[Sticky] Colour B4 Information

Can someone help me at the moment? I have Colour b4 on my hair right now, removing some dark brown dyed in roots that are below some natural regrowth. Below that is majicontrast pure copper and hot hot pink/napalm orange. I want to go red and pink this time. but up to the root. What process to I need to do as I was thinking of slapping on the maji as soon as I wash out the colour before, or slapping on a bright semi for tomorrow at work (because i'm a dj and I try not to look like a haggard mess). Has anyone any advice?? I'm desperate!

Use semi-permanents for a month, Magicontrast contains peroxide so can reoxidise any remaining colour molecules in your hair so you end up back where you started. The instructions on Colour B4 are excellent, it's worth reading the whole thing and following to the letter. Even with the extra long rinse and lots of agitation it's impossible to get all the colour molecules out first time. You may even want to repeat the Colour B4 if you are not happy with the initial result.

Thank you very much for your help! I've just washed out the colour b4 and the colour was VERY pale compared to what I have had for the last year. Got rid of the brown completely and the pink and orange become peachy, so i've decided to go over with atomic hot hot pink for now, just so I don't have a wretched mess, and then hopefully I can get the maji on the roots in a month. How long should I leave the pink on, and should I condition after???

So pleased Colour B4 worked so well for you first time!  😀 No idea what time of day it is where you are but if you want the strongest colour many people leave overnight, otherwise several hours, and your hair may well be conditioned enough after that. It would be worth doing a very dilute vinegar rinse when you rinse the dye out to helps the cuticle close/ hair feel softer and look shinier/ colour lasts longer. Atomic Pink is apparently borderline permanent - even bleach struggles to shift it - so hope you are sure you want pink if that is the shade you have!

what do you think counts as excessive straightening and what is "normal"?

I've got several applications of XXL Hypnotic red on my hair, which is on top of a hairdresser applied red, which is on top of several applications of brown (hairdresser and home).  I really dont know what my natural colour is!!  Sort of mousey, I think.....

Anyway, I'm wanting a change from the red and was wondering whether colour B4 would work for me?  I see various different levels of success when looking through the forum. 

I do straighten my hair every time I wash it - and sometimes inbetween washes - is this excessive?  Will my XXL colour be sealed in for ever?

Although I do think that much straightening is too much (heat will damage your hair, but straighteners force down the cuticle so it looks healthy even when it isn't), excessive in this context refers to the amount of heat used--if you're regularly straightening your hair on the highest settings (200+ degrees), it could potentially boil in the silicone and then not even bleach removes it.

But it is always worth giving colour B4 a chance to work first.

Umm - not sure about what temperature I staighten at - I have GHDs and they just have an on and an off!

I think I've already decided that I'm goinjg to give colour B4 a go anyway - I was just wondering what sort of results to expect really.  I don't expect it to get rid of all the colour in my hair anyway.

Thanks

generally GHDs are super duper hot. but ladies on here have had alot of success with b4, even with excessive heat. defos do it =) i imagine you'd get to dark ginger, bright ginge if you're lucky

There are no silicones in Live XXL Hypnotic Red, I used to use that one.  😉 I have cuticle staining from years of use so ended up half ginger and half close to my natural dark mouse, but a couple of sessions of Colour B4 Extra did shift loads of red/ brown tones so WELL worth doing IMO. No hair straighteners should be hot enough to permanently weld the silicones in any heat styling products you use, it is only the dyes. TBH you only have a couple of hours and a few quid to lose by trying, the product doesn't damage your hair as bleach can.

Really Firefox?!!  That's encouraging ! 🙂  I'm definitely going to give it a go - I was just wondering about what colour non perm to buy to cover the result really....?  Then it's just a case of plucking up the courage and deciding when to do it! 
TBH - I don't even know what colour  I want to get to yet - I've just decided that the red I put on last week is the last one and its time for a change!
I'll report back with the results!!

IMO what colour you go for depends partly on the results of a second Colour B4 Extra, how willing you are to risk bleaching and how long you feel you can live with two-tone hair or a shade you don't like. A lot of people freak when they see ginger/ orange and end up slapping bleach or box dyes on making the problem worse by the time they come to Hairdyeforum.

If you have cuticle staining (as I do) or underlying ginger in your hair (most browns and blacks do) you will need to dye a colour that is forgiving of an orange base for example reds, browns some pinks, some purples. If you want to go blonde, green or blue you will need to wait patiently for a couple of weeks before you start bleaching or bleach bathing. Try to cut back on the straighteners because these damage the internal structure of hair the same way bleach and peroxide does, and ALWAYS do a strand test before any permanent colour or lightening. While you are 'resting' your hair do clarifying washes to remove all silicones from your hair then apply protein reconstructors or coconut oil to deep condition. If you don't clarify the silicones block these from getting into the hair shaft where they are needed.

I'm expecting it to go gingery tbh - so I thought I would probably get a brown semi permanent to cover up the two or three tones it's likely to be for a month or so..... is that right?  Eventually, I want to go in a blonde direction - but I'm willing for that process to be a gradual one. 

Does that sound reasonable?

I only use straighteners when I wash my hair really - so about 3 times a week.

That is a lot of straightener use - 150 times every year - and AFAIK GHDs run hotter than dermatologists recommend. High temperatures are very damaging to the core structure of the hair, you get lulled into a false sense of security because the combination of silicone styling/ heat protection products and the flattening of the cuticle makes the hair feel in good shape. Maybe learn heat-free ways of straightening your hair like wet wrapping? Then just use your straighteners to touch up for a night out when you really want a perfect finish.
http://www.hairfree.bz/Article.pdf

A brown semi permanent is spot on. If you have cuticle staining you might not ever be able to bleach that out, so please do strand tests rather than bleaching your whole head. I'm not being preachy because I didn't strand test myself, but I was willing to lose the hair that had the staining and was already damaged (mechanical, I don't heat style). :-[ Having said that after I last posted I managed to lift more of the ginger by using Jo Baz in a different way - check out my thread in the Tutorials section. In total I did seven chemical processes and I will need to sacrifice a couple of inches of hair, at this point my ends could be babied but IMO straightening or any more chemicals and they would start splitting or snapping off.
http://www.hairdyeforum.com/index.php?topic=6197.0

Just remember not to use any brown with a developer, these will damage your hair, the only semi perm natural colours I know of that don't damage are those wash in wash out ones and adore? i think.. people have been talking about that recently anyway.
Just that things like casting creme gloss still contain peroxide.

Thanks Katie.  I will check to make sure there's not peroxide in whatever colour I put on afterwards.  I've been reading everything on this forum before I commit - so I'd already decided to check carefully!

Firefox - I have tried several non heat methods of straightening my hair in the past - but nothing works very well.  I'll see what shade I get to before I even try bleaching.  I'm not in a mad rush to go blonde - just a bit bored with the red now!  Like you - I'm willing to have a couple of inches chopped of my hair, if necessary to get rid of the darkest and most damaged parts. 🙂  Payday on Monday, so I'll be off the buy everything!  I'll let you know how it goes......