitably though there will be some degree of damage. If the bleaching
is continued for a long time the hair will likely become extremely
dry and brittle.
Hair
dye removal
Once hair is colored with permanent hair dye you are essentially
stuck with the result. Adding more chemicals to the hair after it
has already been processed once risks causing significant hair damage
and breakage. While it is possible in principle to re-dye already
dyed hair or to bleach it, in practice this will most likely lead
to significant hair damage. If you do not like the end result of
a permanent hair dye process, the best answer is to let the dyed
hair grow out. If you really cannot wait, there are color removers
and stripers available. However, these products are best applied
by an experienced stylist who will be better able to apply such
products while limiting the damage as much as possible. Alternatively,
a stylist may use bleach to reduce or lighten the dye. Bleaches
are in principle less damaging to the hair than color removers,
but some degree of damage to the hair fiber should be expected especially
if the hair is already over processed.
With semi permanent and vegetable dyes the answer is much easier.
The dye will come out gradually with regular washing. If you want
to speed up the process a little you can try applying some lemon
juice or vinegar as a rinse before using your usual shampoo and
conditioner. However, the speed at which the semi permanent dyes
are removed depends largely on the frequency of washing, so wash
more frequently to remove dye more quickly.
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