Hairdresser not sorting out my hair!

[dairymilkisevil]

I had my hair cut and coloured last week.
We agreed on a dark all over base with two colours of highlights to try to cover what was there before which was too many bleach blonde highlights.
First attempt: hair comes out completely blond, highlights all disappeared and it's just yellow-blonde. Hairdresser says the dark colour hasn't taken.
We start again all over again with a darker base and two highlights - one blonde one caramel. It looks loads better so I pay.
I have washed it three times since and all the dark has gone. It looks like it's literally washed out and I'm left with yellow blonde and ginger on the top.
I've contacted her (she works for herself) and first she says the dark will take a few washes to come through, which doesn't sound right.
I send her photos.
Now she says my hair is stubborn and that "the copper in my hair doesn't want to lift the dark for some reason." And that it's not her work that's at fault, she's now on holiday for two weeks, then it's her daughter's birthday so she can't do anything and the only thing she can suggest is that I buy a purple shampoo to tone the yellow out.

AIBU to think this isn't good enough? I asked for dark hair with some caramel coloured highlights. First off she gave me blonde all over and now the dark is all washing out - it's supposed to be a permanent colour, I thought?

I used to have really long bleach blond hair and when I decided to go darker it took almost a year, I was lucky if the colour lasted 3 weeks each time before turning copper.

In the end I had my hair cut to collar length to try and get rid of the majority that had grown out to the ends.

If I was you I'd use a box dye at home every few weeks until your bleach has all grown out, which shouldn't take long with it being so short, you can then go to a better hairdresser to get the look you want

I am not a hairdresser but I have had bleached highlighted hair dyed a caramel brown before and it took fine, in fact it was too dark for me. I wash my hair every day as it is fine/greasy and it did lighten after a couple of weeks but was still brown and lasted for about 6 weeks when it went mousy brown. I had mine done at the hairdressers and he warned me it would lighten over time and take better/last longer the second time. In my wisdom I then thought I would save myself some money and colour it myself, bought a box from a supermarket and my hair went orange - never again!

As I said, I am not a hairdresser, but I wonder about the quality of the colour your hairdresser put on that has meant it did not stay coloured at all.

Baumer thank you. I asked her for dark brown.
She never told me any of this, in fact she said exactly the opposite.
She should have told me it would be difficult, I feel she has really misled me

Can someone suggest how I should word my reply to her message that it's not her fault and that she's not going to do anything about it?

If you want a dark brown that's a bit easier. But the same rules apply in that you will need to hit it quite a few times before it sticks. It will be patchy and it it will lighten until it takes.

I would probably try and get the overall colour you want as the base first at home and then have some highlights put in at a salon once it's established.

You can buy professional colours online and that will be cheaper than having it done in the salon.

If you are naturally dark try and match your own colour to the base as far as you can. This will make it much easier going forward.

Thanks everyone.

Question for hairdressers please: if I buy High street colours and put it all over, is there a risk my blonde will turn a funny colour eg orange?

The biggest risk with putting brown on is it going khaki. I would start with a colour which begins with the number 6. After the dot i would go for a 7 or a 3 4 or 5. Or two numbers out of those above. 4 and 5 are red / copper which you could do with some of but i would maybe go for 6.74 as the copper then wouldnt be as intense as its the second tone.

Loreal casting creme are good but are semi so prone to fading but kind to hair.

Absolutely don't do it yourself!!

rarfy - thank you . May I pls ask, are you a hairdresser?

No advice on what to do OP... but just to say that I think its really important you can trust your hairdresser... so time to get a new one

I highly recommend Nice and Easy as a hair colour brand - they are very natural and excellent for covering odd colours!

Don't use box dyes from boots.

Use professional colours. Wella koleston have a huge range. Google their colour charts

Advice is correct re the khaki issue though but this is more likely with a box from boots

Do not do it yourself. High street colours are an absolute nightmare to lift in general. Get it done professionally. You can get a semi or quasi colour done in the salon rather than a permanent colour each time in an attempt to prevent further damage. It is going to take a couple of 6 week apart appointments to reach the desired depth of colour. Because your hair is now light all over a salon can foil out some blonde and apply conditioner to it while the rest of the colour is processing. If you apply an all over colour then attempt to lighten your just going to damage the hair shaft further.

Always remember you're never 'stripping' or returning your hair to a natural state. Every time you use a harsh chemical like tint or bleach it damages the hair shaft further which eventually leads to broken or splitting hair.

Either your stylist accidentally used a tint that was too light originally it looks like a 9 base to be honest. Or she literally has no idea what she's doing. Your best bet is going to a salon with an individual colour technician that specialises in colour correction.

Pugalugs - thank you.

After the advice on here I think she doesn't know what she was doing. I specifically asked her about the fact I was told going from blonde to dark was difficult and she denied it. And then turned my hair bright blonde. And the told me after I washed it a few times the dark would come thru. I think she's full of rubbish now. I feel gutted because she was recommended and I asked her a lot about her experience and how long she'd been qualified for.

How do I find a colour correction specialist?

It's literally a case of asking the local salons to be honest or googling salons in the area. They may have a list online of services and technicians they offer

Thanks Puga.

Can see all your photos and think that what she is saying is utter utter bullshit.

I know because I have a long bob, not short, but requested exactly the same as you on Friday.

I now have blonde caramel highlights and dark brown, exactly what you asked for, exactly what I asked for, and am very pleased.

Oblo - how did you get this ? Did you have a pre colour put on?

I have now found someone who says the following - for the hairdressers out there who are reading this , does this mean she is suitably qualified?

"Yes I was a Loreal colour technician for Loreal, I taught colour in the academy in London as well as doing in salon training, I’m also a Goldwell colour expert. I have over 20years experience"

No. I don't know enough about the technical terms, I'm afraid.

I had a few big caramel highlights that had grown out.

She did the highlights. And at the same time dark lowlights deliberately including some of my grown out highlights into the dark lowlight section, to get rid of them.

Then she put on a medium dark overall. To tone down my top layer that has lightened generally by the summer and had gone an unattractive gingery tone.

Plus finally she put on a toner.

It's exactly what I wanted.

The L’Oréal lady sounds very experienced and would have to be a great colourist to work for L’Oréal academy.
Colouring your hair a darker shade will always lead to some fading in the beginning of the journey but a clear consultation advising on desired result, maintenance, pricing for follow up appointments and home care.
Pre pigmenting the hair is an absolute must when going two or more shades darker or for porous/sensitised hair. It replaces the underlying warmth needed for your target shade. I.e base 5 and below would need orange/red down to red. Base 6- you’d need an orange undertone. Not pre pigmenting the hair will most often lead to a wishy washy colour very quickly or a unwanted colour immediately after the process as the desired colour doesn’t have the required tone to support it. This is why a lot of people who are hoping to do it at home but not wanting a khaki result will put a red brown over- the red acts like a pre pig would.
I’ll attach a chart I like for what the ideal undertone should look like before your desired shade is put on.

Thank you so much for this

I was bleach half head this time last year. My hairdresser has got it darker to a red, however the bleached hair is always lighter again after a few washes. A good hairdresser should be able to fix it for you. Good luck. It's really rubbish when your disappointed with your hair. Just for colour comparison I've added pics but like I say it's a constant battle to hide the ex blonde bits....as you can see in the second pic

OP:

'she says the dark will take a few washes to come through'

I think she was bullshitting you with that comment. I hate it when people talk shit (although qualified hairdressers please feel free to correct me, but it sounds a ridiculous statement).

Lcukycat I agree. I would like it if a hairdresser came on here and says "actually she's right " but I don't think it's going to happen.