A bad hair day......Help , advise needed...

[carole]

Well as most of you know I am not ashamed to admit I dye my hair, at my age I have 30 per cent grey, and I am not ready to be that way just yet.

I have been dying it for quite some time now, a blondish colour, I decided to try a new brand and colour, Wella Decore' Pearl Ash Blonde. big mistake......the story continues.....

When it was on it went purple, I freaked a bit, but then thought Oh well it will be ok when I wash it off, sure enough after washing it off and it was wet, it looked ok, darker than ususal , which is what I wanted, but on drying it I was horrified to see all my grey hair had been highlighted the lovely colour of GREY, and it is all around my front, the fringe aread and sides, so it stands out heaps, so I am now officially grey looking all over.

I rang Wella and some woman from Aussie rang me, she certainly was not very helpful and of course it was all my fault, she told me to shampoo my hair dry , put a dryer over it for a minute and rinse it and it would tone it all done, blah blah blah, it is just the same, she also told me I could NOT put a dye over top of it, my hairdresser friend tends to dis-agree, however I am a little worried what it might do.

Has anyone else had similar problems either with this particular product, or another and how did you remedy it?

Funny thing I have been using ash blonde colours for years and never ever have they had this result.

I know its not the end of the world, but I am rather upset, I am trying to hide the grey not show it up lol.

[catnapper]

:eek: Usually I do ash colors because my hair has a tendency to turn reddish or purple very easily... ash typically has the opposite tone so no fear of turning my hair red.

Once I took what was supposed to be a "deep walnut brown" on my hair. It was a copper color going on. Like you I thought, no fear because they never look the same in the end. Well when I brushed it out... I was RED We're talking Ronald McDonald hair! :eek: My husband took one look and burst out laughing (thanks honey!) and then he asked why on earth I would have bought such a terrible haircolor. I grabbed the packaging to make sure someone didn't switch the bottles inside... nope, the bottle said the color as the box. Since then I always check the bottle before applying just in case!

Anyway.....

Thankfully it was around Halloween, and red hair was "in" so I lived with it for a few days (while crying a lot of tears.) and I dyed over it a few days later. No harm happened. I used one of those "wash out" non-permanent types. I didn't wash my hair much for the next week or so because I didn't want to damge it, or have the non-permanet stuff wash out. Then after two weeks, Ifelt enough time had passed and I did a new permanet dye in an almost black. The resulting color was actually very pretty! :D

I am only 32, and my hair is already 30% like you. :o I dye it something different every time, but try to keep it in the same color family. I go lighter in the summer, a bit darker in the winter. I like the color I used now, it has a nice golden highlught, which is new to me... since like I said everything tends to turn reddish. I;'m used to red or coppery highlights, and this is almost blonde.

[kimlovescats]

If a color doesn't work right for me ... which like Catnapper I turn RED / ORANGE very easily ... I will re-color it the next day! I still have my hair to prove it didn't fall out!;)

[Glacier]

Go to a pro! A stylist who specializes in color corrections. My sister had a similar problem once, different brand, similar color. Her stylist at the time told her that Ash tones are the ones she has to correct most often. Patricia had hers redone the same day, but I wouldn't try it on your own. Get a pro to fix it.

[KYS]

What no pictures. ;)

Even though you have a lot of grey
you might even be able to use a wash out semi pernament
die to give your hair a more
neutral color till your hair is ready. IF not,
I agree, I would go to a professional for a correction or call
Wella again, and ask to speak to one of their
hair specialists.

[Karen]

They're called "platinum highlights" honey, not grey hair! No experience with the subject, but thought I'd lend perspective t the "problem." My big sister, whose hair is so dark brown it's almost black, has liberal "platinum highlights" - we blame Dad, who had grey hair showing in his wedding pictures (at age 25).

[carole]

Thanks for your comments and stories, I guess it really is not that bad, I am kinda glad it is subtle not like your's was Kim, Macdonald Red lol.

