What to do? Dye question.

Mar 16, 2014

Beth B.

What kind of purple dyes would anyone recommend for a person whose hair absorbs the reds in dyes before any other color?

I have done violet/red & red/violet combos in the past hoping to achieve more of a purple shade.

Bleaching (and then using something like Pravanas/Ion Brights) is out of the question; I did a gradual blonde via salon but decided a few month later to go red (like red, red) for my wedding. Once that started fading I bleached at home (bad, bad, bad, I don't know why I keep doing it.) & my hair was a wreck. Many deep conditions later I dyed it brown that has faded out to a golden-brown shade.

I've been itching to go purple off & on for a while; but have no idea how to do so without the bleach & without ending up red, again. Any info/tips/products will be super appreciated!

Thanks!

Mar 16, 2014

Gen S.

When it comes to achieving red, I personally think it's the easiest to achieve because it is a primary color. And because it's usually a tone hair gets in the bleaching process. Depending on the shade of purple you want, will depend on how light you will need to get.

Mar 16, 2014

Gen S.

I would recommend joico's vero-pak's color, it has more vibrancy and pigment in my opinion.

Mar 16, 2014

Beth B.

I don't want, say, a bright crayon-like purple (I couldn't come up with a better comparison); more like a subtle (yet still easily noticeable/obvious) Katy Perry-esque purple.

Mar 16, 2014

Beth B.

Looking at color chart of the brand you suggested; I'm trying to achieve a slightly (but not by much) darker shade of the 4FV 'Wild Orchid'

Mar 16, 2014

Gen S.

I would definitely recommend lifting your hair up to a level 6-7 for the best results, you could lift it to a level 5-6 and get away with it as well.

Mar 16, 2014

Gen S.

1 being the darkest
10 being the lightest

Mar 16, 2014

Michaela K.

As its hard to do a hair analysis via computer, and because you already mentioned that you had some damage from at home treatments I highly suggest you go to the salon. Because a trained color technician a) has a wider range of color products to choose from and knows how to mix them to achieve the desired effect and b) will do this with as little damage as possible to the hair, if this is still a possibility for you.

Mar 17, 2014

Beth B.

Gen S. : I already sit between a 6 & a 5 on that chart; (my profile pic is actually from the afternoon I colored over the blonde) my roots are closer to the 5 (maybe even a 4) while the middle and ends of my hair are closer to a (slightly darker) 6 from the fade-out of the brown.

Michaela K.: I would love to go to the salon to do this; but I live in an incredibly small town with more than lackluster beauticians/stylists. I also don't have the extra funds to pay what they charge for service (one of which charges extra for non-natural colors. Why is beyond me.)

But while my hair isn't completely damage free from the at-home bleach; it's in much, much better shape than when I first colored over it. I'm eternally thankful I found & tried one of the Aphogee hair masks; It would still be like straw without it! I also continue to soak my hair in conditioner while I shower, and use moisturizing serums just to keep it as nourished as I can within the means that I have available.

Mar 18, 2014

Hannah P.

Have a look at this link : http://www.hairdyegallery.co.uk/purplepage5.html

It show you a variety of pictures of purple hair from using semi permanent dyes from brands like Manic Panic, Directions and Special effects. They are great for processed hair as they won't damage it more as they aren't mixed with developer/peroxide and are if anything quite conditioning. They also take better to damaged hair as its more porous.

Recommended Colours that work well on unbleached hair : http://haircrazy.info/beginner-guides/dyeing-unbleached-hair/

Help for choosing the right purple shade : http://haircrazy.info/beginner-guides/how-to-dye-your-hair-purple/

Have a look at the cool toned purples at the bottom of the page as they have a lot more blue tones to them (no red).

Hope that helps

Mar 19, 2014

Beth B.

Thanks Hannah P! I'll definitely take a look at those links :)