After leaving the salon, your hair colour always looks fantastic, fresh and vibrant. But if you don't look after it properly, even professionally-dyed hair can fade quickly.
To make sure you don't have to visit the salon every other week, here are my top tips for making your hair colour last longer by caring for it properly at home.
Pre-colour preparation
Take a little time to prep the hair for your colourist; the day before, wash hair with a clarifying shampoo and follow up with a hydrating hair mask. The clarifying shampoo will strip hair of any product build-up, whilst the mask will moisturize dry hair, giving your colourist a clean and even surface to apply to the colour to, resulting in a smooth, balanced colour. Also, have a trim before you colour, to get rid of any damaged ends and make sure that the colour goes on evenly.
Don't wash it too often
Try not to wash your hair too often, especially when it's freshly dyed. Over-washing is the biggest cause of hair colour fading, and it’s so easily avoided. Sometimes your hair will need ‘training’ to get used to less frequent washing, particularly if you usually wash it daily, but it’s worth it to prolong your colour. Aim for every 48 hours at the most, and if you can stretch it out a little longer, do it – just keep it looking and smelling fresh with dry shampoo in-between.
Use the right products
Use colour-friendly, sulfate-free shampoos and conditioners to keep your colour looking tip-top. I particularly like the Superfruit Complex 10-in-1 range by SheaMoisture, which not only protects coloured hair, but helps to bring it back to life with every wash. The gentle formula will keep hair looking and feeling healthy and nourished, with a lovely glossy finish.
Deep condition your hair
At least once a week, use a deep conditioner on your hair. The chemicals in hair dyes leave the strands porous and dry them out, so to keep your hair soft and healthy, smooth on a rich colour-safe conditioning mask like SheaMoisture’s Raw Shea Butter Deep Treatment Masque. Pop on a shower cap and let it soak in for at least ten minutes, ideally half an hour if possible, before thoroughly rinsing out.
Turn the temperature down
This goes for your showers and for your heat-styling tools too. Lukewarm water is far kinder to hair than hot and will help preserve the colour for longer. And with your styling tools, try to cut down usage as much as possible – try air-drying your hair a few times a week rather than blow-drying, and braiding overnight rather than using a curling tong every day.
Opt for a glossing treatment
A glossing treatment will seal in colour and boost its brightness, giving you a gorgeous glossy finished look. You can get at-home, in-shower glossing treatments which are ideal for use in-between colour touch-ups and will help you to go a little longer between appointments.