Are you experiencing a major hair crisis? You bleached your hair hoping to go blonde, but it came out orange, not the cute kind–ginger but a radioactive kind, and you are pretty confused about how to get yourself out of this situation.
Why Does Hair Turn Orange?
Your hair isn’t one solid color, instead is a perfect blend of various pigments giving rise to your natural hair color. For a dark-haired, there is a large percentage of red and orange pigment underneath, giving depth to brown or black hair. And the lightning process may inadvertently reveal this undertone, and this is where things can start to go wrong.
You must come to terms with the underlying basis of how an orange-colored hair comes about; this exposes how it can be fixed and the processes involved.
Bleaching or Dyeing
Your hair is not a monochromatic color, it contains several pigments, as stated earlier. When exposed to the chemicals in bleach or dye, it alters the hair’s natural color, revealing the undertones, which in this case can be orange.
Unprocessed Bleach
Most cases of hair turning orange result from not giving the bleach enough time to process or letting it sit for an incredibly long time. You should go to a colorist for this process, especially if it is your first time. If done incorrectly, Bleaching can damage your hair follicles badly.
Not Lightened Enough
One primary reason hair turns orange is that it wasn’t lightened enough to be blonde. To dye hair blonde, it has to reach the yellow stage where the bulk of the red pigment has been bleached out.
This result is then toned with a violet-based color to neutralize the yellow and dye your hair a natural shade of blonde.
Minerals Buildup
Hair can turn yellow due to minerals building up in the hair due to exposure to hard water or swimming. You need to ascertain the cause of your hair turning orange to remedy it correctly. For the mineral buildup, start with a chelating or clarifying shampoo that should do the trick.
What Colors Cover Orange Hair?
What are the opposite colors on a color wheel? Green’s opposite is red. Purple’s opposite is yellow. Blue’s opposite is orange. So, to counteract too much orange in the hair, add blue. You can use purple to convert hair platinum if it’s too yellow. Of course, you must be careful not to apply too much because blue, purple, and green are strong “cool” tones. To make the hair appear “natural,” a toner dilutes one of these colors just enough to cancel out the other.
A toner is just an abbreviated name for corrective color dye; usually, semi-permanent or demi-permanent hair color is used to shift hair color after prior services, such as highlights, lowlights, bleached, or pre-lightened hair color. Typically, when you bleach hair, it turns banana-yellow or orange. Hair colorists use toners to shift hair from stark yellow into a golden, sandy, or beige color that looks more natural.
The term shift used in this case doesn’t stipulate that a toner lightens or darkens hair color, nope! It only serves to cancel out undesired colors and refresh hair’s natural colors.
Ways to Remedy Orange Hair
Here are effective ways to cover the orange color!
1. Lighten and Tone
Toning your orange hair won’t help you much if you still want to go blonde because it will simply return your hair to its natural color, which is excellent if you’re cool with it or attempting to minimize hair damage. But if being blonde is your thing! More bleach should be added. I would suggest performing a strand test with your bleach before bleaching! How long does it take to elevate to your desired level? After you’ve resolved that, you can continue bleaching the other orange pieces.
You’ll need to combine your bleach powder with either a level 20 or 30 volume developer, which elevates hair color to 1–3 shades lighter than your hair. The greater the developer, the quicker it develops and the more damage, so use it with extreme caution!
Apply the mixture to your hair, let it sit there until your hair turns yellow (this usually takes 20 to 30 minutes), and then rinse the bleach. Before beginning this treatment, make sure that your hair is properly hydrated.
Now that you’ve gotten the yellow you’re going for, it’s time for some toning. Work your toner to balance the color for a more natural look.
2. A Toner
To cover the orange color and restore your hair to its former glory, you can tone it. And here’s how to do so:
Before doing this, make sure your hair is clean and hydrated. Part your hair into four portions, from the middle of your forehead to the nape of your neck, and then part it eye to eye. Using a sectioning clip, secure the ends of each section.
Blend your toner and developer in a 1:2 ratio using a weighing scale for precise measurement. Then, apply the mixture to your hair using an applicator brush, paying particular attention to the areas with undesirable undertones. Never go in without hand protection! Additionally, wait ten minutes before applying the toner to the roots because the coloring agent grows at the root more quickly due to head heat.
Leave the toner for up to 45 minutes, then rinse and wash with a moisturizing shampoo and deep conditioner. After exposing the hair to this kind of treatment, give it proper deep conditioning; this helps to keep the hair hydrated, repair hair damage, and prevent dry and brittle ends.
How long is a toner good for? Depending on your hair’s porosity, how frequently you wash it, and heat, this can last anywhere between 4 and 8 weeks.
3. Using a Toning Shampoo
Toning Shampoo solutions are designed to eliminate undesired brassy tones and enhance the brightness and vibrancy of your color. They are commonly used to tone down orange and yellow hair and preserve blondes. Using blue and purple shampoos is as simple as switching out your ordinary shampoo for these toning varieties.
Using a Toning Shampoo
Before toning shampoo, ensure your hair is cleansed; this sounds contradicting. But you want to ensure your hair is rid of product buildups and minerals using a chelating shampoo or natural homemade remedies like lemon juice, acid vinegar rinse, etc.
After cleansing, squeeze some toning shampoo into your hand and work it into your hair, starting at the roots and working your way down to the ends. Massage the shampoo gently into your hair to create a rich lather. Let it sit for 2-3 minutes to get those pigments in deeper and rinse. Follow it up with a Toning conditioner.
4. A Deep Conditioning Mask
I recommend using a conditioning mask with a small amount of a light purple semi-permanent color mixed in. Pour in your conditioner into a bowl, and add in some drops of blue or purple dye or a mix of both with the blue dye greater than the other to cover the orange color. Mix properly, and apply with gloves after shampooing. Let it sit for about a half hour, and rinse.