How to Lighten Hair Without Bleach: 11 Easy And Effective Ways

Lighten your mane naturally! Discover how to lighten hair without bleach using safe and effective methods. Get natural highlights at home without any damage.

Updated on May 19, 2023  |  09:37 PM IST |  602.8K
How to Lighten Hair Without Bleach
How to Lighten Hair Without Bleach

Hair lightening can be a fun way to change your appearance. Bleaches, however, include corrosive and abrasive substances like hydrogen peroxide and ammonia peroxide that might damage hair. But there are safe and effective ways on how to lighten hair without bleach that won't damage your strands or leave you looking like a science experiment gone wrong. You could even be surprised by how many organic things you already have in your kitchen that might help you get the desired appearance based on your hair type and intended outcome. 

There are several choices to pick from, including lemon juice, honey, and chamomile tea. So, put those grisly myths aside, and let's dive into the world of natural hair lightening and discover how you can switch up your look without compromising the health of your precious locks!

How to Lighten Hair Without Bleach: 11 Ways to Achieve Natural Highlights At Home 

 

How to Lighten Hair Without Bleach

You may create natural hair lighteners at home utilizing a variety of organic approaches without causing any harm. These techniques not only cause minimal stress on your hair, but they also provide a more subdued and natural-looking outcome.

1. Lemon Juice and Sunlight

How to Lighten Hair Without Bleach

Lemon juice's strong citric acid content makes it a natural home treatment for lightening hair. Citric acid helps lighten hair color by dissolving melanin pigments in the hair when used on the hair and exposed to sunshine. Mixing one lemon's juice with an equal quantity of water and applying it to the hair, soaking the locks from root to tip, can lighten hair at home. The lightening process is made more efficient by the sun's heat activating the citric acid in the lemon juice.

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Suggestion: If applied excessively or kept on for an extended period, lemon juice can damage hair. For healthy and strong hair, it's important to mix the lemon juice with water and use deep conditioning treatments after.

2. Sea Salt Water Remedy

How to Lighten Hair Without Bleach

Sea salt water can help to lighten hair at home, providing a lighter shade and texture. Apply it to your hair by combining one tablespoon of sea salt with warm water. Massage the salt water into your hair and scalp, leaving it in for 20 minutes. Rinse your hair with cool water and condition it as usual. It's critical to be aware that salt water will dry out your hair and may not be recommended for people with very dark hair.

Depending on the kind and structure of the hair, different impacts of salt water may be seen. It is an easy and inexpensive way to lighten hair naturally, but it is important to use it cautiously and follow up with deep conditioning treatments.

3. Vitamin C Rinse

How to Lighten Hair Without Bleach

A potent antioxidant, vitamin C can lighten hair without causing damage. You can crush Vitamin C tablets or make a paste by mixing a Vitamin C powder with water to make a paste. Your hair ought to be treated with the mixture, left on for an hour, and afterward washed off with a gentle cleanser utilizing tepid water. To maintain your hair moisturized and healthy, you should constantly follow up with deep conditioning treatments. Additionally, not everyone, particularly those with very dark hair, may benefit from Vitamin C. Vitamin C capsules can be a natural way to lighten hair without damaging it. However, it would be best if you always used deep conditioning treatments after using vitamin C capsules to keep your hair healthy and strong.

4. Beer Hair Wash

How to Lighten Hair Without Bleach

Beer can be a natural and easy way to add subtle lightening effects to hair at home. To use beer to lighten hair, start by pouring a can or bottle of beer into a spray bottle and spraying it onto clean, damp hair. Give the beer 15-20 minutes to rest on the hair before rinsing it with cold water. The specific shade that appears after using the beer can vary depending on the individual's natural hair color, as well as the brand of beer used. To maintain your hair nourishment, follow up with deep conditioning treatments. Moreover, the smell of beer can stay in the hair, so it might be necessary to rinse it again with water or a conditioner with a mild aroma to get rid of the lingering odor. 

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How to Lighten Dark Hair Naturally At Home

How to Lighten Hair Without Bleach

5. Rhubarb Rinse

How to Lighten Hair Without Bleach

Inherent properties found in the rhubarb plant can naturally lighten dark hair. It contains natural acids with natural lightening attributes, like malic acid and oxalic acid. To utilize rhubarb to ease up dull hair, you can make a hair flush by bubbling slashed rhubarb in water. Following a shampoo, apply the rhubarb rinse to your hair and let it stay for ten minutes. To ensure that your hair maintains its strength and health, you must apply deep conditioning treatments after using rhubarb. Moreover, not everyone will benefit from rhubarb, particularly those with more than five shades of dark hair.

6. Apple Cider Vinegar Remedy

How to Lighten Hair Without Bleach

Apple cider vinegar is a natural remedy that can help to lighten dark hair without causing damage. After washing your hair, use a spray bottle to combine equal parts apple cider vinegar and water and moisten your hair with the solution. Allow the mixture to sit on your hair and scalp for 10 to 15 minutes after gently massaging. Rinse your hair with cool water to remove the mixture, then condition it as usual. Apple cider vinegar can also help to remove product buildup from hair and balance the pH levels of hair and scalp. However, it is important to use it cautiously and always follow up with deep conditioning treatments to keep your hair healthy and strong. 

7. Henna Mask

How to Lighten Hair Without Bleach

Henna is a natural hair dye that can lighten dark hair without harming it. You may achieve the optimum reddish-brown hue for your hair by using henna. It has a substance called Lawsone that can get into the hair shaft and bind to the hair's keratin proteins, changing the color of the hair for good. By combining henna with other natural ingredients such as lemon juice or chamomile tea, you can lighten dark hair and achieve a beautiful reddish-golden hue on the strands. To utilize henna to ease up dim hair, blend the henna powder with lemon juice or chamomile tea to make a thick glue. Apply the paste to your tresses, coat all sections, and keep it on for a few hours.

