Share your Bleaching Horror Stories

[thisuserisme]

didn't realize this topic is for horror stories. the only bad thing that happened in my journey to go blonde was having orange hair for a couple of days, then toning, then bleach bath, then toning, then just bleaching again. That week was not fun because it was Christmas and we had relatives in town.

[K8Y1988]

I have natural blonde hair but I dyed it red for about 10 months using crazy colour fire over a permanent red and then dark brown over that for about a year. I decided I wanted half of my hair white/silver so I used colour b4 3 times then bleached my hair 3(!!! I know, I hate to think about it!) times in 3 days using BBlonde kits (40vol).

My scalp was burnt on both sides above my ears and swelled to horrible bubbles, which when shrunk left dried skin for weeks. When I was washing the bleach out the last time clumps of hair were washing out too, and when I brushed it for a few days I had brush-fulls of hair. That was terrifying!

It would not got the colour I wanted so I put crazy colour violet over it and was fairly happy. I didn't realise until about 3 weeks later that I had a few tufts of hair about 1cm long from it snapping off, I was devastated!

It took me a year and a half to get my hair all one length, and I'm still sad at the lost length! It has also taken me a long time to get it back to healthy.

But it has taught me to look after my hair! I would never use plain bleach again, only ever coconut oil bleach baths for me!

[puerkz]

I have natural blonde hair but I dyed it red for about 10 months using crazy colour fire over a permanent red and then dark brown over that for about a year. I decided I wanted half of my hair white/silver so I used colour b4 3 times then bleached my hair 3(!!! I know, I hate to think about it!) times in 3 days using BBlonde kits (40vol).

My scalp was burnt on both sides above my ears and swelled to horrible bubbles, which when shrunk left dried skin for weeks. When I was washing the bleach out the last time clumps of hair were washing out too, and when I brushed it for a few days I had brush-fulls of hair. That was terrifying!

It would not got the colour I wanted so I put crazy colour violet over it and was fairly happy. I didn't realise until about 3 weeks later that I had a few tufts of hair about 1cm long from it snapping off, I was devastated!

It took me a year and a half to get my hair all one length, and I'm still sad at the lost length! It has also taken me a long time to get it back to healthy.

But it has taught me to look after my hair! I would never use plain bleach again, only ever coconut oil bleach baths for me!

you shouldn't be discouraged from using straight bleach again. you just need to remember to only bleach once every 4-6 weeks and never ever use 40 vol. I personally think that 40 vol bleach shouldn't even be sold; it is unnecessary  even for the darkest of hairs.

[Janineb]

Yes, there's nothing wrong with straight bleach, used correctly.

[haircraze]

I used to dye my hair black. I am natural ash blond sandy blond color. when ny roots came in I would go over all of it woth black. Not.just do my roots. Lots of.build up. I.finallygot tired of the black and wanted it out... went to countless. salons noone would.touch.my hair for fear.of ruining it. Finaly someone did bleach it... four hours.at the salon got me bleaches hair.yes but. My ears and scalp and neck got blistered... i was angree at.that but.figured.meh then.two.weeks.later my hair started to break. But.i did not.fully fry my hair at least.

[Jaffacake]

I had not dyed my hair in years, never bleached it either. So about september time, decided I wanted to go from my natural colour (dark brown) to pink. Bought crazy colors bleaching kit, and got my mate to wack it on. I probably should have got 2 kits as my hair was pretty long. We had a few glasses of wine, and until it was washed out, we thought we had done a great job. I was mistaken.
So woke up, and looked like a cheetah basically. Didn't have the confidence to redo it, so booked myself into a salon where I had to pay over £100 to get it bleached and have the colour put on it. I have attached a picture of what my hair looked like after it was bleached. 

[Fernelizabeth]

It's probably been answered in here but when says 2 parts shampoo what does that mean?
Also what's the coconut oil treatment? X

[blu-one]

It's just a measurement thing Ferne - the ratio of products needed in a recipe if you will. Putting coconut oil in your hair prior to bleaching  helps to protect it from some damage. Theirs lots of threads about this if you want to read them.
I must say I've enjoyed reading this thread heaps,It's been very informative and educational.  It's kinda like a horror story or a book about a serial killer - a bit gross but you just can't stop reading, thanks to everyone who has posted!

