How to Lighten Highlights That Are Too Dark

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Highlights create depth in your hair and can brighten up your style to add a pop of color to your overall look. However, if you’ve gotten highlights and they are too dark, you may not be happy with how they look with your features or skin tone. You can try a few different ways of lightening up your highlights at home to avoid going back to the salon for a color correction.

Method 1
Method 1 of 3:

Washing Your Hair

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  1. If it’s a toner that has made your highlights too dark, you may be able to remove some of it by giving your hair a quick wash. Use the shampoo you normally use and don’t be afraid to scrub at your hair. [1]
    • Sometimes, the toner your stylist used might be a little darker than you'd like. Using a clarifying shampoo will pull some of that out, which might help your highlights look lighter. [2]

    Tip: Washing your hair works best if you do it right away, so try to hop in the shower within 1 hour of your hair appointment.

  2. Although dish soap is super drying, it’s also much harsher than shampoo. Use 2 to 3 drops in your hair to remove some of the dark color and fade your highlights a little bit. [3]
    • Since the dish soap will dry out your hair, put on conditioner afterwards and let it sit for 5 to 10 minutes.
    • You can also add 2 to 3 drops of lemon juice to the dish soap if you want more color-stripping power.
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  3. If you were going for cool blonde highlights but you ended up with more orange or yellow ones, you can try toning them to make them whiter. Lather a purple shampoo into your hair and follow the instructions on the bottle to see how long you should let it sit before rinsing it out. [4]
    • You can find purple shampoo at most drug stores.
    • Try not to use purple shampoo more than once a week, or it could stain your hair purple or blue.
    Audrey Davis-Sivasothy, Chemist and Cosmetologist

    If highlights get too brassy or dark, use a clarifying shampoo to strip color, then apply bleach for 5-10 minutes. Rinse thoroughly and deep condition to avoid damage.

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Method 2
Method 2 of 3:

Applying Lemon Juice

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  1. You can squeeze a fresh lemon or buy lemon juice from the store. Mix your ingredients together in a plastic bowl that you can take into the bathroom with you. [5]
    • The conditioner will put some moisture back into your hair that the lemon juice may strip out.
    • You can also use coconut oil instead of conditioner.
  2. Use warm water to fully dilute your hair. If you want, you can wash your hair with shampoo as well. [6]
    • Washing your hair beforehand can strip your hair of its natural oils. If your hair is particularly dry, don’t use shampoo before applying lemon juice.
  3. Pick up large globs of the lemon juice and conditioner and run them over your hair, starting at the ends. Pay special attention to the highlighted areas of your hair to lighten them up. [7]
    • Your roots will lighten faster than your ends because your scalp is warm.
  4. You may be able to see your hair lighten up slightly as you watch the lemon juice process. When you rinse, make sure you get all of the lemon juice mixture out of your hair so it stops lightening. [8]

    Tip: If it’s sunny out, sit outside to make the lemon juice lighten your hair more.

  5. Since lemon juice is pretty mild, it probably won’t lighten up your highlights a ton the first time you use it. Keep applying the mixture to your hair for a couple of weeks or until you lighten your highlights to the color you want. [9]
    • Try not to use the lemon juice for longer than 2 weeks, or you could start to really dry out your hair.
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Method 3
Method 3 of 3:

Using a Color Remover

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  1. Make sure you find a professional-grade color remover from a beauty supply store so you don’t dry out your hair. Look for one that can lift permanent hair dye for the best results. [10]
    • Many color remover kits come with gloves and a dye brush so you don’t have to buy them separately.
  2. Most color removers come with a powder and a developer. Follow the instructions on the box and mix them together in a plastic bowl. [11]
  3. Use a hair dye brush to apply the color remover to a 0.5 in (1.3 cm) vertical section of your hair. Leave it on for 15 minutes and then wash it out with cool water. Let the strand dry to see how the color remover worked on your hair. [12]

    Tip: If the remover didn’t lift your hair color at all, you may need a bleach bath. If it turned your hair orange or brassy, a color remover won’t work on your hair because it’s been dyed with permanent dye.

  4. Use an applicator brush to apply the color remover to the highlighted sections of your hair. Try to avoid putting it on any areas of your hair that aren’t highlighted so you don’t damage your hair unnecessarily. [13]
    • If you have highlights on top of your natural hair color, a color remover won’t remove your natural color.
  5. Run your hair under the sink or in the shower. Make sure you rinse out all of the remover to avoid damaging your hair. [14]
    • Using cool water will close up your hair cuticles and make your hair feel less dry or damaged.
  6. While your hair is wet, apply some conditioner to the parts of your hair that you used color remover on. Let it sit for about 5 minutes, then rinse it out. [15]
    • Color remover can dry out your hair, so it’s important to add moisture back in with conditioner.
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Expert Q&A

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  • Question
    How do you make highlights blonder?
    April Ferri
    Professional Hair Stylist
    April Ferri is a Professional Hair Stylist and the Co-Owner of Widows Peak Salon, a hair salon based in Los Angeles, California. With over ten years of experience, April specializes in hair coloring and enhancing and transforming natural tones into vibrant shades for beautiful and low maintenance hair. Her work has been featured in Voyage LA Magazine, and she has worked as a stylist for LA Fashion Week.
    April Ferri
    Professional Hair Stylist
    Expert Answer
    Usually if your highlights are weren't lifted enough, you have to go back and lighten them again. However, if your hair was just toned too dark, a clarifying wash could pull some of the toner.
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      Tips

      • Most highlights will fade over time. If all else fails, you can just wait for your highlights to lighten on their own.
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      • Talk to your hairdresser the next time you go in about giving you lighter highlights.
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      Things You’ll Need

      Washing Your Hair

      • Clarifying shampoo
      • Dish soap
      • Purple shampoo

      Applying Lemon Juice

      • Lemon juice
      • Conditioner
      • Plastic bowl

      Using a Color Remover

      • Color remover kit
      • Plastic bowl
      • Hair dye applicator brush
      • Conditioner

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      References

      1. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f1v1M7hKoy0&feature=youtu.be&t=154
      2. ↑ April Ferri. Professional Hair Stylist. Expert Interview. 8 December 2020.
      3. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f1v1M7hKoy0&feature=youtu.be&t=221
      4. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jLKZvimBXtI&feature=youtu.be&t=130
      5. ↑ https://spoonuniversity.com/lifestyle/can-lemon-juice-lighten-hair-the-science-behind-this-summertime-hack
      6. ↑ https://spoonuniversity.com/lifestyle/can-lemon-juice-lighten-hair-the-science-behind-this-summertime-hack
      7. ↑ https://phenixsalonsuites.com/well-and-good-featuring-gina-rivera-wanna-naturally-lighten-your-hair-grab-a-lemon-but-theres-a-catch/
      8. ↑ https://spoonuniversity.com/lifestyle/can-lemon-juice-lighten-hair-the-science-behind-this-summertime-hack
      9. ↑ https://phenixsalonsuites.com/well-and-good-featuring-gina-rivera-wanna-naturally-lighten-your-hair-grab-a-lemon-but-theres-a-catch/
      1. ↑ https://www.modernsalon.com/366742/color-correction-how-to-removing-years-of-black-box-color
      2. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J2OE9s8d0_E&feature=youtu.be&t=13
      3. ↑ https://www.modernsalon.com/366742/color-correction-how-to-removing-years-of-black-box-color
      4. ↑ https://www.modernsalon.com/366742/color-correction-how-to-removing-years-of-black-box-color
      5. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J2OE9s8d0_E&feature=youtu.be&t=47
      6. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J2OE9s8d0_E&feature=youtu.be&t=52

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