My friend Heather has warned me repeatedly on the dangers of dying my own hair. I’ve never listened. I’ve dismissed her concerns. I’ve dyed my own hair on and off for about 20 years now, and I’ve never had any issues (other than some dye stains on towels, bath robes, bath mats, shower curtains, etc., etc.)
So, once again, I’ve been ignoring Heather’s advice and coloring my own hair. I’d been dying it red, using a semi-permanent color. No worries. It’s not even permanent color – it’s semi-permanent. It washes out in 28 shampoos, according to the box. I’ve dyed my hair red in the past, and just colored it brown when I was tired of it and let it grow out to my natural brown color.
A few months ago, I decided I was tired of having red hair. I decided I’d go with a nice brown. However, my hair still looked red. The next month, I used a different brown hue. My hair still looked red. That’s odd.
So the next month, I opted to go with a dark blond. I knew (from Heather) that semi-permanent dyes can only deposit color, not lift it. So, if I wanted lighter hair, I’d need to use a permanent color. No problem. I dyed away.
I could tell right away something wasn’t right. My hair was still red – well, except for the roots. They were a light brown. However, it wasn’t until I went to my hair dresser, and my hair was wet, and I was down in the chair with the top of my head fully visible, that I realized just how NOT right it was. It was bad. It was really bad. I had mostly red hair, with a blond section, then brown roots. Oh my gosh. Oh, this is bad. My hair dresser just looked at my hair and said “I know what you did.”
She proceeded to tell me exactly what I’d done – a semi-permanent red, followed by a permanent blond. Yup, that’s exactly what I did. The question is – what do I do now?
Since I hadn’t scheduled a color, she cut my hair and recommended I use a semi-permanent brown dye to try and cover the error of my dying ways.
I used a semi-permanent brown (again) and made an appointment for a “color or something”. I was back in the stylist’s chair a few weeks later. At this point, I was really worried. My hair looked really horrible – and I had a wedding to attend the following month. Not just any wedding – HEATHER’S wedding. THE Heather that had told me, again and again, that I should NOT dye my own hair but trust only in trained professionals.
I was at the stylist’s for FOUR HOURS that day. She bleached. She bleached more. She lifted as much red as she could – until my hair was a very NOT lovely light orange color. She then colored with brown – and I had a hair color that, in her words, was NOT nice, but NOT horrible – and a step in the right direction.
Three weeks later (and a week before the wedding) I was back and she colored my hair brown again, and I have a light brownish red that I think COULD appear in nature. Maybe not on a human, but I think I’ve seen some animals with that brownish red hair. At least I wasn’t too embarrassed to be seen (and taken photographs of) at the wedding. From now on, I am definitely leaving my hair to someone that knows what they are doing. Heather will be glad.
Submitted for publication in the Greeley Citizen
Life of the Lintee Bean 
Never question the advice of Heather! 🙂 Glad you were presentable for the nuptials!
Girl, I’ve been there. In my Goth days I dyed my brown hair permanent black. One time they didn’t have my regular black in stock, so I used African American hair dye. What’s the difference, it’s black hair color, right? About a year later I wanted red, went to my stylist and she bleached me for several hours. Most of it lifted except for a stripe of black which was, you guessed it, the time I touched up roots using the wrong dye. Then, while still bleaching, my normally straight hair started curling up and I mentioned to my stylist that I had a perm a few years ago that may still be growing out…she nearly fainted, poor thing!
So I ended up with black and red hair, with horizontal stripes, which was kind of cool and cat-like.
I would love to see a picture of that hair – awesome!