Have you ever thought of mixing Arctic Fox hair dye with conditioner?
- If you’re thinking of mixing Arctic Fox with conditioner because you think it will damage your hair less, here’s the TL;DR version: it doesn’t.
- On the other hand, if your goal is to create a softer or pastel shade, then mixing dye and conditioner could work.
I learned all this from experience a few months ago, when I decided to go from a light blond to a violet.
For me, this was a drastic change, and a hard decision to make.
Imagine going from a regular blond to having bold purple hair that would stick out like a sore thumb.
It definitely wouldn’t go unnoticed. Was I ready for that change?
Finally, I decided to buy Arctic Fox Violet Dream. I bought it online, but when it arrived and I opened the container, I was frozen with fear.
The color was too intense, strong… just too purple.
And to be honest, I just wasn’t ready for such a drastic change.
But, since I don’t have money to burn, I didn’t want to throw the dye out either. After all, I was one who bought the wrong color. And then I had a lightbulb moment.
Why not mix the dye with conditioner? What would happen?
Mixing the dye with the conditioner subdues the color and brings it to a pastel shade, more of a lilac than a bright purple.
And yes, I do know that Arctic Fox has a lilac tone in its line. I might be scatterbrained, not I’m not blind. But I already had the dye, and wasn’t willing to waste the money I spent.
And, I wanted to experiment a bit. Worst case scenario, the dye would not lighten and I would just have to have purple hair for a while.
Does that sound a little crazy?
Well, it was a risky decision. But although drastic changes are hard for me, I’m also a pretty determined person. And I was determined to change my hair color, no matter what.
So, are you curious how to mix Arctic Fox with conditioner to create a softer color?
If you are, keep reading, because we’re going to discuss:
- How to create a pastel shade by mixing Arctic Fox with conditioner
- A trick to getting the most out of your dye and conditioner mix
- Why mixing semi-permanent dye with conditioner does not protect your hair from damage
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How to create a pastel shade by mixing Arctic Fox with conditioner
Check Arctic Fox hair color price on Amazon
So you’re thinking of mixing a dye and conditioner. There are all kinds of reasons someone might want a more pastel shade.
- Maybe you’re like me, and bought a color online that wasn’t exactly what you had in mind.
- Or maybe you want to create a softer, less bright version of your usual hair dye.
Pastel shades have one clear advantage over bright colors. As you wash your hair and the color fades, the change in color is less noticeable.
An electric blue and a sky blue will both fade after twenty shampoos, but one will be much more obvious.
The brighter the color, the more difficult it is to maintain and the more noticeable any fading will be.Which is what I was hoping to avoid.
So if you’re ready, I’ll go over exactly how to mix dye and conditioner to create a softer tone.
Ingredients and materials:
Check Dove conditioner price on Amazon
- ½ container of Arctic Fox dye
- An equal amount of conditioner (Oh! I almost forgot. It’s important to use a white conditioner.)
- Brush, to apply the mixture.
- Shower cap
- An old t-shirt
Step by step instructions:
- Like everything in life, when it comes to hair color, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. Hair dye stains everything in its path like it’s trying to take over the world with color. So before you get started, make sure to put on an old t-shirt and some gloves. Your skin and clothes will thank you.
- In a plastic container -no metal please- mix equal parts dye and conditioner.
- Once you've even mixed the two ingredients, it's time to apply it.
- Here's a tip: divide your hair into sections
Although it's up to you to decide to take my advice or not, dividing your hair into sections can be very helpful. Dividing hair into smaller sections makes it easier to cover each strand evenly. If you are determined not to divide your hair, I won't stop you, but you may end up with a hair color that looks like cheetah print.
- Now that all your hair is saturated with dye, all you have to do is let it process.
You may want to cover your hair with a shower cap, which helps retain heat so the dye can more easily deposit the color.
- After that, all you have to do is wait for your hair transformation to be complete! I let the mixture sit in my hair for half an hour, and reviewed some notes from one of my college classes in the meantime.
After thirty minutes, rinse your hair. Remember, it’s always best to rinse your hair in water as cold as you can tolerate after dying it.
There’s a simple reason for this: heat, whether it’s from hot water, a hairdryer, or a flat iron, causes hair dye to fade faster. Remember that you’re dealing with a semi-permanent vegan dye.
Why would that matter?
Semi-permanent dyes don’t contain peroxide or ammonia, and therefore only deposit dye on the outside layer of your hair. Which is less damaging to your hair, but also means the color doesn’t last as long, because the product doesn’t open the hair’s cuticle to deposit the new color.
Once you’ve rinsed out the dye, you’re ready to take a look in the mirror.
What did I see?
An absolutely gorgeous lilac! But what I liked most was that I had created a completely custom color
No one else had the same shade of lilac.
Want to know one more secret?
The more conditioner you mix in with the Arctic Fox due, the lighter the color will be.
But that’s not all.
Are you wondering what I do to keep from having to dye my hair every two weeks?
A trick to getting the most out of your dye and conditioner mix
Have you ever heard of a color gloss?
A color gloss is a treatment that revitalizes a hair color as it fades.
And I had exactly one half of a container of Arctic Fox left over.
After about ten days I noticed the lilac starting to fade.
At that moment, I had another lightbulb moment.
I could make my own color gloss.
And it would just take a few simple ingredients.
A small container full of conditioner (remember to choose a white conditioner, not one with dyes) and a spoonful of the leftover dye.
To be honest, this was an experiment and wasn’t sure how it would turn out. But I knew the worst that could happen is it wouldn’t revitalize the color, and all I would have is softer hair.
- I mixed the conditioner with the dye, and applied it like how I would apply a conditioning hair mask.
- Then I let it sit for about twenty minutes, and then rinsed it out.
And guess what happened.
Although my hair didn't look like it has just been dyed, the lilac looked a bit more fresh and bright. It had definitely revitalized the color a bit.
But we have one last thing to discuss.
Why doesn't mixing semi-permanent dye with conditioner protect your hair from damage?
I've said it before, and I'll say it again. Mixing the dye and conditioner won't protect your hair.
And the reason why is simple. Semi-permanent dyes simply don't damage your hair like permanent dyes.
First of all, because they do not contain hydrogen peroxide. And second of all because they do not affect your hair's internal structure. Basically, all vegan dyes cause less damage, whether or not they are mixed with conditioner.
If you want to keep your hair healthy, I would recommend a deep conditioning treatment with coconut or even olive oil about every three weeks.
Now you know just what you can do by mixing arctic Fox and conditioner: subdue the color to create a pastel tone.
Now it's your turn to share: have you ever mixed a conditioner and semi-permanent dye? How did it work for you?
