Hair, bleach, can I revive it?

[GreyJeans]

I have medium length hair, it stops at armpit level. It is mousy with mid blonde/honey highlights and I've been happy with that for many, many years. And the condition of my hair has been fine.

The last time I had it done though, I decided to go for more of an faded/ombre look. Only the finished result isn't what I'd picture. I believe the colourist used bleach, the last 15-20 cms of my hair are so rough snaggly, even after brushing and just looks so frizzy.

I have slept in conditioning masks and have been using leave in conditioner but stil no better.

Is the only solution to bite the bullet and have it cut to shoulder length or is there a miracle product that might help (PK Elasticiser hasn't worked).

Olaplex 3

Moroccan Oil.

Have you spoken to your colourist? As they deal with coloured hair day in day out they might have a good recommendation for you.

I personally like the Ganier Hair Food masks, banana is particularly good IMO, but I haven’t had hair anywhere near as dry as you are describing so might not be good enough for you.

Dont use Morrocan Oil as it contains silicone to make your hair shine but it will act as a barrier in stopping any other products penetrating the hair.

Instead, use Olaplex 0 (saturate hair and leave for 10 mins) and Olaplex 3 (wrap hair up once applied as product stops working once dried) Leave on for at least 30 mins or as long as possible. Some people leave overnight but I havent tried that. I leave on for about an hour.

I am currently trying to repair my hair after bleach too

Thanks for your suggestions.

how expensive is Olaplex. Think my hair would soak all that up in one go!

A micro keratin salon treatment should improve the condition and reduce the frizz. Not cheap but it is effective. I also recommend that you have your hair cut. Perhaps give it a couple of weeks after your treatment to decide how much you need to chop off in order to preserve strength.

I badly bleached my own hair and trashed it. I used coconut oil which I left in overnight and for the next day. It made my hair very greasy for a day or so after that but it did help the damage.
Maybe just apply it to the ends not the roots.

Can we see a picture? If it's very bleached damaged and tangling up, I'd advise cutting the ombre ends. It'll be a relief to be rid of it and save a lot of time and money spent on miracle products!

Bleach can damage the smooth cuticle, causing the hair to split, catch and snag on each other. Cutting it will prevent the damaged split ends travelling up the entire hair shaft.

Olaplex is worth every penny.

@GreyJeans

Thanks for your suggestions.

how expensive is Olaplex. Think my hair would soak all that up in one go!

£26 and worth every penny

Sorry @SmileyClare I'm not going to post a pic, it looks so awful. Like I've been wearing a bucket hat and someone's dunked the ends in bleach!

Its been about 3-4 weeks since I've had it done and I've put a mask on it everytime I've washed it without any improvement.

How many applications would I get from one bottle of Olaplex and do you think there'd be much of an improvement when the bottle is finished?

You only need a small amount if you put it onto wet hair - a little blob about the size of a 50p will cover quite a lot. Maybe two of those each time should cover your hair. I was also sceptical as I don’t usually spend a lot on hair stuff, but my hairdresser suggested it after she lightened mine and it’s brilliant.

@GreyJeans I was going to recommend Olaplex 3 too. My hair is similar length to yours - it lasts me maybe 5 applications (so a month at one application a week). I’d maybe give it a go and then see if you think it’s working, a bottle is probably enough to decide if it’s worth the investment! A lot of online beauty sites have discount codes for first orders etc - Cult has 15% off with FIRST15.

When was your hair done? It sounds as though your hairdresser has chemically burnt the ends of your hair with bleach if it looks as bad as you say

You could go back and ask for some salon treatments to rectify the damage as compensation.

I killed my hair with bleaching and ended up shaving off the whole lot in March. Since then I’ve used Waterman’s grow me products and it’s growing back thicker and more healthy than it has ever been. It was recommended to me by a colleague who is also a part time hairdresser and it’s honestly been a saviour for me.

Not suggesting you do as I did and ‘brave the shave’ but possibly they have some products that may help?

As PP's have said, olaplex. It won't leave your hair as soft and shiny as PK elasticizer but it repairs the damage and makes your hair stronger. I alternate between the two as a treatment once a week.

Yes. This is what Olaplex is actually for. If you know anyone who can buy from beauty wholesale stores, you could get some Olaplex 2, which the the salon quality stuff and works out cheaper.

Or, I think you can buy Add-plex and other similar things from places like Superdrug/Boots, which may be cheaper.