Is Soap Cap Bad for Hair

Table of Contents

• What does a soap cap do to your hair?
• Can Bleach Bath/Soap Cap Damage Hair?
• Why Do Soap Cap/Bleach Bath?
• Do soap caps work?
• What You Need For Soap Cap/Bleach Bath?
• How do you make a soap cap for your hair?
• How long does a soap cap stay on?
• How to do a soap cap with hair color?
• What should you not do after bleaching?
• What should I do immediately after bleaching my hair?
• Conclusion

Is soap cap bad for hair? Saying YES/NO to this question will be a biased answer without considering factors like the method and frequency of application, hair type, and objective of the individual.

A soap cap or bleach bath is a hair treatment that combines bleach, developer, and shampoo to alter the color of your hair. 

It’s a milder alternative to traditional bleaching methods. The goal is to achieve a subtle lightening or toning effect, blend regrowth, or correct minor color discrepancies.

I sometimes bleach my hair to vary my appearance, and after the color fades out, if I notice any unevenness in my hair color, I use a soap cap/ bleach bath to even it out.

However, there are questions about its safety and effects on hair health, or could it be causing more harm than good, and are there reasons why your hair will not bleach?

This article gives you a holistic understanding of the benefits and drawbacks surrounding soap cap so you are able to make informed decisions.

Let’s start!

What does a soap cap do to your hair?

As I said earlier, a soap cap involves creating a diluted mixture of bleach or hair color with shampoo or a gentle developer, applying it to the hair, and allowing it to process for a shorter duration compared to traditional applications. 

The goal is to achieve subtle lightening or correct minor color discrepancies. Think of a bleach bath/soap cap as a kind of breaking-up tone. 

It’s not going to lighten your hair much; at most, I would say one level.

So, if you want to light your hair more than one level, you’re going to take a different approach, such as using straight-up bleach or Lightner and putting it directly on dry hair. 

Can Bleach Bath/Soap Cap Damage Hair?

The soap cap method, when used responsibly, infrequently, and measured accurately, can minimize potential damage compared to full-strength bleaching or coloring.

The frequency of doing a bleach bath is key to your hair’s health. The methods of maintaining lightened hair.

So, as much as you can, do a soap bath as infrequently as possible and follow up with nourishing hair products post-treatment, which is crucial to maintaining healthy hair. 

Additionally, based on what I’ve seen and experienced, I’m of the opinion that soap cap and traditional or full-strength bleaching are not ideal for extremely damaged or over-processed hair.

Why Do Soap Cap/Bleach Bath?

You do soap cap for many reasons; for example,  if you put a toner on your hair, a toner is mainly used on blonde hair to cancel out unwanted tones. 

So if you had orange hair, and you used a toner that had blue in it to cancel it out because they’re across from each other on the color wheel and the toner pulled blue, leaving the ends of your hair blue, you could throw a bleach bath on that to break it up. 

The same goes for the violet base or purple base shampoo. 

You used it and probably left it on for too long, and it turns your hair purple, which eventually will come out the more you shampoo it because it’s a temporary rinse.

But if you don’t want to wait, you can throw a bleach bath on it, and it will break up that tone.

Another reason would be if you colored your hair darker and it turned way too dark. 

Sometimes, the ends of the hair will grab the hair color because it’s like a sponge, and it makes the hair color appear darker.

So if your hair ends turned black and you did not like that, you could throw a quick bleach bath through the ends and lighten them so they match the top of your hair.

Also, sometimes, when we go swimming, our hair will turn green when the blonde hits the chlorine water. A bleach bath will correct this; it takes out that tone.

Additionally, if you have grey hair, you can do a bleach bath, shampoo, rinse, and blow dry, then apply your hair color. 

The bleach bath will kind of open up the hair cuticle and soften it to allow hair color to penetrate through it. 

You could even use this to prep your hair if you color it dark a lot. 

Instead of compacting dark hair color over dark hair color, a soap cap/bleach bath serves as a good kind of detox so that hair color will look fresh.

Plus, it Creates a ‘fresh canvas’ for new color applications and lightens hair without the extensive damage caused by re-bleaching

Do soap caps work?

Yes, soap caps work effectively for certain hair coloring and lighting purposes when used correctly and in appropriate situations. 

