Yesterday, the hair coloring bug bit me and I picked up a highlighting kit. The streaks are kind of cute, but I’m not totally in love with them. So that got me thinking of ways to fix things if I’d had a hair disaster!
- If your color isn’t as light as you’d hoped, you can try the old fashioned hair lightener: lemon juice! Rinse your hair with a little lemon juice and sit in the sun — your hair will gradually get lighter.
- If your color isn’t as dark as you’d hoped, you can always re-dye it with another, darker color. I’d suggest waiting at least a few days between home hair dye adventures to give your hair time to rest and soak up some moisture.
- Totally hate the color? A new hairstyle may make the color less noticeable. I find I like my streaks better when my hair is up than when my hair is down.
- Time for a trim? A haircut can speed up your growing-out time and give you a striking new style to distract the eye away from the awful color.
- You can always re-dye your hair, regardless of how it turned out. My streaks turned out lighter than anticipated, and I’m tempted to try an all-over color to darken them but still give my hair a kick. Maybe the old tried and true auburn…
- There are shampoos out there that are designed to help “maintain” a hair color — blonde, red, or brunette. A shampoo designed for a different shade could help change your hair color subtly.
- If all else fails, be patient. Hair grows out and eventually you’ll be able to cut away the last of the color you don’t like.
Of course, you can prevent hair dye mistakes entirely by doing the “strand test” before you jump in to the full color. Mix a tiny batch of the dye and use it on a few strands of hair so you can see what the final product will look like — and have a good idea of how long you need to let the dye sit on your hair to get the color you want.