You invest time and money in changing your hair, so here’s how to maintain your hair colour. Whether you’re going lighter or darker, keeping your hair colour fresh can take some work.

As I’ve been pretty much every hair colour, I’ve got a few tips to share as part of my Hair Romance Good Hair Q&A series.

This question was submitted on Instagram, and you can follow me @hairromance, and I’ve got the answer for you in my video below.

How to maintain your hair colour

Please click here if you can’t see the video above

How to maintain your hair colour

1. Protect your investment

You spend a lot of time and money getting your hair coloured so don’t let it go to waste. Taking a little bit of extra care and being gentle when you brush and style your hair will make a difference.

2. Water is the enemy

Water is the number one thing that fades your hair colour.

Water has a higher pH than your hair. Water’s pH is 7 and your hair is around about pH 4.5 to 5.5. Anything higher than pH 5.5 will cause the cuticle to open. Hair colour is around pH 8-9 and that’s how colour is deposited into your hair.

Although water is neutral at pH 7, it still opens up the hair cuticle every time your hair is wet and allows that colour to wash away.

So the best thing you can do to help protect your hair colour is to wash less. And if possible, limit the amount of time that your hair is in water.

If you’re a swimmer this is going to be a constant problem but wearing a cap and doing a masks under your swimming cap can help.

3. Wear a hat

The sun is also going to fade your colour. When you’re outside, wear a hat to protect your hair.

I hope I don’t have to tell you this but it’s to stay out of tanning beds too. They are terrible for your skin but they also fade your hair colour. Think of them as concentrated sun damaged for your hair.

4. Choose colour safe products

Now when it comes to maintaining your hair colour, choosing a shampoo and conditioner that’s rated for colour protection is going to help. Avoid sulfate shampoos as these will remove more colour than sulfate-free alternatives.

5. Minimise heat

Turn down the temperature on your heat stylers and try to minimise heat styling. High heat can fade your hair in the same way that the sun does.

6. Add in more colour

There are some colour depositing conditioners available and this can really help manage your colour at home.

You can tone your hair at home purple shampoos and I’ve also used a pink Evo Fabuloso custom conditioner that my hairdresser made for me.

A note for redheads

If you’re a redhead, this probably isn’t news for you, but red is the colour that fades the fastest.

That’s because the red colour molecule is the largest and so it’s harder to keep it in your hair.

I highly recommend getting a red-toned conditioner for your hair or asking your hairdresser to mix up a custom colour so you can top it up at home. Alternatively you can go into the salon for a gloss treatment in between colour treatments.

I hope this helps maintain your hair colour a keep it looking fresh the whole time. And let me know your tips for maintaining your colour!

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