Have any of you brunettes ever put a blond dye on your dark hair to liven it up a bit? I'm thinking of using Garnier Nutrisse 'Dark Blond' on my very dark hair, thinking it may brighten it up a bit. You know how JLo went from dark to the lighter color she is now. I don't want anything that dramatic, which is why I'm thinking I might accomplish it this way instead of having it all lightened at a salon.

Mine just looks kind of dull right now. Do you think this will work?

My hair is very dark, and I dyed it blonde for several years. I did it at home for awhile... bad idea! It got very brassy and wasn't even. I would suggest going to a salon and letting a pro do it

I don't want it blonde. I wanted it just brightened up a bit and the greys I have to not look so.... well, grey. :)

For darker hair going lighter, you are most likely have to bleach you hair (even if you don't want to go blond). It's probably better off having it done at the salon. I highlighted my hair a few years ago and had to use the bleach kit.

There's a big possibility of your hair turning orange. I'd get it highlighted with bleach at the salon.

If you just want brighter color to your hair, don't try and use a blonde...use the color you want it to be...does that make sense? If you try and put a blonde color it's going to just go orange. If you hair is dark brown then use a lighter brown shade. Cut a piece of hair off your head from in the back(a hidden spot) and do a test color first on that hair to see how it's going to turn out. After you color the test hair, rinse that hair off and dry it to get a true color. I'm not a pro, hair coloring is a very specialized skill but I do have an Operator's License.

And if it is blonde streaks you are going for you will have to use a highlights kit and make sure you take the color all out of the hair to the pale yellow stage or else you'll have orange or yellow streaks. Do the same with the test strip to see what you think before it goes on your head.

I'm afraid your hair would turn orange.

I agree with the orange thing, my brother had very dark brown hair and when he was a teen I can remember him using a blonde dye on it and it turning a hideous orange (I'm 10 years younger than him and was probably 5 but I clearly remember that even though he fixed it quickly)

My hair isn't all that dark and when I tried to do that godawful 2 step Loreal dye and highlight kit the highlighted parts were a horrible orange.

If you want to brighten then I agree with ILYF, you should try going with the shade you want, when I want a change I generally go with one shade lighter or darker and try to use a dye with built in tones (red or gold or whatever) just to add some depth or shine. I think Loreal and Clairol both have a tool that recommends colors for you and Clairol at least lets you upload a picture so you can try a new color and style on.

Yeah Abbytabby reminded me...DO NOT try to go more than a shade or two lighter.

If you do try the highlighter, you must leave it on long enough to take the hair all the way to pale yellow stage and you would only want to paint this on small streaks. It is very strong so you don't want this on your skin at all! Must wear gloves!

I know it seems popular but that "zebra look" is awful! Dark hair just does not look right with white streaks IMHO. That's why I could never be a hairdresser now because I don't like what people are doing in the hair business these days. To me hair is supposed to accent your looks..not look like a neon sign on your head! :eek:

I would add a few caramel-y highlights instead of doing the blonde...that just sounds like disaster waiting to happen.

Well the problem with taking dark hair to a caramel color is that trying to achieve this at home is darn near impossible and a job best left to the pros! To achieve a caramel color on dark hair would be a double process and you have to take the color out of the hair and put a color back on it. Not a home job! A peroxide based color will only lift so much on dark hair leaving you with an orange at best...if you use a highlighter kit, you can't just lift it to a nice pretty color...you have to take all the color off or it's going to be orange or yellow. Unless they've come out with some new product that I'm not aware of. I was watching that reality show about the hairdressers that compete(can't remember the name)...and those people didn't even hardly know the basics of hair color!

Edit: Shear Genius was the reality show name.

I would use the shade you're after or have it professionally done. I'm personally afraid to mess with my hair too much at home.

I know a girl who did this, and it turned out wonderfully on her. She got a brighter brunette that was full of shine. I was hoping to find someone else who had done the same thing and could tell me their experience with it before I tried it. My hair is a LOT longer than hers (hers is only a couple inches long all over, and mine is to my bra band), and I'm not sure if that's going to make much difference. Plus she gets hers cut every few weeks since she keeps it that short, so any bad parts would be gone quick. I, on the other hand, keep the same hair for years. I'm still thinking on it.........

Let us know what you decide, Dar!