i've had my hair stripped twice and i've bleached the front white before lol, the first time i bleached my hair from black it went ginger too, but then i bleached it again and it went white, then i used a toner to make it blonde. if you're really sick of the black (like i was) i would just bleach it till it's light enough then use a toner on top to get the colour you want. your hair will be damaged straight afterwards (mine was so bad that if i rubbed a strand between my fingers it would disintegrate) but i deep conditioned like crazy, used hot oil every day for like 2 weeks and after that it was ok.the only thing i regret about bleaching my hair now is that the part i bleached doesn't curl very well, but if you wear your hair straight it shouldn't be a problem. i say go for it, but only if you are prepared to look after your hair really well for the next few weeks as it will be damaged. i used smart blonde platinum blonde bleach. i've heard schwarskoff is one of the least damaging.edit: this blog is really helpful when bleaching your hair - http://killerstrands.blogspot.com/