Eek! scary. Going from black to dark blonde.

[CarbeDiem]

I've almost bitten the bullet and I'm shitting myself it'll look crap and I'll hate it but I have to change my hair colour.
Been black for 5 years, I do like it dark but I'm sick to death of dying it every 2 weeks when my grey roots come through.
I'm predominantly grey. My natural colour at the root is looking like a very light brown/dark blonde but I can't say for sure (haven't had it totally natural for over 20 years)
I'm hoping the blonde will lessen the harshness of root regrowth - I currently look like a skunk with about 2cms of root. :)
Going to book the appt tomorrow.

Anyone else done the same and loved or hated it?

I did it (very dark brown to caramel colour). It was a tortuous process and wrecked my hair. The dark will need to be stripped out first (probably with bleach) and then the colour reapplied.

good luck………...

I think it will take at least 2 appointments to go from really dark to blond. My hairdresser told me that to do it on one appointment will pretty much ensure that all the hair falls out as it would be way too harsh a treatment. Maybe the slow approach is better though, to get used to it gradually?

Is the black a permanent colour or a semi?

Black is a permanent.

I spoke with the stylist yesterday and she said it would be fine but would take time to do.
My hair is very short - probably about 5cms at the longest parts and I want it shaved and cut anyway so less hair to damage.
She also didn't mention having to do it in 2 goes. Hell will freeze over before I'd leave the salon in my natural state :)

I've had mine lightened from dyed black. It was done by a very well known salon in London as part of a magazine makeover and would have cost me hundreds if I'd paid!

It wasn't quick and the end result wasn't the most even colour, it went a darkish ginger after about an hour and a half. I then had purple put on, but it faded quite quickly as the hair had become very porous from the lightening treatment, so I still ended up having to do my roots every couple of weeks.

I've since gone back to black as I think it suits me better, but then periodically change my mind and wish it was lighter again. So fickle!

Hope you like the results and at leas if you don't, it will grow out pretty quickly at that length.

Ah Penelope my worry is that I'll not like it and throw black on again as a fix. I've promised I'll give it a few weeks to get used to it then see how I feel.
Of course I may well love it

If your hair is short why don't you just grow it some more,pixie it and then apply a cool blonde toner if you don't like your natural colour?

With 2cms you are already well on the way and if you used a hair crayon like Roux and leave it a couple more months it will be over before you know it.

How is your patterning with grey coming through?

Other alternatives that might be worth a go is repeatedly using colourb4 (or similar product) and strip the colour back. It will look red though as repeated perm dyes lighten the hair each time you use them. Highlights predominantly through the front might work with different tones- with a view to going gradually lighter.

Ps. I tried going lighter too for the reason you outlined both DIY and another time professionally. I had my hair stripped back with bleach and it had to be done several times to get through the Easter chick/neon peach stage. By the time it was over I had hair the colour of a mangey lion ( think battered teddy bears and boiled onions).

Not exactly the look I had in mind.

Because the hair was porous it turned really brassy too after about two washes.

Since you suit black high contrast hair the high contrast grey might look fabulous whereas the soft dark blonde might wash you out. Imagine Danni Minogue with Kylie's hair compared to her usual ebony colour. She really looks best with high contrast.

If you do go through with having it done and decide to redye it you will have to do it in two stages by firstly putting the red back in and then after a couple of days a cool toned brown. If you don't you better like khaki green.

I did something similar but with highlights as my hair is shoulder length. The bleach worked fine. But the tone on top was far too light. And yes is very brassy.
So I've gone one shade darker (9 to 8) and this weekend I'm dying it myself to get to 7. Then I might just go cold turkey & keep getting it cut. I wish I had just done this first off

M&s sell a hair root paint, and there's a fancy powder called WoW. I wish I had tried these instead and just let it grow out.

If you do do it, purple shampoo is your friend! And I may try an ash toner when I think it might not turn my hair green

Honestly I can't bear to grow it out more than it is already, well maybe a few more days/ 1 week maximum.
My grey is all through the front, sides and top. The back and nape of my hair are a mix of my natural colour and grey.

I've tried hair mascara and crayons and I don't like them due to the fact I need to cover my whole head. Plus I can't get them when I return to live in Europe - so too much fannying on trying to source them and get them delivered.