After removing the henna from your hair with cool water, maintain your usual style. It is crucial to remember that removing henna from hair can be difficult and that deep conditioning treatments should be applied thereafter to maintain your hair’s moisture and health. Overall, henna can be an effective method for easing up dull hair without causing harm; however, it's essential to utilize it with alertness and adhere to the directions painstakingly consciously.

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8. Cinnamon with Conditioner

How to Lighten Hair Without Bleach

Cinnamon powder is a natural hair lightener that can help to lighten dark hair when mixed with conditioner. It contains eugenol, which can help to break down the pigment molecules in hair and lighten its shade. To use cinnamon powder to lighten dark hair, mix a few tablespoons of cinnamon powder with a generous amount of regular hair conditioner and apply the paste to your hair. Cover your hair with a shower cap and leave the blend on for no less than 4-6 hours or overnight for additional observable outcomes. Rinse the cinnamon mixture from your hair with cool water and condition it as usual.

Using cinnamon powder with conditioner can be a natural and effective way to lighten dark hair without causing damage. However, it's important to use it with caution and to always follow up with deep conditioning treatments to keep your hair healthy and strong.

How to Lighten Blonde Hair Naturally at Home

How to Lighten Hair Without Bleach

9. Chamomile Tea Hair Wash

How to Lighten Hair Without Bleach

Chamomile tea can be a characteristic and delicate method for adding features and unobtrusive light blonde and red shades. To utilize it, begin by blending areas of strength for a tea and permitting it to cool. When the tea is cool, empty it into a splash container and shower it onto perfect, moist hair. Rinse your hair with cold water after drying out for at least 30 minutes. While chamomile tea won't dramatically lighten hair, it can help brighten and add highlights to natural hair over time. It is essential to keep in mind that chamomile tea can dry the hair. To keep your mane healthy and strong, you should follow it up with deep conditioning treatments. 

10. Baking Soda Treatment

How to Lighten Hair Without Bleach

Baking soda is an amazing bleaching agent that removes buildup and residue from the hair shaft to lighten hair without bleach. When coupled with additional chemicals like lemon juice or hydrogen peroxide, baking soda can help provide an even greater lighting effect. Make a paste by combining one tablespoon of baking soda and sufficient water to lighten the hair. Massage the paste into clean, damp hair, concentrating on the areas you want to lighten. Wash off after about 15 to 20 minutes with cool water.

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However, baking soda is not a decent choice for blonde hair since it can dry out the hair exorbitantly and make it fragile, which can prompt breakage and a minor yellowing of the hair. It is important to exercise caution when using baking soda, as it can be abrasive to both the hair and scalp if used excessively or in high concentrations. Therefore, moderation and careful application are key to avoid any potential damage. If you have normally light hair, it's ideal to pick other regular easing-up choices, for example, chamomile tea or honey, which are gentler and more reasonable for easing up light hair.

11. Coffee And Honey Mask

How to Lighten Hair Without Bleach

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The coffee and honey mask is an organic and brilliant choice for natural highlights at home which gives an unpretentious variety of tones. Although the effect may be more pronounced on darker hair, it is suitable for both blonde and dark hair. To make the cover, join 1 cup of prepared espresso (cooled), 1/2 cup of honey, and 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Apply the mixture to moist hair, covering it with a shower cap and leaving it on for no less than 1 hour or short-term. Wash the cover out with cool water and cleanser, and condition the hair not surprisingly.

The coffee and honey mask can be utilized once every week to gradually lighten your hair, however, it is critical to take note of that the impact might be unobtrusive and may take a few applications to accomplish the ideal impact. The mask should also be applied with caution because coffee can stain surfaces and clothing.

Conclusion

There are many organic and gentle ways for how to lighten hair without bleach, such as using ingredients like lemon, sea salt water, rhubarb, vitamin C capsules, apple cider vinegar, henna, cinnamon powder, beer, chamomile tea, and baking soda. These methods can help you achieve a lighter, brighter look without causing damage to your hair. It might take a few applications to accomplish the ideal outcome depending on your hair tone and surface, so be patient with it. It's also important to remember that natural lightening methods might not produce drastic results, but they will create a subtle and natural-looking change to your hair color. You can get a lighter look without harming your hair's health or quality by using these natural ingredients.

 

FAQs

How can I lighten my hair naturally fast?
Lemon juice is one of the quickest and easiest natural ways to lighten hair. Lemon juice's acidity aids in the breakdown of the strands' pigment, resulting in a lighter color over time. Apply the mixture evenly to your hair by combining warm water and lemon juice in equal amounts. Leave it on for 30 minutes before flushing it out with cool water. Reuse a few times each week until you accomplish your ideal shade.

How can I lighten my hair in 30 minutes?
If you want quicker results, chamomile tea is a superb choice for easing up strands rapidly and normally. Pour one cup of strong chamomile tea into a spray bottle after cooling down. Fog the tea onto dry hair from root to tip before enveloping your head with cling wrap for 30 minutes with the goal of the opportunity and willpower to infiltrate your strands. Wash out with cool water when done and rehash depending on the situation until the desired concealment is accomplished.

Can you lighten your hair with box dye?
Yes! Box dye, which does not require bleach and contains hydrogen peroxide, is an efficient method for removing color from the strands. It's essential to take note that case colors ought to just be utilized on more obscure shades since they won't deal with lighter tones (e.g., blondies). Before applying, ensure that you read all directions cautiously, as various brands might have different guidelines for application and timing.

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About The Author

Neha Tiwari, a certified Haircare coach, an experienced writer, educator, translator, and editor, has been catering to the content

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