At some point, almost every woman has a day when she thinks, “I want to have red hair just once!” Many dare to experiment, but when they change their minds and dye their hair back to brown, they have trouble getting rid of the red tint. But no need to panic because there are a few things you can do to tackle it. Find out how to dye your hair brown without red tones!
How to get your hair from red to brown?
Red pigments are the most stubborn of all hair pigments. Since they are smaller than brown pigments, they are the last to wash out of your hair, and unfortunately, they can stick around for quite a while. Additionally, most people already have natural red pigments in their hair, and you can only do something about it with chemical means. You can either take on the battle against the red pigments on your own or entrust your luck to a hairdresser because the pros usually know what to do. For everyone else, we have the following tips.
Going from red hair to brown: Things you can do before dyeing
Before you dye your hair from red to brown, you should try to remove as many red pigments as possible from your hair. You can achieve this by:
Hair color remover to reduce red tones in brown hair
A hair color remover pulls unwanted light to medium shades from your hair. It opens the cuticle layer of your hair, just like when dyeing, and removes pigments. This way, you can reduce the number of red pigments in your hair.
Clarifying shampoo to tone down red in brown hair
You can get clarifying shampoo at any drugstore. It penetrates deeper into the hair fibers and helps wash out the red more and more after several hair washes. Of course, you’ll need some patience for that. To enhance the effect, let the shampoo sit for a few minutes during each wash and lather it up repeatedly. By the way, using an anti-dandruff shampoo can achieve the same result!
Red to brown hair transformation: How to neutralize red tones in brown hair
If you want to get rid of your red hair and become a brunette, never go for warm brown tones when dyeing! To neutralize a particular hair color, you need its complementary color. In the case of red, that’s simply green. Now, it doesn’t mean you should dye your hair a punky green shade. Many brown tones from professional hair suppliers or drugstores have an ashy, cool undertone that can counteract the red. By the way, the darker the color, the less the red can shine through. So, if you even opt for black, you can definitely cover up the red hair the best.
Which shade of brown covers red?
Unfortunately, it’s not always evident on the packaging what undertone the hair color actually has, but it’s helpful to pay attention to the names. While some brown tones can neutralize the red tint, others only bring in more red pigments to your hair:
DO:
- Ash Brown
- Cool Brown
- Natural Brown
- Pearl Brown
- Medium Brown
- Dark Brown
- Black Brown
DON’T:
- Chestnut Brown
- Warm Brown
- Caramel Brown
- Hazelnut
- Mocha Brown
- Golden Brown
