Tips for Brightening Up Color-Treated Hair

If you have ever colored your hair, you know that the gloss and shine of newly tinted hair tends to fade a bit between treatments. Follow these tips to brighten up color-treated hair:

Take Steps to Protect Your Color.

As in football, when it comes to hair color, one of the best defenses is a good offense. As soon as you leave the salon or step away from the bathroom sink after coloring your hair, begin taking steps to protect the color and keep it looking great as long as possible. First, don't over-wash color-treated hair. Although permanent hair color is meant to stand up to shampooing, over-cleaning can take its toll and, over time, causes the color to fade or grow dull. So limit how often you shampoo color-treated hair. If you must shampoo daily, only shampoo and rinse once. Second, use high-quality hair products, especially shampoos and conditioners formulated for color-treated hair. Third, stay out of the sun, or, if you can't avoid the sun, wear a wide-brimmed hat and use hair care products with sunscreen in them, such as stay-in conditioners. Fourth, ask your stylist the best ways to protect color-treated hair.

Moisturize Your Hair.

While the chemicals in today's hair dyes are less damaging than those of the past, they still can dry out hair and cause it to lose its luster. Take these steps to keep color-treated hair well hydrated and manageable. First, use a moisturizing shampoo formulated for color-treated hair and, after shampooing, apply a light moisturizing conditioner or a leave-in conditioner. Second, if you blow-dry your hair and/or style it with a curling iron, flat iron or hot rollers, use a heat-protectant product to safeguard your color-treated tresses and use the lowest heat setting necessary. Third, deep moisturize color-treated hair at least once a month.

Go Natural by Using Olive Oil.

Since color-treated hair can become dry and dull, consider a natural solution, olive oil, to moisturize, condition and restore brightness. Not only is olive oil an effective deep conditioner that will add shine and manageability, but it is good for your scalp and can help to control dandruff. After shampooing your hair with a product for color-treated tresses, rinse it well, then work a 50/50 mixture of olive oil and water through it from scalp to ends. Leave this mixture on your hair for about five minutes, then shampoo again and rinse. Olive oil can also be used as a deep conditioner by warming it slightly in the microwave. Thoroughly work the warmed oil through your hair from scalp to ends, then put on a shower cap and leave the olive oil on your hair for a half hour before shampooing it out. Always check with your stylist before using any product on your hair, whether it is natural or off-the-shelf.

Use a Temporary Rinse Between Colorings.

Try a temporary rinse to brighten your color-treated hair between visits to your stylist. A temporary rinse colors only the outside of the hair shaft rather than penetrating the hair's cuticle. As a result, it has a short life, sometimes lasting only until the next shampoo. Having said that, temporary hair color can give your treated hair renewed brightness and shine. Choose a temporary hair color that is similar in shade to the color of your hair. You can also try colored hair mousses or gels to give your hair a more modest color boost between treatments, or hair mascaras to add some drama to a lackluster look. As always, check with your hair care professional before using a rinse or any other product on your color-treated hair to be sure that it won't react badly to the chemicals in your hair color.

Sources:

www.essortment.com, "How to care for hair after coloring."

www.oliveoilsource.com, "Beauty and Olive Oil: The Olive Oil Source."

Perriann Rodriguez, worldvillage.com, "Temporary hair color."