Hello! Recently my 13yo daughter asked if she could dye all of her hair (except for roots, which she wanted to leave close to her natural color) rose pink. Personally, my opinion on hair dye is that it's fine - I mean, hair will grow out, unlike something such as a tattoo, and a neutral shade of pink isn't that bad. However I'm not sure at all if she's old enough or if it'll damage her hair in the process - she has natural dark hair and will have to bleach it, then re-dye it in order to get it to the color she wants. Does anyone know if dying hair is safe for a 13 year old?
Totally safe. Daughter #2 had every hair color you could think of starting age age 11. Its only hair and nothing more.
Just be careful if you do it at home because that stuff stains everything.
Of course it can damage her hair, but as you said, it is only hair. If you take her to a professional to have the color lifted out there is less of a chance of damage. I let my 12 year old highlight and dye his hair purple, I see no reason not to let him express himself it that way, and even if her hair does end up damaged a pixie cut can be really cute and is super in right now.
Why would 13 year old hair be different than an adult's? I agree with you that hair is temporary, and I think it's a great way to let kids experiment (and deal with the consequences) in a relatively harmless way. Far better than tattoos and odd piercings, and relatively inexpensive.
The main thing with kids is they aren't careful - so wearing gloves and not getting the dye/bleach on the bathroom vanity or the floor or the clothes or in the eyes is really important. And it's a good exercise in doing the preparations for anything - like reading all of the instructions before starting, having the right shampoo ready, wearing a smock or at least an old tee shirt, protecting surfaces, timing it properly (without putting dye-covered hands on someone's iPhone), etc. Cut the neck band off so it's really big and easy to get off before the shower/shampoo, and have a place to put it if it gets dye on it - you don't want her throwing it in the hamper with other things.
If she's having it done by a professional, then she should have to investigate and have a sensible conversation first, and probably pay some of it (including a real tip).
Lifting or bleaching done over and over, to over processed hair, can sometimes cause breakage. This doesn't happen to young kids with super healthy non-processed hair so you don't have that worry :)
I didn't dye/highlight/foil my hair when pregnant just because I was super healthy conscious at that time, but honestly, I don't even really know why - I was just not taking any chances. I think my hair stylist thought I was being overly cautious.
I see kids with it all the time. If she's not even dying her roots - then there would be no concern whatsoever. The roots (scalp) would be only place even touching her live cells anyways (if that's your concern).
As for damaging hair - the main thing would be to get a color preserving shampoo (if she wants the color to last) and just to moisturize her hair after she's colored it and condition. If she doesn't like the color or wants it to wash out sooner, then a volumizing type shampoo will make it fade out quicker.
As the others mention, hair is hair no matter what the age! I would be ok with any of my kids doing it.
welcome to mamapedia, T.
I'm not sure what you mean by "safe"? Will it hurt HER to dye her hair? No. Unless she gets in her eyes.
Will she damage her hair? We damage our hair EVERY DAY we brush it and curl it, use a blow dryer on it, etc. She needs to know how to condition her hair and care for it AFTER she dyes it.
I would tell her that you would prefer her to go to a salon to have it done. Less mess at home!
Is there a reason 13 year old hair would be different than 20 year old hair? I can't think of a reason not to.
Like you said - it's hair.
Yes bleaching it will damage it somewhat - but it will eventually grow out.
Some kids (even boys) go through stages where they change their hair color every few weeks.
Of all the things she might want to try - piercings, tattoos - I think playing with hair color is the most recoverable experiment she could try.
Either help her so she doesn't stain anything when she does it or pay to have a salon do it.
Safe, but messy. We've had bathroom porcelain stained from various adventures one of my daughters has had in home hair coloring. I have no problem with whatever my girls want to do with their hair. I'll pay for basic haircuts now and then, and reasonable shampoos/conditioners, but they have to buy their own hair dye and/or fancy-expensive hair products if they want them.
How long is her hair? I think that I would warn her that a lot of processing (bleaching/redying) damages hair and makes it more likely to break - doing it once is not a big deal. Hair grows about 6 inches per year, so if she wears her hair long, then she is keeping it around for several years at least and it might be re-dyed several times over the longer term. If she wants to keep it long, this isn't going to be good for it (even more so if her hair is fine.). She may end up having to get it trimmed a bit shorter at some point if it is damaged. If her hair is shoulder length or shorter, I wouldn't worry about it at all.
Lots of the 6th grade girls (and younger) in my child's school have dyed hair, so I don't think she's too young in general. I wish there was an age at which a person was not considered to be too old for this - I'd love a nice shade of blue personally, but it would be considered so unprofessional at my workplace...
safe in what way?
yes, it could damage her hair. could damage it at age 5, and could damage it at 50. hair doesn't mature.
my kids had all the colors of the rainbow at various points.
khairete
S.
I let my kid color her hair any hue she wanted.
She should definitely go for it! That sounds like a beautiful color. My daughter started dying her hair around that age too. Hair is hair... it will grow back. As long as she is sure that she wants this, (As in NOT just wanting to copy friends or family who has dyed hair), there is nothing wrong with it. If you are concerned about her just trying to 'fit in', I would wait a while before saying yes.
It definitely is VERY damaging to bleach your hair and then put color on top of it, unless it's some sort of vegetable dye like Manic Panic or temporary color. I think 13 is too young for this, but if you end up agreeing to it, please make sure to go to an experienced hairstylist (it may cost you more than doing it at home, something you need to consider before agreeing, plus the possible upkeep since colors end up fading). If she tries bleaching it at home and the bleach is left too long, it can literally melt her hair, see: https://edge-azure.dayre.me/user-uploaded/azure-GmNpRgP91... and http://makemeupforstardom.blogspot.com/2013/05/bleach-dil....
Also, since her hair is dark, using the wrong bleach or not leaving it in the proper amount of time can end up with brassy yellow or orange disastrous results because it didn't life properly. Eventually, the more processed your hair is, the more dry it will look and dry, damaged hair ends up becoming porous, so it won't hold on to color well, all stuff to keep in mind. I would suggest going to a place like the Paul Mitchell institute since these are students being supervised by instructors and so you'd end up paying less for the coloring than you would in an independent salon. Most of the students already have funky hair colors that they dyed themselves, so they have had some practice.
