A week and two days ago I was a hair model for professional stylist in NYC. She said she wanted to alter my natural medium ash brown hair to give it a more "honey" tone. The photograph she showed me was almost my exact hair color, just slightly warmer.

When she was done, my hair was bright red-orange. Apple red, with a hint of orange. I was in tears. She was astonished and confused and promised to fix it.

She then put a medium dark hair dye over the bright red/orange, and now I have a very dark red hair color. Sort of a "cherry cola", although the stylist tried to call it "mahogany."

I won't let her touch my hair again, but I really want to get the red out and get my hair a little lighter. (My eyebrows are too light for this color.)

My hair is coarse, but healthy (as it can be after a double dye job).

How can I get my color more ashy?

You can strip away the permanent artificial color with a hair color remover. When using hair color removal products, your hair will end up looking raw and brassy, so you will need to re-color your hair to make it look natural. After the color has been removed, apply your desired color, which is medium ash brown.

This didn't really work for me. I tried a hair color remover, and it pulled some of the color out. It went down to a dark auburn. I waited 24 hours and did the hair remover again, and it's now like a light to medium auburn at the roots and a medium to dark auburn at the ends.

To get this to a medium ash brown, should I use light ash brown dye? Or should I use one of those dyes "for dark hair" (the one's meant to take dark brown hair and make it slightly lighter). Right now I bought a light ash brown dye, but I'm afraid that my hair is so porous that the dye will turn it black or something.

Thanks for any advice you can offer!

If your hair was chemically colored, it will be difficult to get your natural back. The hairstylist that did your hair... did an awful. Since the hair color remover didn't work, I advise you not to do anything else to your hair, it will only make matters worse. I think you should go to the salon and have them do a corrective color. A hairstylist will mix a formula to match your original shade.

Hi, I had this problem recently and gained a little insight into the problem. My hair was colored a deep dark auburn - I hated it - so I used color oops (colorfix works well also) to lighten it to a light pumpkin brown. I've discovered over the years that more than one attempt to remove color with a color remover usually doesn't lighten it any more than it did the first time (unles I'm not doing it right). When you re-color you MUST use a color that is 2-3 shades lighter than your ideal shade. If you want a medium ash brown, you should use a light ash brown or maybe even a dark ash blond (you can always go darker if it's too light which it probably won't be). Also, use a 40 developer in order to prevent the color from turning too dark or even black. Additionally, it may help to mix in 15 drops of red eliminator (available at sally's beauty supply, along with everything else.) I like Ion crème color with the developer for sensitive scalp. Good luck to you!

I had the same incident happen to me exactly 2 weeks ago. My natural color is dark ash blonde with slight honey/red tone with light blonde highlights on the ends. I grew in some gray hairs and wanted to cover those with highlights. The hair sylist (Marlo Jennings) convinced me to go with red lowlights and blonde highlights. Marlo said that my lowlights came out "funky" and she proceeded with putting 3 different toners on my head. My scalp was burning and I started to panic and begged her to wash it out. It looks horrible. My husband hates it. I have been washing my hair with chlorine remover shampoo for swimmers.
I am going to another salon tomorrow to hopefully get some more blonde highlights, as my highlights are non-existant due to all the toners she put on my hair.

It took a week for my scalp to stop burning.

I am sorry you are going through this, it is horrible, I know. I don't recognize myself in the mirror and all my friends laugh when they see me. It sucks.

I guess hair grows out and I really trust my new stylist. I am putting lots of Aveda damage rememdy conditioner on my hair and currently it is very soft and touchable.

Take care of yourself and find a hair color specialist, even if it really expensive, you need someone to listen to you and to norish your hair!

I have naturally red head, more of a reddish blond. I've gone to salons and have done coloring at home and it is really hard to get my natural color. I have used a shade of Loreal but it isn't available here in Canada so I listened to one of their representatives at a store and chose a color she recommended... with results being very dark compared to my natural color and the rest of my near waist length hair is my natural color. So disaster!

I looked online and read about Color Zap from Loreal where you can use it and then immediately dye your hair again. But... it isn't available here in Canada.

I called Loreal and they recommended using a clarifying shampoo or dandruff shampoo that will naturally strip the color and lighten it! You are supposed to put the shampoo on, then leave it on for 30 minutes, then wash... followed by a good conditioner. You can do this 3 times a week.

This may work for any other dark hair disaster! We will see if it works, until then... a ponytail & a prayer!

Also she added that if your hair is sun damaged (mine bleaches very easily) or naturally dry, any dark color will become darker on those parts of your hair.

If your salon goofed up: they owe you a full refund and a solution!

Hi my natural hair colour is ginger and I wanted a change so I dyed it red. Now I hate it and want to go back av been told to use head and shoulders dandruf shampoo so wish me luck lol .

