How to Correct Orange Roots when Bleaching Hair Blonde

Last Updated: February 14, 2022

Blondes may have more fun, but probably not with bright orange roots. When you’re bleaching your dark hair to achieve a head of golden blonde tresses, it’s not uncommon to first pass through an unsightly Halloween orange. If you’ve washed out the bleach only to discover unsightly orange roots, don’t freak out– there are a few ways to correct this.

Part 1

Part 1 of 2:

Bleaching Again

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Apply bleach to the roots again. This step is only necessary if your orange roots are significantly darker than the rest of your hair. With each application of bleach, your hair is lifted three or four shades lighter. If your roots were very dark to begin with and the rest of your hair is very light, you may need to apply bleach for a second time in order to get it light enough.^{[1]
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- Many websites mistakenly suggest first toning orange hair. Toner will only work for hair that is already the desired lightness, but simply has hints of orange or yellow. It will not fix dark orange hair.
2
Rinse. After the bleach has been on your roots for the time specified on the packaging, rinse your hair thoroughly. After a second round of bleach, your hair may still be orange, but it should be lighter. If you’re satisfied with the lightness of your roots, you can move on to the next step.
- If your roots are now a yellow color and the rest of your hair is light blonde, you should be all done bleaching. If your roots are still slightly orange and the rest of your hair is a darker blonde, you’re all set. The trick is to bleach your hair to light yellows in order to achieve light blondes, and darker yellows and oranges are great bases for dark blondes.
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3
Use a toner. You can find toner at beauty supply stores. If you aren’t sure which toner you need, you can always ask someone who works there. As stated before, a toner will not magically turn your hair from dark orange to a platinum blonde, because it will not lighten your hair at all. It will, however, remove the orange or yellow notes from hair while keeping it at the same lightness level.^{[2]
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Part 2

Part 2 of 2:

Adding a Demi-Permanent Hair Color

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Purchase a hair dye. Once you’ve bleached your roots and they’re the right lightness, you’re ready to apply a demi or semi-permanent dye. In other words, your roots may still be orange, but another application of bleach would make them much lighter than the rest of your hair.^{[3]
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- Buy a hair dye that is lighter than your hair. For example, if your hair is a dark blonde and you don’t want it any darker, buy a shade of hair dye in a platinum blonde. Because the hair dye will layer over your dark blonde, applying a matching shade of dark blonde hair dye will darken it up. A lighter shade of blonde will keep your hair light and bright, but help mask the orange.
2
Follow the instructions on the package. Make sure that you evenly coat your roots so that all orange and yellow sections are saturated. Because the demi-permanent color doesn’t have bleach, it’s not a big deal if it touches the rest of your hair, but try to keep it only on your roots.^{[4]
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- Check your roots before rinsing¬– if you can still see hints of orange or yellow, you can keep the dye on for a bit longer.
3
Rinse your hair. The bleach should have gotten your orange roots down to the desired lightness, the toner should have removed some of the brassiness, and the demi-permanent hair color should have masked any remaining bits of orange. It can be really hard to bleach your hair on your own, so this process may take some practice. With a little bit of experimentation, you won’t even break a sweat at the sight of bright orange roots.

Expert Q&A

Question

Will bleaching my hair again get rid of the orange?

Arthur Sebastian
Professional Hair Stylist
Arthur Sebastian is the Owner of Arthur Sebastian Hair Salon in San Francisco, California. Arthur has worked as a hair stylist for over 20 years and received his Cosmetology License in 1998. He believes that the true work of a successful hair stylist comes from passion and a love for hairdressing.

Arthur Sebastian

Professional Hair Stylist

Expert Answer

Yes, it can. To re-bleach orange roots, it's best to use foils so you get an adequate separation of each section. Also, I'd suggest using a color that's about a half-shade darker blonde than what you have on the rest of your hair to create a shadow root. That will create a very natural fade from the roots to the rest of your hair, and it will also help you grow out your color better.
Question

Can I use 6n with 20 volume developer to cover orange roots and blonde ends?

Community Answer

A level 6 has an underlying pigment of red orange. Using a 20 volume will only expose further warmth. You will have a browned out version of orange.
Question

My roots are nice and blond, but my ends are orange. Can I just bleach the ends again?

Community Answer

Use toner before you put on more bleach. Buy a silver shampoo, and use it once every two days. Use a professional toner on it at least once a month to remove the brassy coloring.

Warnings

Bleaching your hair is damaging. If you can avoid bleaching multiple times in a row, avoid! When in doubt, consult a professional hairdresser.

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