Cinderella when you color your hair with permanent color are you only doing the regrowth or are you doing your whole head again every time you color? It's so hard to properly evaluate your situation without being able to get my hands into your hair.

The way you should color your hair if your using permanent color is color your whole head assuming it's virgin hair (never colored) color your head with permanent color. Then when recoloring the hair the roots or regrowth should be recolored with the same color but the previously colored hair if it's faded should be refreshed with the same color using semi-permanent haircolor (it's much more gentle on the hair than permanent).

If you haven't been doing that this is why you are experiencing breakage and your hair lacks the color and shine it use to have.

Color and shine comes from healthy hair. When the cuticle layer (outer most layer of hair strand) is damaged the cuticle which can best be described as like scales on a fish....break off the hair becomes dry, frizzy and pourus because the cuticle layer protects the cortex of the hair strand and helps the hair to retain proper moisture in the hair strand which helps provide good elasticity to the hair.

Anytime you do a chemical service such as haircoloring the ammonium in the haircoloring causes the cuticle layer to open up to allow the color to penetrate into the cortex of the hairstrand which is where the pigment that makes up haircolor is. If that haircoloring is left on too long and is not monitored or timed the cuticle becomes brittle and breaks off in small pieces and this is how your hair becomes overprocessed.

PH of hair is 5.0 on average. Any permanent color service has a PH of at least 12.0 or higher it depends on the developer you are using and how many levels you are lifting. You need condition often to help bring that PH back down to a more managable level and help restore that hair to the condition it was in before the process was done on your hair.

This is why some people who get perms and GOD I HATE DOING PERMS.....3 days after their perm it's all frizzed out and looks like they stuck their finger in an electrical socket....they need to be educated on how to properly care for their perm....people think perms are easy wash and wear hairstyles and really they are anything but wash and wear. They require maintence and extra care because of the chemical process the hair was put thru.

I'm not saying haircoloring is bad for you...haircoloring is good and fun and it can really enhance someone's appearance but you really need to know what your doing because haircoloring is nothing to mess with....as you are quickly learning.

Oh and a quick blurb on grey hair....to cover grey properly permanent haircolor is the way to go. Semi permanent typically blends up to 80% grey hair but it is deposit only and eventually the color will fade back to it's original grey color.

Hope that helps to answer your question

G'luck

cinderella wrote: Wow thanks for the detailed response, yes dumb dumb me coloured my whole hair, not doing that again (so I say!) as I mentioned I have put a semi-perm colour on which is only 2% peroxide and no ammonia (did my homework this time) and I feel it has dried my hair out a bit more. Should I just not colour my hair anymore. Does damaged hair have to grow out or can it be repaired. Thanks so much for your advise and time.

Damage can't be repaired but it can be managed. It can be managed by using moisturizing shampoos, conditioners. A spray on leave-in conditioner. Personally I like using the Healthy Sexy Line of Haircare products and it's all safe to use on Color Treated Hair. Go here http://www.sexyhair.com/ - http://www.sexyhair.com/  and click Sexy Hair then goto Products and look at their professional line it's really good especially the Healthy Sexy Line.

If you want the best Deep Conditioning Treatment money can buy it's about $20 per treatment and can only be done at salons...try L'ANZA's 5 Step Deep Conditioning Treatment for severely overprocessed hair. This treatment can take hair that is fried, dried and thrown to the side back and restore it to a much healthier condition. http://www.lanza.com/news-pr15.htm - http://www.lanza.com/news-pr15.htm

G'luck