The effectiveness of a soap cap largely depends on the individual’s hair type, the desired outcome, and how the method is applied.

What You Need For Soap Cap/Bleach Bath?

1 Bleach Powder: Choose a high-quality bleach or any kind of whitener powder or cream specifically formulated for hair lightening. 

My favorite lightener to use for bleach bath is from Sally’s. It’s called a quick white. 

2 Developer: Use a developer with a low volume, such as 10 or 20 volume. The developer is really up to what’s going on with your hair; I would suggest staying at a 10 or a 20.

 It has hydrogen peroxide in it. And hydrogen peroxide is what makes the bleach work.

10 is the mildest, and 20 is going to offer you more lift, and you can use 30 and 40. That’s really up to you.

However, 30 and 40 work faster and stronger, but with it being faster and stronger. It’s more damaging to the hair. 

Always pick a lower-volume developer, especially if you’re at home and just starting.

If you’re unsure, 20 volume developer will do.

3 Shampoo: Opt for a gentle clarifying or sulfate-free shampoo to dilute the bleach mixture and create the soap cap. 

Stay away from a color-protected shampoo because we don’t want to preserve the color; we want to get rid of the color.

A clarifying shampoo just activates the bleach more, and it intensifies the bleach. But If you don’t have a clarifying shampoo, you can really just use any shampoo. 

4 Measuring Tools: Use measuring cups or scales to measure the bleach powder, developer, and shampoo accurately.

5 Mixing Bowl and Brush: A plastic or glass mixing bowl and an applicator or tint brush are essential for mixing and applying the soap cap evenly.

6 Gloves: Wear gloves to protect your hands from the bleach mixture and to prevent skin irritation.

How do you make a soap cap for your hair?

Your hair length, desired hair color, and the length of the part of the hair you want to bleach will determine the quantity to use.

Remember, only pre-mix if it’s right before you want to put the color on or the soap cap, unless right before you put it on your head is when you’re going to want to mix it.

1. Put on your rubber gloves.

2. I use a one, to one, to one ratio(1:1:1) for my measurement. 

You can also use a 1:2:1 ratio, that’s 1 teaspoon of bleach, 2 teaspoons of developer, and 1 teaspoon of shampoo.

If you are using a scale, you can start with half an ounce of bleach, half an ounce of developer, and half an ounce of shampoo.

The developer determines the extent of lightening. It releases oxygen, which is essential for the oxidation process that lightens the hair.

The developer helps open the cuticle layer of the hair shaft, allowing the bleach to penetrate and lighten the hair effectively. 

So, your measurement ratio will be determined by how fast you want the hair to bleach and the level of lighthen you prefer.

I prefer to use equal measurements of the bleach, developer, and shampoo. You can also add a conditional or a protein like Olaplex or pH Plex, which is optional.

3. A conditional or protein treatment is just a moisturizer. It just helps not to damage your hair. 

Inside the bowl, put the bleach, developer, shampoo, and a conditional, and mix with your tint brush.

4. You’re going to want to section out your hair; use the tint brush to apply the mixture to your hair. 

Apply the bleach on clean, wet hair, like towel-dry hair. You do not want to put this on dry hair because you’re using shampoo in the formula.

The shampoo needs water to suds up. The idea of this is that with wet hair, it goes very quickly, and it’s easy to disperse. So dry hair it would take you forever. 

Don’t start from the root because Your roots are typically virgin hair, and they lift a lot faster because Your scalp radiates heat. 

Apply only to the areas where you want to lighten the color, and even if you are bleaching your entire hair, your root should be the last place you apply it.

Don’t brush it out. Just smash it a little bit; don’t scrub to avoid fallouts or split ends. 

5. After the application, use a shower cap, a plastic bag, or a grocery bag to cover and let it process.

6. For the timing, you just have to eyeball it. After 10 minutes, wipe off some lightener and see if it worked or is lightened to the level you want.

When you are ready to shampoo your hair, you want to use warm water, not hot— or cold. 

You want to be able to really work it in with the shampoo, rinse it completely and ensure everything’s out, and then shampoo it twice, condition it, blow dry on low heat, and proceed with whatever you’re trying to accomplish. 

