Dye Naturally Black Hair Gray

Gray is a popular hair color choice these days, but unless you're naturally blonde, it takes time, money, and dedication. If your hair is naturally black, expect multiple bleachings and weeks of waiting before you can get the color you want. While you’re likely to get better results going to a professional salon, it’s possible to dye black hair to gray at home.

Steps

Preparing to Go Gray

1. Choose your method wisely. Consider whether to use an at-home dye kit or professional dyes, or go to the salon. Carefully consider the costs, processes, and risks involved in each method.
   • For the salon method, familiarize yourself with the salons in your area. Costs and products will vary amongst salons. Look on their websites or call in to get a sense of what they're using and how much it will cost. Talking to a stylist in person will give you a clearer sense of what your process and cost will be.
   • For the box kit method, read online reviews to see specifically which box dyes work best on black hair. A popular box kit is L’Oréal Paris Preference Les Blondissimes LB01: Extra Light Ash Blonde. It won’t dye your hair platinum, but some people claim that it gets them down to an ashy blonde in one go.
   • Using professional-quality products (bleach, developer, red gold corrector, and toner) is the preferred method amongst those who choose to bleach their hair at home. This method offers more flexibility and power than box dye kits, plus you have the opportunity to buy in bulk to save money.
2. Be prepared for the costs. Regardless of which method you choose, it will likely take multiple bleachings to achieve the gray tone that you want.
   • Definitely take the time and expense (i.e. multiple salon visits, multiple purchases of dye kits or professional dyeing materials) into consideration before you decide on which method to use.
3. Consider the quality of your hair before bleaching it. One DIY expert says that unless your hair is light to medium colored, and relatively short, thick and healthy, you should go to a salon to have your hair bleached. Once it’s bleached, however, you can do your roots on your own.
   • Bleaching your hair will damage it, no matter what. That’s why it’s so important to start with the healthiest hair possible, regardless of whether you’re bleaching your hair at home or at the salon.
   • Even if your hair feels healthy now, you can make it healthier by avoiding using chemicals and heat on it in the weeks/months leading up to bleaching it. You might even try using a weekly deep-conditioning hair mask.
4. Build your hair’s health. In the weeks or months leading up to the bleaching, avoid using harsh hair products and chemicals, and heat styling tools on your hair. If your hair feels damaged, do weekly deep-conditioning masks until it feels healthy enough to be bleached.
   • Experts recommend waiting at least 2 weeks between applying any chemicals to your hair. This time frame may be shortened or lengthened depending on how healthy your hair looks and feels.
   • Use good-quality shampoos and conditioners that moisturize your hair without adding buildup or stripping your hair of its natural oils. Look for: low pH, oil (argan, avocado, olive), glycerin, glyceryl stearate, propylene glycol, sodium lactate, sodium PCA, and alcohols that start with “c” or “s.”
   • Avoid: strongly fragranced products, alcohols whose names include “prop”, sulfates, and any products that claim to add volume to your hair.
