Dark Brown Hair turned Orange when Highlighted

My daughter had her dark brown hair professionally highlighted. Her brown hair and the highlights now appear orange. The "professional" applied toner and left it on the hair for what seemed like at least 30 to 45 minutes. She hates her hair and does not want to be seen in public. Can we do anything to fix this at home? She wants her dark brown natural color back.

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If I were you, I'd take your daughter down to the salon and show them what has happened to her hair. You paid them for a service which didn't turn out well!

Toner's are rarely left on for so long but it could be the product she used. The only person who knows is the hairdresser who performed the service so it's best to ask her. You have a right to know!

A blue based ash blonde toner could help to neutralize the orange color but do strand tests (see below) first before you apply any color to all of her hair. Do a strand test on a section of the highlighted hair and also on her dark brown hair.

You might also try a few good shampoos with a harsh shampoo (like Prell) or dish soap to help pull out the color. You'll need to use the product in her hair for several minutes before rinsing it out. Afterward, you'll need to re-moisturize her hair like crazy though.

You could also try an ash dark brown hair color on her hair to blend the color and neutralize the orange. Any hair that was highlighted will be slightly lighter than the rest of her hair but it should blend well and there's not much you can do about it. Do not forget to do a few strand tests before application however.

Be aware too, that if you have hard water in your house and don't have a water softener, porous hair can pick up colors from the tannins in the water. Be sure she's using 'softened water' to shampoo and condition her hair.

Strand Test

Mix a very small amount of color and apply it to a small section of hair. Leave it on for the recommended application time but do check on it to make sure it's not making matters worse. If so, rinse immediately. If it seems to be working, leave the color on for the recommended time, then rinse.