I was thinking of going to the Pro's and asking if they could just highlight the bits that have gone really grey, where my natural grey is, the rest is not so bad and I can live with it.

I have learned one thing for sure, I am sticking with my nice and easy champagne blonde from now on, No more COLOUR UP wella for me, the lady who rang said it is a very good product, probably better than you are used to, whatever, they both cost the same price, actually I don't think she really knew what she was talking about to be honest.

My first instinct was to rush out and cover it, but I am going to wait and see what happens, I guess I can live with it for a few weeks, ususally the blonde I have underneath always comes through, but won't ya bet this time it does not.

Maybe I should grow old gracefully, NOT!!! lol, when I am 60 I might consider letting all my greys show, but that is 13 yrs away yet lol.
P.S Under the lights it looks really silver, oops I mean platiumn blonde like you said Karen lol.;)

[Corinna]

I got tired of my mousey brown(with grey) a couple years ago. frosted it well after 4 times I was a blond, for 3 years . I decided I wanted to go bak closer to my color foun a nice straberry blond looked good but faded way to fast. So I tried a new kind and color Dk auburn well I was really red for a week . it now is a color i really like. (no grey either) My hubby ignores what i do he doesn't understand why i don't like the way God made me. (this comes from a 6'5" large but not fat hansome man) I'm 5'2" 166lbs give me a break.

[wolfsoul]

I hear that vinegar and mayonnaise can help bring excess colour out of dyed hair. :)

[lynnestankard]

NOOOOOOO Carole- it's fine - you've got low lights!!!!

I've heard tomato ketchup rubbed in and then shampood out can get 'nasty' mistakes looking a bit better!!

I did what Kim did - only it was 40 years ago and I decided I fancied 'doing up' my nice normal reddish hair - so there I was with the most wicked RED!!! hair!!
My Mum and Dad nearly lost the plot and no matter how many times I shampood - I couldn't budge it. So ended up going to a professional to get it sorted!!!

Lynne

[carole]

Well i am going to put up with it and see if it fades away quickly, even though it is a permanent, my experience is they fade rather a lot in the first few weeks, I wash my hair daily, so that also might help, hmm I could try the mayo and vinegar, but I am not sure I could bear the smell, I hate both those and never eat anything with either in, so it might be a bit hard to do for me.

It is just where the natural grey is that bothers me, it is quite prominent, in the front where you can see it , and rather silver looking, so yes i have gone from gold to silver basically,. I was getting sick of the goldness in my hair, so wanted to tone it down, well I guess I achieved that lol, To be honest I don't think it has aged me one little bit, but I just prefer the blonde look better.

[ramanth]

My mom started going grey at 21 and passed that lovely trait on to me. I started dying my hair in college more because I liked the colors than for covering gray.

For some reason I don't mind the grey and white hairs lately. Go figure. :rolleyes:

My mom's a licensed beautician and has always done my hair, so I've thankfully have never had a bad hair day. :)

Good luck!

[Miss Meow]

Carole, make sure you write a letter of complaint to Wella's head office, provide the batch number (if there is one on the packet) and give them a bit of a serve ;) . I am over bad customer service and it feels so nice to send a nastygram to those who take our money and don't deserve it!

I hope your hair is better soon :).

Did you watch the cricket last night? I wish Ponting hadn't made a tonne so Messers Fleming, Cairns and Vettori could have stayed on TV longer, but oh well! :o :D I hope they can do something like that every year for charity as it was a fantastic game!

[tomkatzid]

At least go to a pro for some shampoo and moisturizer and that can really take out the 'odd' colors. One product here is ARTEC, blonds, white violet color depositing moisturizer, it works very very well for color correcting. And as you may have guessed since I know about this product... I NO LONGER do my own hair. Exccept for cutting my own bangs. At 52 I have had several self enduced bad hair days .
Katz

[Maya & Inka's mommy]

Up till last Summer, I used to hide the grey hair too. But after 6 times, my hair got soooo dry, I could hardly get through it with my brush!!. I had it cut shorter, and now, I am all back to my own colour: dark brown, with grey "highlights" :rolleyes: !
I used to hate it, but since my hubby said that the grey was "cute", I am happy now. Thanks dear!!