5. Gather your materials for bleaching your hair at home (optional). If you decide to dye your hair gray at home, you’ll need to start by bleaching it. The following materials can be purchased from a beauty supply store (Sally Beauty Supply is a popular one) or online:
   • Bleach powder: This comes in packets or tubs. If you plan on bleaching your hair more than once, a tub is the cheaper long-term option.
   • Cream developer: Cream developer reacts with the powder to bleach your hair. It comes in different volumes ranging from 10 to 40; the higher the volume, the quicker it will turn your hair blonde, but also the more damaging it will be.
     • Many stylists recommend using 10 to 20 volume. It will take longer for the mixture to lighten your hair, but it will also be much less damaging than using the higher volumes.
     • If you have fine, fragile hair, use a 10-volume developer. For dark, coarse hair, a 30- or 40-volume developer might be necessary.
     • A 20-volume developer is your safest bet for effectiveness and gentleness, so if in doubt, choose that one! Do not use a 50-volume developer at home.
   • Red gold corrector (optional): Red gold correctors often come in little packages that you can add to your bleaching mixture to help reduce brassiness. This is an optional step, but it’s highly recommended as the whiter your hair, the better the gray color will turn out.
6. Get a toner (if bleaching/dyeing at home). Toners are what take your hair from yellow to white, which is the ideal base for gray. They come in a variety of shades, including blue, silver and purple. Even if you’re not dyeing your hair at home, a toner can be used every few weeks to maintain your color.
   • You can use toners to neutralize unwanted colors in your hair. For example, to neutralize hair that’s too golden, choose a toner shade that’s opposite gold on the color wheel, such as a blue or violet ash-based toner.
   • Some toners need to be mixed with developers before being applied to your hair, while others come ready to apply. Both types are effective, so just choose whichever you appeals to you.
7. Buy a gray hair dye (if dyeing at home). You should be able to find this at your local beauty shop, but if you can’t, online retailers like Amazon sell professional-quality brands of gray hair dye. If you purchase it online, pay attention to reviews.
   • If the veins on the underside of your wrist look blue or purple, opt for a cool white gray tone; if your veins look green or yellow, go for a warmer, steely gray.
8. Buy hair dyeing tools (if dyeing at home). If you’re bleaching, toning, and dyeing your hair at home, you’ll need an applicator/tint brush, a plastic mixing bowl, a plastic spoon, gloves, hair clips, towels, and plastic wrap or a plastic shower cap. Avoid metal tools as these will react with the bleach.
9. Buy good-quality shampoo and conditioner. Purple shampoos and conditioners specifically made for gray hair can help keep it toned and reduce the chances of some of your strands fading to yellow/blonde. If these aren't available to you, at least buy shampoos and conditioners that are designed for colored hair.
   • Some shampoos can even deposit color into your locks as you use them. If you would prefer not to use a color-depositing shampoo, at least buy a color-depositing treatment to help keep your color fresh and reduce the money you spend on re-dyeing your hair.