Do not out 40volume developer on your hair! It won't do anything but dry it out! Color doesn't lift color only bleach or modulate! You need to see a stylist! If you dislike the red and want it lighter you need a color correction done! Don't attempt this on your own! You'll end up in the salon w a bigger mess and spend more money and the long run! Go to salon and don't take advice from anyone who's not a colorist! These answers were off the charts!

We all do different procedures and use different products on our hair, is very hard to help fix hair disasters when we are the only ones who know what we did to our hair and what it was used. After some time of playing with different hair colors our hair is far from being and looking natural and no matter what we do to make it look natural, it never will be. it is possible to make it look natural again but it won't be the same unless we let it grows out. If we try to do what a person is recommending to do because it worked for her, doesn't mean it's going to work for you too. It's best to keep track of what we do, when and what we use, so we let the color specialist know and they'll be able to do a better job and we don't experiment with ourselves... one thing I have to say is, better to have short healthy hair than long fried hair... good luck to all

I have dyed my hair like a bright red, just at the front and don't get me wrong it is nice, and goes well with the other colour, but I think it is a bit too much as I have college to attend, I'm wondering if any of you guys know how to dye over this? would it work? as I have very little money, I was going to just dye over it like a dark hair colour,
It would be a big help if you could help me please! x

I have dark brown hair and I have been coloring it "fake deep red" for years now (think Allison Iraheta from American Idol, or Sharon Osbourne's new color) I love it! Since I am so pale it looked great. I got it colored for my birthday on November 14th, I told the colorist "fake dee red" and maybe to add something funky I wanted highlights of a richer red, I told her SPECIFICALLY, PLEASE DO NOT BLEACH IT! She freaking bleached highlights all over my head and I swear I had no idea what she was doing that! I got so mad but she said not to worry because it was going to look great. I must admit when she was done I loved it! I left the salon feeling so sexy, and everyone was complimenting my hair. After I washed it just 2 times, almost all the color washed out!! Now I have like a weird red-orange color all over my head, and the once cool looking highlights now look PINKISH and WHITE! Because the bleach is starting to show.. so I have red orangy pinkish white and dark root showing in my hair! I am disgusted with my hair! I have no idea what to do now! Should I dye it a deep burgundy red now and hope it works? I like the deep rich red color, but my boyfriend and friends suggest for me to go back to dark brown since according to them I look more naturally pretty as a real brunette... So what should I do? My hair is so fried and dry, and I am using all kinds of coconut oils and conditioning treatments, but I think the highlights screwed up my hair.. I can't stand looking at my hair in the mirror! Its so gross! Its like 6 different colors, how can I fix this? I do not want to go back to the stylist who did this crappy job, if I see her I will murder her!! Now what? Please help!

Holly crap you are all crazy! The original post all the girl had to do was color her hair with a green based haircolor or toner. If you go to a place like sally's the hair color/toner will say on it whether it has a blue, green or violet base. Green counter acts the red she didn't want and will tone it to a brown. Oh and deposit only is a 10 volume developer. Since she just wanted to deposit that was all she needed. Definitely not a 40! Her hair would break from the peroxide since she already colored her hair twice! FYI I am a stylist!

Never use bleach to get rid of a color you don't want.
Use ColorOops
Or Loriel Hair Dye Remover kit.
Sorry if my spelling is off.
But either of the two work.
The Loriel works better.

I've been having similar hair problems. I have naturally blonde, curly hair and went in to get a slightly darker shade. My hair stylist talked me into doing an auburn color, except it's really red now! I did this a few months ago I still hate the color. I desperately want to go back to blonde but since my hair is curly I'm worried about damaging it! :/

Try Myhd Colour remover, and always use a colour aloy lighter than you wish, using Myhd colour and developer will cindition your hair more than anything. Remember when you use colour remover you must use most of it on your ends as they build up the colour the most, and you should shampoo your hair at least three times and really scruff the ends, MyHD colour remover opens your hair particals then you was out the colour pigment! Its sooooooo much better than bleach for your hair, and don't be afrained to use a 30 vol and 9.1 it's a ash blonde, but it will come out as I light ash brown as your hair will be porous.

I have just dyed my hair burgandy and hate it all my friends say it looks ginger and I wanted to know if I could dye it back to my natural colour which is a light ash brown colour ?

I recently dyed my hair red, my natural colours a dark brown, almost black, is it possible to strip my hair back to my natural shade as the red is lighter than my natural color obviously? Helpp!

I'm thinking of dying my hair red, my air colour is naturally dark brown, if the colouring goes wrong will it be possible to strip my hair back to my natural colour? I'm afraid of losing it.

