As for semi-permanent dyes, the color will get darker the longer you leave it, but never lighter because direct dyes can't lift pigments.
If a permanent hair dye is left on too long, it could permanently stain your locks, making them appear darker even after shampooing or washing out some of the product gradually over time.
To achieve a lighter shade on previously-colored hair, we recommend you do one of two options. The first option is to use a strong lifter—treatments that have a volume of ingredients like ammonia, peroxide, bleach, or alternative chemicals that clear the hair molecules of color.
If you leave hair dye on for longer than recommended, it'll cause your hair to become dry, brittle, and prone to breakage. Lastly, make sure you use a salon quality shampoo and conditioner after coloring your hair. It'll help the colour last longer, remain vibrant and feel salon fresh.
If this is the first time you've dyed your locks, you might need to adjust your washing routine. This is to make sure you're not over-washing your hair. Hair that's dyed with a lot of pigment can look more faded the more you wash it.
A lightening or clarifying shampoo can lift the color and help you get the desired result. You can request that your stylist use a shampoo that is designed to lighten your hair. You can also wash your hair with clarifying shampoo in between salon visits safely to lift the color even more.
Sadly, yes. While permanent hair dye won't wash out of your hair in the same way that temporary, or semi-permanent hair dye does, it will eventually start to fade and change shade over time.
While there is conflicting information on how to long to wait to wash your hair after coloring it, most experts say that you should wait about 24–48 hours after dyeing your hair to wash it, allowing time for the hair color set and for your hair's cuticle layer to close without risking any color fading.
Salons wash hair after coloring because they need to prepare your hair for the next treatment, which is important if you are planning a straightening or curling treatment directly after your hair has been dyed.
Maintaining Your Hair Dye
For permanent hair dye, typically, you'll want to leave the dye in for 30–40 minutes before rinsing it out with cool water and applying conditioner.
To go from brown to blonde hair and to lighten brunette strands in general, you will need to have your base color lifted with bleach. The American Academy of Dermatology (AAD) suggests choosing a dye within three shades of your natural color to help maintain the health of your mane.
Natural bleaching agents like apple cider vinegar, lemon juice, chamomile tea, or cinnamon and honey can lighten hair gently and naturally with minimal damage. Rinse your hair in a solution of warm water and one or more of these lightening agents, then sit in the sun to dry.
Box or professional color can lighten your hair 1-2 levels without the need for bleach. This is because you often use a developer along with these colors, which can lighten your hair even without the interaction with bleach. Keep in mind that color matters even when using box dye or professional color, however.
Permanent black hair dye also lasts around 6 to 8 weeks before fading.
Rinsing with hot water lifts the outer cuticle layer which holds your color in, making it completely vulnerable to fading. The hotter the water and the more often, the faster your color will fade. Instead, wash in warm water and rinse in cold.
After you dye your hair, wait two days before shampooing. If you can double that to four days, the result will be even better. That's because the dye will have enough time to set. Wash your hair less often if you can.
Hair color needs at least 48 hours to settle into the hair strands. So, if you wash your hair 24 hours after highlighting, the color will quickly wash away and become dull.
During the first 48 hours after a color service, the pigments of the salon color are still settling—meaning if you shampoo your hair too soon after an appointment, it can cause your hue to fade quicker.
Applying hair color before a haircut makes it so much easier to section while coloring, prevents color overlapping from one section to another, and gives you a great final cut and color.
If you allow the hair dye to sit in your hair for longer than the recommended amount of time without washing the hair after the allotted amount of time has passed, you run the risk of achieving a shade which is darker than the colour you desired, or even worse, brittle and over-processed hair that may look unnatural, a ...
Hair should not be excessively dirty, sweaty or oily. Dirty hair does not “grab color better” *see next slide. However, you want there to be a natural protective oil layer on your scalp to act as a barrier against the chemicals in the hair dye. Wear your normal makeup routine to your appointment.
As natural brunettes, brown hair dyes can last the longest compared to other hair dyes. There's no need to bleach your hair colour as the eumelanin content will allow the hair colour to stay on longer. Besides, with the aforementioned colouring techniques, you can still flaunt your beautiful brown locks.
Why does this happen? Hot roots occur because the heat from your scalp causes the colour at the roots to develop faster than the colour on the mid-lengths or ends. This can lead to a lighter colour result at your roots than the rest of the hair.
Bleeding the color out is the optimal solution providing that you have the right product on hand. A regular or clarifying shampoo would be the best product in this situation, and ideally, you should keep washing it until enough dark dye has bled out of your hair that you're happy with the resulting hue.