Bleaching Your Hair at Home

1. Do patch and strand tests before bleaching. A patch test is necessary to make sure that you’re not allergic to anything in the bleach mixture. A strand test will help you calculate how long you need to leave the bleach mixture on your hair.
   • To do a patch test, create a tiny amount of the mixture you will use on your hair and place a small dab of it behind your ear. Leave it for 30 minutes, wipe any excess off, then try not to touch it or get it wet for 48 hours. If after 48 hours that area of skin is fine, go ahead with bleaching your hair.
   • To do a strand test, prepare a small amount of the bleach mixture and apply it to a strand of your hair. Check it every 10 to 15 minutes until it reaches the desired color. Note the time it took to reach this color so that you have an idea of how long it will take on your whole head.
   • If you only do one test, do the patch test. A severe allergic reaction could be fatal.
2. Apply coconut oil to hair before bleaching (optional). Rub some extra virgin coconut oil between your palms to warm it up, then massage it into your hair and scalp. You needn’t wash the oil out before bleaching.
   • Leave the coconut oil on your hair for at least three hours before bleaching. If possible, leave it on your hair overnight, the night before you bleach your hair.
   • Coconut oil is an effective hair moisturizer because it is made up of molecules that are small enough to penetrate the hair shaft.
3. Protect your clothes and skin. Wear old clothes that you don't mind staining and drape an old towel over your shoulders. Wear flexible, disposable rubber gloves to protect your hands.
   • Have a small stack of old towels ready in case you need to clean the bleach mixture off your skin or elsewhere.
4. Place the bleach powder in the mixing bowl. Using a plastic spoon, place as much bleach powder as you need in a plastic mixing bowl. The powder should come with easy-to-follow instructions.
   • If the powder doesn’t come with instructions, use roughly a 1:1 ratio between the powder and the developer cream. Add one scoop of powder and then one scoop of developer, mixing them as you go, until you have enough.
5. Combine bleach powder with developing cream. Add the correct amount of developer to the bowl containing the powder, and mix the two together with a plastic spoon. Aim for a thick, creamy consistency, similar to gravy.
   • Unless stated otherwise on the packaging, the ratio of developer to powder should be roughly 1:1 — 1 spoonful of powder per 1 spoonful of developer.
6. Add red gold corrector to the mixture. Once the powder and developer are combined, add some red gold corrector to the bleach-developer mixture. Read the package instructions for how much you need to add.
7. Apply the mixture dry hair that hasn’t been washed in 24 to 48 hours. Use a tint brush to apply the mixture to your hair. Work with 1- to 2-inch strips of hair and start at your ends, brushing the mixture upwards and leaving roughly an inch of roots (you’ll do these last).
   • The warmth of your scalp will cause your roots to develop (lighten) faster than the rest of your hair. This is why you leave them for last.
   • Work from the back of your head to the front of your head. This will make it much easier to keep track of what hair you’ve already applied bleach/dye too. It will also help prevent the bleach mixture from getting on your clothes.
   • Unless your hair is quite short, use clips to section of your hair as you work on it.
8. Check that the mixture is evenly distributed on your hair. Once you’ve applied the bleach mixture to all of your hair, including your roots, check to ensure that your hair is fully saturated with the mixture.
   • You can do this by massaging your hair around your head and feeling for any spots that are dryer than the rest. When you come across these spots, add some more of the bleach mixture to them and massage it into your strands — avoid massaging it into your scalp, though, as this can cause irritation.
   • Use a mirror to help you get a clear view of the back of your head.
9. Cover your hair in plastic wrap. You can also use a clear plastic shower cap. As the bleach works, your scalp may begin to itch and sting. This is normal.
   • If the tingling and stinging on your scalp become too painful, remove the plastic wrap and wash out the bleach. If your hair is still too dark, you can try to bleach it again with a lower-volume developer in 2 weeks if it's healthy enough.
   • Avoid the temptation to apply any heat to your hair at this point, as applying heat could end with your hair falling out completely.
10. Check on your hair periodically. After 15 minutes, check a strand of hair to see how the bleaching has progressed. Use a towel to wipe some of the bleach mixture away so that you can clearly see the color of the strand.
    • If your hair still looks dark, reapply more bleach to the strand of hair, replace the plastic wrap and allow it to sit for another 10 minutes.
    • Continue checking your hair every 10 minutes until it has become completely blonde.
11. Do not leave the bleach in your hair for over 50 minutes. If you do, your hair may break off and/or fall out completely. Bleach is capable of dissolving hair, so be very careful with it.
12. Wash out the bleach. Remove the plastic wrap/cap and run your head under cool water until all traces of the bleach are gone. Wash, condition, and rinse your hair, then gently squeeze the water from it with a clean towel.
13. Decide whether you need to re-bleach. Your hair should be a pale or bright shade of yellow. If it is yellow, proceed to the instructions for toning your hair. If your hair is orange or still dark, you will need to bleach it again, waiting at least 2 weeks between bleachings.
    • Remember that the darker the blonde, the darker the gray will be, so bleach your hair as light as you want your gray shade to be.
    • Note that you won’t need to reapply the bleach to your roots if your roots are whiter than the rest of your hair. Just apply the bleach to the parts you want to lighten further.
    • You may even want to stretch the bleaching process over several weeks. Depending on how dark, coarse and thick your hair is, it could take up to 5 bleachings to turn it pale yellow.

