Color Oops Extra Strength Hair Color Remover, 1 Application

This is great for removing permanent hair dye. It smells horrible, but it gets the job done with less damage than using a hair lightener (bleach). If you have long or thick hair, you may want to get two bottles. Make sure to have reasonable expectations. This product is unlikely to restore your hair to its original color. You'll likely need to follow up with color correction. The great thing about this product is that you can apply a toner or dye immediately after using it. I've accidentally gone too dark, and this could only lift so much of the black dye out of my over-processed hair. I waited a couple days, using deep conditioning masks, then gave my hair a gentle bleach wash to remove the remaining pigment to achieve the base color I needed. I don't think I could've safely achieved the desired results without first using this color remover. Also, if you dye your hair often, it's nice to use this every once in a while to kind of get a "clean pallet" of hair to work with. That way your hair color comes out more predictable and even. *Note: Rinsing is very important when using this product. I have both long and thick hair, which is very porous from over-processing with bleach and high-level developers for the past year. I spend about 45 min rinsing this product and unwanted color dye from my hair. Maybe I go a little overboard; but if you don't rinse well enough, your unwanted color could return or your hair will turn out in uneven shades. (This may not be apparent right away. I messed up once, and it took 2 days for my hair to gradually darken.) Also, I tend to spend a long time rinsing my hair because I'm paranoid about smelling like rotten eggs (which is basically what this product smells like). Anytime I've used this product (at least 5 times), I felt like I smelled bad for a couple days. I asked people if my hair smelled bad. They'd always say no. However, there was no denying that my bathroom and room smelled horrendous. You'll want to immediately throw your trash out when finished with this product. If you have even semi-clogged drains, you'll want to unclog them because any trapped hair will continue to emit that rotten egg smell. Even though this is not bleach, this will leave your hair dry (not anywhere close to the damage bleach will do, though). It will leave your hair feeling slightly damaged or fragile for a bit. However, the dryness seems to go away within a week or so. I think it's because this leaves your hair shaft open (that's basically how you're able to wash the color out). If you don't need to recolor your hair right away, I would suggest immediately following this up with a protein and moisturizing treatment. And let your hair rest as long as possible before recoloring it.

This is my second time using this product. It definitely works. It lifted all the dull black dye from my hair which was previously dyed a burgundy brown on top of my natural brown black hair. After lifting the black there was a lot of brassiness. Like other viewers may have mentioned there is a strong sulfur smell that lingers and is strongest when hair is wet. Last time I used the product it took about a week or slightly longer to fade. This time around, I got it out it less than 14 hours with only a slight hint of it at future washes for up to an additional 4-5 days. Like a waft when I first wet my hair in the shower then it faded as soon as I started sudsing up my hair. I used 2 boxes. 1. To get an even result make sure you part you hair in sections and detangle before using. Apply tilting your head back or to the side...don't let the chemicals get in your eyes. 2. After rinsing, I used Tio Nacho Younger Lookingg Shampoo for my first round of back to back shampoo-rinse-repeat cycles. The tomato and ginseng ingredient help pull the smell and toxins from your hair. 3. 2nd round of shampoo-rinse-repeat was done with Maui shampoo. The aloe base helps revive, rehydrate and protect your hair. 3. Used a high quality tomato paste (tube) and put it my hair just like hair dye, section by section then wrapped and let sit for 3 hours. It helped neutralize most of the sulfur odor and even more amazingly, pulled ALL the brassiness out my hair. Went from reddish brown to just medium-dark brown. Rinsed and did another tio nacho shampoo. 4. Hair is dried out a bit so I then used my Deity America Extra strength deep penetrating conditioner. This has a very strong Chinese herbal scent but it revitalized my curls and helped pull out the last of the sulfur smell. I let it sit for about 30min before rinsing. I still smelled it throughout the night (hair was wet) but the next morning I couldn't smell the sulfur in my dried hair anymore except for the wafts during subsequent showers as mentioned above. For context I have thick, long wavy/curly Asian and black mixed hair that is very porous. By getting the brassiness out with tomato paste it kept me from redying my hair immediately. My hair would have gotten really dark if I did because the product opens it up the cuticles and your hair will grab color really quickly. I am planning on trying to re dye in about a week. Whew this was long but hope it helps someone. For the shampoos and deep conditioners, these are just products I already use. I'm sure you can get the same or even better results with other similar products.

