making hair ends lighter?

Is is possible to dye extension human hair in such a way that the tips are a little bit lighter than the root color,  to match how growing hair often is lighter at the end when its long?

My hair is long and the ends of my hair are noticably lighter than the hair closest to my head.  its not really obvious until i take a piece of hair and actually hold it up close to my head.

I want to know if theres a way to duplicate this when i buy human hair because I want to create something that looks as much like my natural hair as possible.  

Ditto Malibu! To lighten pre-processed hair could ruin it. Often, I custom color wefts to match clients hair and when I need to go darker I always use a demi-permanent color glaze. To lighten, I use a professional lightener with a 30 Volume developer and I only use virgin tresses from india or china (this type is coarser and can withstand more processing.

Another thing to know is that hair is sometimes double-wefted so it is imperative to separate the wefts before coloring or you get uneven patches of color.

ok, I've realized that coloring the hair would probably be too complicated for me.  =)      My other option might be to try to prevent my own hair from getting lighter at the ends.  Can anyone recommend any UV protectant hair conditioner or spray they like?