If you’re seeing more yellow in your blonde than you like it’s time to tone up.
You can easily do this at home using the same styling products you use now. All you need do is add a few purple toning drops for blonde hair.
What Are Hair Toning Drops Anyway?
Essentially toning drops are brass neutralizers. These concentrated color extenders let you supercharge most any styling products. Used in say shampoo, conditioner, or hair masks they give you an affordable homemade toner for brassy hair. One that can effortlessly refresh the vibrancy of your color.
Purple drops work much like purple shampoos. They cancel yellow brassy tones from blondes or those with silver strands almost instantly. (Making it perfect for anyone looking for how to brighten gray hair.)
While blue ones work to eliminate oranger brassy tones from brunette locks.
So if you have color that’s looking sad, tired, or neglected hair toning drops may be just the ticket. It could just be the product you didn’t know you needed.
Plus they let you tone your color without having to change your routine or ditch your favorite products.
Many feel that when it comes to how to tone brassy hair at home, highlights included, this method is a keeper.
So here’s what we’re going to cover so next time you need a DIY toner for hair gone brassy you’ll know what to do.
Using Purple Drops For Toning Hair | Hacks, Tips and Tricks
- How To Use Hair Toning Drops
- Pros and Cons Of Color Corrector Drops
- Purple Drops For Hair | Your Two Best Bets
- Using IGK Hair Toning Drops As A Homemade Toner For Brassy Hair
- Styling Product Alternatives For DIY Toner
Ready to dig in?
How To Use Hair Toning Drops
Not a lot to it.
- Add however many drops your hair requires into whatever styling product you wish
- Mix thoroughly to insure even application
- Apply
- Leave on as long as needed
If you used shampoo you’ll want to rinse it out obviously. Maybe the same with most conditioners.
But many of your alternatives require nothing more of you other than spritz or apply and go.
Pros and Cons Of Color Corrector Drops
Pros
- Easy
- Affordable – plus saves from buying specialty products or making color touch up trips to the salon
- Not as likely to leave purple residue on your shower walls or floors as happens with some shampoos
- Turns any styling product into a toner
- Can target problem areas with a more purple concentrated dosage
Plus they don’t suck the ever loving life out of your platinum mane like purple shampoo does for some.
Cons
- Can be drying but probably not as bad a purple shampoo
- Overtones to lilac if you’re not careful
- May stain your hands or nails
So what are your choices?
Using Purple Drops For Hair | Two Best Bets
Now for the drops-curious one popular option is IGK Mixed Feelings Leave-In Blonde Drops.
Again these are simple to use. No need to get all involved breaking out bowls and brushes and such.
You can add them into your everyday shampoo or conditioner when in the shower.
Just dribble out a few drops, as in one to five, as the label suggests. The number depends on how much toning is needed. (Press the bubble on the bottom of the bottle to tease the drops out. No violent shaking please.)
Then go to town washing your hair as usual.
This “instant toner in a bottle” is highly concentrated. So a little goes a long way. Good to know since it’s an ounce of product in a tiny bottle (think sample or travel size).
That’s also why you don’t want to let the initial hit to your credit card scare you off. The small but mighty bottle should last you a good long time.
Yet it lets you easily avoid some high priced specialty purple shampoos saving you money.
You may even be able to skip purple shampoos altogether. Letting you avoid wrecking your hair all to maintain the color.
This DIY color maintenance might also let you stretch the time between salon visits saving you more money.
Tip: Again, since it may not be obvious, you press the squishy bottom of the bottle to get the product out.
Otherwise it’s so easy to use. Not one drop goes to waste.
This gives you total control over how many drops you are adding to your product. Leaving it up to your needs to make the toner you create as intense as you need to banish unwanted yellow tones.
Plus it helps you generate literally hundreds of dollars’ worth of purple shampoo/conditioner.
Just wish this didn’t wash out so quick.
Then there’s another de-brassing contender that doesn’t lack for raving fans either. OGX Blonde Enhanced.
Even better this product is way affordable.
This stuff too is easy to use.
It also puts you in control of how much or how little toning you do.
As far as how many drops of toner to use its best to start with the label recommendation. Adjust from there.
Like IGK, expect it to take a time or two or three to discover what the just right number of drops is for your hair.
It’s also worth mentioning as with any products like this the longer you leave it in the more of a toning effect you’ll get.
Tip: Toning drops are felt to not be as drying as purple shampoo. Yet it still might not be a bad idea to follow up with your favorite super moisturizing mask.
Okay now here’s a little demo showing how to use IGK to cool down warm tones. When done her hair color is stunning.
Using IGK Hair Toning Drops As A Homemade Toner For Brassy Hair
There is a lot of confusion about how to get IGK drops out which is why I keep harping on it.
I know I’ve mentioned this here and elsewhere on this site but it bears repeating. I’ve seen more than a few complaining loudly about how they couldn’t get the IGK drops out.
She demonstrates (starting around 4:09) where to press the bottle to induce the drops of luscious purple out one at a time.
It doesn’t take long to see results either. She used the word “instantly” when talking about how fast it toned her strands. Others put it at more like 30 seconds. 🙂
Many reviewers feel this stuff is the real deal for keeping icy-white blonde blonde. Or clearing away brassiness. Amazing.
Then for whatever reason 6-7 drops is what I saw most said they used.
Best of all no more moisture sucking purplish shampoos have to come near your strands.
Anyway if you’ve been looking for a product to maintain your blonde ashy in between appointments don’t be surprised if you become obsessed with IGK or OGX. Either is a game changing product that banishes the brass and brings back that vivid, salon gorgeous color.
Now for those not wild about adding the drops to your conditioner or shampoo how about some ideas for product alternatives?
DIY Toner For Brassy Hair – Conditioner Alternatives
The nice thing is this stuff can literally be dropped into any hair product in your bathroom.
Certainly conditioner is what most use. But that isn’t the product to add drops to.
You could drop in into your leave-in, Olaplex or oil treatment.
Or your styling cream.
Some mix it with coconut oil and water in a spray bottle and spritz on their hair after their shower.
Or you could just mix with water alone and spritz that when you get out of the shower.
So if you’re looking for a way to avoid the dryness and frizziness that sometimes comes from using purple shampoo this may the solution you’ve been looking for.
Although in the spirit of full disclosure some dp report these can be a bit drying too.
Anyway that’s how to make hair toner at home. Or one way at least that many love.
Which puts the ball in your court. You gonna give IGK or OGX toner drops a shot or not? 🙂
Oh and if you’d like to know how to tone with temporary dyes be sure to check out our article that explains all about using Manic Panic as toner.
For more hair hacks like this that make life as a blonde easier be sure to follow our Pinterest hair color idea board. That way you’ll get the latest for keeping your color treated locks looking fabulous and ashy.
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