I've read lots about colour b4 and would be scared to do it myself, some people have ruined their hair with it then still ended up at the hairdresser. I looked at it in boots and it's not cheap - most people I read about needed 2 boxes plus the new colour. Mine is costing £50 for the stripping, the recolour and my cut with the reassurance that the stylist hopefully knows what she's doing :)

My hair is already a pixie -ish style so already very short. On the plus side if I do fuck up the colour by stripping it, my hair grows very fast :)

Sniggering at teddy bear/boiled onions - so sorry!

Thanks about the redye advice - I probably wouldn't have thought of that.
If I don't like it and want to redye I'm going to try my best not to go black again, probably some shade of brown.

Okay another couple of options to think about.....

Firstly,you could dye your roots 1-2 shades lighter than the rest of your hair and gradually work your way to a level 7 with each regrowth touch up.

Another option would be to have lowlights sprinkled into the grey and have less and less put in until transitioned and then decide if you like it natural.

bet it would look amazing silver

Good luck and may the curse of boiled onions hair pass you by

Thanks ;)

I did actually toy with dyeing it grey/silver but decided not to. I don't want to be grey at the age of 36 , as of today, so that's not sounding right yet thirty feckin six nope don't like it :)

I've tried the dyeing the roots lighter before - didn't have a happy ending. It was with brown hair but I ended up looking like a dulux colour chart - not pretty.

Ha I reckon everyone is dying their hair by 36. Seriously nearly 100% women are using hair dye by 40. Because there's a stupid media blackout on the fact that everyone goes grey, and most do so well before the allowed age of 65.

It's crazy, you start actually looking around at everyone. They all have awfully dark dyed hair. You get the odd lovely hair do, but not many.

It's a conspiracy to make us feel inadequate and buy stuff to cover up our 'deficiency'. Except we aren't deficient we are normal.

Harrumph!

I went from long black hair to blonde. I did mine with highlights so it did take a long time to transition fully and there was a good 6mths of quite gingery hair. Now I prefer it and wouldnt go back to dark hair with grey regrowth

I know that Just there is a social stigma surrounding grey haired people, especially women. I personally don't give a monkeys what other's think I do it for me only. I've had grey since I was 19 (thanks a lot Mum) and it's gone worse and worse with each passing year.
My DH is 33 and doesn't have any, not one bastard I think I have them for both of us :)

Peas - I can live with it not being exactly the colour I want for a while and I'm hoping I prefer it to black too, it depends on the regrowth really as I really can't keep dyeing it every 2 weeks.
Tbh blonde would probably suit me more, my eyebrows are kind of a light brown mixed dark blonde colour.

Anyway - the appointment is now booked for tomorrow afternoon.
Please send a prayer for me up to the hairdressing gods that a) my hair doesn't burn off with the chemicals and b) it turns out somewhere half decent.
Thank you.

Wow, for £50 it's definitely worth getting a professional to do it. I'm sure it will look great. It's probably easier to strip the colour out as it's fairly short too. With my shoulder length hair the longest bits have probably been dyed 10-12 times, so no wonder they don't like being lightened!

I've used a red/purple this week as I was fed up of black, but as the longest 6 inches of hair are still totally black, it's only the newest inch of roots that have really taken the colour, so I look like I've been bludgeoned about the head with a blunt instrument. Will take a while to grow this one out and I know I'll have changed my mind and gone back to black by the time I'm half way there!

Penelope- ah yea olde root glow. The peroxide in permanent dyes won't lift darker hair dye out.

Your best bet if you still want it lighter is a very quick bleach job ( about 10 mins or however long it takes it to get to an auburnish tone /couple of tones lighter and only do the black bits unless your roots are really dark, if so go over them for last five mins). You can then dye straight over with the purple/red.

If you are on Facebook have a look at Scott cornwall hair expert. He's a hair dresser that runs a page advising people on this kind of stuff.

If you are on Facebook have a look at Scott cornwall hair expert. He's a hair dresser that runs a page advising people on this kind of stuff.

If you are on Facebook have a look at Scott cornwall hair expert. He's a hair dresser that runs a page advising people on this kind of stuff.

If you are on Facebook have a look at Scott cornwall hair expert. He's a hair dresser that runs a page advising people on this kind of stuff.

Oh my sorry I didn't mean for that to post so many times oops

OP - how did it go?