Dye Job Gone Bad: Fast Fixes for Big Mistakes

So you thought you'd look good as a brunette, huh? A blond? Whatever your mistake is, I can help you fix it. From botching your light brown attempt to a gothic black mess to removing your orange streaks when you tried to go blond, there are simple solutions that can help you from looking like a helpless freak of nature- I promise. So listen up, and I'll try to get you back to your beautiful self.

First off, there is one VERY important rule to remember. If your hair is too dark due to a color overload, placing a lighter shade of dye over your dark locks will NOT assist your problem. COLOR CANNOT LIFT COLOR. What's that mean? You can't remove black hair dye with light brown, blond, or any other lighter shade of hair color. You need special products to remove the color from your hair before it can be recolored. Purchasing other dyes is a simple waste of time.

Problem #1: "I tried to dye my light hair dark, but it came out a lot darker than I wanted. Help! I look like a member of The Addam's Family!"

Depending on the texture of your hair and what kinds of chemicals you've put on it in the past, some hair is more (or less) responsive to oxidative (permanent) dyes. The most common problem is that your attempt at a rich brunette shade turned ghastly black. Sound familiar? Yeah, I thought so. OK, so here are your options. Hair color removers prepare your hair for recolor. (Try Revlon Hair Color Remover, $10 at drugstores) They will NOT return your hair to it's original shade, but instead get you down to a funky orange-brown color that you will cringe at. Don't worry, it's not going to stay that way. These products use bleaching agents to remove hair color from the hair follicle, leaving it ready for another round of dye. These "remover" products work great if your hair is in excellent physical condition, minus the botched color. Color "removers" should not be used on extremely dry, damaged hair. Since "removers" contain bleaching agents, they can be somewhat damaging to the hair follicle, especially if your hair is already damaged. If you are lucky enough to have supple hair, go ahead and remove the dye with a remover kit.