Do you have a brassy orange or yellowish hair color naturally? Or, you have ended up with it while trying to bleach your hair to get platinum grey or a light blonde tone?
You will love to get rid of the orange tone in both cases because it is not one of the most appealing hair colors. So, can you use purple or lavender dye on orange hair to do the trick?
It is an excellent idea to dye purple over your orange hair because purple dye’s blue/violet pigments will neutralize the orange stains. However, a few things, like your exact hair tone, are crucial before applying a purple dye to your orange hair.
After talking with our expert beautician, Ifza Rana, we have put together some essential points to help you dye your orange purple.
4 Cases Where You Might Dye Purple Over Orange Hair
There can be four cases of why you have orange hair. The first one is a bit unusual; you naturally have orange hair. People call it red, but in reality, it is dark, normal, or light orange hair. Ireland has 10% of its population with orange hair.
The most common are the following three cases of using purple dye over your orange hair:
1. Corrective Hair Coloring
We’ve all been there – you wanted to go lighter or try something new with your hair, so you DIY’ed it or went to a cheaper place. But you ended up with orangey brassiness instead of gorge blonde hair!
A very common thing!
The orange-brassy color after bleaching your hair is an undertone.
2. Purple to Cancel Out Orange Hair Color
If you wonder if purple cancels the orange hair tone, you might have looked it up on the color wheel.
The theory is that purple can cancel out orange hair tones because they are exact opposites on the color wheel. However, the resulting hair color will vary based on the intensity of the orange hue and your hair type.
You’ll need to tailor the approach to achieve the ideal hair color.
3. Reviving Faded Orange Hair
If you’ve previously colored your hair, the vibrancy might fade over time, and undertones like orange or yellow color are likely to come out.
Adding purple over faded orange hair can replace those brassy tones with a new fresh purple tone.
So, in any of these circumstances, if you want to change the tone of your hair to something that makes you feel better about yourself, what options do you have?
We have covered a few options, like using a purple dye for your orange hair or employing toners.
The other crucial thing is what you will get after applying purple dye to your orange hair.
What To Expect When You Use Purple Dye On Orange Hair?
It all comes down to your hair’s shade and what you want as the final color. If you haven’t bleached your orange hair and want to apply purple dye directly, the results will differ from those with blonde hair. So, the first thing is to decide the tone of your hair.
You will achieve a pastel purple tone if you have dark orange hair dyed deep purple or indigo. However, if you have light yellow hair, a light demi-permanent purple dye will produce a light bluish and purple tone.
But, if you want to lighten your brassy orange hair tone through purple dye, it may not work because it produces purple tones instead of lightening.
The following table summarizes the best possible hair color you get after dyeing your orange mane with a specific purple dye.
I would recommend doing a patch test before using any of the following combinations.
| Orange Hair Shade | Purple Dye | Hair Color (after dyeing) |
|---|---|---|
| Fiery Orange | Bright Violet | Bold Reddish-Purple |
| Copper | Plum | Deep Auburn-Purple |
| Ginger | Lavender | Soft Peach-Purple |
| Peach | Lilac | Pastel Peach-Lilac |
| Pumpkin Orange | Muted Violet | Toned-down Rusty-Purple |
Therefore, you will love knowing about the more effective and suitable methods to eliminate brassy tones.
The following are the results Lindsey Ford Bunting got after her stylist used a purple dye over her orange hair.
Use A Dark Blonde Box Dye Over Orange Hair
According to the beauty magazine of L’Oréal, using a dark blonde dye over your orange hair can efficiently neutralize the brassiness in your hair.
They recommend using an ashy shade dye because it works best to cancel the warmth of your orange hair.
However, it is your choice to choose whatever color you want as a final look on your hair. So, you are good to go with any but make sure you buy one with an ashy shade.
Get the Best Tones Out Of Orange Hair Without Using A Dye
You may have natural orange hair or end up orange while trying to get a lighter hair color through bleaching. So, instead of bleaching your hair again, you should look for ways to lighten the orange tone, which doesn’t cause any damage.
Many girls believe using a dye over their orange hair is the only way to get to some other trendy hair tone; it is not. Other options are available, including using toners or shampoos to ease your headache.
1. Using a Toner to Lighten Orange Hair Shade
Hair toners are a blessing when lightening any of your hair colors. They don’t lift the color completely but lighten it by neutralizing the hair pigment. People often employ toner when their hair is left too dark after toning.
You can use blue or purple toner to fade the brassy tones on your orange hair. It will produce a lighter blonde color that you can change into any shade later.
2. Mixture of Blue and Purple Shampoo For Orange Hair
The blue color cancels out the orange; the blue shampoo will help lighten the brassy tones. You can also mix it with purple shampoo to accelerate the process.
The blue or purple shampoo will not remove the brassy tones in a single go. So, it will help if you use them two to three times.
FAQS About Orange Hair
1. What happens if you put the silver dye on orange hair?
If you put the silver dye on your orange hair, there will not be much difference in your hair color. Your hair may have the same orange or a few blue tones. For silver dye to work properly, you must have pale or light blond hair of level 8 or 9.
2. Which is the best ash blonde hair dye to eliminate orange?
L’Oréal Paris Superior Preference Fade-Defying Hair Dye is one of the best ash blonde dyes. It works well to cancel the orange tone of your hair, and its original blonde color stays longer.
3. Will light ash blonde cover orange brassy hair?
It depends on the level of brassiness and warmth in your orange hair. So, if you have low-status brassy hair, light ash blonde dye will cover it perfectly. However, dark ash blonde will be the best choice if you have completely orange hair.
The Takeaway
While using a purple dye over your orange hair helps cover the brassy orange tones, it does not lighten them. So, if you want to conceal your orange hair with a darker color, dyeing it purple will be a good option.
It produces light purple or bluish tones from your orange hair, which looks perfect.
However, other options like toners or blue shampoo work best to lighten the orange hair.
