I Feel Like This Hair Stylist is Lying...

LovesYSL

O.G.
Aug 13, 2009
1,992
24
I need the advice of a professional...
In July I went to my stylist of 4 years to color my hair. It had previously been dyed dark brown but I felt like it washed me out so I wanted to lighten it somewhat. I picked out a light brown with my stylist and emphasized I wanted no red whatsoever-only brown. Unfortunately the color oxidized to a bright red after a couple weeks and I decided it was time I find a new stylist as this was the fourth time in a row I hadn't really loved my hair. Luckily I started a new job recently where one of the perks is getting a 50% discount at a salon around the corner from where I work. All my coworkers go there and all have fabulous hair for a great price thanks to the discount. I decided the other day to go around the corner to make an appointment, which I did. I told the receptionist I wanted to lighten my hair to a caramel blonde and she said would be a double process. 5 minutes later she called me to ask if my hair was dyed and I told her it was so she asked me to come back so I could talk with the girl who would be coloring my hair. The colorist told me there was no way she could take any shade of blonde whatsoever. She told me she did not want to lighten my base color because my hair is already dyed and color doesn't lift color. She recommended a really heavy highlight and told me there's no guarantee that all the red would be covered or corrected. I left feeling really ill at ease and asked my coworker who was formerly a hair stylist. She told me that to color red all it takes is to use a brown that has green in it to cancel out the red. So now I feel like perhaps the colorist at this new salon doesn't want to waste time on doing my hair if it's going to require a double process because of the discount. Who is correct? Is it possible to color my hair brown and then highlight it blonde? I'm so confused and I am going in tomorrow and I'd like some other opinions so I can reach a resolution I'm happy with.
Thanks!
 
I'd love to know and I'm in the same situation as you. I know that gray cancels out red and I know I need this but I'm trying to go from my natural brown to caramel brown. My hair turned DARK REDDISH BROWN and I don't know what to do!!
 
I'm not a stylist, but I would think it would be really hard to lighten red to a caramel blonde color so that it looked healthy and nice. A stylist that was more familiar with your hair would probably be more willing to try, but maybe she doesn't want to risk damaging your hair and turning it orange because she doesn't know you? :shrugs:
 
I'm not a hair stylist either, but have spent many many years dying my hair and have always been told that it's extremely difficult to pull red color out of hair. Let alone taking it to a blonde color. I don't think the stylist was lying to you at all.

I think she is probably airing on the side of caution by not taking you and trying to do that to your hair. Even if she could get it to the color that you want, I'm betting the damage to your hair would be extreme.
 
I'm not a hairdresser, but my sister is. Just this week I went from all over red, to caramel/honey light brown/dark blonde. She did it with three color (light brown, dark blonde, light blonde) whole head highlights. Not a hint of red shows now at all. It's a very time consuming process, so if I had to guess she probably didn't think it was worth her time at 50% off.
 
Well, I am a hairstylist and I also spent 10 years doing hair color education so I can probably help you out here. What you are seeing as far as the "red" tones is color lock (From the previous hair color) as well as what's called the underlying or contributing pigment. Color goes through stages when lifting (Going from dark to lighter). These stages are as sort of like this: red, red/orange, orange, orange/yellow, yellow and pale yellow. When lifting lighter, if not timed properly you would be left in any one of these phases. Also, considering that the level of correction shall equal the level of the problem in order to lift past the red you're seeing you would be possibly too light for your tastes. Could you tone to the level you are seeking? Sure but you would be causing undue damage as well as risking that it would simply fade right back out. And this is when dealing with natural hair color. When dealing with previously colored hair as I mentioned you may get stuck in color lock. Meaning that the color can no longer be removed even with bleach. It's sort of like an internal stain. The previous hair color will affect the final outcome far more than people understand going into a process. I quite often blame the stylist for not being totally blunt and upfront!
If you sat in my chair and told me that you wanted me to lighten your previously colored hair without leaving any red I would tell you that your wishes might be unrealistic. While your friend is correct that an ash color will cancel the remaining pigment (Depending on the base of the ash and the correction needed) the spot where you have been left is about the most difficult one to correct...unfortunately for you! Even if you could adequately cover it on that day of the service, chances are greater than not that after it begins to fade a bit you will be right back where you don't want to be.
It's sort of a situation where you need to give something in order to get. You need to understand that while what you are wanting is absolutely doable, it may take several trips to the salon and some patience to get where you need to be. I am going through the same thing with a client right now but I am taking her from a level 3 (Which is almost black) to a level 7 with no warmth. It only took me 2 trips to the salon to achieve it. The first time she was left with unwanted warmth however this time around I had to highlight as well as low light with a double ash and then throw a toner over all to marry the color together. Could I have tried to blast her where she wanted to be in the first trip in? Sure but then I would have possibly run the risk of sending her home with her hair in her handbag! I'm big on saving the integrity of the hair! As you can see from my photo I was blonde at the time the picture was taken but previously I was almost black as well. Did I achieve these results in one fell swoop? Absolutely not! Better safe than sorry I always say!
I don't think it's a situation of the new stylist not wanting to do the service for you as much as she is trying to be honest about what results you can expect. She may not want to attempt it because she thinks she cannot satisfy you. I am quite often BRUTALLY honest with my clients as it's the best way to handle things! Some people are simply not comfortable being so upfront.
Wish I could be of more help but hope that was some help at least!
 
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That was a good post Mustlovedogs. I had never gotten my hair colored before and a friend recommended me to her friend who is a stylist. I explained to her that I've never dyed my hair before because she asked me questions about whether or not I've had my hair colored before and if so how long has it been since my last coloring. Since I was a newbie she explained each step she went through with my hair which was super sweet. And she basically told me that color cannot cancel out color (which is what the stylist at your new salon told you). I always thought you could dye over other colors, but it definitely doesn't work that way. You have to bleach the hair or let the other color fade out completely or whatever is recommended based on your hair situation.
 
Thank you everyone for your help especially you MustLoveDogs!
I went yesterday and left the base color alone. My stylist took 2 hours to thread blonde highlights through my hair and then toned it so it would be somewhat caramel. I'm thrilled with the results and although it's not quite where I want it to be yet it's an amazing start. I'm actually quite happy we just stuck to highlights.
Thanks everyone again! :smile:
 
U r welcome! Glad you are on your way! I will bet you the next time it will be dialed in!!!Just another thought on this that I neglected to point out. When you have a coupon for services this doesn't generally affect the monies that the stylist gets for the service. Although I do not work commission in my salon there are stylists who do and they generally split with my salon owner 50/50 so when someone uses a coupon the 50% off comes out of the salon owner's pocket and not the stylist's.
 
That was a good post Mustlovedogs. I had never gotten my hair colored before and a friend recommended me to her friend who is a stylist. I explained to her that I've never dyed my hair before because she asked me questions about whether or not I've had my hair colored before and if so how long has it been since my last coloring. Since I was a newbie she explained each step she went through with my hair which was super sweet. And she basically told me that color cannot cancel out color (which is what the stylist at your new salon told you). I always thought you could dye over other colors, but it definitely doesn't work that way. You have to bleach the hair or let the other color fade out completely or whatever is recommended based on your hair situation.

Yup! Correct! Some colors can cancel others especially when going darker but unfortunately the underlying warmth is a b#&ch to cancel. But with patience and the right colorist almost anything is possible!:biggrin:
 
Wow, I just learned so much from this thread! I've never dyed my hair so I had no idea how complicated it could be! Not to mention my hair is honey blonde and I don't need to lighten it lol!