Help! Any hairdressers? DDs hair disaster!

[DowntonTrout]

DD (11) got hold of my straightners on Sunday.

The gist is she sprayed hairspray on the hair while trying to curl a bit at the front and it has burned straight through her hair. It has left her with a piece about 2 1/2 inches long that looks like a half fringe, but with ginger (singed) ends, which I have trimmed as best I can. There is also a ginger (singed) patch at one side further down the hair shaft which has not snapped off. You can see it when she ties her hair back. It looks like a splodge of bad hair dye. She is blonde with waist length hair.

I really don't need judging about her using the straightners. She doesn't usually, I have done it for her once or twice for a special occasion but normally she washes her hair, plaits it while wet and that's it. We rarely blow dry. Anyway it's happened. She won't be doing it again, major lesson learned.

I think I will have to take her to the hairdressers at half term. I'm not sure how they can sort it out, or get rid of the ginger, without cutting. The position of the singeing makes it very difficult to cut without giving her an Anne Hathaway. It is too highup for layers. Have tried the purple shampoo to get rid of brassiness. I suspect that trying to highlight the affected bit will make it snap off. I think I need to take her to someone very good but I am mortified that she's done this. It doesn't look burnt, no one would know that it was, but the ginger bit is noticeable. It is about 3 inches from her crown and on about an inch thick piece of hair.

Any advice?

[CajaDeLaMemoria]

Hmm...

Well, I suppose you can't really make it any worse, and I wouldn't want Anne Hathaway style hair either!

I'd buy a few intensive moisturising masks and try to revive the hair. Don't worry about the colour too much, just try to stop the hair from being brittle and singed. If you can get it soft and looking healthy-ish, you might be able to use a mild blonde dye to hide the colour until it grows out - but don't apply dye to singed hair or it'll probably snap off!

[ElectricMonk]

Oh dear - I think everybody goes through this at least once, so don't take any flak for it . One of my friends did practically the same thing, and (on her hairdresser's advice) she cut it into a shoulder-length style with some shorter layers near the damaged bit and gradually grew it out. It was fine.

[DowntonTrout]

It's too high up on her head to cut.

The ginger toasted effect is not good, there must be a way of blending it in. The front, half fringe bit looks dip dyed and I'll be able to snip that bit off in a few weeks.

I need to know if the other bit at the side is going to snap off though. Am applying copious amounts of treatments to it but not sure it will "recover!" it's not frazzled or frizzy, just a bit like a shirt you've burnt with the iron.

[practicality]

Pixie it.

[badtasteflump]

Does she have any layers or a fringe?

If someone came to me with this, depending on where at the front the bit is, I would maybe cut in a wispy fringe to hide the bad bit under (then it would stay hanging down when the hair was tied back, under the new fringe IYSWIM).

If the gingeryness was bad I would also try lifting the colour on that patch of hair with some weak bleach solution - watching it very carefully obviously!

Any decent hairdresser should be able to help

[SavoyCabbage]

I would pixie it too.

[er1507]

A good hairdresser would know what to do, it's hard to how you advise without actually seeing it.

[DowntonTrout]

I think, in truth, when you say pixie it, you are joking.

She is 11 with waist length hair. She would have to have fried half her head to consider that.

Thanks badtaste. That is what I hoped to hear and what I hoped we could do. all I have to do now is find a good hairdresser.

[practicality]

No not joking. I think if it is as bad as you say it might be her only option. She may just about get away with a short layered bob.
Good luck!

[LeChatRouge]

It sounds like it is singed as you say rather than a dye disaster, so the silver shampoo wont help.

I would need to see it really, but from what you say, I think your options are limited. Really, hate to say it, it needs cutting out. You need a stylist to tell you if they can snip out the worst and blend in to the remaining length.

If the follicles of the hair shaft are fried, can't see how the colour would take if you tried to dye that section?

The only other option I can think is to change her parting so it's deep on one side and the Worst is covered until it grows down a bit. Remember, half an inch a month, so by August, it should be far down enough to put some layers through.

[GrumpyOldHorsewoman]

DD2 (9) did something similar but with a pair of scissors - she hacked a lump out of her hair at the top of her head in an effort to create a fringe. The effect was more Mr Majeika with a tuft that almost stood up and, like your DD she has long blonde one-length hair. I used alot of conditioning spray to tame it in as much as possible and although it was a while before it blended in, it isn't too bad now. I'd definitely go with the ultra-conditioning way and ride it out. It probably wouldn't hurt to pop into a local haidresser (a decent one though) and let them see it as they may have a colour correcting method or intensive moisturiser that could help