Why Brown Hair Turns Brassy (and What You Should Do About It)

• Hairstylist Tony Chaar explains why brown hair turns bronze (and what to do about it) in this consultation with readers.
• She recommends using a toner to achieve an ash brown base, and then add sun-kissed highlights.
• Want a consultation about your hair? Read more here.

Question: Hello, Tony. I want to refresh my hair and look, but I need some help finding the right color for me. I have always had dark brown hair and pale skin.

Recently, I got tired of looking like a vampire, and dreamed of being a blonde. So I dyed everything a medium brown and loaded the highlights.

I liked the change, but I wasn’t completely satisfied with how the orange and copper came out.

My hair is naturally thick, wavy/curly, and frizzy. I just want to know my options and what would look best for me. Please help! — Dinah

A:Dina, thank you for sending me your request for a hair consultation. I think it suits light hair well. So I totally agree with you about going slow.

But here’s the problem. The tone you have right now is too red for your skin. That’s what you hate about it. Your skin and your hair are fighting, and the hair will always win!

What happens here is that when your hair is lightened, it brings out the warm color underneath, mostly orange, that is underneath the brown hair. This is a normal part of the lightening process, but if those tones aren’t completely reduced with the right color or toner, they can set in and turn your hair brassy.

I think you should stay simple, but go for a cool tone. Your skin is best suited for short hair. That’s the copper pigment that has to go.

You can look natural with ashy or dirty blonde as your base:

You can even do a little JLo look, but on the cooler side:

Repairing your foundation to remove copper will be a very small task.

You need to ask your hairstylist to keep your hair the same color as it is now, but add a toner at the end to turn it into an ashier tone. You are probably level six or seven right now, and you should go to level seven double ash. Your hairdresser will know what that means.

That will probably hit the nail on the head, but if not, your hairstylist will have to use another toner on top of the double ash. This isn’t to darken the color, though—you need to keep it level seven, just shift it toward a cooler tone.

Pro tip: If we’re getting really technical, I recommend plucking (brightening) your eyebrows as well. Right now, they are very dark. Your hairstylist will probably have to use 8-1 volume ash and 10 volume peroxide for about 10 minutes just to break through half a shade. This will help your look to be consistent.

I would avoid adding highlights right now, because there is a lot of work that needs to be done to fix your base. It may take two or three visits for your hairdresser to get it right.

But over time, you can add highlights. They should be warm, like the look of gold, kissed by the sun:

For your cut, go for soft, long layers, which will work whether you wear them curly or straight. You look good with straight hair.

But you need to moisturize so your blow-dry doesn’t burn. I recommend using a deep conditioning mask regularly. Using a product like this will help you tame your hair and make it look smooth, not frizzy.

Product Selection

Multiple Student Hair Consultations