How to Remove Hair Dye from Hands

Nothing is more disappointing than when you are satisfied with an impressively beautiful new black hair color when you suddenly realize that your whole hand has been dyed black. Hair dye is fairly easy to wash off if you wash it off immediately with soap and water, but what if it gets on your skin and nails? There are many ways to remove hair dye from your skin, but not all are suitable for all skin types. Try using a gentle cleanser if your skin is sensitive, or use a strong cleaner immediately to remove serious stains.

Table of Contents

Remove dye color with a gentle wash

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Act quickly as soon as the dye gets on your hands. The dye takes a few minutes to discolor the skin. Even if the dye has adhered to the skin, removing it early will make it easier to remove.

Leather is made up of many layers and if it penetrates the skin, the dye will discolor each layer of the skin. If you leave the dye on your hands for too long, the dye will penetrate more and deeper into the skin layers.
Dye that penetrates deep into the skin will require a more aggressive method to remove and can damage the skin.

Squeeze a non-gel toothpaste onto your hand and rub it in. Toothpaste contains strong abrasives to bleach teeth, and these substances will exfoliate the skin. By removing dead skin cells, the stained skin cells reveal new, uncolored skin underneath. ^{[1] X Research Source}

Scrub your hands for about 30 seconds and then rinse with warm water.
If the stain hasn’t come out yet, you should try scrubbing it again, using a little baking soda.

Apply baby oil, olive oil or moisturizing wax and leave overnight. This is especially helpful for sensitive skin. The oil will slowly dissolve and break down the texture of the hair dye, while softening and moisturizing the skin. ^{[2] X Research Source}

Use a cotton ball or damp towel to apply the oil to your hands.
Oil can stain your sheets when you go to bed, so you need to wear gloves or clean socks for your hands when you sleep.
Use a cotton ball to wipe off any remaining oil the next morning and rinse with warm water.

Wash your hands with a mixture of dish soap and baking soda. Dishwashing liquid breaks down the structure of hair dye, while baking soda helps exfoliate the skin. Wash with warm water to help the baking soda foam to remove the dye from the skin. ^{[3] X Research Sources}

Look for a dish soap that is gentle on your hands and won’t dry out your skin.

Apply makeup remover on your hands. With a formula for facial skin, the make-up remover will definitely be gentle on the skin of the hands. If it has not penetrated too deeply into the skin, the dye will be dissolved and washed away. ^{[4] X Research Sources}

Pour makeup remover on a clean towel or cotton ball and apply it to the stain on your hand. Wait at least 5 minutes then rinse. ^{[5] X Research Sources}
Try using a cotton pad if you have one. The fibers of the cotton pad help exfoliate dead skin cells, while the makeup remover ingredient helps break down pigmentation.

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Buy a specialized dye remover. If you don’t want to use natural ingredients and want to go professional, you can go to a beauty store and buy a color remover specifically designed for use on the skin. Products are usually in the form of solutions or wipes.

Remove the dye with a stronger method

Spray hairspray onto your hands. Hairspray can break the bond between the dye and the skin, helping you wash away the dye. ^{[6] X Source of Research} However, ingredients in hairspray can be drying to the skin.

Spraying hairspray on a cotton ball and then applying it to your hands can increase the effectiveness of this method. The rubbing action helps the hairspray penetrate deeper, while the cotton fibers will help soften dead skin cells.
Rinse the hairspray off your hands with warm water.

Mix laundry detergent with baking soda and apply it to the stain. Laundry detergent can be irritating to the skin but works fairly quickly and effectively in breaking down the dye structure. ^{[7] X Source of Research} Baking soda adds an abrasive effect to bleaching and removing dead skin cells contaminated with the dye.

Mix laundry detergent with baking soda in a 1:1 ratio (1 teaspoon of laundry detergent to 1 teaspoon of baking soda).
Apply the mixture on the skin for about 30-60 seconds.
Rinse with warm water.

Mix the mixture from cigarette butts with warm water. It may sound strange, but this age-old ingredient works wonders. Make sure the cigarette butts have cooled down and be aware that this method is not good for the skin. ^{[8] X Research Sources}

Mix cooled cigarette butts with warm water in a small bowl and then use a cotton ball to dab the mixture on the dyed skin.
Wait 15 minutes. The dye color will gradually fade. ^{[9] X Research Source}
Wash hands thoroughly with soap and water.

Use nail polish remover if other methods don’t work. The acetone solvent in nail polish remover can re-decompose the dye and when in a solution state, the dye will be easily washed away. However, nail polish remover is very harmful to the skin, can make the skin dry and damaged. Do not use nail polish remover on the skin around the eyes. ^{[10] X Research Source}

Dip a cotton ball in nail polish remover and apply it to the stained skin. Do not rub too hard.
If you feel a burning sensation, stop immediately and wash your hands with warm water.

Clean nails

Dip a cotton ball in nail polish remover. Rub onto nails immediately after removing the dye from the skin, before the dye penetrates deeper.

The nail bed is mostly dead skin cells that are easily absorbed by the dye. If you don’t exfoliate, you’ll have a hard time removing the dye.
Apply a cotton ball to the nail and watch to see if the dye will gradually transfer to the cotton ball.

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Cut away the dye-stained cuticle. If dead skin cells or cuticles are discolored from the dye, you can use a cuticle clipper to remove this part of the skin. That way, you won’t need to use nail polish remover that’s harmful to your skin.

Use a nail brush to scrub under the nails. If it is difficult to clean the skin under the nail, you can use a clean toothbrush or nail brush to scrub the bottom of the nail.

Soak the brush in soap and water to wash away any sticky dye from your nails.

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Paint your nails if you can’t remove the dye. If you’ve tried everything and your nails are still stained with dye, it’s best to cover the color with nail polish. Thus, you both become stylish, while covering the hair dye color.

Advice

Apply a layer of moisturizing wax to the skin of your hands and face if you know this area will be exposed to hair dye. This will help protect the skin and prevent it from getting dyed.
Wear gloves when applying hair dye so it doesn’t get on your hands.
Apply toothpaste to the stain, then apply Dove shower gel and wash your hands slowly.

Warning

Using a towel to remove hair dye can damage the towel. Therefore, you should find a cloth that is clean enough and don’t use your favorite towel.

Things you need

Remove dye color with a gentle wash

Cotton wool or clean towel
Toothpaste
Baby oil, olive oil or moisturizing wax
Makeup remover products
Professional hair dye bleaching products

Remove the dye with a stronger method

Cotton
Hairspray
Washing liquid
Baking soda
Warm water
Cigarette ash
Nail polish remover

Clean nails

Cotton
Nail polish remover
Nail brush or toothbrush
nail polish

Steps

Remove dye color with a gentle wash

Remove the dye with a stronger method

Clean nails

Advice

Warning

Things you need

Remove dye color with a gentle wash

Remove the dye with a stronger method

Clean nails

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