Unfortunately, you cannot dye your hair using purple or any other pigmented shampoo. The reason is simple: these shampoos are not formulated to dye hair.
If left on the hair for an extended period, the purple shampoo will deposit a temporary violet hue or stain on the hair since it contains purple/violet crushed pigments. This transient appearance leads to the false belief that purple shampoo has coloring power.
Purple shampoo does not function in the same way as hair dye. The product is not formulated to open the hair cuticles to let the pigments penetrate the hair shafts to color them.
Instead, it only creates a stain wrapping around the hair strands that won’t hold on strong, and a few good rinses with clarifying shampoo will gradually fade it out.
Please beware of the potential damage of overusing purple shampoo and overexposing it to your hair. Experts advise only using a purple shampoo once every two weeks to correct the brassy yellow tones in the hair. Using too much of the product can leave you with dull, lifeless locks.
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What Happens If You Dye Your Hair With Purple Shampoo?
The hard truth is that it should be a futile attempt to use purple shampoo as hair dye. Purple shampoo can only turn your hair into a short-live, LIGHT lavender hue. Most importantly, it won’t work for anyone!
Most people who reported a visible color change in their hair after splattering purple shampoo on their dry hair have very light-colored hair.
In other words, purple shampoo can turn light hair or bleached white hair into a pale lavender, not any darker purple hue. If you have dark or brown hair, or a lot of dark pigments, the shampoo barely changes anything.
So, purple shampoo can give some “dyeing” effects when:
- You will need light-colored hair to create the best palette for pigments to hold on temporarily. This means that brown to dark hair just won’t cut it!
- Secondly, not ALL purple shampoos will give you a short-term violet hue – only those with plenty of violet pigments in them. All watered-down purple shampoos just do not have enough pigments to bring about a noticeable change.
- The last thing is how long it takes for the shampoo to work its supposed magic! People who jumped into the trend often leave the shampoo sitting in their dry, brushed-out hair for up to 24 hours.
The result is just a hint of purple that only shows up in a limited amount of time and easily fades after a few washes. Depending on the luck of the draw, you can get a beautiful, even hint or uneven, unsightly patches of lavender hue on your hair that you want to fix immediately.
Normally, the pigments in purple shampoo even won’t last as long as a semi-permanent dye (strictly speaking, its longevity cannot be a fraction of semi-permanent dye).
These are reasonable expectations you should have before taking the plunge, and now it’s your part to decide if this is a useful beauty hack or something to do to kill time.
How To Use Purple Shampoo Correctly?
Purple shampoos have gained a lot of traction over the years. It is a staple in the arsenal of those who often deal with brassiness or unwanted warm tones. If you want to use this toning shampoo to neutralize brassy, yellow tones, here’s the right way to use it:
Step 1: Wet Your Hair
Use lukewarm water to wet your hair. This helps to soothe your scalp and open up the hair shafts to absorb the purple shampoo better.
Step 2: Build The Lather
Pour the shampoo into your palm and gently massage it into your hair using fingers. Make sure you cover all the way from root to tip.
In addition, keep a close eye on those problematic spots and the ends since they are more porous and more prone to brassiness.
Step 3: Let The Shampoo Settle
Unlike regular shampoo, you should not rinse immediately. How long the shampoo should be left on depends on the hair’s conditions and sometimes the brand’s recommended waiting time.
If there’s no specified time on the package, it is advised to leave the shampoo for 2-3 minutes on natural blonde hair and 15-30 minutes on colored-treated or gray hair.
Step 4: Rinse It Off
Rinse off all the shampoo with cool water. You should be careful since any leftover can potentially leave your hair with a purple hint that you did not ask for!
Step 4: Follow Up With A Conditioner
After shampooing your hair, you should always apply a conditioner, especially a purple one. A purple conditioner replenishes moisture and repairs and restores not only the hair but also further tones the hair.
How To Get The Purple Out Of Your Hair?
Not all people are fortunate to end up with a beautiful hint of violet or lavender after “dyeing” their hair with purple shampoo. Instead, some are left with a horrible, uneven patch of color far from their dream hue.
You might also run into the same problem if you accidentally leave the product too long on your hair while removing the brassiness.
Clarifying Shampoo
This is one of the most gentle ways to remove purple stains from your hair. Clarifying shampoo contains powerful cleaning agents to strip oil, residue, and product buildup off the hair.
Since purple shampoo only leaves a temporary tint on your hair, it should be removed by clarifying shampoo.
However, it’s worth noting that you’re likely to use the product several times before completely removing those unwanted stains. Doing so can dry out the hair strands, so following with an intensive, deep conditioning treatment is recommended to restore moisture to the hair.
A dandruff shampoo also works the same way, so if you have it at hand, go ahead to use it to fix your stained hair.
Baking Soda
Baking soda is an effective home remedy for purple stains.
- First, mix 1-2 tbsp of baking soda with the amount of shampoo that you regularly use.
- Next, gently massage the mixture into the stained areas, and let it sit for around 30 minutes.
- Finally, rinse your hair with lukewarm water as normal!
Like clarifying shampoo, it takes a few attempts for the baking soda to remove the color, and the process can cause damage to the hair. Therefore, you should deep condition your hair once finished.
Color Remover
This is the most damaging method for your hair, so we only suggest using it in emergencies. To minimize damage, you should shoot for a bleach-free color remover.
Color remover is the least harmful if used correctly. Hence, make sure you follow the directions on the package while using the product and leave the product in for the recommended wait time.
Frequently Asked Questions
How Often Should I Apply Purple Shampoo?
Purple shampoo is not meant to replace regular shampoo, and experts only suggest using it once or twice a week . Since hair type and shade are different from person to person, it is advisable to look at your locks to see how severe the brassiness is.
If you just get started, you may want to stick to just once a week and alternate with a color-safe everyday shampoo. Then, increase the frequency until you achieve the perfect hue for your hair.
Can I Use Purple Shampoo For Dark Or Brown Hair?
The good news is purple shampoo is not exclusively made for blonde tresses. This toning shampoo also works with brunettes who lighten, such as with balayage or ombré.
They often find themselves dealing with the same type of brassiness. It’s worth noting that purple shampoo does not help a full head of brown or dark hair. You’ll need to use a blue shampoo to tone down fully brunette tresses.