All colored hair has an expiration date. Depending on whether your dye is temporary or permanent, your color may last anywhere from 6 to 30 washes. For those who wash their hair multiple times a day or week, this means your hair color may fade faster. The solution is simple – wash your hair less to save your color.
More often than not a colour which won't hold is the result of a lack of treatment. However, in the case of home colouring, the problem can often be due to the colouring process. Either the application isn't even, the waiting time is too short or you aren't using the right product for the desired effect.
Soften Your Water
An often overlooked cause of hair fading and washing out is hard water. If your hair dye is washing out, you may want to check the pH of your water and see if you have hard water. If so, you can fix this by installing a low-cost hard water filter in your shower like this one.
Shampooing Too Often After Coloring
Depending on whether your dye is temporary or permanent, your color may last anywhere from 6 to 30 washes. For those who wash their hair multiple times a day or week, this means your hair color may fade faster. The solution is simple – wash your hair less to save your color.
Check the pH of your water: whether you are doing a wash or a rinse, be sure to check the pH of your water. If it's hard water, it can also play a role in the dye fading faster. You can always install a filter to help you with this.
The hotter the water and the more often, the faster your color will fade. Instead, wash in warm water and rinse in cold. The cold water will actually seal the cuticle and leave your hair looking extra glossy. The ultraviolet rays in sunlight break down the chemical bonds in your hair, making the color fade.
To summarize, you should leave hair dye in your hair for a minimum of 30 minutes and a maximum of 45. Avoid leaving the hair dye in too long because this may cause your hair to become dry and brittle.
Not only do you get the environment of the salon and the skills of your stylist, but you also get professional-quality hair dye that will last much longer than a kit that you bought at the store.
Specifically, permanent hair dye lasts about 6-8 weeks. This is different from the other types of hair dye. Temporary hair dye doesn't really hold on to hair and can be rinsed away easily, whereas semi-permanent and demi-permanent hair dyes last only about 6-8 washes because the pigment simply coats the hair.
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Sadly, yes. While permanent hair dye won't wash out of your hair in the same way that temporary, or semi-permanent hair dye does, it will eventually start to fade and change shade over time. The colour you go for will also influence how long your hair will stay vibrant.
“Sealing the hair's cuticle is what locks in your hair color,” says Anderson. So in short, yes, using apple cider vinegar can help set and preserve your hair color's lifespan. “The more firmly closed your hair cuticle is, the less likely your color is going to fade," says James.
It takes darker hues, like brown and black, longer to fade than lighter ones. This is because black hair colours are made up of tiny molecules that can thoroughly permeate the hair.
Salons wash hair after coloring because they need to prepare your hair for the next treatment, which is important if you are planning a straightening or curling treatment directly after your hair has been dyed.
As natural brunettes, brown hair dyes can last the longest compared to other hair dyes. There's no need to bleach your hair colour as the eumelanin content will allow the hair colour to stay on longer. Besides, with the aforementioned colouring techniques, you can still flaunt your beautiful brown locks.
Hair that's dyed with a lot of pigment can look more faded the more you wash it. If possible, try to only wash it every other day at most, or, ideally every two to three days. So, should you actually wash your hair before coloring? If you're bleaching your roots, the answer is no.
It's not your imagination — red hair dye does fade faster than other hair color shades.
Permanent hair dye typically lasts for between four to eight weeks before it grows out or fades (more on that below).
Hair color needs at least 48 hours to settle into the hair strands. So, if you wash your hair 24 hours after highlighting, the color will quickly wash away and become dull.
Add 1 cup of vinegar to the rinse cycle or one-half cup salt to the wash to help hold in colors. Use color-catcher sheets, which trap extraneous dyes during the wash cycle to prevent bleeding. Don't overstuff your dryer.
As a general rule, wait at least four weeks, and preferably six weeks, before starting another treatment. Semi-permanent hair color can be used more frequently than permanent tints if desired. It is designed to fade, which means more frequent treatment is needed.
The general rule of thumb is once every 4-8 weeks, give or take. This frequency varies from person to person, depending on factors like the type of hair dye used, the specific color used, your hair regrowth rate, and any additional treatments you may tack on (like chemical straightening or perms).