Bleach Bath tutorial - with pictures!

[Sins_n_Needles]

Things you need:
Powder bleach
Peroxide developer (of appropriate strength for your hair)
Shampoo (clarifying is best)
Measuring cup
Small bowl
Tint brush
Wide tooth comb (plastic)
Gloves
Shower cap (optional but helpful)
Plastic sectioning clips
A watch

Step 1

(NB-I used a whole 50g/75ml sachet of powder, half of this would have done!!)

Measure out your bleach powder (25-50ml should do it)



Put in the bowl

Step 2

Measure an equal amount of developer



Add to the bowl with bleach and mix well

Step 3

If applying to damp hair - measure 2 parts shampoo
If applying to dry hair - measure about 1.5 parts shampoo + 0.5 part water



Add to bowl with bleach and mix in well



Step 4

Put on your gloves and apply to hair starting at the tips and working up, covering your roots last with the tint brush. Working in sections is easier. Comb through with a wide toothed comb and clip up with plastic clips. Cover with shower cap if you have one.



Step 5

Check your hair every 5 minutes, scraping a bit of the mixture off the hair to see colour



Even though this is a dilute bleach try not too leave it on longer than the time stated on the pack

Step 6

When desired colour is acheived or maximum time has elapsed, rinse hair thoroughly! If going on to colour, do not condition, if not, condition the hell out of it.

And done!

[Pippachainsaw]

wow! thanks sins and needles that's a really good tutorial! seriously thank you for that!

[Nickki]

Seriously good guide - step by step info and photos are a brilliant help for people. So good I have stickied this in the bleaching section and I have added a link to this guide from the faq & guide section as well as from the bleach bath faq.

To anyone thinking of making a how to guide or tutorial etc with or without photos please feel free to add them to the forum or to PM them to me and I can add them in the guide section.  Things like this are invaluable to members and people new to bleach baths etc - thank you so much sins_n_needles.

[UndeniablyFearless]

would this work as a fix to get out blue hair dye? i've had blue forever an shampoos was it out then it stops coming out  i've tried everything,it's been washing out like crazy but i want it out sooner because i've had blue since may

[Sins_n_Needles]

It's definitely worth a try, I used it to get stubborn bits of pink and lilac out when nothing was washing out with shampoo any more. In the last photo you can see the lightest parts are a very very pale pinky colour, they were purpley grey before, and my dark blonde roots went that yellow colour. So if your blue is at the stage where no colour washes out any more, then go for it because the damage is minimal, my hair was still soft and shiney after doing it.

[Kengelina]

Hi, I just came across this awesome tutorial and have a couple of questions. I've been dying my hair black for the last 5 years and now I want to go bright red. I'm planning to bleach bath it, because although there is a lot of colour build up, my hair doesn't seem to retain the black very well. Once I hit the 6 week since dye mark, it's already fading into a reddish brown colour. It's now been at least 2 months since I last dyed it and I'm thinking that I should be able to bleach bath it once or twice to get it to a dark orangey colour that I can go over with the red. Is this feasible?

Also, is it better to apply the bleach bath to damp or dry hair? And does it help to wash the hair with a 'stripping' shampoo, like Head & Shoulders, before bleach bathing to remove more of the previous colour? Any help very much appreciated! 

[Sins_n_Needles]

I did it on dry slightly dirty hair, if you wash your hair with shampoo beforehand the oils on your scalp will not be there to protect your skin from the bleach and you'll burn your scalp. Use your stripping shampoo in the bleach bath mixture instead. Whether you do it on dry or damp hair is up to you, they say dry gives better results because the hair just sucks up all the bleach, but damp hair would be easier to apply to I imagine, it's up to you. Let us know how you get on!

[Franklin13]

Please let me know how you get on because I'm currently trying to figure out how to get rid of the black and go red!!  =]

Hi, I just came across this awesome tutorial and have a couple of questions. I've been dying my hair black for the last 5 years and now I want to go bright red. I'm planning to bleach bath it, because although there is a lot of colour build up, my hair doesn't seem to retain the black very well. Once I hit the 6 week since dye mark, it's already fading into a reddish brown colour. It's now been at least 2 months since I last dyed it and I'm thinking that I should be able to bleach bath it once or twice to get it to a dark orangey colour that I can go over with the red. Is this feasible?

Also, is it better to apply the bleach bath to damp or dry hair? And does it help to wash the hair with a 'stripping' shampoo, like Head & Shoulders, before bleach bathing to remove more of the previous colour? Any help very much appreciated! 

