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How to Naturally Wash Out Hair Dye

how to wash out hair dye
Photo: CC0 Public Domain / Unsplash - Andriyko Pokdilnyk

Dyeing hair doesn’t always go according to plan: the color is different than expected, it doesn’t suit, or you just want rid of it. Did you know you can remove hair dye without the use of chemicals? We’ll show you how to wash out hair dye naturally. 

When hair dyeing fails, many people reach straight for the next color. However, chemical dyes often contain ingredients that are harmful to your health. If you want to wash out hair dye, natural home remedies can be an alternative. How much you can change the color afterwards depends on your hair color.

  • Permanent hair dyes chemically alter the hair. They open the hair structure and lighten the hair pigments while introducing new color molecules at the same time. Afterwards, the hair structure closes again, so the new color remains permanently in the hair. However, you can lighten the color with natural means.
  • Chemical and natural hair tints also contain color molecules. However, tints leave the hair structure intact. The color merely wraps itself around the hair from the outside, like a coat. Every time you wash your hair, you wash some of the color out. Natural home remedies can speed up this process.

Natural hair dyes are much gentler than the chemical version – both to your hair and to the environment.

Home Remedies to Wash Out Hair Dye 

how to remove hair dye
If your hair dye is already fading, you can quicken the process using natural home remedies. (Photo: CC0 Public Domain / Unsplash - Annie Gray )

Hair dye washes out a little bit with every hair wash. To remove hair dye faster, a hair scrub or oil treatment will help.

You can make a natural hair scrub from coffee grinds, sugar, or baking soda:

  1. Mix equal parts of the ingredients with water to make a paste and then spread it through damp hair.
  2. A scrub removes your outer hair layer, including the pigments it contains, so your hair can become brittle in the long run. Therefore, it is best not to repeat the procedure too often and to take good care of your hair afterwards.

An oil treatment is a much gentler way to remove hair dye:

  1. Massage vegetable oil into damp hair, wrap a towel around it, and leave it on overnight.
  2. The next morning, wash out the treatment with shampoo or soap.

Olive oil works really well as it pulls pigments from your hair and nourishes it at the same time.

Bleach Hair Naturally 

how to remove hair dye
Get out and spend some time in the sun to help enhance the effects of natural bleaching agents. (Photo: CC0 Public Domain / Pexels - Tim Mossholder )

If your dyed hair is too dark or intense, you don’t have to wash the hair dye out, you can lighten your hair naturally. It may take longer to notice results – but home remedies are much gentler than chemical lightening.

Honey works well, especially when the color is still fresh. To lighten your hair, follow these steps:

  • Combine equal parts warm water and honey 
  • Apply the mixture to your hair, wrap a towel around it and leave it on for half an hour.
  • Wash your hair with shampoo or a natural shampoo alternative.

It’s worth noting that bees work very hard to make honey, and it’s a precious resource. You can also try other means:

Lemon also lightens your hair.

  • Add five tablespoons of lemon juice to 4 cups of water.
  • Pour the mixture onto your hair and let it work.
  • After half an hour you should rinse it out— the acid will dry out your hair.

Chamomile is a very gentle bleaching agent. You can rinse your hair with chamomile tea after every wash.

  • Steep the chamomile tea in hot water for ten minutes and let cool.
  • Pour the tea over your head and gently massage it into your hair.

Sunlight enhances the bleaching effect of home remedies because UV light breaks down the pigment melanin in the hair.

This article has been translated from German by Karen Stankiewicz. You can find the original here: Haarfarbe entfernen: Diese Hausmittel helfen

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