How can I get my natural hair color back after dying it black?
Dark hair back to lighter hues
You will need to bleach bath your hair and use a toner to match your natural colour. This is not something you can do on your own at home and you will need to visit the salon and an experienced hairdresser (and probably more than once!).
Highlighting heavily, coloring it in a lighter shade, or changing the tone turns going back to natural into a bit more of a task, but it's not typically complicated. The first step is to do nothing—just let your hair grow out for at least two to three months.
- Wash your hair with a clarifying shampoo.
- Scrub your hair with dish soap if you just dyed it.
- Try a color remover.
- Use a baking soda paste.
- Mix vitamin C powder with your own shampoo.
- Go to a salon for a professional service.
The black color lasts around 6-8 weeks depending on how frequently you shampoo. Like semi-permanent color, the absence of an alkalizing agent (typically ammonia) means that the natural pigments of the hair will not be disrupted and your hair will not be lightened.
One of the biggest reasons why color bleeds is because the water is too warm, which is why the number one rule when rinsing vibrant colors is to always, always, always use cold water. Here's why: Hot water will open the cuticle, letting a huge portion of the color you just applied to rinse right out.
If you're looking to get rid of hair color, the safest way is to contact a professional at a salon. A colorist may use bleach or sulfur-based hair stripping products to lighten your hair back so that it can be re-dyed. They can also assess your hair for damage and recommend the best treatment option.
"You will have to grow your roots at least one to two inches. That means you will have to wait anywhere from two to four months to allow your hair to grow an inch or two. (If you can, wait even longer)."
How long does permanent hair dye generally last? Permanent hair dye typically lasts for between four to eight weeks before it grows out or fades (more on that below).
Since baking soda is a scrubbing agent, washing your hair with it can gradually strip the dye from your locks. Baking soda can lighten all hair colors, but it might take a few washes to get your hair to the desired color.
Maybe you just need to tone it down to a lighter color as it ended up darker than you wanted. Unfortunately, black hair dye is one of the hardest dyes to remove from your hair. That said, it's definitely possible! Read on to learn about different methods for removing or lightening black hair dye.
How can I fade my dark dyed hair fast?
“A big trick is always using hot water when you shower, because it's opening up the cuticle and getting that dye to fade quicker,” she says. “Most brands and professionals will recommend cold water to keep the color vibrant, but for fading definitely use warm [or] hot water.”
In plain simple English, certain colors cancel out others. Purple cancels out yellow. Blue cancels out orange. Green cancels out red.

To expel the black pigment out of your hair, Ashley notes that you can either use straight-up color remover to strip the hair color (like Color Oops Hair Color Remover: $11.99) or a bleach to remove and lift. In many cases, both will be used together to get your mane back to sunnier days most effectively.
If you try to bleach it out, black hair usually becomes yellow depending on what color it was before you dyed it.
"Color will not remove color, meaning you cannot just put a brown color on top of [dyed] black and it will magically turn brown," Lee explains. "You have to use a color remover or lightener first to remove the black then layer on top of a brown color."
You can use apple cider vinegar or white vinegar once or twice a week to remove hair dye. However, if you are allergic to vinegar, you can either use a store-bought dye remover or natural ingredients such as lemon juice, honey, or lime water to remove hair dye without any damage.
The first option for coloring dark hair without bleach is to use temporary hair color that's made to work with a dark base color. These hair dyes are specifically formulated to be vibrant and true without having to lighten your dark strands prior. They're also super convenient for experimenting since they wash out.
Hydrogen Peroxide and water:
Though not completely natural, you can use hydrogen peroxide mixed with equal amount of water and apply it to hair to get rid of hair dye. Keep the hydrogen peroxide in hair for 10 minutes for it to work through hair. Rinse thoroughly afterwards.
"If the tone is slightly darker in some areas, you can try to scrub those areas with a clarifying shampoo to lessen the visibility of the different tones," Tang says. If you can eventually achieve that even base, you can re-dye the hair — if your hair is healthy enough, that is.
If you've used a permanent dye, the only way to change it is to have it bleached first. It's worth visiting a hairdresser to get advice about this, because trying to fix it at home could make things worse.
How long does it take for permanent hair dye to fade completely from skin?
Zeichner assures that your skin won't be tinted for as long as your hair will be. "The good news is that in time, as your skin cells naturally turnover, your skin will shed the pigment on its own within one to two weeks," he says.
Key Takeaways. The actual purpose of the Dawn dish soap is to clean utensils and remove grease from them. However, this soap can also remove dandruff, grease, and oil from your hair. The dish soap also acts as a mild bleach and can remove or lighten hair color on your hair.
To expel the black pigment out of your hair, Ashley notes that you can either use straight-up color remover to strip the hair color (like Color Oops Hair Color Remover: $11.99) or a bleach to remove and lift. In many cases, both will be used together to get your mane back to sunnier days most effectively.
2. Dish Soap And Baking Soda To Remove Hair Color. This method effectively fades semi-permanent hair color. The dishwashing soap's harsh detergents will considerably strip color after the first wash.
Unfortunately, you can not simply dye your hair from black to brown without removing or lightening the color first because adding new color does not lift old color. Once you remove the color, you can pick the shade of brown you want and dye it.
Natural bleaching agents like apple cider vinegar, lemon juice, chamomile tea, or cinnamon and honey can lighten hair gently and naturally with minimal damage. Rinse your hair in a solution of warm water and one or more of these lightening agents, then sit in the sun to dry.
If you have a deep skin tone and want to address discoloration or hyperpigmentation, let us introduce you to orange and red color correctors. These warm-toned concealers successfully cancel out dark spots and circles, making deep skin appear more even and radiant.
“This typically only happens when you are coloring your hair darker from blonde, especially light blonde to black," Everett explained further, "The reason this happens is simple; blonde hair has a lot of yellow in it. Black has a lot of blue in it. Once combined, you can get the dreaded green cast.
The color that's most susceptible to fading in the sunlight is red. This is especially true of intense red colors, which may fade even faster. When driving around the neighborhood, you may have noticed that red is a rather uncommon color on the exterior for homes.
"Color will not remove color, meaning you cannot just put a brown color on top of [dyed] black and it will magically turn brown," Lee explains. "You have to use a color remover or lightener first to remove the black then layer on top of a brown color."
How can I lighten my dark black hair?
By applying lemon juice to your hair throughout the day, and especially when you are in the sun, you can continue lighten your hair. The mixture of sunlight and lemon juice will slowly but surely help you achieve a lighter shade.