Toning Your Hair at Home

1. Prepare yourself for toning. Just like with the bleaching process, you should wear old clothes and gloves. Have a stack of towels handy and make sure your hair is completely dry before starting.
2. Mix the toner. If your toner comes premixed and ready to use, you can skip this step. In a clean plastic mixing bowl, mix the toner and developer according to the instructions on the packaging.
   • The ratio is usually 1 part toner to 2 parts developer.
3. Apply the toner to your damp hair. Use your tinting brush to paint your hair with the toner, following the same technique as when you applied the bleach (ends to roots, back to front).
4. Ensure that the toner is evenly applied. Work your hands through your hair to ensure that the toner is saturating your hair and evenly applied.
   • Use a mirror to have a look at the back of your head to make sure the toner is fully covering your hair.
5. Cover your hair with plastic wrap or a shower cap. Allow the toner to sit in your hair for the length of time specified on the packaging. Depending on the strength of the toner and the color of your hair, it could take as little as 10 minutes for your hair to go white.
6. Check your hair every 10 minutes. Depending on the type of toner you use and how on light your hair already is, the toner could work more quickly or slowly than expected.
   • Check your hair every 10 minutes to ensure that you don’t end up with blue hair: use a towel to scrape some toner off a thin strand of hair to get a sense of what color it’s going. If your hair’s not the desired color yet, reapply toner to that strand and put it back up beneath the plastic cap/wrap.
7. Wash out the toner. Run your hair under cool water until all traces of the toner are gone. Shampoo and condition as normal, and gently squeeze the water from your hair with a clean towel.
8. Examine your hair. Let your hair air dry or, if you are impatient, dry it with your blow dryer’s coolest setting. Now that the bleaching and toning processes are complete, your hair should be white.
   • If you missed a spot, wait a few days and repeat the process on the strand of hair in question.

Dyeing Your Hair Gray at Home

1. Do patch and strand tests before dyeing. If you’re less fussy about what color of gray your hair turns out to be, you can skip the strand test. The patch test, however, is absolutely necessary, as an allergic reaction could be fatal.
   • To do a strand test, follow the manufacturer’s instructions for the specific dye that you buy. It generally requires rubbing a small amount of the developer (or the entire mixture, in some cases) on a patch of skin behind your ear, then leaving it for 48 hours.
2. Protect your clothes and skin. Wear old clothes and an old towel over your shoulders, and wear rubber gloves (vinyl and latex disposable gloves are popular). Have some old hand towels nearby in case you need to wipe dye off your skin.
   • You may even want to rub a bit of petroleum jelly or thick moisturizer around your hairline to prevent the dye from staining your skin.
3. Prepare the dye mixture. Exactly what you need to do to prepare your dye mixture will depend on the specific type of gray hair dye that you purchase. Some box kits are available, although most DIY home hair dye aficionados swear by professional-quality products.
   • As with bleaching your hair at home, use a plastic bowl and a tint brush to mix your dye.
4. Prepare your hair for dyeing. Read the instructions on the box to learn whether your hair needs to be wet or dry during application, as this differs depending on which dye you use. If your hair is long, clip it into sections.
   • Consider using clips to separate your hair into 8 sections — 4 on each side, moving vertically from the nape of your neck up to your forehead. If your hair is particularly thick, you may need even more sections (at least 2 additional ones on the front sides of your head).
5. Apply the dye to the lengths of your hair. Using the tint brush, brush the dye on to 2-inch sections of your hair, moving up from the ends toward the roots. Stop roughly a half-inch to an inch from your roots.
   • The warmth from your scalp causes the color on your roots to process more quickly, so you’ll save your roots for last.
6. Apply the dye to your roots. Once the lengths of your hair are covered in dye, go back around your head and cover all of your roots.
7. Ensure even application. Once you’ve covered all of your hair in dye, use a mirror to check the back of your head and ensure even application. Gently work your hands through your hair and feel for even distribution.
   • If you come across any spots that feel dry, add more dye.
8. Cover your hair and wait. Cover your hair with plastic wrap or a shower cap and wait for the dye to process. The processing time will differ depending on which dye you’re using. Thirty minutes is an average processing time.
9. Check on your hair. Some dye manufacturers will suggest a general processing timeframe — for example, between 20 and 40 minutes. After 20 minutes, you could wipe a small amount of color off a strand with a towel and check on the color.
   • If you’re happy with the color, you can wash it out, if you’d like it to be richer, reapply dye to the strand and leave it on longer. Just make sure you don’t go over the recommended processing time, as this could damage your hair or even make it fall out.
   • If you're unsure of how long to leave the color on your hair, you’re best off doing a patch test beforehand. That will give you a good idea of how long to leave the dye on to get the color you want.
10. Wash the color out. Once the color has processed, rinse it out with cool water, then shampoo and condition as normal.
11. Be gentle with your hair. After washing your hair, gently squeeze the water out with a towel — don’t rub your hair quickly or be otherwise rough with your hair while drying it. You’ll also want to avoid heat styling it for as long as possible after dyeing it.
    • Ideally, you’ll avoid heat styling your hair all together.
12. Enjoy your gray hair! Remember that you will need to actively care for your hair now that it’s been bleached. Adding the gray color to it will have helped bring some life back into your hair, but it will still be delicate.