[Fernelizabeth]

I've realised I posted on the wrong thing to lol.
Think I'm gna get my laptop out and read up.  Hard to do on your mobile

[4791clara]

I went to my usual hairdresser 3 weeks ago and decided to go grey, I recently had my hair cropped and thought it would look great!  After bleaching with low vol and olaplex for 85 mins and 3 toners...I was a lovely dove grey and loved it...until I washed my hair and the grey washed out on the ends (about 3 cm at longest bits). I tried all sorts of grey toners but nothing would grab and stay.
Visit 2 to hairdressers, had remaining grey removed and tried to go for a darker steel grey (she even put some black and clear colour in) walked out loving it...wash hair and the same thing happened (looked worse though because of the darker grey).
Visit 3, the ends looked dry so went very short  more lifting with low vol and olaplex, lots of joico treatment,  followed by a permanent ashy grey blonde (had enough grey by that point and just really needed something to stick).  Didn't wash my hair for 3 days....oh no!! I now have ashy sides and a blonde top, not a good look for me, been using black mascara mixed with joico oil to try and blend.....help me!!!!!! I think it's down to the fact that I had brown dye still on the ends from a few months before???

[CcyC]

Hello!! This is my first post since the intro, but it's sort of how I got here so I wanted to share.
Last November I got an ombré effect done at my usual hairdresser in my almost virgin hair (only the very tips were left of my previous haircolor, several years before). I don't know which developer they used but it was left on for quite a bit of time, nearly two hours (nowhere near my scalp, rather from the neck down and just two small sections from around ear length-down). Some sections of hair broke off with the bleach... I didn't think much of it at the time because I trust(ed) my hairdresser. They toned it to a beige blonde (my natural color is a dark brown, not too warm but I'm not sure what actual color it is). I was happy with it for a few months, but before deciding on the beige I had been torn between it and copper, so around February I decided to tone it to copper. I bought a box red, which comes with the pigment apart from the developer. I followed directions I found online (can't remember where), and mixed the pigment with plain conditioner to apply it, ditching the developer. I got a nice red on the lengths, but the roots didn't take any. I then became red-crazy and decided that a good plan of action was to progressively and non-aggressively (not!!) bleach my roots, so I started applying peroxide to my hair as a last rinse after every shower (daily). Not hair-formulated peroxide, but the kind that can be used to treat wounds or sanitize stuff. It's a 2% solution. Well, all was well at first because the bleached tone of my hair nearly matched the lengths, and I kept toning with the pigment-conditioner mix, and I liked my copper ever-less ombré hair. Somehow I wasn't exactly aware that the lengths were getting ever lighter...
So, fast forward to May. This makes it around one month of daily peroxide showers (left unrinsed until the next day), one month of once every third day, and one month of weekly applications. (I'm lazy with haircare, which probably saved my a$$ this time). I went to the hairdresser's for a haircut, as my tips were breaking out. I got deep conditioned there too, and talked about my adventures in haircolor, to which the hairdresser who looked after me ooh'd and aah'd. Well, they also told me I should be applying some sort of conditioning treatment every day, and washing with sulfate free shampoo every day, and using some sort of treatment too. I agreed and took it to heart, so I started a new routine, where I condition every day after my sulfate free shampoo, and I wear a leave-in treatment every day. I applied the peroxide shower once more. It was at this point I started researching ways to take care of my hair online. I came upon a term I hadn't heard before in regards to hair: chewy, or gummy, or rubbery. It sort of rang a bell... I researched the signs. I looked and touched and really LOOKED at my hair. It has that. It is that. Chewy. I fried it. And now, I'm obsessed with hair. It's been two weeks, mind you, but I'm really trying to baby it. Hoping I won't have to cut it all off. I've been growing it for a LOOOOONG time, and I'd hate to go back to a pixie cut. Thank goodness I found this forum, and I'm trying to soak everything up, to become knowledgeable about my hair, to get GOOD hair at long last. Oh my god my poor hair... I wouldn't blame it for falling off voluntarily just so it could abandon me. I've been awful to it, and I promise to never do it again.
Thank you for reading and sticking with me through this long post... and thank you for this forum 

