Please help. I'm in tears, and have found no posts specific to my situation. I need a beauty professional.

I have had a run of professional hair color disasters. I've done nothing myself. I'll lay it out.
I am naturally a medium brown/auburn. I have been a wheat blonde with platinum highlights for 10 years. My hair was long and very healthy.
This summer I moved and choose a new colorist. She was running the bleach through my hair each time instead of putting it only on the roots, so by the 3rd time, I had intense breakage and lost half of my hair length. As a result, I had the damaged hair cut off and then let my hair be for 5 months and deep treated it. Finally, it seemed good and I had new healthy root growth which needed attended to.

So I found a new colorist and asked for blonde highlights on the roots and also a nice strawberry blonde to be woven through the blonde hair. I got a dark violet red put all over my roots and woven through my hair!!! It was awful.

So a week later I went to yet another colorist for "color correction". She put tons of bleach filled foils on my roots in effort to break up the violet red. It came out with an orangish cast and looked different but just as bad. Orange-ish hair.

So I thought, maybe this is the time to just go back to my original color. So I found a 4th colorist who was supposed to be board certified, and she turned me BLACK!!! Or at least a very very very dark brown. I was told I'd be golden brown. But I'm black, and it's so much darker then my natural color. I need to fade it. I look like death.

My question is, what can I do? My hair has been through alot. And this last colorist put an orange-toned filler all over my hair before she colored it dark and said I could never go back to blonde with this hair. Is that true? If it is, can I at least lighten the dark? How much can my hair handle?
Please help me. I don't know who to trust and am very close to shaving my head...

kayyoss

Ok.. I know you probably don't want to hear this from a teenager, but i dye my hair all the time and i am going to school for this stuff. and you can't keep going back every week to a different colorist... 1st off. i really hope that you didn't pay the people that colored your hair.. if it isn't even close to what you asked for, you shouldn't pay them. 2nd! i know you really do not like your hair right now, but you gotta leave it alone for at least 2 1/2 - 3 weeks. let your hair rest. and 3rd. You definately can go back to blonde.. I dyed my hair DARK brown in the winter last year and it was almost black... and i got it back to blonde without any professional help. i suggest in about 2 weeks or so you go back to your origional hair stylist and have her fix all the mistakes. it's no big deal. i know it seems like one, but your hair can always be fixed... i've had my share of orange hair when it was supposed to be blonde... brown hair with a purple tint when i dont remember what color i was trying... i have had it black and right back to blonde... and now my hair is black and blonde.... Another idea... i think you should ask your origional stylist to Strip your hair (takes all the color out and dyes it blonde or w/e color you want) then when you want your highlights,.. you wait about 6 weeks before you can put color into it again. but its worth it if you want the hair color you;ve been thinking about. :]

Definately go back to your origional hair stylist though. cause the others are obviously not doing a good job.

PrettyLady

Your hair has been through a lot of chemical processes. If you use any more chemicals on your hair it may cause severe damage. Since your hair is over-processed, you will need to moisturize and repair it. Use a deep conditioning treatment at least 2-3 times a week to help repair some of the damage. When your hair is in healthy condition, go back to the salon and see if they can achieve your desired color.

jessica x

(I hope I'm replying the right way)

I appreciate you input. It's encouraging to hear you went black and back to blonde,...although I wonder what your natural hair color is. I already am (was) a bleached blonde, so I'm wondering if my hair can take stripping the color out again. I'm feeling like it will just break because that's more bleach over already bleached hair...add to that, processed hair. Any thoughts?

Stephieee

Just a side note...the last colorist you went to was 'board certified'? Anyone who is selling themselves as a "colorist", "hairstylist" or whatever needs to be licenced by the state board of cosmetology. I dont know where you found the first two colorists, but if they were not board certified, they shouldnt be advertising as cosmetologists. Its illegal.

kayyoss

my natural hair color is brown. :] and nah if you add hair bleach to bleach blonde hair.. it wont change the color much. especially since ur hair is black right now. but definately if that doesnt work.. cause if you have never done it before it might turn ur hair orange.. so u might have to use 2 things of bleach . . . but if your not comfortable to do that... definately go back to your natural colorist and ask her to strip your hair.

jessica x

An update from me. Hopefully this will help anyone in a similar situation.

My color is fading very slowly. It's only 5 days later and I'm already becoming more dark brown then black. And I've only shampooed twice....but I've rinsed with hot water and conditioned probably 8 times.
I have spoken with two colorists who used to do my hair that I trust because they are experienced and always did right by my hair, and they have both told me that this can be undone. YAAAY! It will be a 2 part process over then next two months to maintain the integrity and structure of my hair. First I'll go lighter overall. Then in another month we can go even lighter with some highlights.
For now, I am sitting tight for another 2 weeks and doing deep conditioning treatments. I am not using a blow dryer. I am not using any styling products. And I protect it from the elements of cold and sun. Amazingly, my hair is really responding!
Keratase Paris has worked wonders as has Bumble and Bumble's Dehydration line (which is a super hydrating treatment line for dry, damaged hair. Exercise also helps because I sweat all over my hairline. It's great for circulation and new growth and gets my natural oils back in my hair. Also, sitting in the stream room with a deep conditioning treatment is excellent!!!

Anyway, that's where I'm at. I am traveling to see my colorist who KNEW what she was doing...the one who had me beautifully long, soft ,and blonde for 10 years, and I just can not wait. Let you know how it goes, but now I'm finally hopeful!

jessica x

me again.

This is a great article on hair structure and care.
Hair repair: haven't seen the hair you were born with since … well, when you were born? All of that coloring, curling, straightening and blow-drying is doing damage—but it's reversible. Get back to your roots for hair that's healthy, vibra

Brownie2Blondie

Jessica - I had a colorist do my hair way too dark, and I went home and washed it about 8 times with Prell. It is definitely harsh on your hair, but it did strip out a LOT of the black! I had black dye running down my face - it was unreal. Try that to strip the color out, and then seriously deep condition it.

PrettyLady

Keep doing the deep conditioning treatments until your hair is in a healthy stage. Once your hair is in good condition, your colorist or stylist may be able to a corrective color. Good luck.