Caring for Your Gray Hair

1. Be very gentle with your hair. Bleached hair is fragile and damaged hair, even if it is in the best condition it can be. Take care of your hair, don't shampoo it if it feels dry and don't go overboard on the brushing, straightening and curling.
   • Most of the time, you’ll want to let your hair air dry. If you must blowdry your hair, be sure to use the coolest setting.
   • Avoid applying heat or otherwise manipulating your natural hair texture as much as possible, as this can cause your hair to break off — you could end up with chunks of hair sticking out from your head that are only an inch or two long.
   • If you simply must straighten your hair, you can achieve a straightening effect with a blow dryer and a round brush — do this as an alternative to using a straightener.
   • You’ll want to comb your hair with a wide-tooth comb.
2. Treat your hair with a pre-wash primer (optional). Bleached hair is porous and can more easily be discolored by water. Priming your hair before you wash it will help repel the water and protect your color.
   • Pre-wash primers can be purchased at salons, beauty supply shops, drugstores, and online. They often contain oils, for example coconut or almond oil, to help boost your hair’s moisture before washing.
3. Leave time between washings. Many specialists recommend washing you hair only once a week after bleaching it. Shampoo strips your hair of its natural oils, and your bleached hair will likely need all the oil it can get.
   • If you regularly work out/sweat or use a lot of products in your hair, you can likely bump this up to twice a week. You can also substitute dry shampoo for a wash.
   • When you dry your hair, gently pat and squeeze it with a towel — don’t rub the towel quickly over your head as this can cause more damage to your hair.
4. Know which products to use on your hair. Use products specially made for bleached, color-treated, and damaged hair: a purple toning shampoo and a deep conditioner at the very least. Avoid products that volumize your hair, as these can dry it out.
   • A good hair oil will keep your hair looking softer and less frizzy. Some people swear by extra virgin coconut oil to reduce frizz and help condition their hair.
5. Deep condition your hair at least once a week. Purchase a good deep-conditioning treatment from a salon or a beauty supplies shop. Avoid drugstore brands as these may only coat your hair, leaving it feeling waxy and weighed down.
6. Try not to let your roots grow too long. Try to renew your color when your roots are an inch at the longest. This will help keep your hair looking more even. If you let your roots grow longer, it may be more difficult to touch them up without having them clash against the rest of your hair.
7. Know how to touch up your roots and hair. The process for bleaching, toning, and dyeing your roots is almost exactly the same as for doing your entire head. The only difference is that you’ll be doing just your roots, and not the rest of your hair.
   • If the rest of your color needs a touchup, after bleaching your roots you can apply the toner to all of your hair, then after that’s rinsed out, apply the gray dye to your whole hair, too. This time though, start at the roots and work down, since the roots will need more color.
   • Some experts recommend leaving a bit of roots at all times just to keep your scalp and hair follicles healthier. If you choose to do this, you’ll never apply the bleach to your entire roots, as you’ll be wanting to keep it off your scalp.