[CcyC]

Hello!! This is my first post since the intro, but it's sort of how I got here so I wanted to share.
Last November I got an ombré effect done at my usual hairdresser in my almost virgin hair (only the very tips were left of my previous haircolor, several years before). I don't know which developer they used but it was left on for quite a bit of time, nearly two hours (nowhere near my scalp, rather from the neck down and just two small sections from around ear length-down). Some sections of hair broke off with the bleach... I didn't think much of it at the time because I trust(ed) my hairdresser. They toned it to a beige blonde (my natural color is a dark brown, not too warm but I'm not sure what actual color it is). I was happy with it for a few months, but before deciding on the beige I had been torn between it and copper, so around February I decided to tone it to copper. I bought a box red, which comes with the pigment apart from the developer. I followed directions I found online (can't remember where), and mixed the pigment with plain conditioner to apply it, ditching the developer. I got a nice red on the lengths, but the roots didn't take any. I then became red-crazy and decided that a good plan of action was to progressively and non-aggressively (not!!) bleach my roots, so I started applying peroxide to my hair as a last rinse after every shower (daily). Not hair-formulated peroxide, but the kind that can be used to treat wounds or sanitize stuff. It's a 2% solution. Well, all was well at first because the bleached tone of my hair nearly matched the lengths, and I kept toning with the pigment-conditioner mix, and I liked my copper ever-less ombré hair. Somehow I wasn't exactly aware that the lengths were getting ever lighter...
So, fast forward to May. This makes it around one month of daily peroxide showers (left unrinsed until the next day), one month of once every third day, and one month of weekly applications. (I'm lazy with haircare, which probably saved my a$$ this time). I went to the hairdresser's for a haircut, as my tips were breaking out. I got deep conditioned there too, and talked about my adventures in haircolor, to which the hairdresser who looked after me ooh'd and aah'd. Well, they also told me I should be applying some sort of conditioning treatment every day, and washing with sulfate free shampoo every day, and using some sort of treatment too. I agreed and took it to heart, so I started a new routine, where I condition every day after my sulfate free shampoo, and I wear a leave-in treatment every day. I applied the peroxide shower once more. It was at this point I started researching ways to take care of my hair online. I came upon a term I hadn't heard before in regards to hair: chewy, or gummy, or rubbery. It sort of rang a bell... I researched the signs. I looked and touched and really LOOKED at my hair. It has that. It is that. Chewy. I fried it. And now, I'm obsessed with hair. It's been two weeks, mind you, but I'm really trying to baby it. Hoping I won't have to cut it all off. I've been growing it for a LOOOOONG time, and I'd hate to go back to a pixie cut. Thank goodness I found this forum, and I'm trying to soak everything up, to become knowledgeable about my hair, to get GOOD hair at long last. Oh my god my poor hair... I wouldn't blame it for falling off voluntarily just so it could abandon me. I've been awful to it, and I promise to never do it again.
Thank you for reading and sticking with me through this long post... and thank you for this forum 

[Janineb]

Oh boy. A month of peroxide sitting n your hair?!? Truly, it is a wonder you have any hair that isn't broken off.

As someone that dealt with a lot of hair in the late 80s when bleached and permed hair was fashionable, I can tell you that is is possible to keep a head of gummy hair. However, you might be better off getting it cut because it is a nightmare as time goes on and you will get more and more breakage. I really think it would be best to get a chop because damage does travel up the hair shaft to an extent and it would be far better to start over. If you really can't bring yourself to, at least get a good amount of the worst at the ends chopped. Then invest in some aphogee two step protein treatment and a good deep conditioner that doesn't have silicones. Some coconut oil and (pure) Aragon oil (non of this blooming marroccan oil stuff that's normally chock ful of silicones) would also be a good idea at least.

[CcyC]

Thanks so much! I started babying it about two weeks ago and it feels better... not good, but better than it was. It doesn't look awful either, it's only really fragile when wet. I stooped detangling whatsoever and the breakage stopped, and I don't use heat or styling products on it (I've never learnt to style it anyway). I don't have split ends... which is weird. I did get about two inches cut off a month ago, and the tips are frizzy but not split. I guess, for my usual "use" of my hair (I style it two or three times a year at best), I might be able to keep the length long enough to have enough growth... I'll take better care of my hair now, since I've found this forum :3

[HairDiva56]

Do I have a story for all you guys..

