bleaching hair

[bluexeon]

Is there a point where you shouldnt bleach your hair. I recently had it red, then dyed it purple and now i need it back red. Can i just bleach it or will it go a mess. How do i know if my hair is too damaged to bleach it again. It feels ok but, a few split ends but i have bleached and bleached it.

[brandalynn]

After taking a shower, gently run your fingers through your hair and save a couple strays. Take one strand of hair and see if it stretches. If it stretches at all, don't bleach. Get a good repair kit (ION emergency service and APHOGEE reconstructer are the best), repair your hair and wait a while before bleaching again. If you can't wait, you can put ION emergency service in your bleach and it won't damage your hair as bad. Please keep in mind I am NOT a professional. I am speaking from alot of personal experience only.

[bluexeon]

it was stretchy the last time i bleached it. Ive used loads of treatments on it but they never seem to work. I wear dreads for months at a time so i dont know if thats affecting it

[sammu]

Testing your hair's elasticity when it's wet is pointless, as I've found wet hair is generally weaker anyway. It's best to take a strand of DRY hair and carefully stretch it. If it snaps very easily, or if it's so elastic it just stretches then you're hair is damaged considerably. If it stretches a -tiny- amount and then snaps, it's okay, but you should give it some protein-based hair treatments and give bleaching a rest for a while before attempting to lighten it again.

You can always get a weaker bleach, or dilute your current bleach with a conditioner.

[Lorny]

The best thing to do is to go with the middle man- Lick your thumb and forefinger and slide them down the hair to get it damp, then do it!

If you do it with wet hair chances are you have wet/damp hands too, and slipping fingers on the hair could fool you into thinking your hair is weaker than it is. The reason why it is better to use damp hair than dry hair is exactly the reason why Cirque says to do it dry- cuz the hair is weaker when wet (the bonds change). I think maybe you have it muddled, Cirque? Hair is supposed to stretch, and it is the returning to normal length which shows how damaged the hair is.


Ok, to try and explain it in easy terms without confusing myself!

If hair has chemical damage the bonds will not hold onto eachother and will stretch and not return, but this isn't so noticable in dry (as in wet or dry) hair, as it has some natural stretch to it anyway. If there is a small amount of damage the hair will stretch but should return to natural length near enough. The less 'return' there is, the more damaged it is! You would also find that your hair will stretch when combing it wet, and will feel sticky as it starts to dry, hence why they call it 'chewing gum' when you bleach your hair to the point of no return!

The other problem is that with dry hair it could just be a case of tugging too hard. The hair shouldn't snap at all in an elasticity test, unless it is sooooo dry (condition wise) and it snaps instantly without any stretch (just like a split end would if you tugged at it).

Oh, and just to add, if your hair is that bad, I suggest a clarifying shampoo (not H&S as rumour has it they've changed their formula), and use that to fade out the purple as much as you can. If your hair is damaged then please don't bleach it! It really isn't worth it! For a start, the red won't even last in the hair if it is so badly damaged, and that really wouldn't be worth it then!

[bluexeon]

I decided to go back to black. Then I got the courage to go to the hairdressers to have the dead bits chopped off. Its much better now.

[brandalynn]

As long as you are happy with the results, that's all that matters.

[somegirl.]

I'm thinking about dying my hair red, but that means it will need to be bleached a bit. I also want my extensions the same colour, and yes they are real hair. My hair and extensions are both healthy as I take care of them. My extensions have been dyed once, when I dyed my hair before, dark brown, so it was the same. My Aunty is a hairdresser, well has just recently done her studies and yada yada, and she said that the bleach will ruin my hair, but other people say it will be fine. Any opinions would be nice. Thanks

[somegirl.]

I meant to say, she thinks it will ruin my extensions.

[Miss Cydonia]

Hello,

before giving some answers can I suggest in future you start your own specific thread instead of using one thats 2 years old- people might not bother looking at it, and so you'll get missed!!

secondly- there are already a couple of threads on this page covering the question you are asking- maybe have a look at these first to see if they are any help--

viewtopic.php?f=40&t=16517

and

viewtopic.php?f=40&t=16379

other than this, I dont have any personal experience to offer any help but maybe someone else can add some ideas..