So today I ruined my hair.....

[TheaterDiva1]

Go to a beauty supply store and get "Red Be Gone."  That should tone down the brassiness.

[PastryGoddess]

Okay.  Step away from the box mixes!  I also recommend going to the salon.

If you can't afford the salon, which is the best option when you've messed up at home, here's what you do.

Go find a Sally Beauty or other professional salon supplier.

Buy a bottle of 10 strength developer.  You don't want any stronger (higher numbers), because you do not want to strip any color out of your hair when you do this.

The way most professional hair color works is that it has a number that indicates how dark it is, and a letter or pair of letters telling you the tones.  Some of them have other systems, but most of them will be something like "5RG" - which is a medium red-gold color.

Have one of the employees help you find the dye.  You probably need a darkness 4 or 5 to cover, depending on just how light your hair is now, and you need one with a V tone - that's violet.  Probably a BV or an NV - have the employee help you decide, as she'll be able to see your hair and give you better advice than I can on the specifics.  That will correct the brassiness.

I'd give it a day and a good wash and extra pampering conditioning before you do the dye-over.

POD to this.  I would also add that after you recolor you should do an intensive protein treatment followed by a deep conditioner to minimize the damage of coloring your hair twice.  I use Nexxus Polymedic Emergency Reconstructor.  I buy it from Amazon, but you should be able to get it at CVS/Walgreens/Walmart/Beauty supply store

[MrsVandy]

I am a hair dresser. I would go to a salon or a school as my first choices. Most salons around here start at 60-100 for colour correction, the school's run closer to 30.

 No matter what do not use a box. Most boxes that are ash are a green based ash so they do not remove orange and they can turn brassy hair green. Also many boxes neutral is really ash, and yes its still that green based ash.

If you cant get to the salon or school, go to the beauty supply store. Get a blue based ash and a neutral they will help you with the mix. If its more yellow for violet.

Depending of how orange or yellow it is you may wish to try a purple or blue shampoo (also sold at the beauty supply) they will remove brassiness in 2-3 washes.

[Syfygeek]

In the drug store buy a box or two (depending on how thick your hair is) of Color Oops.  Follow the directions and wash you hair multiple times.  It will take the dye out.  I know, due to my supposed to be auburn that came out nearly black home dye job.

My cousin told me what to go buy, She is a hairdresser.

I used color oops last week.  Strand test for time is key and must be done.  That stuff was amazing!

[mbbored]

I had a color oops, tried fixing it myself and made it way worse, wrecking my hair in the process. Go to the salon, I found one in my area who did it for 50.

[kareng57]

If you have absolutely no other options ( such as a beauty-school or a budget salon)...

back in the days when I was doing my own hair-colouring, I found that my "usual" shade of Loving Care just wasn't doing it, so I went for the next-darker shade.  It came out jet black.  Yikes!  But that's how I found out that Loving Care just doesn't work when you're more than 40% grey...

I endured a couple of days of the family making cracks about Elvira, Mistress of the Dark but recognised that I had to do something.  An acquaintance advised ordinary dishwashing liquid.  It wasn't an instant-fix, but it did take a few shades off the black and the rest did subside within a few weeks.

[dietcokeofevil]

My mom had a hair dye mishap one time.  She called the help line on the box and they were able to help her fix it.

[afbluebelle]

I swear by the Garnier Nutrisse Level 2 black hair dye... it has saved me a stack of paperwork for accidental hair incidents.

[Mikayla]

OP here.  Thanks for all the great suggestions!  Even though it's majority opinion, I really want to avoid a salon if possible (it's a money and time issue).  Thus far I haven't done anything.  I may end up using the suggestion of a deep conditioning treatment and then applying a semi perm product.  I also liked the Sally Hansen idea.  My roomie gets all her hair supplies there and if she was in the country, I could talk to her about this.

