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By: Spandorexxa

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Tags: bath bathing bleach colour Removal stripper stripping

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Bleach Bathing

Wed 11 July 2007

A guide to bleach bathing (sometimes called soap capping). This process is not intended to be used instead of bleaching for initial dying, but rather as a gentler step by step process.
It is especially useful for removing colour from hair, and can be used of veggie dyes (Manic Panic, SFX) as well as box dyes, as its mainly bleach that does the lifting.

Please note bleach bathing might seem the easier option, but as with any lightening process it is still damaging to the hair’s cuticle, so please exercise caution, and don’t over do it as the author of this article did!

You’ll need:-

20/30vol bleach (unmixed)

Shampoo (preferably clarifying so you can gauge the strength of the bleach better)

Good conditioner

Time telling device

Step – by - step

Pour into a mixing bowl the normal amount of shampoo you would use to wash your hair.

Mix up the bleach as normal, try and make approximately HALF of the amount of the shampoo you’ll be adding it to.

Mix together thoroughly, the shampoo (if a clear clarifying one) should be a sky blue colour from the bleach.

Quickly apply to semi wet hair. I usually run mine under the shower and give it a towel rub. So it’s wet but not dripping.

Starting at the ends like bleach apply the mixture, work your way up your hair then give the whole lot a good rub, like shampooing your hair. Spray on some water to get it bubbling.

You can now wrap your head in plastic OR leave it loose depending on how severe you want the colour removal to be.

Scrape off a bit of the bleach every few minutes to watch the lightening.

Wash off when desired colour achieved.

I found at the start of getting the SFX reds off my unbleached hair 10-15 minutes at a time was good. Then I left it a week or two and repeated.

For bleached hair I'd suggest 7-10 minutes, or if you’re confident, go by your eye.

Make sure you get all the residue out and condition really well, as the shampoo and bleach mix will leave your hair pretty dried out!

Comments

	Vicious_Badger says: "I tried this on my sfx blood red hair and it barely faded it. First I mixed up some bleach (about a teaspoon of 40 vol because that's all I had) with about two tablespoons of clarifying shampoo. it lifted a little color, but it only got the red about half a shade lighter. Is this color just impossible to get out or did I do something wrong?" Jul 11, 20079:31 p.m.
	Spandorexxa says: "As Blood Red is quite dark - it'll take more lifting than say - Fire form Crazy Colour. Id reccomend either leaving it longer of simply mixing up a stronger batch." Jul 16, 20079:56 p.m.
	bethybright says: "can you use this method with dyed black hair or should you go full process and do the regular bleaching procedure?" Jul 26, 20077:38 p.m.
	clonazepam5mg says: "i have originally light brown hair and almost all of it was virgin when i bleached and dyed it blonde this week. i wanted to get a platinum shade. i have bought one of those stupid toners that you can get in any drug store, for regular people and regular hairs, (i was very impuslive that day...) and i got a yellow tone. the question is: do you think i can use the soap capping method, once a week, to bleach my hair little by little so it will cause less damage and then dye it with a professional platinum blonde toner or do you think i should wait a couple of weeks and bleach it the old school way and then dye it again?" Apr 8, 20084:16 p.m.

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