How to Make Hair Color Fade

Co-authored by April Ferri

Last Updated: October 29, 2022 References

Dying hair is an art and science. Occasionally, due to inexperience or inexpensive products, dyeing your hair can go terribly wrong. If your last dye job left you with vibrantly colored tresses, you can tone down the shade with a variety of home remedies and store-bought treatments. For the best results, apply these treatments and remedies within 72 hours of dyeing your hair.

Method 1

Method 1 of 3:

Stripping Your Hair with Vitamin C-Infused Shampoo

1
Crush vitamin C tablets. Vitamin C contains an acid that is capable of breaking down the chemical composition of hair dye. This method will lighten your hair 1 to 2 shades. Treating your dyed hair with a vitamin C powder infused shampoo will fade the color. If you don’t have a powdered form of vitamin C, crush or grind vitamin C tablets into a fine powder.
- Place approximately 1,000 mg of vitamin C tablets into a sealed plastic bag.
- Use a rolling pin to crush the tablets into a fine powder.^{[1]
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Mix the crushed tablets with shampoo. Open the baggie and pour the vitamin C powder into a small bowl. Cover the powder with a generous amount of clarifying shampoo. Stir the shampoo and powder together until it forms a frothy mixture.
- You may add a few squirts of dish soap to the solution.^{[2]
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3
Apply the mixture to damp hair. Run your hair under warm water. Squeeze the excess water from your hair with a towel. Systematically coat each strand of your damp hair with the vitamin C-shampoo mix. When your tresses are covered from root to tip, put on a shower cap and place an old towel over your shoulders. Let the mixture sit for several hours.
- You may distribute the mixture through your hair with a wide toothed comb.
- If your scalp begins to burn, rinse out the product immediately.^{[3]
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4
Rinse and condition your hair. After a few hours, remove the shower cap from your head. Rinse your hair under warm water to wash away the mixture and the hair dye. Apply a moisturizing conditioner to your locks.
- Repeat this as needed.^{[4]
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Method 2

Method 2 of 3:

Stripping Your Hair with a Bleach Soap Cap

1
Mix shampoo, bleach, and peroxide developer. Soap caps are used to lighten, refresh, or strip your hair’s color. It contains equal parts shampoo, bleach, and peroxide developer.
- In a disposable bowl, combine equal parts clarifying shampoo, bleaching powder, and 20 volume creme developer.^{[5]
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2
Test the product on a lock of hair. Before you apply this mixture to your dyed tresses, it is advised that you test it on a lock of your hair. This test will reveal how your hair and the dye will respond to the mixture.^{[6]
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Expert Source

April Ferri
Professional Hair Stylist
Expert Interview. 8 December 2020.} It will also help you determine how long you should let the product sit.
- Cut 2 locks of hair from inconspicuous spots.
- Tape the cut ends of each lock.
- Set 1 lock of hair aside to use as your control.
- Apply the mixture to second lock. Let the mix sit for 5 minutes and then rinse the lock of hair.
- Dry the lock and compare it to the control.
- Repeat this process until you achieve the desired results.
- Add up the total amount of time it took for the product to fade your hair.^{[7]
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3
Apply the product to your hair. If the test led you to determine that the mixture is safe to use on your color treated hair, proceed with the treatment. If you experience a burning sensation at any time, rinse out the mixture immediately.
- Rinse your hair under warm water and towel dry your tresses.
- Coat your dyed hair with the mixture—cover the entire shaft from root to tip.
- Put on a shower cap and place an old towel around your shoulders. Allow the mixture to process for the same amount of time as the test.
- Remove the cap and rinse your hair in warm water.^{[8]
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Method 3

Method 3 of 3:

Treating Your Dyed Hair With Different Products

1
Use a clarifying shampoo. Clarifying shampoos are formulated to cleanse your scalp of built up grease and oil. When applied to dyed hair, a clarifying shampoo will safely and subtly fade your hair color.^{[9]
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Expert Source

April Ferri
Professional Hair Stylist
Expert Interview. 8 December 2020.} This method will not damage your color treated hair.
- Apply a generous amount of clarifying shampoo to your damp hair. Coat each shaft from the root to the tip.
- Work the product into a lather.
- When the shampoo begins to turn the color of the dye, put on a shower cap and let the product sit in your hair for several hours.
- Rinse the shampoo from your hair.
- Comb a moisturizing conditioner to your hair. After a few minutes, rinse the conditioner out of your hair.
- Repeat this as desired.
- To create a slightly stronger fading agent, mix together equal parts shampoo and baking soda. Apply this mixture to your dyed hair as described above.
- Instead of shampoo, you may use dish soap. Dish soap will remove slightly more color than clarifying shampoo. It will also leave your hair drier and frizzier.^{[10]
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2
Use a bleach-free clothing detergent. Laundry detergents contain chemicals that will drastically fade the color of your hair. This method may remove up to 75% of the dye from your hair. If you use this method, make sure the detergent does not contain bleach or bleaching agents.
- Apply a tablespoon of detergent to your damp hair.
- Work the soap into a lather.
- When the soap becomes the color of the hair dye, cover your hair with a shower cap.
- As soon as the product begins to burn, rinse it out of your hair.
- Coat your scalp and locks with a moisturizing conditioner to rehydrate your hair.
- Rinse the conditioner out of your hair.
- Repeat as desired.
- After treating your hair with laundry detergent, you may want to apply a deep conditioning treatment to your dry tresses.^{[11]
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3
Use a color stripper or reducer. Hair dye strippers and reducers are formulated to remove the color from your locks. Color strippers act like bleach and therefore will cause more damage to your hair than color reducers.^{[12]
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Expert Source

April Ferri
Professional Hair Stylist
Expert Interview. 8 December 2020.} Both products are specially formulated to strip or reduce the intensity of permanent, semi-permanent, and/or temporary hair dye.
- Always apply the product to your dyed hair as instructed.
- Always buy a hair dye stripper or reducer that is compatible with the type of dye you used.^{[13]
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Community Q&A

Question

I had natural blonde hair before dyeing it black, and now it's two-toned after I tried to remove the black hair dye. What can I do to remove the rest of the black hair dye out of my hair safely?

Community Answer

Your only option is to bleach it (and then dye it close to your natural color if you wish). This is perfectly safe, though you could go to a salon if you want to be extra cautious. If you decide to dye it after bleaching, wait a couple of weeks in between, and make sure to condition your hair regularly.
Question

Can I use a color stripper?

I like sushi

Top Answerer

Yes, but if you are only looking to fade the color, you should dilute the stripper to make it less harsh.
Question

I tried dyeing my blond hair black, but it came out purple. How can I get the purple out?

Community Answer

This commonly happens when someone dyes blonde/bleached hair. There's not much you can do to remove the purple besides waiting. If you don't have time, dye your hair a dark orange/brown, then go back to black.

Warnings

If you have light hair and/or a dark dye it may not fade much.

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Fading your hair won't always cause it to go back to your natural hair. So beware if it turns brassy.

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