[carole]

Thanks so much for all the advice, I am happy to report, the old colour underneath is starting to come through, it always did and used to bother me, but not this time, it is still of course greyer looking around the front, but not as much, infact I think it is growing on me lol, it really is not that bad.

I do think wella should put a warning on their packet, for people with some grey hair for sure, so yep I am learning to live with it, and I think after few more washes, it will be looking nearly back to normal,just shows you how much their colour fades, and it is a permanent as well, the good thing it has taken away that brassy yellow look, that no matter what colour you use, it tends to look that way after a while, and I really wanted to achieve that, I am thinking at least I have a vision of what I will look like with totally grey hair, not too bad after all.

Nicole, I actually hardly ever watch cricket, but read the papers, see it on the news and of course my cricket fanatic son fills me in, I have to confess to not being much of a sports fan, but I always like to see us win over you guys , the old healthy competition between our two countries lol, I am really glad they are raising so much money for the Tsunami victims, and they are doing I think three games in my City end of Jan for the same thing, way to go Aus and NZ.:)

[Logan]

Carole, what you have reported is exactly why I will go to my death bed, insisting on paying to have someone color my hair, instead of me trying it myself!!!! :eek:

I am over 75% gray, at 42, if that makes you feel any better! LOL!!! I simply can't stand to be there, yet, so every 8 weeks, I have it cut and colored. I did go for 4 months, when I thought I would lose my job in the fall (which I did), and I was miserable!! The best Christmas present I got was my hair color!!!! :D

[CamCamPup33]

Originally posted by Logan
Carole, what you have reported is exactly why I will go to my death bed, insisting on paying to have someone color my hair, instead of me trying it myself!!!! :eek:

I am over 75% gray, at 42, if that makes you feel any better! LOL!!! I simply can't stand to be there, yet, so every 8 weeks, I have it cut and colored. I did go for 4 months, when I thought I would lose my job in the fall (which I did), and I was miserable!! The best Christmas present I got was my hair color!!!! :D

I think your hair looked nice when i saw you! I would have never guessed there was any gray! :p Hehe.

[carole]

logan I am lucky this is the only time a hair dye has gone wrong, and I have been doing it myself for about 7 years, but usually one is safe with the pro's, but even they can make mistakes, but thanks for the story, I guess at 47, 30 per cent grey ain't so bad then lol.

[Logan]

Amber, remember, you saw me after my gift to myself....the color!!! :p

[Tonya]

I never dye my hair lighter colors, I don't have very good luck with that. I pay someone if I'm going lighter. But I always seem to do ok with dying it darker colors. My color right now is soft black and I can't really go wrong with that. If I miss a spot, I just go back over. I use Feria brand but my gf says that is the worst one out there for your hair. It has metallic dyes in it which are harsh I guess. But I love how Feria makes my hair shine so I don't listen to her. :p

[carole]

Tonya funny thing is my natural colour is medium brunette, but as I have become older any darker colours are way too dark for me now, like for instance even a light brown, eek look like a witch, I am pale skinned, and my natural colour is impossible for me to match up, I was a golden blonde as a child, and it appears that is the colour that suits me now, funny eh?

I have seen the Feria ones , they look amazing, to be honest I think all dyes are probably bad for us, i am tempted to try one of the Body shop dyes, the natural ones, as I always get an itchy scalp for a few days after the dyes are put in.

Secretly I am beginning to like the disaster I first thought it was, it has toned down heaps, and because the yellow brassy bits are gone now, I quite like it, it is different to what I was used to, but it has really grown on me lol.