Read these reviews carefully if you intend on buying this product! I wish I had paid more attention to the previous reviewers because I'm seriously regretting my decision to purchase and use this product. While I can't really comment on the intended purpose of this color remover, I purchased it after reading numerous recommendations on the internet (forums, blogs, youtube videos) for fading or partial removal of direct dyes like Manic Panic or Special Effects. The product does not advertise that they can remove direct dyes, so while it did absolutely nothing to fade the purple dye in my hair, it did a lot more that I hadn't bargained for. Problem #1: The product advertises that it does not damage your hair, I found that to be false. I have long, healthy, silky hair with very little breakage or hair fall. My hair does not tangle or snarl easily and I rarely have a knot. This product turned my entire head of hair into one giant knot. My hair was about 6 inches shorter from all of the tangles I had to work out. It now feels dry and straw-like after several deep conditioning treatments. Problem #2: While many of these types of products come with the warning of "smells terrible!" this one is ten times worse than anything I've ever smelled. I've been to my share of salons and helped friends both perm and dye their hair. I can handle the smell of nail polish and acrylic liquids for hours and it doesn't bother me. I work in a laboratory around hazardous chemicals and the smell of dead rotting fish and it doesn't bother me as much as this smell. This stuff REEKS. I'm not talking it smells when it's in the bottle and it smells when it's on your head. The smell lingers. The smell lingers for WEEKS. Overall I wish I had never wasted my time and money on this product. Even if you are desperate to remove an unwanted box dye color from your hair, this stuff isn't worth it. Go to a salon where professionals use professional level products that don't have you smelling like a sulfurous outhouse for weeks.

I have used this product several times in my life and have always been satisfied with it BECAUSE I KNOW WHAT ITS SUPPOSED TO DO, AND WHAT IT WILL NOT DO! First of all, this will NOT take you back to your original, natural, hair color, as its not supposed to. When you dye your hair (no matter the color) you use a developer which is made from hydrogen peroxide; this is what lifts the hair cuticle so your hair can absorb the color molecules of permanent and semi-perm dye. EVEN IF YOU DYE YOUR HAIR BLACK this is the process, so your natural color has been permanently compromised by the developer. Generally your natural hair is now, at the minimum, a shade lighter. if your natural hair color was dark, it will pull red because the undertone of dark hair is red. Ok, now having said that... what this product does, if you use it properly (meaning you use enough of it and follow the directions) is remove the oxidized color molecules, thereby removing the DYE COLOR only. not the effects of the developer. Your hair will be left with the color that the developer lifted it to which is usually a lighter brassy or red color. Having said that - most people will need to re-color their hair after using the product to get a shade they like, or at the very least TONE out the brassy, if you don't mind the actual shade/LEVEL. However, I would advise waiting 3-7 days after using the product to do so as your hair cuticle is recovering from the process and will absorb much more color often giving you a darker re-color than you intend. Yes, the product smells. It has a sulfuric odor (rotten eggs) that many people describe here. That is the mild chemical that slightly lifts the hair cuticle (similar to, but nowhere near as much as developer) and deoxidizes the color, shrinking the dye molecule to a smaller size so it can wash out of your hair shaft. The process does dry your hair (it is still a chemical, but not as strong as peroxide or bleach) as does the process of shampooing with hot, hot water which is required to remove the color molecules. Make sure to get a good conditioner/hair mask or some coconut oil to moisturize afterwards. The hair masks and coconut oil will also help with removing the lingering smell, which usually lingers for a day or two. If you have dyed your hair many times you will likely have a lot of color molecule saturated in your hair, so you may have to use the product more than once to get it all out. Always start by applying the product at the ENDS of your hair, where you will likely have the most accumulated dye, and do the roots LAST! Also wrap your head to keep the heat in, as heat helps the product to work. Sometimes, before I wash it out, I will use a hair dryer to heat up the ends as a little boost. Your roots will get heat from your head, so they will likely process better. (similar to bleaching) You will need to wash your hair very well, several times, preferably with clarifying shampoo and rinse, rinse, and rinse with the hottest water you can stand. Again heat helps wash the color molecules out. Do this for at LEAST 15mins, but longer if you can stand it. You will need to deep condition your hair well after all this, because it is a "stripping" process. (both the chemical process and the extensive washing and rinsing, but it is a lot less damaging than coloring, and certainly less than bleach! (both of which you always use a deep conditioner after, right?) I have had my hair every color under the sun since I'm 14, and I've used Color oops often. It works. End of story. You just need to have realistic expectations of what it can do, when you follow the directions. Its good to HAVE AN UNDERSTANDING OF HOW HAIR COLORING ITSELF WORKS before you use this product so you understand how this product reverses that process. It will also help you understand why IT DOES NOT WORK ON DEPOSIT ONLY COLORS like Manic panic, artic fox, etc, that only "coat" the hair shaft, not penetrate like permanent dye. It's not a magic wand, or a genie, so, no, it won't get you back to your pre-dyed hair color, but it will get the color you don't want out of your hair shaft so you can re-color or tone it. It's also good for removing color build-up so dye takes better to your hair. Please research how permanent hair-dye coloring works and have REALISTIC expectations, and you won't be disappointed.

