If you recently bleached or dyed your hair and some or all of it turned green, you may be having a mini panic attack. “Why is my hair turning green when I dye it brown or blonde” is a more common question than you may think. Lightening your hair color can be exciting, but when you end up with some green, what can you do? The first step is not to panic!
Then, read through our tips below to learn how to get green out of hair after coloring.
Table of Contents
- Why Has My Hair Gone Green After Dyeing It?
- How to Get Green Out of Hair After Coloring
- Getting Green Out of Hair After Coloring: Closing Words
- FAQs
Why Has My Hair Gone Green After Dyeing It?
If you notice a green tint after bleaching hair or coloring it, your first reaction is probably confusion. What could cause your hair to turn green? It’s not like you’re using green hair dye, right?
What actually happens is that our hair can have a bit of a green tone within the cuticle. This tint is normally not visible because it is hidden by the darker hair color. However, when you try to bleach or lighten your hair, the green tone can show through, leaving your hair looking green.
How to Get Green Out of Hair After Coloring
Did your hair turn green after coloring or bleaching it? Don’t worry; there are things you can do to remedy the situation…many of which involve items you may already have at home. Let’s look at how to get green out of brown hair at home (and out of bleached hair too).
Red Toner
Will red toner fix green hair? If you can picture the color wheel, you’ll see that red and green are opposite of one another on the wheel. Opposite colors can be used to cancel each other out. That means, when you’re looking to cancel out a green tint in your hair, red will be your friend.
Try a red toner to help you remove the green from your hair. The red pigments will work to neutralize the green, leaving you with the hair color you’ve been trying to achieve. Just use a little at a time to avoid overdoing it and turning your hair too red.
Ketchup
Ketchup is for more than just hot dogs and hamburgers. Believe it or not, there is actually a way that you can learn how to get green out of blonde hair with ketchup.
Ketchup is made with tomatoes, which are acidic. The green tint in your hair often has a film of copper and chlorine over it. When you apply the acidic ketchup, it will work to break down this film and remove the green tint from your hair.
Using ketchup on your hair is easy, though it may feel or smell weird! Just rub the ketchup over any green areas on your hair (over damp or dry hair). Use a shower cap to cover your hair and contain the mess, then let the ketchup sit in place for about half an hour. After 30 minutes, rinse out all of the ketchup. Then, wash and conditioner your hair. You may need to repeat the steps above a few times to finish fading all the green.
Tomato Juice
Another idea to try when you’re searching for how to get green out of hair after coloring at home is to try tomato juice.
Like ketchup, tomato juice is acidic, and the acids can break down the film of copper or chlorine over your hairs. V8 is similar to tomato juice and can also be used.
To try tomato juice or V8, follow the steps described above for ketchup, and let the juice sit on your hair for 15 to 20 minutes before rinsing out and following up with shampoo and conditioner.
Clarifying Shampoo
Clarifying shampoo is another top choice when you’re trying to fix green hair. Clarifying shampoos help to remove product buildup from hair, but they can also help remove the unwanted green tones.
If you’d like to try a clarifying shampoo, here are a few great options to consider:
Baking Soda
Baking soda is another choice when you want to know how to get green out of brown hair after coloring. The baking soda will help lighten and neutralize the green color, leaving your hair the intended color.
There are a few different ways to use baking soda to remove green. You can mix it with a little bit of water to create a paste, and let the paste sit over any green areas. Alternatively, you could try mixing baking soda in with your shampoo and then using it to wash your hair. As a third option, you could even magnify the power of baking soda by mixing it with vinegar. Just be prepared for an unpleasant smell for a while, though it should dissipate after you dry your hair.
Hair Dye with Red Undertone
If you’re asking, “how to get green out of hair after coloring can I re color,” you could try a dye with red undertones to get rid of the green. Because red is opposite green on the color wheel, the red undertones in a hair dye can help neutralize the greens. Just try picking a shade of hair color that is similar to what you have, but make sure it is one with some red undertones.
Lemon Juice
Do you need to know how to get green tone out of the top of hair after coloring? Try lemon juice. Lemon juice is acidic, like tomatoes, so it can be a good choice when you’re trying to neutralize the green color in your hair.
Cover your hair with fresh lemon juice and a shower cap. Allow the lemon juice to sit for about 5 or 10 minutes before rinsing it out. After rinsing out the lemon juice, follow up with a clarifying shampoo and a deep conditioner to restore lost moisture.
Lemon Kool-Aid
Similar to using lemon juice, you can also try lemon Kool-Aid if you want to figure out how to remove ash green from hair. Take the Kool-Aid packet and mix the powder with a little bit of water to make a paste. Spread the paste on any green areas and leave it to sit for 10 minutes. Rinse the Kool-Aid paste out, then shampoo and condition your hair.
Anti-Chlorine Swimmer’s Shampoo
Another option when you’re trying to find how to neutralize green hair is to try a swimmer’s shampoo. Chlorine has also been known to turn hair green, and these shampoos are formulated to prevent that from happening. If your hair is already green, they may be able to help fade the green color.
Aspirin
Here’s another idea that may surprise you. Did you know that when you’re searching for how to get green out of hair that aspirin can actually work? Aspirin is acidic, so like lemon juice and ketchup, it can help neutralize the green color in some cases.
To use aspirin to remove a green tint, crush eight tablets, then dissolve them in warm water. Pour the water/aspirin mixture on your hair, cover your hair with a shower cap, and let it sit for 15 to 20 minutes. Rinse out the aspirin and follow up with shampoo and conditioner as normal.
Schedule an Appointment with Your Stylist
If you’re searching for how to get green out of bleached hair or how to get green dye out of hair, and nothing you’ve tried has worked, it may be time to make an appointment with your stylist. Professional hairstylists are much more experienced with how to take care of hair and remove any unwanted color. Your stylist should be able to propose a plan of action to remove the green from your hair and get your hair to be the exact color you’re looking for.
Getting Green Out of Hair After Coloring: Closing Words
If your blonde hair turned green after coloring, take a breath! Even though it may seem like it, there are ways you can remedy the situation. Now that you’ve read through our suggestions, have you found the answer to the question, “how do you fix bleached hair that turned green?” Try one (or more) of our suggestions above, and we think you’ll be happy with the results you’re able to achieve.
Check out these related posts on our blog:
- How to Dye Blonde Hair Brown Without It Going Green
- Putting Color Over Bleached Hair
- Repairing Bleach Damaged Hair
- Bleach Hair with Clorox
FAQs
Will purple shampoo fix green hair?
If you’re thinking about using purple shampoo to get green out of hair, don’t expect it to be successful. Purple shampoo is designed to remove brassiness and yellow from hair; it won’t be effective against green.
What toner cancels out green?
If you want to know how to get green tint out of bleached hair, you need to think about the color wheel. Because green and red are opposite each other on the color wheel, red toner can be used to cancel out green.
How do you cover up green hair?
If you want to know how to fix green hair from ash dye, bleach, or other coloring products, visualize the color wheel. Red is across from green, so trying red toner, tomato juice, or ketchup can often be effective.
