How to Take Care of Dyed Hair
How to Take Care of Dyed Hair
I’m always asked how to take care of dyed hair since I’m the Queen of Rainbow Hair. Today I’m sharing my latest favorites for taking care of my hair. Dyeing your hair, whether you get it done professionally at the salon or you DIY at home, is an investment. You want your color to last, not wash down the drain.
PR + purchased by me.
You can see my previous versions of this post – how to care for rainbow hair, how to care for colored hair, and how to take care of brightly colored hair. I was due for a refresh since the most recent one is from 2015.
Use Color-Safe Shampoo & Conditioner
One of the many important things to know about how to take care of dyed hair is how to clean it. Color-safe shampoo and conditioner will help cleanse your hair without stripping out the color.
I typically look for shampoos and conditioners that have argan oil in them. Shea butter is another great hydrating ingredient. Both of these will help your hair to be strong, soft and shiny.
Eva NYC Clean It Up Shampoo & Soften Up Conditioner
The Eva NYC line has a nice moisturizing formula with argan oil and keravis protein. It’s paraben free, too. Unfortunately it’s not sulfate-free, so I can’t use it. You can find it on sale at Costco or at Ulta. (Leaping Bunny Certified)
Cocoa Pink ShamPink & Argan Therapy Creme Conditioner
You know I love my indies. ShamPink and Argan Therapy Creme are amazing for my hair. Both are sulfate-free and paraben free. The best part is that you can get them in any scent you want. I have Pina Colada Cotton Candy and Cinderella’s Carriage, two of my favorite perfumes from Cocoa Pink.
Marc Anthony Moisturizing Shea Butter & Marula Oil Shampoo and Conditioner
Marc Anthony has long been my favorite drugstore hair care brand. This line is very hydrating for dyed hair.
DIY Shampoo & Conditioner
You can take your favorite shampoo & conditioner and add a small amount of Manic Panic or Jerome Russel Punky Color to them. Every time you wash you’ll be adding a little bit of color back to your hair. I used to do this all the time.
Cool It Down
Use lukewarm water to wash your hair. That helps to preserve the color. Super hot water will strip the color because it opens up the cuticles of the hair and washes it away.
Use A Filter
I strongly recommend investing in a shower filter. This is beneficial to your hair and your skin, as both will be softer. If you have sensitive skin, you may also notice that your skin is less irritated after using a shower filter.
Sprite Hand Held Shower Pure 7 Setting Shower Filter
I have the Sprite Hand Held Shower Pure 7 Setting Shower Filter in my master bath and guest bath. The filter needs to be changed about every 6 months / 5,000 gallons. It reduces chlorine, sediment, odors, and metals. I love this guy. Added bonus, the shower head can be removed from its cradle and used to rinse dye from your hair if you dye at home.
Don’t Wash Daily
Another very important part of how to take care of dyed hair is to know how frequently to wash. Unless your hair is very, very oily, you should not wash daily. Wash your hair every 3 to 5 days. I typically wash my hair once a week. I use dry shampoo in between washing to refresh my hair. Since Batiste is no longer cruelty free, I’ve been searching for the best new dry shampoo. Here are my picks.
Eva NYC Freshen Up Dry Shampoo
The Eva NYC Freshen Up Dry Shampoo removes excess oil and odor, reviving hair. It has a residue free formula. (Leaping Bunny Certified)
Sexy Hair Big Sexy Hair Dry Shampoo
The Sexy Hair Big Sexy Hair Dry Shampoo not only absorbs excess oil and impurities, it adds volume and texture. UV filters protect the hair against damaging sun rays.
Not Your Mother’s Beach Babe Texturizing Dry Shampoo
Not Your Mother’s Beach Babe Texturizing Dry Shampoo smells great and gives you extra texture, helping to create a tousled, windswept look.
Eva NYC Forget Me Knot Dry Conditioner
Eva NYC Forget Me Knot Dry Conditioner is perfect for after the gym. It’s good when you need to detangle your hair, or add softness and extra shine. The formula is very lightweight and smells great. (Leaping Bunny Certified)
Moisturize Your Locks
One of the most overlooked things to know about how to take care of dyed hair is that you should use deep conditioning masks. Using deep conditioning masks will help your hair more than just about anything else because it prevents frizz and split ends. I use the oVertone Mask every other time that I wash my hair.
oVertone Go Deep Weekly Treatment
The oVertone Go Deep Weekly Treatment mask has been a part of my hair care routine since the brand launched. It’s an amazing product that deposits color back onto your hair to help your color last longer. You can apply it wet or dry. I typically apply it after I’ve washed my hair. If my hair is looking particularly faded, I will apply it to my dry hair and leave it on for 3 or 4 hours, covering with a plastic cap. I did that to my hair this weekend to revive the ends.