I have dark blonde/light brown hair. I tried Natural Instincts 4RV Dark Burgundy, Rich Plum which is supposed to be a demi-permanent color that washes out after 12-24 washes. It's been 6 months and I still have dark red hair! The brightness faded, but the dark color is still there. I tried all the homemade recipes I found online with things like baking soda, vitamin C, and dawn dish soap--it had no impact on the color (but dried the heck out of my hair!) After researching, I decided to take a chance on Color Oops since it sounded like the worst that could happen was that there would be no change. I wish I had done this months ago! Most of the color came out. I would have done another round of Color Oops but I have long thick hair so I used up the whole bottle on the first application. That said, I'm still happy with the results. I'm buying it a second time because I think that will get the rest of the color out. But even the color I'm at now is so much better than the DARK red/brown it was before. This is so much closer to my natural color. The only drawback to Color Oops is the smell--it's like rotten eggs. It didn't bother me when I was using it, but a day later I can still smell it on my hair. It's weird because you have to do SO MUCH shampooing and rinsing while using this product, you would think it would rinse the smell away. You leave it in your hair for 20 minutes, then shampoo and rinse for 20 minutes (yes 20!), then shampoo and rinse for 5 minutes, shampoo and rinse 5 more minutes, shampoo and rinse for 5 more minutes. It's a loooong shower. But it's worth it because I was so sick of that box dye color. I followed the instructions to a T, setting my phone on timer mode just outside my shower where I could peek out and check how long I had left for each step. It feels excessive but the instructions stress how important all the rinsing is. I wonder if the reviewers who saw no difference were rinsing long enough. I wanted to leave this review because, when researching, I had a hard time finding anyone mentioning a product that definitely removes Natural Instincts demi-permanent hair color. So here is one that does! But you may have to use it more than once. If you have short hair, you can get 2 uses out of Color Oops and that's probably all you'd need. UPDATE: bought a 2nd box of Color Oops and it made NO difference. I dragged a space heater into the bathroom to make sure it was warm in there (directions say not to be near a cold draft). I even did an extra shampoo and rinse session! There's was absolutely no difference, so I think the results you get from 1 application are the best you're going to get. So I'm taking my rating down by 1 star because Color Oops made a significant difference but did not remove the color completely. The best tip I can give to anyone reading this is: Don't believe ANY BRAND of demi-permanent dyes, they do not fully wash out of hair!!!!!!!!!!

Follow the directions and it works great! Removes color without bleach and left my fine thin hair in great condition.

LOVE this stuff, yes, it stinks. Yes it takes FOREVER to rinse, like I shampoo and rise my hair repeatedly for about 30 minutes, I even set a timer. But dear God does it work!!!! The only thing I still have is this stupid dark band from color that was supposedly only 20V semi permanent, back in SEPTEMBER!!!!!!!! It has faded a little but still annoying. Not color oops fault. I have even tried bleaching it lately and the band still won't completely fade, hence my evil eye in the second photo lolol.

It would be one thing if this product just didn't take the color from my hair, but it also has left my hair smelling of sewage for days. I'm on day three now and the smell just won't go away no matter how much I scrub my hair and scalp. Might work on removing lighter dye jobs, but it didn't even budge the brown dye from my hair. I seriously recommend splurging on something better.

Brilliant product. Got all the colour out of my hair (and there were alot) only thing is, it smells awful. Would definitely recommend

ça a vraiment bien fonctionné sur moi. J'avais les cheveux rouge vif (coloration semi-permanente à base de pigments) et ça a bien dégorgé. Certes l'odeur n'est pas agréable mais après les deux shampoings recommandés l'odeur était totalement partie. Il a également fallu rincer très longtemps pour que le produit prenne toute son efficacité (encore une fois comme recommandé) donc je conseille de vraiment bien suivre les instructions. J'ai fait un bon masque hydratant après et mes cheveux ne sont pas plus abîmés qu'avant application

I NEVER leave reviews but I will for this. I was absolutely terrified to try this with such mixed reviews everywhere. Id recently box dyed my blonde hair to crimson/burgundy. By box 3 I was over it. And here we are now. Did exactly as the box said. And im not even mad at the end colour.. Shampoo, rinse and REPEAT, REPEAT, REPEAT!!! I watched as each rinse changed and im so happy with the so result.

Så många försök med andra produkter sen år tillbaka. Men detta löste color opps Så bra

Horrible!!