Color-Safe Haircare Tips
Color-treated locks need special TLC between dye jobs. Here, salon professionals share their recommended products for maintaining healthy and vibrant strands between coloring sessions.
Sulfates may get a bad rep, but their drying effects on colored-treated hair is even greater. Try switching to a shampoo without sulfates such as this one that contains sodium cocoyl isethionate and glycerin for hydrating your strands!
Avoid Clarifying Shampoos
Overusing clarifying shampoos can result in dry and dull-looking locks, with heavy surfactants potentially harming color-treated locks. Therefore, only use clarifying shampoos once or twice weekly before following up with nourishing conditioners for best results.
Clarifying shampoos are designed to eliminate product buildup and impurities such as hairspray, mousse, pomade, oil and minerals from hard water and swimming pool chlorine deposits from your scalp. They may also help relieve flaky scalp conditions.
When purchasing a clarifying shampoo, look for one without sulfates and made from healthy ingredients. Consider choosing something with EWG Skin Deep database’s Green Circle label as it shows it is suitable for all hair types – you could even find an option tailored specifically towards your hair type!
Use Heat-Protecting Styling Products
Heat-protecting sprays help minimize damage from heat-styling tools by creating a barrier between hair and styling tools, providing protection from damage caused by direct heat-styling tools. Most formulas feature moisture-attracting ingredients like natural oils and fatty acids as well as polymers to de-frizz and strengthen strands.
Heat protectant sprays free from sulfates and parabens are essential for color-treated hair, helping prevent mineral build-up on individual strands that could alter its intended tone.
Heat-protecting products may help limit damage from high temperatures, but they are no guarantee. Strands remain susceptible to damage and fading despite this protective measure; just as applying SPF doesn’t ensure sunbathing will go safely unabated. Luckily there are many effective options out there.
Avoid Extended Sun Exposure
Exposure to UV rays from the sun’s UV rays can cause color-fading and oxidation, so it is best to limit time spent outdoors or use leave-in conditioner with SPF protection to guard your locks against potential harm. Many color-safe shampoos, styling products and hairsprays contain UV protection features to minimize this damage.
If you must wash your hair, try to use lukewarm water temperatures as hotter water can open up the shaft of your hair shaft and allow dye molecules to escape. If you can’t skip shampooing sessions altogether, dry shampooing could help minimize oil and dirt buildup while choosing a sulfate-free formula may help preserve your chosen shade – these shampoos contain low levels of sulfates while also including extra moisturizing ingredients like emollients and proteins for smooth cuticle support to ensure healthy cuticle health for healthier locks!
Use Leave-In Conditioners
Leave-in conditioners can help restore hair’s hydration levels and stave off color fade by coating and protecting strands with their protective ingredients, like natural oils, botanical extracts and vitamins, according to Mislankar. « Seek out products containing these nourishing components. »
Leave-in conditioners can be particularly helpful for curly and textured hair types as their natural oils take longer to reach their ends and may need additional moisture than other hair types. To use one effectively, gently towel-dry your locks before applying from mid-lengths through to tips.
Style your locks as usual before using leave-in conditioner for optimal results. Kusero suggests not washing every day as this can strip strands of their natural oils, leading to dryness. Aim for two to three applications each week in order to reap its full potential as a leave-in conditioner.
Avoid Blow Drying
Blow drying can lead to dry, brittle locks with faded color that are susceptible to breakage. Mahony advises using a leave-in conditioner as a pretreatment before blow drying; then working from roots down. This approach helps avoid split ends as well as damage to your medulla (the center region of hair fiber) and cell membrane complex, helping avoid split ends and other potential risks.
Avoid washing your hair too frequently; excessive washing could actually hasten its thinning, according to Kusero. « Washing too frequently may actually accelerate this process; therefore it is recommended to do it only three or four times each week, » suggests the expert.
Always opt for lukewarm or cooler temperatures when shampooing, since hotter waters leach dye molecules from your hair more quickly. In addition, make sure that you use sulfate-free shampoo specifically designed to treat color treated hair.
