Purple shampoo has been used for decades by hairdressers, mostly to help tone and neutralize blonde and gray hair, getting rid of brassy or yellow tones for an overall more cool-toned look.
Purple shampoo is a toning shampoo that deposits purple pigments onto hair to counteract brassiness. While it's typically used on blonde hair, it can also get rid of yellow or orange undertones in gray, white, or silver hair. But don't worry. When used correctly, it won't turn your hair purple!
Yes, it's possible for purple shampoo to turn gray hair purple, but only if it's left on your hair for too long or used too often. Purple shampoo is a violet-tinted product that counteracts the brassy color of gray or blonde hair, turning it into a more luminous and healthy shade.
Many people's locks can benefit from purple shampoo. One demographic who may want to give a purple shampoo a whirl is those with graying, gray, or white hair. Purple shampoo can banish brassiness far away from your silver strands, leaving you with hair that is lustrous and bright.
Yes, gray hair can turn brassy and dull—but a purple shampoo can easily brighten up the silver strands. If you're looking for ways to enhance your platinum locks, Brown would consider this one of her top tips.
If you have platinum, gray, or silver hair, you can leave the purple shampoo on for up to 30 minutes, depending on how brassy or discolored your hair is.
Gloss treatments and violet toner can help keep hair shiny silver. If you don't want to visit the salon for toner, you can do a bit of toning at home. "Use a purple shampoo or conditioner to counteract the brassy undertones in your white hair," Dr. Chacon suggested.
Purple shampoo is the best toner to use when it comes to gray hair because it neutralizes brassiness caused by heat styling, medications, product buildup, sun, salt, chlorine and environmental pollutants.
Essentially, purple shampoo and blue shampoo work on yellow tones and orange tones, respectively. If you look at a color wheel, you see that blue is directly across from the orange tones and purple is directly across from the yellow tones. Purple cancels out yellow and blue cancels out orange.
It is widely recommended only using purple shampoo on gray once a week. If you only wash your hair once a week, I'd move to only using it once a month.
Purple shampoos are really easy to use.
Eliminating too much yellow can cause your hair color to look darker, so don't overdo it. Reach for purple shampoo about once a week. If you love the results and want to push it further, you can add a second or third day.
Although purple shampoos are mainly famous among blondes, you can also use them on darker shades of blonde or to boost brunette, gray, silver, white, or platinum-colored hair. Purple shampoo is for anyone looking to lower orange, brassy, or yellow tones in their hair hue. Get Your Personalized Hair Routine.
Let the Shampoo Sit
Let the shampoo sit for two to five minutes depending on how brassy your hair is and how ashy you like your color, then rinse thoroughly. The difference between two minutes and four minutes with purple shampoo is a big one so keep an eye out. It may be helpful to set a timer so you don't go over.
“Look for shampoos with violet and blue undertones as these help to prevent yellow tones throughout your hair. These shampoos are different from regular shampoos because they are formulated to keep your hair shiny and avoid your locks looking brassy.”
1. Wet and Cleanse As Usual. The most important thing to know about using blue shampoo is that you won't be using it as frequently as you do your regular shampoo. Colombini noted that you'll want to “use blue shampoo once a week at most,” as overuse could turn even dark hair blue.
Purple shampoo can help neutralize yellow, orange, and brassy tones in hair that is blonde, platinum, silver, pastel, beige, gray, as well as brown hair. It's important to note that the pigment in purple shampoo isn't a lightener or hair dye but a gentle toner that works overtime.
Blue shampoos are designed to counteract orange tones in brunette hair, while purple shampoos are used to banish brass in blonde hair. If you make the leap from brunette to blonde hair, make sure to switch to a purple shampoo to counteract the yellow tones that often appear in color-treated blonde hair.
Due to the pigments that create Silver, your starting color needs to be either neutral- toned, or fully platinum blonde. Since silver is a delicate balance of colors, if the balance is thrown off at all it will give you unexpected results. These could include hair turning blue, green, or a grey-ish brown.
On gray hair, always use a clear, colorless oil or serum over one that is amber-colored. This will give shine without affecting the tone of your gray. Apply a light amount of serum to your damp hair along with your usual thermal protection spray. I like Phytokeratine Heat-Protecting Repair Spray from Phytologie.