FWIW, I do blame myself for this and not the product.  I've been using Loreal semi permanent for years, just because my hair looked so healthy when I was done and I got so many compliments!  I'd only used the permanent once a year ago and had the same result.  I guess you can't just use a lighter shade on dark hair, even just a little lighter.

[NyaChan]

Well you can do things to lighten your hair, it's just risky when you are using a box and aren't properly trained.  Salons could probably manage it, but doing it at home can be difficult.  Have you considered henna or natural dyes?  I use that sometimes and it gives my hair a nice red-brown color when I'm in the right light & there are some great tutorials online.

[Mikayla]

Well you can do things to lighten your hair, it's just risky when you are using a box and aren't properly trained.  Salons could probably manage it, but doing it at home can be difficult.  Have you considered henna or natural dyes?  I use that sometimes and it gives my hair a nice red-brown color when I'm in the right light & there are some great tutorials online.

Ha!  That's what my other (male) roomie said -- that it didn't look too bad unless I was standing directly under a light!

But I should have said if I go the semi perm route, it would be the color I usually use.  It's a darker one that is my real hair color, or maybe even a shade darker. 

Also, my biggest issue is a huge event at the end of the month.  I may wait about 10 days and then try it. 

[PastryGoddess]

Well you can do things to lighten your hair, it's just risky when you are using a box and aren't properly trained.  Salons could probably manage it, but doing it at home can be difficult.  Have you considered henna or natural dyes?  I use that sometimes and it gives my hair a nice red-brown color when I'm in the right light & there are some great tutorials online.

Ha!  That's what my other (male) roomie said -- that it didn't look too bad unless I was standing directly under a light!

But I should have said if I go the semi perm route, it would be the color I usually use.  It's a darker one that is my real hair color, or maybe even a shade darker. 

Also, my biggest issue is a huge event at the end of the month.  I may wait about 10 days and then try it. 

I was going to post that you should wait a few days before recoloring so you can get used to the color as is.  Why don't you take this time to do a deep condition and baby your hair.  That way when you do recolor, it won't be mad at you

[MamaMootz]

I have been using boxed hair color, L'Oreal in particular, since I was 16 years old and went prematurely grey. I have made mistakes with their hair color before when I was much younger, and they make a hair color removal kit. If you can find one, (call pharmacies in your area) I would recommend using that and then wait a day or so - then see a salon if it still needs repair.

I am a big fan of the L'Oreal products - they never damage my hair and I like the resultant colors. But I have also been using them for over 30 years. Good luck to you -

[Seraphia]

Well you can do things to lighten your hair, it's just risky when you are using a box and aren't properly trained.  Salons could probably manage it, but doing it at home can be difficult.  Have you considered henna or natural dyes?  I use that sometimes and it gives my hair a nice red-brown color when I'm in the right light & there are some great tutorials online.

Ha!  That's what my other (male) roomie said -- that it didn't look too bad unless I was standing directly under a light!

But I should have said if I go the semi perm route, it would be the color I usually use.  It's a darker one that is my real hair color, or maybe even a shade darker. 

Also, my biggest issue is a huge event at the end of the month.  I may wait about 10 days and then try it.

Semi-permanent might be ok, but be forewarned. Because you lightened your hair, it's going to be more porous, and may pick the color up MUCH faster than you are used to. Conditioning and babying your hair for a bit is a good idea.

I used to work for Sally Beauty and sell color, and the one thing that nobody ever seems to do, that everyone really ought to do, is a strand test. I know it's extra time. I know it seems like a filler step. But if you're doing it yourself, test it first. Even the exact color you were shooting for can be pretty shocking when you have a head-full.

And no, you can't lighten hair with a box color. Color doesn't work like paint, where the light covers the dark. It's a lot more like wood stain or watercolor paints. If the color is say, chestnut, you can darken it to walnut, but if you then want to make it chestnut again, you have to get rid of the dark thoroughly, or you just wind up with odd colors.

[Winterlight]

I vote for going to the salon. Sorry, OP, but this is one of those moments where me mucking about with it is guaranteed to make things worse.