Tired of your brunette hair tone? Learn how to tone brown hair to ash to get the perfect cool undertones to your color resulting in a ashy brown color.
Welcome to HairEveryday, where we provide expert advice on achieving your dream hair color. Today’s focus is on a common color conundrum: how to tone brown hair to that coveted cool, ash tone. Whether you’re looking to refresh your look or correct unwanted brassy warmth, mastering the art of ash can elevate your brown hair to a chic, sophisticated shade.
In this guide, we’ll walk you through the process of toning your brown hair to ash, discussing the best products to use, techniques for even application, and tips for maintaining your new hue. Say goodbye to unwanted orange and yellow undertones and hello to a cooler, ashier brown. Let’s begin your transformation into the world of ash brown elegance.
Key Takeaways:
- Toning brown hair to ash requires neutralizing red, orange, and yellow undertones.
- Use a toner or hair dye with blue or green undertones for best results.
- Apply the toner after lightening hair if necessary to reach the desired ash level.
- Always conduct a strand test before full application to predict results.
- Follow the product instructions carefully, particularly the development time.
- Maintain your ash brown color with sulfate-free shampoos and conditioners.
- Use purple or blue shampoo periodically to counteract any emerging brassiness.
- Protect your ash-toned hair from sun exposure and heat styling to preserve color.
How to tone brown hair to ash hair color shade?
If you need to to turn brown hair into ash use a silver or blue shampoo to tone the hair. You can also use a hair toner specifically crafted for the purpose of removing brassy tones from brown hair. The blue shampoo contains pigments that neutralize the warmer undertones in the brown, making your hair look “ashy” and cool.
How To Tone Brown Hair To Ash
How To Tone Brown Hair To Ash Using The Color Wheel
Before we get to learn how to tone brown hair to ash, we need to understand the color wheel theory.
There are a group of colors called complementary colors that are directly opposite one another in the color wheel.
One of these shades can cancel out the other color.
The most prevalent example of this is purple shampoos.
Since purple is directly opposite to yellow in the color wheel purple shampoos are used to cancel out yellowness in blonde hair to give it a platinum hue.
Similarly, if you want to tone brown hair to ash, you’ll need to cancel out the shades of red and orange in your hair.
Blue is the color that is opposite to orange in the color wheel, so if your hair has brassy notes, then a blue-tinted toner or shampoo can help.
But if you’re hair has is a more reddish/auburn shade then you can try green as it’s the color that is complementary to red in the color wheel.
Use A Hair Toner
If you have natural brunette hair or have colored your hair a brown shade and want to make it a bit ashier, then you can a hair toner.
A hair toner is not a hair dye, it doesn’t alter the color of your tresses. It simply adds pigments to your hair, so that certain hues get canceled out.
Toners are generally used after a hair coloring session to make your locks the right shade of blonde or brunette.
You might have heard of purple toners or blue toners that are used after bleaching to remove brassy undertones from blonde hair.
But hair toners come in all shades! There are blue toners and green hair toners as well.
As I’ve discussed in the section about the color wheel, you can cancel out the reddish undertones in your brunette hair by using a green toner and orange tones by using blue.
A toner is simple to use. You just need to leave it on your hair and wash it off after a few minutes, as you’d do with a conditioner or a hair mask.
In fact, a lot of hair toners double as conditioners and masks and come with several nourishing ingredients.
So you can go for these if you’re brunette hair seems dry or damaged.
Some of my favorite hair toners that tone brown hair to ash are given below:
Try a Blue Shampoo
I have naturally dark brown hair and want to keep it looking ashy. So sometimes, it’s not convenient to use hair toner.
So if you want this ash brown shade on a regular basis, you should try investing in a blue shampoo.
A blue shampoo is just like a regular shampoo but it contains a lot of blue pigments.
These pigments help neutralize orange tones in your hair and leave it ashy and cool.
And you don’t have to spend time leaving it on like you would a hair toner.
But I have to warn you, it’s not advisable to use blue shampoos more than once a week.
This can cause a lot of blue-pigment build-ups and might stain your scalp.
Also, using this shampoo regularly might cause your ashy strands to actually turn blue with time.
Another thing to remember is that just like with other shampoos, these blue ones also have sulfate-based and sulfate-free variants.
If you have dry, damaged, or chemically-processed hair, I’d recommend you go for the sulfate-free ones I’ve listed below.
You should also go for sulfate-free shampoos if you’re toning color-treated hair as harsh surfactants can strip hair dye.
Apply A Temporary Hair Dye
If you’re using a blue hair toner to tone brown hair to ash, then the results might last anywhere between 4-6 washes.
So it’s definitely not a long-term solution.