How long does a soap cap stay on?

So, there is no specific time for how long a soap cap should stay on; it’s a matter of choice. However for me, after 10 minutes, I check to see if it is up to the level of lightness I want. 

Mind you, you can apply the bleach twice if, probably the first time, the color doesn’t lift as you expected. However, more than twice might be unnecessary, seeing that a soap cap or bleach bath is lifting the color.

Additionally, as I stated earlier, a soap cap is a light bleach; it is a good kind of detox that breaks down the hair color to an extent.

How to do a soap cap with hair color?

First, you need to understand that the purpose of doing a soap cap is to even out or lighten up the color of your bleached hair.

So, using a hair color in a soap cap contradicts its purpose. Hair color usually refers to products that deposit color onto the hair, altering its shade without lightening it. 

Bleach, on the other hand, lightens the hair by removing its natural pigment molecules.

Also, in a soap cap/bleach bath, you’re not bleaching your entire hair. On the contrary, you’re breaking up unwanted tones and softening grays.

It contains ingredients like hydrogen peroxide and ammonia. These ingredients work together to lighten the hair. 

This explains why bleach is used in a soap cap instead of a hair color: because they function differently. 

While both bleach and hair color are used in the process of hair coloring, they serve different purposes and achieve different results.

What should you not do after bleaching?

After bleaching your hair, it’s essential to take proper care to maintain its health and integrity. 

• Avoid Heat Styling: Refrain from using heat-styling tools such as hair dryers, straighteners, and curling irons immediately after bleaching. 

Bleached hair is more susceptible to damage from heat, so give your hair a break from heat styling to prevent further stress and breakage.

• Avoid washing your hair for 48-72 hours after bleaching. This gives your hair ample time to seal in the new color.

• Skip Harsh Hair Products: Avoid using harsh hair products that contain sulfates, alcohol, or strong chemicals. 

Opt for gentle, sulfate-free shampoos and nourishing conditioners to keep your hair hydrated and healthy.

• Say No to Chlorine: Avoid swimming in chlorinated pools or exposing your bleached hair to chlorine immediately after bleaching. 

Chlorine can interact with the bleach residues in the hair and cause further damage, discoloration, or unwanted reactions. 

• If you must swim, protect your hair by wearing a swim cap or applying a leave-in conditioner beforehand.

• Limit Sun Exposure: Direct sunlight can further damage bleached hair, causing it to become dry, brittle, and prone to breakage. 

Minimize sun exposure by wearing a hat or using UV protection products specifically designed for hair when spending time outdoors.

• Hold Off on Chemical Treatments: Refrain from undergoing additional chemical treatments, such as perming, relaxing, or coloring, immediately after bleaching. 

Bleached hair is more fragile and vulnerable to damage, so it’s best to wait until your hair has recovered its strength and resilience before subjecting it to further chemical processes.

• Avoid Tight Hairstyles: Steer clear of tight hairstyles that put tension on the hair follicles, such as tight ponytails, braids, or buns. 

Tension weakens the hair shaft and leads to breakage, especially in bleached hair, which is already more delicate.

What should I do immediately after bleaching my hair?

Immediately after bleaching your hair, it’s crucial to start the repair and hydration process to counteract the drying effects of bleach so the hair remains healthy and strong.

 1. Use oils and hair masks: Applying oils like olive oil, coconut oil, argan oil, or almond oil can help seal your hair and restore some gloss and shine.

2. Apply a hydrating conditioner: Leave it in after showering to help with combing and maintaining shine.

3. Protect your hair from the sun: Use an SPF spray specifically designed for hair or look for hair products that include SPF.

4. Try DIY hair masks: Ingredients like avocado, honey, and egg white can restore softness and elasticity to your hair.

Conclusion

A soap cap/bleach bath is a valuable tool in your hair care arsenal, especially if you’re looking for a gentle way to tweak your hair color. 

However, like any treatment involving bleach, it’s essential to approach it with caution and care. 

By understanding the benefits and potential risks, you can make an informed decision about whether a soap cap is right for you and your hair.

Remember, the key to healthy hair is not just the treatments you choose but also how you apply them and care for your hair afterward; always prioritize the health of your hair.