Has anyone ever dyed a shaitel?

amother

OP ↓

Sun, Apr 14 2024, 5:09 am

I am attempting to dye my own shaitel. No need to question I made up my mind. I was wondering if anyone has any tips/dos/don'ts. This is to go from darker to lighter so I understand that is a little trickier. Now that I think about it, even if you ever dyed your own hair you can advise Very Happy

amother

Midnight

Sun, Apr 14 2024, 5:36 am

Then, you want to bleach it not dye it...
I hope you don't have an expensive sheitel because you're taking a gamble! Wink

amother

Chicory

Sun, Apr 14 2024, 5:41 am

I have dyed brassy back to a 4.
I accidentally once made it to dark because I was so annoyed at how red it gets and how quickly it needs to be dyed that overdid it. Err on the side of not enough

amother

Impatiens

Sun, Apr 14 2024, 6:28 am

If it’s processed it may not take to color well. I had an auburn wig and when I gave it to a tip coloristic to turn it more brown, it ended up purple.

amother

Blonde

Sun, Apr 14 2024, 6:28 am

I've only done a fall I was ok gambling with, because a full shaitel has a hairline that gets colored from dye and looks just awful.

amother

Whitesmoke ↓

Sun, Apr 14 2024, 6:31 am

amother OP wrote:

You can't dye from darker to lighter, have you even done any research? You can add highlights all over to lighten up a too dark wig but that takes skill and knowledge so you don't overprocess or end up with an orange color.
You might wanna look into this a like more.
Dying from light to dark is slightly more doable if it's a wig you don't care to ruin if it doesn't come out good. Just careful not to go too dark. Always buy one shade lighter than you think you need.

amother

Anemone

Sun, Apr 14 2024, 6:53 am

amother Latte wrote:

If your in Brooklyn I have a great colorist who will do it for you for $75

Can I have the number of this person? I'm looking into dying my wig as well

amother

Phlox

Sun, Apr 14 2024, 7:31 am

I did for a full sheitel that someone gifted me and did a 3/4 fall conversion on. I had a friend who is a cosmetologist, but had never worked on a sheitel, to dye it from the light reddish brown color that it was to a 2/4 mixed. She charged me only for the cost of the dye, so $30. It came out beautifully and I get many compliments.

amother

↑ Jasmine

Sun, Apr 14 2024, 7:39 am

amother Blonde wrote:

I've only done a fall I was ok gambling with, because a full shaitel has a hairline that gets colored from dye and looks just awful.

Use a paintbrush to apply the dye carefully around the hairline and the net. I've done this several times with perfect results. Just be careful.

Also, I clip the top of the wig back and begin dyeing the bottom layers first. Then I unclip the top hairs and carefully dye that. This way the dye does not touch the french top at all. Works every time.

Dolly151

Sun, Apr 14 2024, 12:37 pm

I've dyed my shevy wig. It got oxidized so I dyed it darker. You do not need to worry abt the skin top... Nothing happened to it. I bought good quality salon dye. Not rite Aid type. Just follow the instructions on the box. I've never dyed lighter... Did u ever think of doing sun in?

amother

Moccasin

Mon, Apr 15 2024, 3:38 pm

amother Chicory wrote:

I have dyed brassy back to a 4.
I accidentally once made it to dark because I was so annoyed at how red it gets and how quickly it needs to be dyed that overdid it. Err on the side of not enough

I also got fed up with how fast my shaitel turned red. I took a box of dye I had left over ..put some foils on to cover up my blond highlights that I wanted to keep and Walla! saved myself almost $300!

amother

↑ OP

Mon, Apr 15 2024, 4:07 pm

Thanks for all the responses. Yes this is a shaitel I am ok experimenting on. It is a fall so I am not too worried about the hairline getting dyed. I have now done some more research. It sounds like I can go lighter by maybe 1-2 shades. That is all I really want/need. Any specific brand of box dye you have used successfully?

BrachaVHatzlocha

Mon, Apr 15 2024, 5:27 pm

I dyed a wig, but it was old so I was risking something with not much life left anyway. it came out good (though, I, too, was making it darker) but I found it knotted a lot during the process.

Kiwi13 ↓

Mon, Apr 15 2024, 5:30 pm

Do a test strand. If it's been processed before, you won't know how the dye/bleach will turn out, or for how long you should leave it on.

You will likely need toner. Purple shampoo/conditioner for blonde/light brown to counteract yellow, blue shampoo/conditioner for brown to counteract brassy/orange.

Make sure to deep condition after! Leave the conditioner on for a while before rinsing.

Good luck and have fun!

↑ Kiwi13

Mon, Apr 15 2024, 5:32 pm

Oh! And comb it through while wet (before letting the dye sit) to make sure it's spread evenly, or at least vertically. I used to carefully fold the Sheitel inside out, with all the hair tucked inside, and add a little bit of warm water to make sure it's fully saturated and even.

synthy

Mon, Apr 15 2024, 5:33 pm

amother OP wrote:

You can’t get a wig lighter with box dye, only darker (which I’ve done before). To lighten it you’ll need to bleach it first and then dye to the color you want, and you need a lot of luck to a) not completely ruin the hair and b) end up with the color you wanted. Also, if the hair is processed it may not even be possible to bleach and redye

amother

↑ Whitesmoke

Mon, Apr 15 2024, 5:36 pm

amother OP wrote:

What research have you done? What color is your wig originally? You can only lighten with color if it's 100% virgin hair. If your fall has been colored either originally by the company or later at a colorist then hair dye will not be able to lighten it.
I went to cosmetology school. The #1 rule is "color doesn't lift color".