[Franklin13]

Some questions about the things you need:

Powder bleach - is this the same stuff you get in a home bleaching kit?
Peroxide developer (of appropriate strength for your hair) - is this the same stuff you get in a home bleaching kit?

Shampoo (clarifying is best) - where can you get this?  Can you suggest any particular makes?

ta =]

[Sins_n_Needles]

Some questions about the things you need:

Powder bleach - is this the same stuff you get in a home bleaching kit?
Peroxide developer (of appropriate strength for your hair) - is this the same stuff you get in a home bleaching kit?

Shampoo (clarifying is best) - where can you get this?  Can you suggest any particular makes?

ta =]

I'm not sure about the home bleach kits, some of them have like 4 different parts to mix together, not a straightforward powder + developer situation, lol. To be honest, the professionals stuff like what I got is pretty cheap, less than £5 for the litre bottle of developer which will last ages, 50g packet of powder (will do 2-3 applications) was £1.99. Cheaper in the long run than buying a £4-5 box bleach every time you need to lighten.

As for the shampoo, the one I use is Pantene Pro-v clarifying, you can get it anywhere, Boots, Superdrug, Semi-chem, Tesco etc. It's the one in the picture up there.

[Pippachainsaw]

just re read this, as am gonna have a go tomorrow =) am excited, you've made it look dead simple though! also i love the candle holders (i think thats what they are) in pic 3 =) pwetty

[rifkygirl]

Hi first post here and am looking to do this, but where do i get the products from, i.e. the powder an the bleach? Im looking for hairdresser suppliers near me and cant find any.. And also as the other poster mentioned, i've got dark black dyed hair on the bottom and was letting this grow out so have quite natural hair on top, mousey brown, but looking to get an even tone before adding red to it. any ideas on getting that even tone. Or will this bleach bath do it

[Pippachainsaw]

you could try using colour b4 to get rid of the black

http://www.hairdyeforum.com/index.php?topic=893.0

then when you do bleach bath, as sins said to the roots last, maybe waiting till the black (or what's left of it) is nearly the same colour as your roots then add it to your roots.

you can get all the bleach stuff from your local sallys

http://www.sallyexpress.com/index.aspx

[switchyboo]

OK, so i'm about to attempt the bleach bath method! My hair is naturally fine so i think it'll be a gentler option, im taking pictures of each stage of my colouring process an di'll post it on the 'show off your hair' section.
Here we go!!!

[Starzziie]

How damaged was your hair after the bleach bath?
Brittle at all? I hear bleach and shampoo is a lot more gentle on your hair.
I hope so cause I'm doing this as soon as my special effects dye is in my mail box lol.

Never mind.. just seen you said your hair was silky soft lol I dunno how to delete this message bahah.

[kittycatwindow]

Which kind of bleach do you think would work on my color hair the best? 20 vol, 30, 40? It's the brown in my icon over there <---- I'd want to use the lowest volume of bleach possible.

And I'm supposed to leave it in the same time period I would with normal bleach?

Also, does using a clarifying shampoo make a difference? Do clarifying shampoos get rid of extra color in the hair? (I'm asking because if they do I'll buy one, use almost the whole bottle, then use the rest for the bleach bath.)

Sorry about all of the questions D: Thanks in advance

[Sins_n_Needles]

Clarifying shampoo works better because it is deep cleansing. The strength of developer you use is up to you, i have dark blonde hair but i use 40 vol for bleach baths so i don't need to keep it on as long.

[Snuflan]

Can I use bleach that comes in a package ready-to-use? or do I have to use seperate powder and developer?

[Mathurine]

I haven't tried it myself but the separate powder/developer seems the best way to me as you can mix up a little and keep the rest for next time.

[Snuflan]

Oh I see! I wonder if I can buy some of that here in Sweden.. I doubt it, we have like.. nothing XD

[kittycatwindow]

Can I use bleach that comes in a package ready-to-use? or do I have to use seperate powder and developer?

I did that when I did a bleach bath. If you only want to use a little, though, don't use the whole kit. Just use the appropriate proportions with the bleach from the kit.

[sinead849]

i love the tutorial!sins_n_needles!

[KittyLost]

i love the tutorial!sins_n_needles!

Same! Thanks for making it sins n needles

[rainbownicola]

Where did you get the Bleach & Developer from?  (:

[KittyLost]

Sallys stock them if you have a retail one near you