FAQ: How Do I Remove Red Pigment From My Hair?

Question:
I've been coloring my hair red and I would like to change it to blond. How do I do it?

Answer:
The artificial red pigment is very hard to remove from hair. Sometimes it takes 2 or 3 tries, and hair is still too brassy looking at the end. The hair can be treated either with a color remover or on scalp bleach. When my hair was red we used bleach two times and it still was yellow. I waited a couple of weeks and tried to remove the pigment again, yet still I was not as blond as I wished to be. I cut my hair short, kept coloring my regrowth blond to semi-match the "bleached" blond. I had to wait until all yellow-ish hair that would not get any lighter got all cut out over the time and then finaly got my hair the color I wanted to be. The whole process took many months. So prepare yourself psychologically for yellow blond instead of "blond blond". Make sure that a person who will be working on your hair knows how to work with strong chemicals and knows when to stops before your hair falls out.

If you do not want to be "yellow-ish" blond, perhaps you would color your hair brown (if that is your natural color) and wait it out without touching it for several months (up to couple of years, which depends how long you would like to have your hair) until you would color your natural hair to a blond shade without any problem.

Credit: The image above is from nucleardoll.com - which is a great example of a red hair before and after a color remover was applied. It took some red out, yet still left plenty of it in the hair. You can see how hard it is to get the red out and that you really need someone who know hot to do it properly.

Note: 

This post should be taken as a first step for a discussion with your hairdresser and/or colorist about your ideas, desires or problems with your hair. Under no circumstances, you should act upon this post ONLY. I strongly advice you to have your hair done by a skilled and reputable hairdresser/colorist in your area.