Using A Brunette "Rinse" to Blend/Cover Gray

Wanting to avoid harsh chemicals, my colorist used a brunette "rinse" that the sample hair swatch seemed to match my own color. It was, however, too dark and severe. She said it would wash out, but after a week of daily washing, it hasn't changed. She also suggested I make a paste of baking soda and apply to lighten it. I'm a young-looking 65 and want a lighter soft brown shade to cover gray, that is easy to maintain/long-lasting. Permanent color that isn't harsh? Highlighting? What is best?

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Using A Brunette "Rinse" to Blend/Cover Gray

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Dec 11, 2007
 Hair Rinses
by: Michelle

It's difficult to say what kind of "rinse" your stylist used. The term is used loosely in the hair industry. Initially, I got the impression it was a wash-in type rinse that temporarily tints the hair. But it sounds as though it was more like a semi or demi-permanent color. Some vegetable based pigments can come out a shade darker than expected. It sounds like this may be what's happened to you.

Baking soda may work to remove some of the pigment, although I haven't used this method myself. Mixing it with your shampoo would probably work best as baking soda with water can be a bit crumbly. You'll want to work it through the hair well and rinse thoroughly before conditioning. (It may be wise to try this on one small section of hair first to see if it's effective before using it all over your hair)

More on hair color removal.

In the future, if you want a shade to COVER grey, a permanent color is the best option. If you want to BLEND grey, a semi-permanent would be a good choice. The benefit of a semi-permanent is that you don't get such a harsh line of demarcation where the regrowth meets the color. It's a softer line with a semi-permanent because they do gradually fade between applications. Using a pigmented shampoo/conditioner (especially conditioner) between colorings will help keep the color strong and may even blend the regrowth just a bit, diminishing the line of demarcation even more.

More on coloring grey hair.

Highlighting is fine, but it's not enough on it's own to cover the grey (although it would blend it a bit) and the process generally costs more than a basic color.

All the best,
Michelle
Editor, SHM.com

P.S. If you try the baking soda thing, let us know how it works for you.

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