Well I don't know what to say reallt I'm looking for an asnwer myself... I dyed my hair last night and it turned out ridiculous. In February I dyed it black well I wanted it lighter and all so I tried to dye it an auburn color well the roots that grew out from feb since I dyed last turned bright red orange and the rest of my hair is still dark dark brown it looks horrible. The top of my head is red orange and the rest is brown... what can I do... I need help idont know how to fix it.

Samantha now were 2. I have exactly the same issue. All my hard is now dark brown and the top is red orange... **** what a mess... HELPPPPPPPPPP!

I completely 100%! As a hairstylist, I can say that most of the suggestions on this post will only cause more damage to your hair. Have a stylist with a good color reputation fix it for you. And invest in a conditioning treatment to follow.

The same happened to me about 3 years ago with semi permanent and I didn't like it so dyed over it and my roots came in orange I am naturally dark blonde I decided to go auburn and it went piller box red about 5 months ago I have tried everything apart from colour correction I hadn't heard of it most hairdressers have told me to use washing up liquid it hasn't work but now my roots are coming in grey and I am only 18 so I will try the colour correction if that doesn't work I will let it grow out naturally. Good luck everyone!

Don't go red unless your ready to wait for it to grow out its pretty inpossible to get red dye out,

I have dyed my hair a fair amount of times and I am concerned that if I try dyeing it brown over my deep colored red hair it will eventually kill my hair and fall out. Is this 'hair dye removal formula', like normal dye- killing my hair exactly the same way as I feared with the brown hair dye, or is it a bit more trustworthy with giving me back a neater hair colour with out damaging my hair?

Dye your hair a shade in the green spectrum since it is the opposite of red. This will dramatically cut the red. The red might shine through at times when the dye washes out, but your hair will look like a natural brown overall. If you really want to get that complete ash colour back, I suggest going to a professional to strip it out.

Sources: My natural colour is a light ash brown, and I dyed it red. I loved it but it was a pain to upkeep. With the greeny/brown dye that was two shades darker than what I wanted, it washed out to a natural brown. It looks good, but it is not my natural colour. You're going to have to dig deep into the pores of your hair to get this red undertone out. Don't put more dye over it, or it will become more diffucult to take it out. Wait two weeks if you've just dyed your hair before doing anything else to it. There is excess dye in the hair that can react badly to any new chemical.

Some of you people are ridiculous! Not everyone can afford a "hair color specialist" or go to a high end salon. I'd love to be able to be able to go somewhere like that every time I have a hair crisis, but I can't, and neither can a lot of other people. And I've also used 40 vol developer on my hair numerous times, and nothing bad has ever come of it.

To redmistake:
I personally know Marlo Jennings and she is a phenomenal
Stylist! I have been going to her for many years and have always loved my hair
She is the best!!

I have reddish hair, and I recently asked my stylist how to make it just a simple brown (the red always comes through!). He explained that although red fades quickly, it is the hardest to cover up. He suggested putting a new color with a green base over it, to neutralize the red. Then he put a brown over that. Hopefully that helps you, too!

I was in a redken hair show over the weekend and they dyed my hair bright red! So I went to this lady and she put dark brown over it so now my hair is a dark brown red color but I want to get the red out! Show I use hair color remover? Or is there anything else I can do?

Ok I die my hair with splat the shade is lusious rasberries. I liked it at first but then I took a shower an red hair die just started running down my back
I also tried to go swimming an it died

I want brown hair and I have light red hair... how long should I leave brown dye in? Please help! Thank you!

My hair is naturally dark blonde but I've been doing those "28 shampoo" color on my hair to make it a medium brown. I decided to go blonde again so I did heavy highlights and liked it. A few months later I went back to the semi permanent color (stays permanent in my hair) and did a med. Golden brown. It is quite reddish brown so I had some extra bleaching stuff in my house and tried to highlight areas and it turned it orange (literally). So now I have a med/light reddish brown with orange streaks. Any ideas on what to do.

I had red dyed hair and wanted to go blonde; I used the Xtra strength stripper and then a bleach before applying a blonde my hair is so ginger any help pleasseee????

I read an article, I just looked up because my hair was bright red, and now it's orange due to fading. I was tired of my red hair and decided I want it all out. It says to get Vitamin C tablets, crush up twelve of them into about 4 tablespoons of shampoo (no specific type) and stir it together into a froth. Then apply it to your hair and scrub it in for 5-10 minutes. Then use a shower cap and leave it in for an hour or two. Repeat for about a week.

Another said to use dish soap and do the same thing, basically leave in for 5 minutes, and keep it in for a hour or two. Hopefully this helps. Now I shall go try it. (:

Or you could just get a color remover and be done within 1/2 hour :)

Colorfix is good but leave out the last step, the developer . Do not do that last part! All it does is deposit color BACK in your hair. Don't know why that step is even there. I used Colorfix many times on myself and others and that step is not necessary. If you have a very dark color that you are trying to remove you still may need more than one, but not as likely if you don't do that last step.