Colour is the part of the hair world where the most can go wrong – and where the most can actually be put right. What feels like a disaster in the bathroom mirror is usually a question of toning or care, not hair that has to be cut off.
Here are the eight most common colour problems we see.
1. Yellow or brassy tones in blonde hair
Blonde hair is lightened hair, and lightened hair wants to return to its underlying warm pigment. Sun, chlorine, hard water and time do the rest.
How to fix it: silver shampoo once a week – no more often, or your hair turns dull and greyish. A toner at the salon lasts longer and gives a more even result than anything you can do at home. Protect your colour with colour-preserving hair care in between.
2. Orange bands after bleaching at home
Almost always a sign that the bleach didn't lift all the way, or that the heat from your head made the roots lift faster than the lengths.
How to fix it: don't bleach again, either the same day or the week after. Book a colour correction appointment instead – to lift an orange band evenly, you need to see where the pigment sits. A toner in the right opposite shade can neutralise a lot without the hair needing more bleach.
3. Green tones after the pool or hard water
Copper in the water binds to lightened hair. It's chemistry, not bad luck.
How to fix it: a clarifying shampoo removes most of it, followed by a moisturising hair mask. Rinse your hair in clean water before swimming and apply a leave-in as a barrier.
4. The colour washes out right away
Red and copper shades sit closest to the surface of all and leave the hair fastest, especially if the hair is porous from previous treatments.
How to fix it: wash cooler and less often, skip sulphate shampoos and use a colour-preserving range. Hair that has been rebuilt holds colour longer – which is why keratin-based hair care is an investment in your colour, not just a care product.
5. Dry, brittle and tangled after bleaching
Bleach opens up the hair shaft and strips out protein. Hair feels gummy when wet and straw-like when dry.
How to fix it:
- Balance protein and moisture: keratin masks alternated with pure moisture care.
- Trim off the most damaged ends – they can't be repaired, only hidden temporarily.
- A keratin treatment forms a protective layer, makes hair smoother and reduces frizz for several months. We offer it in our salon, and if you'd rather do it at home, we sell Cocochoco keratin treatment with matching hair care.
- Avoid heat styling completely for a couple of weeks, and always use heat protection when you start again.
6. The colour came out uneven or patchy
Hair is more porous in some places than others – old colour in the lengths absorbs more, new growth less.
How to fix it: uneven colour is evened out with a toner or a colour change adapted to where the pigment sits, not with yet another layer of the same colour. Bring a picture of the result you wanted – it says more than a shade number.
7. Your hair extensions didn't take the colour like your own hair
Human hair extensions have already been processed and have no scalp supplying moisture. That's why they don't react like the hair on your head.
How to fix it:
- Always colour darker, never lighter. Bleaching hair extensions almost always ends in dry, matted hair.
- Use a mild, low-developer colour or toner.
- Always test on a small amount of hair first.
- Easiest and safest: let a stylist who works with hair extensions do it, or choose the right shade from the start with the help of our hair extensions guide to quality, length and colour.
8. Can you colour a wig?
A human hair wig can be toned darker, with the same care as hair extensions. A synthetic wig can't be coloured with regular hair dye – the fibre won't absorb it and may be ruined, and the lace can become discoloured.
How to fix it: if you want a different shade, it's better to choose a new wig in the right colour than to experiment with one you rely on. If the difference is small, a stylist can tone a human hair wig a few shades darker.
There's always a solution
What looks like ruined hair is usually hair that needs the right care, a toner and a little time. We've rescued more colour jobs than we can count – and almost never with the scissors as the first step.
In our webshop you'll find hair care bundles for damaged and chemically treated hair, KIS Keratin Infusion System and Cocochoco keratin treatment for home use.
Need help getting back to your shade, or would you like a keratin treatment with us?
- Fairwithhair Odenplan, Norrtullsgatan 26A, Stockholm – Monday–Friday 10:00–19:00, Saturdays by arrangement.
- Fairwithhair Uppsala, Skolgatan 49 – by appointment.
We always look at your hair before we do anything at all. Sometimes the answer is a toner, sometimes a treatment, sometimes just the right hair care for a few weeks – but there's always an answer.