from red to blonde?

[puppydavies]

i'm a natural blonde who's been a dyed redhead for years and years. all of a sudden i've a penchant to go blonde - i think something a bit softer might suit me as i head into mid-30s. anyone know if it's possible to strip out the colour or will i have to grow it out? at the moment it's long and permanent dyed with the brightest red home dye i can find - ferria i think.

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puppy i'd say go to good hairdresser, they will look at condition etc and advise
try highlights in two tones maybe

why did you go red, can i ask?

am fair haired(blonde and coppery highlights when finances as and when finances dictate)

.... and thinking of entering my auburn phase, but have never known anything but fair
tricky!
but do think its worth seeing professional

i'm sure you're right i need to see a hairdresser, haven't been in over 18 months so chances are i might not be seeing one soon. and i guess therein lies the problem - i can't imagine maintaining a 'classy' looking blonde at home - anyone manage it? i'm fairly dark blonde so would need some highlights at least to perk things up a bit.

i chose to go red cos i used to bleach and dye various bright colours (pink, purple, blue etc.) but the maintenance was too much hassle. permanent reds are quite strong now so that's the easy way to get a dramatic effect. i've been brunette too and liked that but i think it would be too harsh on me now

was hoping to find someone who'd successfully gone from red to blonde. i did go from pillarbox red to lilac once in the hands of a skilled - and rather overambitious - hairdresser but that took a very long time and wasn't totally successful. i figured this might be a less dramatic change.

Red pigment aparently is the smallest and so the easiest to get out (black is the largest and so is hardest).

You can either grow out the red til your natural colour is a good 6 inches growth and by then any red left will hopefully be a weak colour that will take a bleach, or at this stage have the red cut out and start from fresh.

Or

You can go to a good hairdresser and ask them their advise on the changes of you having something done now. Bear in mind if they can do something now, the condition of your hair will be very bad (loading it with colour and then stripping it out will not make for a shiny strong head of hair)

I took option 1 when I went from dark blonde to brunette last year and then wanted blonde again. Now, I am at the point where I have 100& natural hair and can have anything done with it. Took a year though....

well i like the sound of red being easy to get out, but i don't like the sound of 6" roots . maybe i could get a shorter style and go gradually more natural - gingerier dyes rather than the brightest reds...hmmm. tbh the option of hair that's the right colour but in terrible condition sounds like the better one for me. to be fair my hair's in pretty good condition as i don't blow dry or straighten, so maybe it would take the stripping okay [ever the optimist smiley]

I totally understand and the 6 inch roots are not fun at all. On the other hand, once hair has grown that much, your natural colour strangely seems to take over your old colour and it doesn't seem so bad (and if you used a gloss semi-perm colour in like a warm honey brown, then you'd be disguising your new hair without doing anything permanent to it)

It's great that your hair is in such good condition so that does bode well for the blonde now option.

I must admit, I know that once I fancy something, taking months to get it is not what I want to hear and usally if hairdressers tell you they can achieve the result you want, they usually can!

ooh of course - temp dyes while the perm grows out - now why didn't i think of that? the main reason i don't fancy growing it out is that i've been varying shades of red/pink for the last 10+ years or more so it's part of my identity now. i can imagine waiting all that time, doing the blonde thing and just not being able to come to terms with it and dying it red again the following week...

LOL

There is always highlights and lowlights using warm colours (bronzy reds), honey blondes and perhaps 1 light blonde. Then you'll have a bit of all the colours you like!