Bad hair colour

[Flute56]

I have my hair coloured. My hair is dark brown but because I have grey I have the hair coloured. My current hairdresser has coloured it too dark so it looks almost black. My previous hairdresser coloured it but not so dark. The only reason I changed to my current hairdresser is because he was nearer to where I live. When I questioned the colour and said it is too dark, he did not like it and said it is not too dark. I then phoned my previous stylist and she said it is too dark. She said that because I told her what number colour he used and then she said what colour number she used. She said the number he used was way too dark for me and he should have used the next shade up which is what she used. There is nothing that can be done about it and the only way to get it lighter is to have some highlights and let the too dark grow out. Thankfully my hair grows quickly. However, when I said to my current stylist that my old stylist used the next shade up he said she was wrong and he was right and if I preferred her colour then I should go back to her and he did not want me anymore as a client. Fair enough because really if you get a bad hair cut from a hairdresser you do not go back but because my hairdresser never gave me a bad haircut then I wanted to keep him to just cut my hair but I think it would cause too much bad feeling because he feels that as he is the professional then his opinion counts and nobody else should query his judgment on the colour. He also asked the other colourist in the salon who agreed that my hair was the correct shade.

Surely if a client wants a lighter colour, shouldnt the stylist do it? My cousins daughter wanted her hair coloured pink so the stylist did as she asked and now it is pink and I know that is a bit drastic but it amounts to the same thing. The client sits down and the stylist asks what they want and accommodates, but my own stylist was not prepared to change the colour. I do not understand why he is being like this because a few weeks ago I said to him is it possible to colour this slightly lighter and he said no you cannot do that with such dark hair but you can highlight it if you want it made lighter and now he is complaining that I have said it is too dark????? He did not mind when I said could it be made lighter but now he seems to object when I say its too dark.

Just go elsewhere. Maybe he is right though and it does suit you?

to add...... I am getting mixed messages from him. On the one hand he said I can have it lightened by using highlights because an all over colour to make it a lighter brown would not work as its too dark and on the other hand when I say he coloured it too dark in the first place, he did not like it

He could do a bleach shampoo rinse to lighten it

I did ask for a lightening shampoo but was told it would make no difference.

I have other misgivings about the salon and their attitude and their professional service. I will never set foot in the place again

Bleach washing is fast, easy to apply and will:

Strip out hair dye
Correct over-toned hair
Remove excessive brassiness from partially lightened hair
Lighten hair one level.

When I asked about this and was told it would make no difference, I think the colourist was lying because he could not be bothered to do it. All in all it is a sham of a salon

To be fair, he doesn’t have to offer to correct it for you (neither do you have to accept a repeat performance)

Just ask for a refund

I’m just saying that because it’s clear neither of you want to continue a business relationship so a refund to end the complaint would be the best option all around

A bleach rinse elsewhere shouldn’t be that expensive - I think my expensive salon would charge £30 & the additional fee of a blow dry but others may do it all for cheaper. Look around for prices in your area and use that as a basis to negotiate a refund

God that’s pretty cheeky of him. He should have been 100% sure on what final effect you wanted, and if he had different thoughts on what would suit he should have told you at consultation stage.

I would ring and try to get a refund, and leave a bad review.

I will not be able to get a refund. I already have a session booked with another salon for highlights which is the only way forward

I went back to my previous stylist and she took one look at me and said the hair was definately far too dark. She highlighted it one shade lighter and it looks much better. She said why on earth did he do it so dark and I said because he said that was the colour to do it, so she said but any trained hairdresser would know that the coulour is far too dark for you and as you get older you need to go lighter to create a more youthfull appearance. She said you look washed out and drained with your hair so dark and if he cannot see that then he has no business calling himself a hairdresser.

I told her that he cannot do highlights or a perm and she laughed and said all stylists are trained to do highlights. Where exactly was he trained so I said he told me he was trained in a top West London salon hair academy and she said I do not believe that because if that was true then he would definatly know that you look awful with the hair so dark and a decent stylist would never have put an almost black colour on you.

As a joke, I said to her, what if I go back to see him and show him what you have done and see what he says? She said with someone like him who thinks he is always correct, it would make no diference because he would still think he chose the correct colour for you and if he cannot see how much better you look then he should not be in the business because he does not know what he is doing.

The moral of the story is
Never cheat on your hairdresser

Glad you got it sorted though, definitely leave a review

Thanks Frap

Surprisingly enough I looked on the site for the salon and three people have put bad reviews.

In the past if ever I have gone too dark I’ve just used Head & Shoulders for about a week, it will also fade a shade naturally over a month or so anyway. If you didn’t want to wait that long though I don’t see why colouring it again wouldn’t made it lighter, instead of having highlights

if the colour is too dark then the only way to lighten it is to bleach it and tone it which is what I have had done.

We all make mistakes by going to the wrong person be it hairdresser, dentist , doctor or whoever but then we find better people to replace them with and all is well. You learn from your mistakes and try not to make the same mistake next time. I should not have carried on with my bad hairdresser for so long but we initially got on well so the mistakes he made seemed insigiificant because they were small mistakes but when I casually asked if my hair could be made lighter because I thought it was too dark, then things got nasty and he should he was not the professional he made himself out to be and the little things that were not right came back into my mind and I thought hmm they should have sent alarm bells ringing in my head and I should have finished with him a year ago.