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Want to know what's worse than those old highlights that have worn out their welcome? Smoky, gray streaks where those highlights used to be, that's what. Covering over-bleached hair requires more than a quick color job. You have to add undertones -- something that bleached hair is missing -- before your color will look natural. Try to put red dye on white hair and you'll end up with pink hair. Sometimes your hair will turn gray, other times orange, depending on what color you use. Want to avoid all those iffy colors? Get the mixture right.
1.
Spray color filler on your hair, from the roots to the ends. Pay special attention to the ends -- give those an extra squirt. Most color grabbing and staining problems occur on the over-processed, porous ends.
2.
Choose a color that best matches your natural color. Pay attention to the tone too. If your hair has a lot of gold in it, you will want to choose a gold-based color. The same is true for red and green tones. Always match the color base to your natural undertones.
3.
Pick your additive. White and super-blond hair has no base color -- well maybe a little yellow, but that's not enough to do anything. You have to add the color that your hair is missing. For brown and reddish brown colors, use red additive. Use orange for red hair and gold for blond hair. Never use green or blue additives on bleached hair unless you want green or blue hair.
4.
Mix 2 oz. color, 2 oz. 10-volume color developer and 1/2 oz. color additive together in a color bottle. Put on some gloves and saturate all your hair with the color. Wait 25 to 30 minutes.
5.
Rinse with warm water for at least five minutes. Shampoo thoroughly and condition.
