Go from Dark Hair to Blonde Hair Safely

I finally had to go full blonde to take the brassiness out of my hair from all the pool water and sun damage. Apparently, to get rid of the copper tone in my hair, I had to go a lot lighter or all dark. I have not had jet black hair since my college, emo days. I was perfectly fine with never having to relive that phase of my life again. Before I knew it, my hairstylist was putting icy blonde highlights in my hair.

My brassiness is gone thanks to going lighter. (Photo: Emma Blancovich/DC on Heels)

Since my hair was already golden blonde, the lightening step did not take as long as it would with someone who has dark hair going to blonde. But I wanted to know the process, since a lot of you asked me to write about how to go platinum blonde for the summer.

My hairstylist said that hair needs to gradually be lightened in steps. So, if you have dark brown to black hair, you would need to get auburn highlights in your hair then go back about a week later. From there, you take your highlights up to golden blonde and wait another week after. The waiting intervals helps prevent your hair from breaking since going very blonde — and especially platinum blonde — can cause the most breakage. And what fun is it to show of your new hair if you don’t have any left?

In between sessions, it is very important to deeply moisturize your hair every night. In fact, if you leave conditioner in your hair overnight, you will ensure that your strands are hydrated and prepared for more of the lightening process.

Platinum blonde is probably the hardest color to get to and takes the longest, so be patient and give your hair some extra TLC before going in to get the job done. You do not have to do it in gradual steps, but that is what is highly recommended. If you do it all in one session, you risk the most hair breakage along with burning your scalp, which is not fun. A girlfriend of mine thought it would be fun to use one of those one-step drugstore kits to go from dark to blonde and she had scabs on her head for months.

Blonde Life Brightening Shampoo keeps your blonde hair evenly toned with no brassiness. (Photo: Jaico)

Once you reach the desired blonde, you are dark haired no more, so your shampoos and conditioners need to change. Use specific shampoos that are made for blonde hair to help keep it icy or bright blonde. The shampoos also work to keep brassiness away, which is what I needed since I was starting to have a medley of brassy golden colors from spending too much time outside at pools and beaches.

Joico’s Blonde Life Brightening Shampoo is an exotic blend of oils that works to keep your hair hydrated, tame frizz and keep that newly-blonde hair of yours evenly toned. It sells for a great price for all the quality ingredients it includes. For a conditioner, you can use TIGI Bed Head’s Dumb Blonde Reconstructor. It has so many moisturizing ingredients in it and always leaves my hair tangle-free. It is also a steal when it comes to quality products at a great price.

Bed Head’s Dumb Blonde Recondstructor conditioner leaves newly-dyed hair soft, hydrated and tangle-free. (Photo: Bed Head)

Be sure to wear your conditioner to bed once a week and get weekly trims to keep your newly-dyed hair from looking frayed at the ends from all the processing. I can’t say blondes have more fun, because in my heart I am a brunette, but it definitely hides the penny-colored brassiness that was making my skin look faded out. However, I am sure that all you blondes out there are rocking your blonde strands with just as much fun as anybody else.