Is dying your hair DARKER with permanent color still damaging?

[soslychic]

I know that to go lighter, the chemicals have to somehow "lift" your hair. However I wanted to use the Textures and Tones in silken black which I've used before and I love the dark shiny results. However I don't want to damage my hair and I haven't dyed it for awhile for that very reason. Rinses come off on my pillow and towels and I can't really stand that at all. Does anyone have any info on this? I tried to search but couldn't find anything exactly answering this question. Thanks!!!

 

[deusa80]

....bump....
good question...

 

[MizzCoco]

Well I cant speak for the Textures and Tones, but I use Bigen permanent...my hair is super shiny black and i havent had any breakage from it. I'm no hair expert, but its been my experience that lifting does damage it more than depositing a color, but both can be drying.

 

[soslychic]

Well I cant speak for the Textures and Tones, but I use Bigen permanent...my hair is super shiny black and i havent had any breakage from it. Do a search on this one. HTH

I've used that before and LOVED the results. I am concerned about the level of PPD in it however. I had no allergic reaction before but allergies can be developed suddenly and I have extreme allergic reactions to some things!

 

[MizzCoco]

oh yeah ive heard of the allergies people can develop. I cant let go of it no matter what! I used to use other permanant blacks and my hair STAYED dry!

 

[soslychic]

oh yeah ive heard of the allergies people can develop. I cant let go of it no matter what! I used to use other permanant blacks and my hair STAYED dry!

OH gosh, stop it. Don't make me go out and get some Bigen when I already bought 2 boxes of T & T!

 

[NikStarrr]

The peroxide levels in the dark colors are lower than in the colors that lighten hair, so I would say you could use it and get little to no damage.

 

[vainღ♥♡jane]

good question. i want to go darker and i'm tired of rinses.

 

[pinkgreenmommie]

Let me begin by saying i'm not an expert. Over the last 17 years I have died my hair honey blond. I have always heard that lighter dyes are harsh on hair. When I decided to grow long hair I let my sister convince me to go black. I thought that black would not be as damaging and I could match my half wigs easier. Well let me tell you that the black dye was the worse thing ever. My hair was extremly dry and it broke off. My hair was dyer with the black than it was with honey blonde. I guess what i'm saying is don't let the color fool you. If you do it definatly step up your moisture game in the beginning...good luck.

 

[soslychic]

Thanks for the replies ladies! Any other opinions?

 

[Poohbear]

bump...I'm thinking about coloring my hair back to black...

 

[faithVA]

Colors are considered damaging because once you move away from the rinse they can contain ammonia and peroxide which obviously can be damaging. Check your box for the ingredients. You can get some products that don't have ammonia. From what I had read on the board a demi-permanent is considered less damaging than a permanent.

I have resorted to using a demi to lessen the effect. I tried the Bigen and it acted like a protein in my hair and it was very dry and brittle. So I have switched to the ION Demi which doesn't have the ammonia. May hair seems to like that better.

Check your ingredients and then decide.

 

[Babysaffy]

My friend had horrific reaction to Bigen after using it for years with no problems..

 

[lana]

Bigen made my bangs look like crispy french fries....and then my bangs wouldn't grow properly for months after.


I only dyed the bangs to hide a few gray strands. Worst mistake in a long time. Lesson learned.


I stick to rinses now and don't see any damage from them. I'm going to experiment with Henna/Indigo in about two months. I want dark black hair and my hair tends to be brownish black in the sun.

 

[ProductJunkie]

I've been wodnering this ever since I saw the glamtwinz video stating they dye thier hair darker in ther summer. I've been wanting to die my hair dark black and have seen these "nourishing" dyes come out recently but I experience thinning from coloring my hair lighter. I'd like to think that now I know a lot more about hair care and that as long as I combat the damage I'll be fine but I'm so afraid of another setback!

 

[SharonMM]

Really its a matter of how high the peroxide content is in the developer. The higher the peroxide, the more damaging it is. Personally, if you are looking to go darker I would stick with a semi or demiperminant dye. That way the cuticle isn't blown opened as much and pigment is going in to the hairshaft, not pulling it out. The end result is your hair can actually feel healthier.

ETA: personally, I have never had a good experience with boxed dye kits. I suspect that the developers in them are always going to be strong because they aren't sure if the user is lightening or darkening. A higher volume developer IS needed if you want to lift, but if your going darker you are just doing yourself undue damage.

Also, a good rule of thumb to keep in mind: however many levels of lift you are trying to achieve is going to determine what volume developer you should choose. A 10 vol will lift you 1 level, 20 volume will lift 2, and so on. But if you want to darken, always choose 10 vol or 20 volume. The difference there is 10 vol is demi permanent, and 20 vol will yield a permanent result. Don't let this terminology disillusion you tho... ALL dye fades, but a 20 vol will get the pigment deeper into the hairshaft. The reason why is because the cuticle is blown open more. Hair damage IS essentially a hair with a blown open cuticle.

 

[Flawlis1]

Dyes with ammonia/ammonium hydroxide/ammonium acetate, alcohol denat and resorcinol are very drying to the hair. Clairol's Natural Instincts is not a damaging semi permanent color, I have used it for years to enhance my color. It doesn't have any drying ammonia's and the peroxide level is 9%.