Can You Dye Your Hair Twice in One Day? | You Shouldn’t

It happens to the best of us. You dye your hair, and it doesn’t turn out exactly as you planned. To fix it, you might be wondering, “can you dye your hair twice in one day?”

Generally, it’s better to space any damaging treatments on your hair, but the circumstances matter when deciding if you can dye your hair twice in one day.

What Happens When You Dye Hair Twice in One Day?

If you’re using a harsh bleach or ammonia-based dye, you can seriously damage your hair if you try to dye it too frequently. From a technical standpoint, harsh chemicals attack the hair shaft’s cuticle, a protective sheath surrounding your hair.

The first round of hair dye damages and chips away at the cuticle. If you don’t add moisture back to your hair and immediately dye it, it’s like scratching at a sunburn; the rough outside edges of the cuticle will flake off of your hair entirely.

Without your hair cuticle, your hair will feel dry and damaged and is more prone to split ends and breakage.

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Bleach and Other Hair Dye

You should never bleach your hair twice in a single day. But what about when you bleach your hair and then want to color it? Using bleach and hair dye on the same day is possible, but most recommend against it.

You need to be careful if you choose to move forward with this path. If you bleach your hair and then want to add a permanent or demi-permanent hair dye, you will have better results using a hair-repairing mask or a deep conditioner between bleaching and dying.

If you want to use a semi-permanent or temporary hair dye after bleaching, you don’t need to do any additional steps. Your hair will always thank you for deep conditioning or a hydration mask, but semi-permanent and temporary hair colors are milder on the hair shaft.

Semi-permanent and temporary hair dyes deposit color onto the outside of your cuticle. While semi-permanent does minorly penetrate the cuticle to the shaft, it isn’t as extreme as the permanent or the demi-permanent.

Read Next: How Often Can You Bleach Your Hair?

Permanent and Demi-Permanent vs. Semi-Permanent and Temporary Hair Dye

If you dye your hair without using bleach and find that the color isn’t as intense as you wish, can you dye it again? It depends on the type of hair dye that you use.

Permanent and demi-permanent hair dyes use oxidation to add or remove color to the hair shaft through the cuticle. While these dyes aren’t as damaging as bleach, they cause minor cuticle flaking.

You can dye your hair again on the same day, but be cautious about the length of time you leave the color on your hair, so the total time for the day isn’t longer than instructed.

For example, if the box’s instructions said not to leave the color on your hair for longer than 40 minutes, and you washed the dye out after 30 minutes, don’t leave the second round on your hair for longer than 10 minutes.

You’re unlikely to ruin your hair if you follow these limitations. However, your hair will be healthier if you wait a few days and condition it between procedures.

You can use a temporary or semi-permanent hair dye twice on the same day without much worry of damage, so long as you don’t bleach your hair first.

Frequently Asked Questions

You’ve got a good look at hair dye and how it works on natural hair. However, the basics don’t cover every circumstance. If you still have questions about coloring your hair twice in one day, take a look at some of the questions people ask most frequently.

How soon can I color my hair again to fix it?

If you bleach your hair and want to bleach it again, you should wait at least one week. While you wait, you should deep condition your hair or use a hydrating hair mask as often as possible.

If you dyed your hair without bleach, you could dye your hair again the same day. However, your hair will be healthier if you wait at least three days and deep condition your hair in between treatments.

Can you dye your hair twice in one day without bleach?

You can, but if you’re using permanent or demi-permanent hair dye, make sure the total time in your hair for one day isn’t longer than the maximum time listed on the box.

If you need more time than the maximum suggested time, wait three days to one week and deep condition your hair before reapplying the dye.

Can I dye my hair black in one day?

Probably, yes. It is significantly easier to dye hair darker than to dye it lighter. Even if your hair is platinum blonde, you’ll likely be able to dye it black in one attempt. If your hair shaft is tough to penetrate, don’t go against packaging instructions if it needs a second dye job.

Can I dye my hair blonde in one day?

Probably not. If your hair is very light brown and you’re going for a dirty blonde, you might be able to dye your hair blonde in one day. However, if your hair is naturally black, there is no safe way to dye your hair blonde in one day.

You should lighten your hair slowly in increments of a few shades at a time. Some people with medium brown hair have the color lift from their hair quite quickly.

For these folks, the first bleach job will likely leave their hair a slightly orange-tinged shade between blonde and brown. If you want to safely remove some of the orangeness without redying your hair, consider using a purple shampoo and conditioner, as they remove brassiness from hair.

Wait at least one week between each bleaching and ensure that you deep condition and add moisture to your hair as frequently as possible to avoid additional damage.

Can I dye my hair brown twice in one day?

Yes, as long as the total time in one day of the color in your hair isn’t over the maximum box time, you can dye your hair twice with brown dye in one day. However, you should first ensure that your hair can dye brown with box dye.

If you have naturally black hair, dying your hair brown a second time won’t help. It’s impossible to dye your hair light brown without bleaching it first. Hair color will add hints of brown to your hair, but no matter how many times you dye it, your hair won’t get any lighter.

If you have blonde or natural red hair, you should be able to get your hair brown with the second application. If you have dyed red hair and you’re attempting to go brown, you may not need the second dye.

If your first dye job didn’t get you all the way to where you want to be, consider purple shampoo and conditioner. While purple shampoos and conditioners can’t get brassiness out of naturally red hair, they can pull it from dyed hair.

So, Can You Dye Your Hair Twice in One Day?

It very much depends on the type of dye you use. You cannot use bleach in your hair twice in one day. You might be able to use bleach once and another dye on the same day if you’re careful. Most people recommend against it, but you can do it with care.

The advice is the same for permanent or demi-permanent dyes. You can almost always use semi-permanent or temporary dyes twice on the same day, as long as you follow the instructions and warnings on the box label. Happy coloring!