Well I went to get my hair bleached just like us girls do.. But let's just say this time was different. Got into the salon about 2.30 saw sharan, said hello and the bleaching began. I went for a hot green this time. About 30 minutes in I hear the door open.. It's only Pablo my ex. Oh great just what I wanted! Anyway we met eyes and it was a bit awks. Then 5 minutes later the door opened again!!! It was Franco and Gonzalez two of my ex's. I guess that was their way of telling me they were seeing each other, yeah I know what you are thinking this has to be the worst bleaching experience ever. Well it was coming to the end of my session, I was all bleached up.. The bloody receptionist had changed and yep you got it! It was my 4th ex Enrique . Can you believe it all in one bleach session I saw 4 ex's!!!!!! Anyway the colour came out ok but I went home to my cat Anotnio. Us boys just never have any luck. Hope you enjoyed my worst bleaching experience.

Love ya!! Xoxoox

Hair Diva... Out!

[Janineb]

Well, that's definitely a different one! Worth it for great hair colour though

[Adreanna]

Mine is more of a miracle than a horror story.  Almost two years ago I decided I wanted my medium brown hair with red undertones to be bleach blonde.  At this point I hadn't used anything other than box dye in my life and at 15 had NO idea what I was doing, so I had no idea what color remover or toner was.  That being said, I bleached my hair right over the dye with 30 vol developer.  Obviously that wasn't going to take my hair to a perfect platinum blonde so I bleached it again.  At that point I was left with a very brassy light blonde, but in my ignorance, instead of toning it, I went straight for another bleach treatment.  All of this took place in ONE WEEKEND. How my hair didn't just fall out I have NO IDEA.  Honestly, it wasn't even that bad.  It was a bit stretchy for a month or two and pretty frizzy looking, but after several deep conditioning treatments, it really wasn't bad.  Needless to say I'm pretty luck and since then I've only bleached the roots as they grew out (I would just use blonde dye but it turns red on my hair) and now I only have an inch or two of damage left!! 

[jasmine86]

Hi everyone, I don't so much have a bleach story but was wondering if I could get some help on my post. I haven't gotten any replies but it does have to do with bleaching. Thanks in advance

[Marthakins]

I kind of can't believe I have to post on here after all this time of dying my hair but oh well.

I went to get my hair cut after combing my dreads out the other week and the hairdresser was looking for a hair model for a competition where she had to use semi perm dyes. She had bright blue hair and talked about saving the condition of mine etc. So I agreed to let her dye my hair the next week.

I faded my colour a lot in the week in between and came in with pale purple and green hair that should have been easy to bleach out. When she started putting the bleach on my lengths she said she'd leave it for a few minutes before doing the roots. No problem there, except that she left for about 40 minutes before coming back. At this point I already knew my hair was going to be damaged a lot but I let her do my roots anyway because I can't do confrontation. She mashed the bleach in to my scalp, leaving no gap between it and my skin. My head started burning really badly and when I pointed that out to her she said it always tingled at first and left. (It was burning so much I felt sick).

When she came back after 15 minutes I told her she had to wash it off because I was in genuine extreme pain so she eventually did. I found out later after I left that I actually have chemical burns on my head. And of course I now have chewing gum hair. I am absolutely furious at this woman. I also found out that she used 40vol peroxide.

To make it even worse she decided to use blue and orange dyes on me but washed them out mushed together using shampoo so obviously my hair is a hideous colour as well.

[Odette]

Well, not too terrible but I just figured out I really, REALLY need to get better in working with a brush as my hair is incredibly patchy now. And remember that my virgin roots soak it up like there is no tomorrow, even with a bleach bath. I'll see what it will be when it's dry and what I'm going to do colour wise. What I can see now it's patchy, most of my roots are honey blonde and my bangs probably had too much vaseline on them. Luckily I have Plum and Cerise at hand, the most forgiving colours ever.

But damn, this is stupid. :')