My hair color changes much like my style. Sometimes I want my hair dark like my soul, other times I want it more vibrant and colorful like my witty personality. More often than not I’ve been choosing the latter of the two opting, for more vibrant, colorful hair colors that usually help me stand out in a crowd.

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But with great color, comes great responsibility (ah, see what did there? Ok, ok I’ll stop haha) We all know that constantly dying your hair is beyond damaging to your luscious locks.

All the bleaching and coloring, even the blow drying and straightening can really do a number on colored tresses making it frustrating when it begins to feel more like hay than an actual human hair. Below I’m sharing my top tips for keeping color-treated hair healthy despite the constant damage it faces. 

Meet My Color-Treated Hair

When I first dyed my hair almost two years ago, I chose a color where I knew my natural hair color wouldn’t have to lift too much to grasp the new color I wanted. That color was a burgundy-reddish color. As a Latina with naturally dark hair I was happy with the outcome of my first experiment. By that summer I went all out and dyed my hair purple, teal, pink, red, blue – you know, unicorn hair.

Two things to note here, it was my first time fully bleaching my hair and second, I had no idea what kind of maintenance it would take to maintain, so I damaged A LOT of my hair and had to chop off a few inches to make it feel less spongy and dead.

If you’re thinking of coloring your hair anytime soon, DO IT! I always encourage people do dye their hair! It’s so much fun and much like a tattoo, it can be addicting after the first time.

So in order to help you not make the same mistakes I did (and have to cut inches off your hair),  I’m sharing some of my favorite tips on how I personally my keep color-treated hair healthy and vibrant even after all the damage done to it. 

Opt for Salon Quality Products:

I can’t stress enough how important it is to use salon-quality products on your hair even if it’s not done at the salon. I’m sure you all know someone who can go to the local Salon Centric, Armstrong McCall, etc (shout out to my hair stylist momma) and get you the right products you need to dye your hair. Bleach, developer and color can all be found at Sally’s, Ulta and drugstores (box dyes)  but I highly recommend just getting the good stuff from the get-go. Your hair will thank you so much later!

Don’t wash your hair every day:

Not going to lie, I struggle with this one a lot! Since I go to the gym at least 4 times a week I feel gross not washing my hair after a workout so I wash it practically every day and my hair color suffers from it. When I don’t go to the gym, however, I wash my hair around every third day to prevent it from fading out so rapidly.

Use Dry Shampoo:

I’m not the craziest over dry shampoo but I have learned to accept it in my life and it has become my bff when it comes to delaying wash days. It also helps add volume to your hair which, to be honest, I can’t complain.

* A tip for using dry shampoo is to put it on before bed so it absorbs the oil and moisture as you sleep. This will prevent you from getting that powdery white look on your hair that I don’t know about you but  I’m not too fond of.

Use Tinted Conditioner:  

For periods where I wash my hair every day, I tend to use a tinted conditioner like oVertone to help combat premature color fading. Another trick I use is If I have leftover dye, I simply mix it in with some conditioner so I am always adding a little color despite all the washes making my hair color last a little longer. Clearly, this only works when one color is in the hair but for my unicorn hair babes, that’s why we have dry shampoo.

Cold Water Showers:

The not-so-fun part of having color-treated hair are those cold showers. Winter was a real beast may I say. If you don’t know, hot water fades out colors. This is true in washing clothes, taking stains out of things etc. For that reason, it is suggested to take lukewarm or cold showers to help preserve hair color. To accomplish this and not make it so bad, I usually tie my hair in a high bun, do my business in warm water and when I’m ready to wash my hair I turn it down to the coldest I can bare.  Not the most glam part of having color-treated hair but it’s a small price to pay after the money spent to dye it.

Use hair care products:

Hair care products are so important when it comes to your hair’s health. To maintain my hair silky soft I use a serum, a heat protectant and a hair mask once a week and believe me, they work! I have people always asking me how is it that my hair feels so lustrous even though its bleached and my answer is always hair products!  These have been my go-to lately. I love that they are affordable and get the job done. 

Also, if you plan of flying soon, use a hair mask. Not only does the dry cabin air dry out your skin, it can also dry out your hair. 

Take Vitamins: 

To help my hair grow healthy, I take the following vitamins. It’s a lot, I know but my hair has been growing in so silky and fast since taking these they are definitely worth It! Since vitamins can get expensive, I use the Target brand for all of these to save money.

• Biotin
• Niacin
• Fish Oil
• Collagen

Don’t Bleach Already Bleached Hair

Last but not least, I keep my hair healthy by not bleaching already bleached parts. As you can see from all the pictures, I’ve had many colors in my hair but I’ve never re-bleached it. I simply touch up the color and roots and let the rest be.

and in case you’re wondering what my current hair sitch is, here it is! lol 

If you ever have any hair questions ALWAYS feel free to reach out! I love being part of someone’s colorful hair journey!