Maintaining Your Hair Colors

It's easy enough to color your hair. You just add some dye here, add some dye here – voila, you're done!

Indeed, coloring your hair is easy enough, even for complete beginners. But maintaining your hair colors? Now that's an entirely different question.

1. Hold the shampoo

Hair dye can smell anywhere from unpleasant to downright revolting depending on the brand. It might be tempting to immediately scrub your hair with your favorite scented shampoo right after getting your hair dyed, but fight the urge.

First of all, you should be using a shampoo that preferably has no fragrance in it. Second, you should wait at least 3 days or 72 hours before using a shampoo, if you want to really let your hair soak in all the color. Getting off to a good start ensures that your hair color lasts a longer period of time.

2. Always use a conditioner

Using a conditioner makes your hair much smoother and softer, and it also helps make your hair much easier to manage. Just make sure to use a conditioner that's suited for color-treated hair!

(c) Marina Lala, Unsplash

3. Don't wash your hair every day

We've said it again and again – washing your hair every single day is a huge no-no. Water, in addition to shampoo, can dry out your hair really badly, making it more prone to damages and breakages.

And if you have damaged hair, it's more than likely that you'll have to style it more often to cover up the damage, which could lead to further damages.

4. Turn off the heater when washing

Another no-no when it comes to hair is hot water. Sure, it's fine to use lukewarm water to rinse off shampoo or hair dye at first, but try to avoid having your heater turned on while washing your hair.

Above all else, make sure to use cold water at the end of your shower to lock in all the moisture in your strands.

5. Use heat protectant when styling

(c) Shari Sirotnak, Unsplash

Speaking of heat, don't forget to use a heat protectant when styling using heat tools. Color-treated hair can be weaker and more susceptible to damage than untreated hair, so they need extra protection.

You can even use leave-in conditioners that will protect your hair from UV rays if you're all for maintaining your hair colors.

6. Use products made for color-treated hair

There are lots of products out on the market right now that are specifically made for color-treated hair. Using products that are made for non-color treated hair could have negative effects on your hair's color.

For example, products made for untreated hair could make the color look duller or less shiny, as color-treated hair has a slightly different chemistry than untreated hair. Plus, those products may accidentally make your hair color fade much faster, as they weren't created with hair color in mind.

7. Do regular treatments for maintaining your hair colors

Just like with non-color treated hair, it's also important to do regular treatments for maintaining your hair colors. You can use deep conditioners, hair masks, or even DIY hair treatments to bring back your hair's sheen and luster.

If you're interested in more haircare guides, feel free to check out the ZALA blog!