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What Color To Dye Over Green Hair?

What Color To Dye Over Green Hair?

Bright and flashy hair colors have gained their prominence.

While green hair looks fresh and trendy, there are still many color options out there to channel your devil-may-care attitude. Whether it’s time for a change, or you’re simply looking for a more adventurous experience, keep on reading for our guide.

Green hair color is the most difficult to remove, but you can surely go neutral or more daring.

Any color will cover the green, but lighter shades like pastel and platinum blond would require several bleaching sessions. On the other hand, darker colors like brown, caramel, or auburn red can easily cover green tones.

Also Read: How To Neutralize Green Hair

Hair Coloring And Color Theory

Switching between vibrant hair colors is easier when you know the principles of color theory.

In hair coloring, the color wheel is used for determining the outcome of certain color combinations. Complementary colors are pairs of colors that cancel each other out when mixed or combined. 

You can plan the steps in order to move from green to another color.

Depending on the color you want to achieve, you may need several bleaching sessions or hair coloring to reduce the green tones in your hair. As long as you follow the basic principles of color theory, you’ll get exactly the hair color that you want.

What color cancels out green and blue-green? 

In the color wheel, the opposite of green is red, so the red dye can eliminate the green tones from your hair.

Meaning, any dye with a hint of red, such as pink and purple, could help for reducing the green color. For blue-green hair, red-orange is the perfect neutralizing color.

Is it possible to go for pink hair from green?

Yes, but you need to eliminate the green tones first before applying a pink dye.

Remember, pink is composed of white and red, in which the latter neutralizes the green. If you don’t eliminate the green, the final color will only result in brown.

You’ll know that you already removed the green tones if your hair got a yellowish shade.

By then, the pink pigments can penetrate your hair and look better. You can choose any shade of pink that you like, from pastel pink to chewing gum pink and hot pink.

If there are subtle green tones left in your hair, and you don’t want to go for a full bleach, only opt for the strongest pink shades like fuchsia, which contains redder.

Different shades of pink dye can have varying color results, depending on how much red it contains.

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Can you apply brown dye to green hair?

Yes, but different shades of brown can have a different color result.

A brown dye can be made by mixing different complementary colors together, such as blue and orange, or yellow and purple. Cooler and lighter shades of brown dye over green hair can sometimes result in a greenish-brown color. 

Since green is a cool shade, better go for warm browns than cool browns.

To neutralize the green tones in your hair, opt for a deep auburn shade instead. Also, darker shades of brown or even black can cover the green hair completely.

Also Read: How To Fix Uneven Bleached Hair?

What Are The Best Colors To Dye Over Green Hair?

Almost any color can cover the green, but light blonds, browns, and reds are the best choices.

They are warm tones and can easily make the green tones disappear. You may also opt for darker colors like fuchsia, intense violet, blue, and black.

However, lighter colors are more challenging to deal with, since they might not be able to cover the green tones. If you want to go for platinum blond, pearl gray, or pastel yellow, make sure that every trace of green is gone before applying a new color.

There is a wide range of hair colors to choose from, but some shades like platinum blond wouldn’t be the best for your green hair. Going for too light a color will require several bleaching treatments, where your hair needs to be bleached to almost white just to get the platinum shade.

Permanent Dye vs Semi-Permanent Dye

Hair Dye

The method of covering your green hair with another color will depend on whether you’ve used a semi-permanent or permanent dye. After all, they have a different chemical makeup and color intensity.

If you used a permanent green dye

A permanent dye can only be covered with another permanent dye.

Since the color is caused by ammonia and the developer, it can only be removed with bleach. For this reason, you cannot use a semi-permanent dye to cover your green hair.

If you want to go lighter than your current hair color, you’ll need bleach to remove the green.

On the other hand, darker and warmer colors can easily neutralize the green tones in your hair. You’ll have no problems turning it into any color that you like, as long as you use a permanent dye.

If you used a semi-permanent green dye

A semi-permanent green dye can easily be covered with another semi-permanent dye or permanent dye. It doesn’t contain ammonia or use developer, and the pigment is only deposited on the outside layer of the hair.

It’s easier to remove and fade away as you wash your hair. Most of the time, it only lasts about five shampoos, so you won’t need bleach before applying a new color to your hair. Just wait for the green color to fade naturally before applying another color.

Also Read: How Long To Leave 10 Volume Developer On Hair?

Ways to Fade Green Hair Color Naturally

Getting rid of the green color in your hair might take a lot of work, especially if you want to avoid the hair damage you’ll get from the bleaching process. Here are some of the ways to fade your green hair naturally:

Use a clarifying or sulfate-based shampoo to fade the green hair color

These shampoos are designed to remove product buildups and deep clean your hair, so they could also help on fading your green dye over time.

Just skip those color-safe shampoos since your goal is to fade your current hair color.

If your hair is dark green, use clarifying or sulfate-based shampoos as a pigment remover. Simply use it as your usual shampoo and leave it on your hair for less than 15 minutes.

After a few washes, you’ll notice that it neutralizes the green tones in your hair.

Make use of vitamin C to lighten your hair

Since it’s ascorbic acid, vitamin C could help lighten your green dye by a shade or two. Depending on how you’ll use it, it can help to remove the hair dye without damage.

Simply mix a ½ cup of vitamin C with a clarifying shampoo, and leave it on your hair for half an hour, then rinse. The use of vitamin C is quite drying for the hair, so always follow the process with a hydrating conditioner.

Strip your green hair color with baking soda

As an alkaline substance, baking soda could penetrate your strands and help remove the dye. However, it’s more effective at fading the green tones caused by semi-permanent dyes than permanent dyes.

Simply make a paste with a tablespoon of baking soda mixed with water. You may leave it on your hair for 45 minutes before rinsing. Repeat the process once or twice a week until the green tones disappear.

Also Read: Does Hair Dye Expire? (Is It Safe To Use?)

Related Questions

Is permanent dye better than semi-permanent dye?

When it comes to long-lasting color, permanent dye is your best option, as semi-permanent dyes only last around 15 washes.

However, permanent dyes are more damaging to your hair since it makes use of ammonia and hydrogen peroxide, in order for the pigment to penetrate into your strands.

On the other hand, semi-permanent dyes don’t contain those harsh chemicals, and the pigment only sits on the hair’s surface.

How to reduce hair damage during color changes?

Whether you’ll use bleach, baking soda, or vitamin C, always give your hair some break before slathering another layer of lightning product.

If you leave them on your hair for too long, they can dry your strands and irritate your scalp. Always use conditioner, hair oils, hair masks, and hair serums to keep your hair hydrated and nourished.