Man-oh-man! This hairstyle and hair color is HIGH maintenance!!
I thought being any shade of blonde was hard to maintain, but platinum- it’s definitely MORE maintenance than I anticipated. But I LOVE it and I’m not giving it up any time soon!
I’ve done three separate root touch-ups now, so I think I have a system down that works for me, and I should share it here so I can remember it for next time! Disclaimer- this is what works for MY hair. I have short hair, it’s baby fine, a natural color of about 6.5 dark ash blonde. I am not a hair stylist. I cannot tell you what will work for your hair.
TIMING:
For my last two root touch-ups, I waited 4-5 weeks between each one. At week 3 my roots become quite noticeable. At week 5 they are scary long and with my pixie do it looks very interesting at the back of my head!
The other aspect of timing- it takes me about 2.5 hours start to finish to do a root touch up and toning. This usually means I have to wait for a free weekend to do it.
PREP:
It’s best to have NOT washed your hair for a couple days. It’s even better do to a coconut oil soak at least 2 hours prior to the bleaching process (do not rinse out the coconut oil). It does NOT affect the bleach if there’s oil in your hair.
I saturate my hair with coconut oil, wrap my scalp in saran wrap and throw on a thick ski hat. Wear it for a couple hours, then towel ‘dry’ my hair as much as possible, then comb it all through.
PRODUCTS- BLEACHING:
Developer: I had been using Wella Color Charm 20 volume cream developer, but switched to the Ion Sensitive Scalp 20 volume developer because my scalp was a constant itching blaze during the process. The Ion brand doesn’t burn nearly as much and seems to work the same.
Lightening Powder: I use the L’Oreal Quick Blue powder. Purchased a giant tub of it on sale from Sally’s a while back.
Ratio is 1 scoop of powder to 2-2.5 ounces of developer. Mix well. Really well. And start working fast. But thoroughly.
In the pictures that follow, I didn’t add any of the Ardell Red/Gold corrector. This most recent time (not pictured) I did. I think it works better without the Ardell Red/Gold corrector. I won’t be using it again.
BLEACH APPLICATION:
Apply to growout ONLY- roots ONLY. Try not to get any product on previously bleached hair.
I apply to my part first, moving across my crown and forward. Then I do the very back moving down, then equally on both sides towards the front. The sides always bleach fastest. The back bleaches slowest it seems. It typically takes me 20 minutes to apply to my roots. After that I like to wrap my hair in saran wrap and set a timer for 20 minutes. After that time is up, I comb the product through my hair and let it set for another 10-15 minutes. Total time is about 30-35 minutes.
The goal color is pale banana yellow. Not banana peel, but like the inside of the peel. It will be YELLOW.
Rinse well. Shampoo with hydrating shampoo. Rinse well again. DO NOT CONDITION. Towel Dry.
TONER:
I use a Wella T18 and Wella T14 blend. I equally mix those two colors together with 15 volume developer. (Basically I mix equal parts of 10 volume and 20 volume in order to get 15 volume. The theory being it’s less damaging.) I also add in a half packet of Ardell Red/Gold Color Corrector.
So 3/4 oz of T18 + 3/4 oz of T14 + 1.5oz of 10 volume + 1.5oz of 20 volume = 4.5 oz of product. Barely enough.
Once again, apply to roots only- paying particular attention to any brighter yellow areas. Once applied, set a timer for 8 minutes. When the timer goes off, start combing through hair to the ends. The ends of your hair will really suck up the color- turning your tips purple- so you don’t want to comb through too soon! I say check your hair at 8 minutes… but it might take 10 minutes before you want to comb through.
Rinse well. Shampoo with hydrating shampoo. Rinse well again. Condition with a deep conditioner (leave on for 5-10 minutes if possible). Rinse well and voila! Done!
When it’s freshly bleached and toned, it will have hints of yellow and purple (or gray/silver)…but after a few days it all seems to mellow out!
And here’s the cut and color I’ve been maintaining for well over a year now….
Elisa's Ramblings 
Thank you for your advice and your blog! It was very helpful! I’m currently in the waiting process of toning right now, after ending up with the horrid brassy yellow outcome of my most recent dyeing process! My hair is quit a bit longer than yours, but I’m hoping for equally beautiful blonde color in the end! This is my first time ever trying the all-over platinum blonde look… I’ve always just kept highlights, but this ended up as s highlight touch-up gone bad, so here I am! Your hair looks amazing !! I hope mine turns out as well! Thanks!
Your hair looks fabulous. Did you only leave the toner in for 8 minutes?
Yes, I only leave the toner in for 8-10 minutes, but it takes me about 15 minutes to apply it…. Roots only is the key….. Set timer for 5 minutes after applying, then comb through.
My best friend is a educational director for Wella & shared a hack that everyone needs to know!
Add a packet of SweetnLow (or whatever sweetener you have in your pantry) to your bowl/bottle of color/bleach. No burn. At all. Ever.
Good luck :)
Why do you use T14 abd T18 together i thought you would only need T18 as hoir hair is yellow and if it had orange then you would use T14. Anyway your hair looks great.
I feel like my hair ends up between yellow and orange- so a blend of the 2 seems to work really well. ;)
Thanks for the tips. I have never attempted root touch up but may give it a go this time. I have a buzz cut so I can just cut it off if I mess up! But, thinking of growing out to a pixie. Maybe. Not a a fan of the high maintenance thing. And, after a couple years of loving my carefree buzz anything else is high maintenance 😂
So helpful! Thank you.
Why Don’t you use Wella koletone special blonde 12/81 with 12% developer on your roots and the hair will be same . If your natural I can tell darkest blonde lightest brown like mine 6/7. More likely 6. If your natural 5 then stick with bleach x
I don’t think the Wella Koleston is available at Sally’s… but yes, a 1 step process would be SO MUCH EASIER!