Home : Beauty tips : Hair : Lightening hair : Lightening your hair at home!


(193) comments about this tip

Hair lightener. Make your own hair lightener

Submitted by Kate

Ingredients

  • 2 cups water
  • 2 cups chamomile tea
  • 1 tablespoon of parsley
  • 1 tablespoon of lemon juice
Boil all the ingredients and let it simmer for 15 mins. Strain out the tea bags and parsley (make sure to remove all of the parsley) and let it sit till room temperature. Poor on to hair over a sink and rinse two or three times. Your hair should be smelling nice and looking lighter!

The following was sent in by Answers

Before I answer the questions that have been asked 20X, first you need to understand how hair lightening works. When you lighten your hair, this is not something that will "fade" or can be undone. It's something that is permanent (except for covering it with darker dye).

When you go to a salon to have you hair professional chemically lightened, this is a two-step process. Or if you buy hair lightener in a box - same thing. The "developer" (usually a mixture of peroxide and ammonia = very harsh) opens the hair shaft and strips it of its natural color. Then the (blonde) dye is added to achieve the new shade. Results are different on each person, depending on the natural color of your hair.

This chamomile/lemon mixture acts in the exact same manner - except it is a "natural" method and not chemical. The lemon juice is the natural "developer" and the chamomile adds the warm blonde tones (unique to each person depending on the natural color of your hair.

If you've previously dyed your hair darker than its natural color (i.e. dyed it black), then your hair has not been stripped of its real color. The shaft has been opened and a darker pigment has been added. This will fade over time if you stop dying it black.

NOW THE ANSWERS:

Q: Will it work on naturally jet black hair?
A: No.

Q: Will it work on hair that is dyed black?
A: No. Not until the black dye fades or grows out.

Q: Can I use lime juice instead?
A: No. Lemon juice is a natural developer.

Q: Can it be bottled lemon juice?
A: Yes.

Q: Do I have to sit in the sun?
A: No. But if you don't then you need to use a hair dryer because it is the HEAT that makes the lemon juice work. 20 minutes with a hair dryer is as effective as 3 hours in the sun.

Q: Can I use a different tea?
A: No. The chamomile tea is what gives it the natural looking blonde tones.

Q: Can I just use lemon juice and nothing else?
A: Yes. The lemon juice is primarily what lightens the hair via a natural "chemical reaction." BUT it will look more bleach-blondy and harsh without the tea's tones.

Q: Will it work on brown (even dark brown) hair?
A: Yes. Not as effectively, but yes. You'll need to use more lemon, more heat, etc.

Q: Will it fade?
A: No. You've permanently lightened the hair.

Q: Should I wash my hair afterward?
A: Yes. After you have HEATED it with sun or blow dryer, wash it because the lemon will continue to dry out your hair.

Q: Do I need parsley?
A: No. Parsley promotes shine and hair growth. In this mixture it acts as the conditioner. It does nothing to contribute to lightening it. You can just use conditioner when you're done lightening instead.




Visitors comments



 
Is it necessary to sit in the hot sun? Comments By: Jade on 2010-02-03
Can we use this solution in the house or do we need to sit in the sun?
my skin has a lot of sun damage and i cant afford frying in the sun.
Also, I'm Asian. i have black hair. will it work for me? if so what color can i expect?

 
Question Comments By: Brooke Newman on 2010-02-10
Instead of lemon could you use lime?
 
Dark Brown Dyed Hair to Lighter Brown Comments By: Suzette on 2010-03-30
Ok. So I tried it the other night and even though I didn't have any parsley, and only 2 lemons, after leaving it on my hair for almost 2 hours, then blow-dried it, then rinsed it out, it DID lighten my hair about a shade lighter. It was very subtle, but after washing it with clarifying shampoo a couple of days in a row, it's now about 2 shades lighter. So to answer your question "Does it work on DYED/COLOR-TREATED HAIR?" Yes it does. However, I would recommend using the lemon juice inside the plastic lemons and rinse your hair with more lemon juice before washing it out with clarifying shampoo. Also, it probably would have been more effective to go out in the sun but I did it at night.
 
Color-Treated Dark Haired Ladies Stay Tuned..... Comments By: Suzette on 2010-03-26
Like most of the brunettes on here who are afraid to try this for fear that their hair will come out orange, I will try this tonight & let you know if it worked on my color-treated, dark brown hair. Also, just a couple of tips I've learned....If your hair comes out too orange & you want to darken it, rinsing it with black coffee actually worked for me. Also, if you have your hair high-lighted & you can't see the high-lights, wash your hair with Dawn. It brings out the blond in your hair, BUT it's very harsh & drying so be to use a deep conditioner afterwards. Secrets your hairdresser won't tell you!
 
Dark Hair? Comments By: Alison Newton on 2010-03-27
I have dark hair and would like it to be a shade lighter or have highlights. Would this tip work on dark hair? and Would it still work without the parsley?
 
Tea Comments By: Jessica N. on 2010-04-01
Does it have to be chammomile tea? Or will green tea work?
 
ok Comments By: JASON on 2010-04-06
hi tipking im a 13 year old boy and im mixed with black and white my hair is light black do you think this will hope i hope it does im not looking for blonde maybe a dirty blonde at least but would you say it works for me
 
why Comments By: TOK on 2010-04-07
why did it not work for me im so upset lteraly write now i just went and bout everything why
 
Lovely Hair Lightener Comments By: Jacqueline on 2010-04-17
Okay so I read through all of these comments and some of them made me super scared that my hair would turn hideous colors. I was this close to not doing it but then my sister decided to do it with me so we made a slight variation of it. Less water, more lemon, no parsley, then we put it in a plant sprayer and went out into the backyard. We spent four and a bit hours out there, spraying our hair again whenever it dried.
It did make our hair super dry but after it dried after five or so applications I took a shower and washed my hair with Neutrogena Triple Moisture Shampoo, followed by Herbal Essences Hydralicious shampoo then conditioner. I combed my hair in the shower then wrapped it in a microfiber towel. When I blow dryed it ten minutes later, I put the heat setting on low and dryed normally. It worked pretty well. I'm originally an ashy blonde and this made me have more platinum-y highlights and it lightened my hair overall. My sister is a golden brunette and the lower parts stayed pretty dark but the top part got more dark blonde highlights. We both look great. Keep in mind that this probably won't work so well on darker hair, or overly colored hair (neither of us had ever colored our hair). Pretty much, this worked really well for lightening already fairly light hair. Be careful if you're going to be sitting outside for as long as we did though, because we both ended up a little burnt! All in all good ideas and recipe but feel free to change it up, because we both ended up more beautiful than before. And also, our legs are nice and tanned now!!!! Don't worry about this recipe since there aren't chemicals it's safe and it works, but not way too quickly! <3

 
Question Comments By: kaelie on 2010-05-17
do you have to be in the sun for this to work???
 



Ask a question Send in a tip Contact TipKing Books Privacy Disclaimer Feed
© Tipking 2000-2011 All rights reserved Last update: Thu Nov 17 2011
{ezoic-ad-1}
{ez_footer_ads}