How To Maintain Colored Hair

Welcome to the colorist clan! You look stunning with that new hair color.

But wait, wait a minute, why are there wrinkle lines on your forehead? You look kind of tense. Is there something bothering you?

Let us guess, you are afraid that your hair won’t stay as beautiful as it is now. Well, if that’s the case we’re here to help you. In this post, we will explain how to maintain colored hair and keep it beautiful for as long as possible.

Washing Color Treated Hair

Washing hair is an everyday routine for most of us. However, if you have had your hair colored recently or just a couple of hours ago, then here are the things you should keep in mind before entering your bathroom.

Wait 72 Hours Before You Wash Your Hair

Waiting for 3 days before you wash your hair is the crucial part of the process. Your hair needs time to settle. Your hair and scalp just went through a chemical process. Waiting allows for your hair’s pH to balance and prevents over stripping hair and scalp of natural oils. Basically what happens is, while coloring your hair the chemical opens up the cuticle layer of the hair and removes natural pigment making it easy for the color to penetrate the hair shaft. The cuticle layers take 3 or more days to get to their resting place. When you wash your hair before the cuticle layers are repositioned, you have a high chance of prematurely fading your colored hair and washing time and money down the drain.

Wash Your Hair Less Often

Waiting for 3 days doesn’t end the process. You have to keep skipping your wash day. The more you wash, the quicker your colored hair will fade.Wash your hair every two to three days and soak up oil from those roots with dry shampoo. Washing your hair less often is one of the best ways to maintain colored hair.

Use Shampoos And Conditioners made for Color-Treated Hair

There are hundreds of shampoo and conditioner brands on the market. Most are regular shampoos while some are specifically made for certain hair types. It matters which brand you use. Once you’ve gotten your hair colored, you should use your stylist’s recommendation of professional shampoos and conditioners made for colored hair. Regular shampoo and conditioner have low grade sulfates in them and they can wash away your color and accelerate color fade. With professional shampoos, you can be certain you are using high quality ingredients that help to protect your colour.

Use Cold or Lukewarm Water to Wash Your Hair

Most are a big fan of hot showers and we assume you are too. But, if you want to maintain your colored hair you have to ditch the hot water. Hot water opens up the hair cuticle allowing your color to wash out. If you can’t bear shampooing with cold water. Use slightly warm water to shampoo and then rinse with cold water after conditioning.

Drying and Styling Your Colored Hair

As you color your hair, you will want to style it as well. After all, who doesn’t want stylish hair? Here are the things to remember when you dry and style your hair.

Allow your Hair to Dry Naturally

Drying your colored hair naturally is the best way to dry your hair. It might take time but it’s worth it. The damage caused by the hairdryer is similar to hot water. Anything that is hot or produces heat is a caution sign to the colored hair, be it hot water, blow dryer, straightening irons, or curling wands. Using these hair products will heat up the strands along with your color allowing those color molecules to fade making it harder to maintain colored hair.

Use Heat Protectants for Heat Styling

We all love our hair color but sometimes situations come up where we can’t avoid using heat styling. What you can do on such occasions is spray a bit of heat protectant and turn your iron down to 300 degrees or below then heat style your hair. Some heat protectant products also work as UV filters.

Keeping Color Treated Hair Healthy

I’m sure by now you have known how to wash, dry, and style your colored hair. But how do you keep it healthy?  Meaning, how do you keep its shine and contrast?

Here’s what you can do.

Use Hair Masks Once Per Week

You can’t deny the fact that shampoo and conditioner play a huge role in how to maintain colored hair. But if you want to take it to the next level you have to use a hair mask. Using a hair mask once or twice a week will keep your hair moisturized and color vibrant. It also repairs damage, increases shine, and helps colored hair stay longer.

Regular Hair Trimming for Healthy Hair

Coloring hair involves lots of chemical processing and your hair is much more prone to damage. If your hair is damaged don’t skip regular trims. Trimming your hair prevents the spread of damage, split ends, and breakage.

Maintain a Healthy Diet

Diet is everything! If you want to look fabulous you need a healthy diet, if you want glowing skin you need a healthy diet, if you want to lose weight you will need a healthy diet, if you want to look muscular you will need a healthy diet. And above all your hair also needs a healthy diet to stay healthy. What you eat has everything to do with the health of your hair and how it looks. Foods you can include in your daily diet to maintain colored hair can be salmon, mackerel, walnuts, and anything that is rich in Vitamin E, iron, and protein such as lean meat, fish, low-fat cheeses, egg white, spinach, and soy.