Tips

• Going to the salon may cost more, but it’s especially recommended if you have coarse, dark hair that may take multiple bleachings, and/or if you have never bleached your hair before.
• The whiter your hair, the purer your gray will be, so get it as white as possible before dyeing it gray!
• Before dyeing your hair gray, consider using a hair color app or website to see how you look with gray hair. It’s a lot of time and money to get black hair gray, so make sure that you really want it before you do something so expensive and damaging to your hair.
• Dye your hair in a time span where you have ample amounts of time to fix any errors, without having a big job interview, the first day of school, a wedding, etc. No big events!
• Take your time with doing your hair. Keeping large spaces between bleaching/dying and using this time to condition your hair, will help keep it in the best possible condition.
• Your hair may require toning more than once.
• Gray hair, like any hair that requires regular bleaching, takes time and money to maintain. Consider carefully whether or not you are prepared to invest a lot of effort into your hair color before dyeing it.
• If you end up wanting a different look, then wait at least 2 weeks before dying with a permanent hair dye.
• If you decide to dye your hair a different color after bleaching it, you may need to use a filler to fill in the missing pigment from your white hair before you apply the color.
• If you’re unsure of what shade of gray will look best with your skin tone, go to a wig shop and try on different wigs. Note that some shops may charge you a fee for this, and most shops will require that you try on wigs with the help of an salesperson. Call ahead to a local wig shop to ensure they have time to help you.
• If you insist on using hot styling tools, be sure to use a good heat protectant on your hair first. These come in sprays, creams, and mousses, and are available at your local beauty supplies shop or salon.
• The bleaching process works best on healthy hair that has not been previously dyed, permed, straightened or otherwise chemically treated.
• If dyeing your hair at home, how much you’ll need of each product will depend on how much hair you have, and which products you’re buying. Always buy a little more than you think you’ll need, just to be on the safe side.

Warnings

• Do your best to keep hair dye off of your skin, as it can stain.
• Keep bleach off of your skin at all costs, as it can irritate and burn you.
• Bleach can damage your hair — be careful and keep it well conditioned!
• If you do not use gloves, the bleach will sting any open skin, turn it into an ugly white color and make it feel extremely dry and itchy.
• If you go into the bleaching process with hair that's already damaged or weak, you risk more serious damage or breakage. Don't style with heat products or regularly shampoo before bleaching.
• Swimming in chlorinated water can turn your hair a greenish color. If you must swim, apply a conditioner to your hair and place it in a swimming cap before getting in the water.
• Do not bleach your hair right after washing it. You have removed the oils that protect your scalp, so your scalp and hair will be a lot worse for wear than if you wait at least 24 hours.
• Frequent dyeing and bleaching can weaken the hair over time, as these are harsh chemicals.
• Be patient with your hair. If you try to go too white too fast, you could end up causing hair breakage, hair loss or chemical burns.
• To keep your hair as healthy as possible, use only styling products that will moisturize your hair. Avoid anything that provides lift or volume, as this will dry out your hair.

Things You'll Need

• Bleach powder
• Developer
• Red gold corrector
• Hair toner (plus possibly developer)
• Gray hair dye
• Toning shampoo
• Tint brush
• Mixing bowl
• Gloves
• Towels
• Plastic wrap

Related Articles

• Dye Naturally Black Hair Silver
• Cover Gray Hair Naturally
• Naturally Dye Your Hair
• Use Henna on Gray Hair
• Bleach and Tone Dyed Black Hair
• Dye Hair Gray

Sources and Citations

See also

• Do Ecaille Hair Color
• Dip Dye Dark Hair
• Lowlight Gray Hair
• Lowlight Blonde Hair
• Bleach Hair Blonde
• Prepare Your Hair for Bleaching
• Color Hair With Food Coloring
• Dye Hair
• Dye Your Hair Brown After It Has Been Dyed Black
• Dye Hair Two Colors

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What links here

• Cover Gray Hair Naturally
• Dye Hair Gray
• Dye Naturally Black Hair Silver
• Look Evil
• Naturally Dye Your Hair
• Use Henna on Gray Hair