And with blue shampoos, there’s the risk of staining.
The best solution in this case? Try a temporary hair dye.
Don’t worry, you’ll need a hair dye that will replace the reddish undertones in your brown hair with ashy undertones. So you won’t require a strong chemical dye.
But you need to be careful as to the shade you choose.
If you’ve noticed, a lot of hair dyes come marked with a number.
This is because of something called colorimetry, where each color is assigned a number between one to ten. Here, number 1 represents black hair and number 10 represents light, platinum blonde hair.
Brown hair falls somewhere in the middle with level 3 representing dark brown, level 4 representing medium brown, and 5 being light brown.
But most shades are marked 4.5, 4.2, 6.5, and stuff like that. So what’s up with the number after the dots?
Ah! Now that’s the crux of the matter. The numbers after the periods represent the undertones in hair coloring.
And ashy undertones are marked with the number 2.
So for the best results, you should go for an ash brown hair dye that is at the same level as your natural (or base) hair color.
Example: If you have dark brown (level 3) hair, you should go for ash brown hair dyes marked 3.2. And if you have light brown (level 5) hair, get ash-brown hair dyes in 5.2.
Of course, you can always choose to make your hair appear lighter or darker that is upto you.
But if your only goal is to minimize the reddish highlights in your brown hair then following this method is a good idea.
Why You Should Trust Haireveryday?
The author of this article, Leah Marie Priest has a degree in Cosmetology with years of experience in dealing with hair care, scalp care, and hairstyling. As someone who extensively deals with all kinds of hair textures, products, styling methods and more, hair Leah Marie knows what kind of products and procedures suit each hair type and person. We have also tested these hair products and processes ourselves to provide you an unbiased review about every product. Each of our articles are also reviewed by a team of medical professionals so that you get the most accurate and expert-reviewed information.
Frequently Asked Questions
How to tone brassy brown hair at home?
If you want to tone brassy hair at home using home remedies you can try using:
— A tea and lemon juice toner – Lemon juice is a natural bleaching agent and can help remove some of the brassy undertones
— Apple cider vinegar – ACV is known to remove product build-up from hair and has so many other benefits for your tresses as well. Its acidity can help remove brassy notes from hair to a certain extent.
— Baking soda – You can mix some baking soda with your sulfate-free shampoo and then use it to tone brassy brown hair. However, this can leave your hair dry and dull so be careful not to overdo it.
The home remedies I’ve listed above do not work instantly as a blue shampoo does. So you’ll need to be patient.
Also, it’s not guaranteed to give you the shade of ash you want. It can leave your hair patchy as well. So I really recommend using a hair toner or blue shampoo instead.
Which is the best ash toner for brown hair?
The best ash toner for brown hair depends on the undertones of your brown hair. If you have mahogany brown hair with reddish undertones, then you should try out a green hair toner.
If your brown hair appears auburn or “ginger” with more orange undertones then the best ash toner would be one with blue pigments.
Some of the best blue toners in the market today include:
— MATRIX Total Results Brass Toner
— Truss Deluxe Prime Chestnut Hair Treatment
— oVertone Haircare Blue Toning Conditioner
— Pravana Chromasilk Hair Color Corrector
How to maintain ash brown hair?
Finally, you’ve got your favorite shade of ash brown hair. But you’ll need to maintain it to keep it looking good. Here’s how you maintain ash brown hair:
— Avoid using sulfate-based shampoos as they can strip hair dye and toning pigments
— Do not stay out in the sun for long as it creates brassy undertones in your hair
— Use a dry shampoo for colored hair instead of frequently washing your hair
— Keep on using a blue/green toner every other week to keep the ashy tone looking bright.
Is it possible to dye dark brown hair ash brown?
There are a few ways to dye dark brown hair ash brown, but each method has its own set of pros and cons. One option is to use a light ash brown hair color as a starting point and then add gradual amounts of black hair color to achieve the desired result. This method is likely to be the fastest and easiest to execute, but it may not be completely accurate. Another option is to use a hair colorant that is specifically designed for ash brown hair, which will create a more accurate result and may be less damaging overall. However, this method may require more time and effort than the other options. If you are interested in trying this technique, be sure to consult with a hair color specialist before starting.
Conclusion
I simply love how stylish ash brown hair looks. Of course, auburn, caramel browns, and chestnut shades have their appeal, but ash brown has that high-fashion look to it.
And if you’ve already got brunette hair, getting that perfect ashy shade should be a piece of cake with this guide.
There are just so many hairstyles you can try that complements ash brown hair.
I think ash brown is so sought after as it suits several skin tones and undertones.
Also Read:
What To Do If Hair Dye Is Too Dark
To Summarize