Take Supplements

Another great way to improve health and maintain colored hair is to take supplements. Vitamins C supplement will keep the blood vessels in the scalp healthy. Vitamins B helps strengthen weak hair and improves its texture. Omega 3 fatty acids help to keep your hair shiny. Most of the food that we eat contains vitamin B, C, and Omega 3 but if your diet is lacking these vitamins by any means, taking vitamin supplements is a good option.

Wear a Hat

Most of the time UV filters won’t protect your hair the whole day long. The sunlight will start to penetrate your hair sooner or later which might lighten your hair making the current color fade. If you plan to spend your day outdoors be sure to wear a hat to protect your colored hair.

6 Things to Avoid While Maintaining Coloured Hair

Hair Coloring doesn’t take too much time. You go to the salon and you have your hair colored in a couple of hours or just a few appointments. The hard part is maintaining the color treated hair. The better you know how to maintain colored hair the longer the color stays.

Things to avoid in order to learn how to maintain colored hair.

1. Stay away from low grade Sulfates: Most of the shampoos and conditioners in the market contain high amounts of low grade sulfates. Sulfate is known for its deep cleansing character. That’s the reason most of the detergent, bathing soap, and shampoos have sulfates in them.The salt in these sulfates can strip away moisture, and moisture loss is one of the main causes of color fading. If you want your colored hair to last longer, stay away from low grade sulfate or opt for sulfate-free shampoos and conditioners.
2. Avoid Hard Water: Hard water contains an appreciable quantity of dissolved minerals including sulfates. Regular use of hard water can be one main reason that our hair color looks dull and lackluster. Instead of rinsing your hair every day try using a shower cap or buy a filter for your shower head to avoid the unnecessary buildup. Constant use of hard water will make it hard for you to maintain colored hair.
3. Don’t Double-Process Color-Treated Hair: Coloring hair means your hair is dealing with chemicals. And we all know “too much” is bad. Double color processing is too much for your hair. In case you want to double-color treat your hair be sure to ask your stylist for low-ammonia, botanical formulas that condition the hair while processing.
4. Avoid Chlorine On Colored Hair: If you love swimming this point is for you. Every swimming pool has chlorine in it. Chlorine is added to the water to keep the water clean and fresh. Though chlorine works best for swimming pool waters, it can be a nightmare for your hair. Chlorine water has the tendency to turn your colored hair to a green hue. Always wear a swimming cap before you enter any swimming pools.
5. Don’t Color Your Hair Too Frequently: Coloring once every four to six weeks is fine but don’t cross the limits. Coloring too much will only cause hair damage. If the roots begin to show use hair mascara or spray-on root concealers,  until your next coloring session.
6. Don’t Try to Bleach Your Hair: One of the top ways to know how to maintain colored hair is to avoid hair bleaching by yourself. Understand that bleach and double processing are two different chemical treatment processes altogether. Bleaching is a tricky process. It can turn your colored hair to blonde, change hair texture, and can be extremely damaging if not done properly. So leave it to your hairstylist.

These are 6 things that you should avoid if you want your color treated hair to last longer. Sometimes you might be tempted to try things on your own. Resist it! Always consult your hair colorist before you do anything with your colored hair.

Moisturizing Color-Treated Hair

Moisturizing your hair is one of the most important steps you can’t skip. Moisturizing is one of the best ways to know how to maintain colored hair. Lack of moisture often leads to color fade. So, steal some time to moisturize your colored hair once in a while.

• Use a conditioner specially made for colored hair. Most color treated shampoos have high-density moisture in them. Skipping shampoo and jumping straight to the conditioner will add softness, shine, and caring nourishment.
• Another best way to moisturize your hair is to use a hair mask once a week.
• Treating your hair with hot oil is another way to keep your hair moisturized. Oils seal nourishment and moisture in your hair. Make an appointment with your hair colorist for a hot oil treatment

Colored Treated Hair FAQs

Did You Color Your Hair Lately?

Right now you might be thinking, “I know how to maintain colored hair!”For first-timers, it might seem tricky, but once you know what to do it’s easy.

To maintain colored hair you need commitment. If you follow the strategies mentioned in this article, your color will stay as bright and badass as the day you stepped out of the salon.