It’s A 10 Miracle Deep Conditioner Plus Keratin
The It’s A 10 Miracle Deep Conditioner Plus Keratin is an insanely moisturizing, smoothing treatment that leaves my hair feeling like silk. If I’m not using the oVertone mask, this is the mask I use. (Leaping Bunny Certified)
Cocoa Pink Argan Therapy Replenishing Serum
I’m a huge fan of the Cocoa Pink Argan Therapy Replenishing Serum. I use it to hydrate my ends, smooth my hair, prevent fly-aways, and make my hair look shiny. It comes in whatever scent you like, which is great.
Heat Protect Your Hair
Using heat styling, whether from a blow dryer, curling iron, or flat iron, will cause your color to fade faster. Limiting the amount of heat styling is critical in how to take care of dyed hair. I choose to air dry over blow dry unless I’m pressed for time. I also don’t curl or straighten my hair daily. When I do choose to heat style my hair, I use a heat protectant.
Paul Mitchell Hot Off the Press
Paul Mitchell Hot Off the Press is a heat protectant that fights frizz and provides flexible hold.
DermOrganic 8 Way Thermal Spray
The DermOrganic 8 Way Thermal Spray is my go-to spray for blow drying my hair. It’s moisturizing and does a great job of protecting my hair.
Sexy Hair 450 Degree Protect Spray
Sexy Hair 450 Degree Protect Spray is perfect for flat irons or curling irons. You lightly mist it on your hair and then style as usual. It has soft memory hold
Swimming Protection
One of the things that I think most people don’t know about how to take care of dyed hair is what to do when you want to swim. Whether it’s in the salty ocean or a chlorinated pool, you need to protect your hair. Saturate your hair with water from a shower (in a shower if you’re swimming in a pool or the rinse off station at the beach). Then apply your favorite conditioner to your hair and clip it up out of your way. The wet hair, saturated with conditioner, will absorb very little chlorine or salt. Both salt and chlorine will fade your color, so it’s best to avoid them. After you’ve finished swimming, rinse again.
Sun Protection
Sun protection is an important (but often forgotten) part of how to take care of dyed hair. If you’re going to be out in the sun, wear a wide-brimmed hat or use a UV spray.
Simplicity UPF 50 Roll Up Floppy Beach Hat
I have this black Simplicity UPF 50 Roll Up Floppy Beach Hat that’s great for outdoors or the beach.
Eva NYC Mane Magic 10-in-1 Primer
The Eva NYC Mane Magic 10-in-1 Primer is a multi-tasking formula that does it all; detangles, nourishes, strengthens, softens, cuts drying time, adds shine, reduces frizz, and protects against thermal, environmental and UV damage.
Hair Dyes I Recommend
While I have a whole blog post dedicated to cruelty free hair dye brands, I did want to mention a few brands here that I love.
Pravana Chromasilk Vivids
The Pravana Chromasilk Vivids line has been my go-to for several years now. They have the best, long-lasting rainbow hair colors for my hair. Pravana also has a line of regular permanent and semi-permanent colors, as well as several other vivid type lines. This is the number one hair dye brand that I recommend.
Paul Mitchell Hair Dyes
Paul Mitchell has a great line of professional dyes for those who want office safe colors.
Manic Panic Hair Dyes
Manic Panic Hair Dyes are the brand that I’ve used the most in my life. They don’t last as long as Pravana, but they come in a wider variety of colors. I’ve got a soft spot for Manic Panic and still love their wide color range even if I don’t use it on myself. Often when I’m asked to dye my friends’ hair, they’ll want me to use Manic Panic.
These are all the things that I do to take care of dyed hair and make my color last longer.
What tips do you have for dyed hair? What are your favorite products to use?
More to See
Thanks for pointing out that we should be wearing a hat or spraying a UV protection solution to keep our hair protected from the sun. I will definitely keep that in mind since it is going to be prone to damage when I get my hair colored. I just wanted to have my hair colored because we will have a photo shoot next week for the wedding of my best friend.
Nice information you have described here about how to care our dyed hair. Many people will get benefitted from it.
Do you like Wen at all? It’s cruelty free (of course, or why mention it?), and it supposedly won’t dim dyes at all, according to “people.”
These are really awesome tips! I am getting a new shower head, and getting one that’s filtered would be great-different places have different water-some have harder water so that’s a good idea! Your colored hair is totally an investment, even if you are buying your own products and coloring at home, or you’re getting it done by a colorist! Washing it less really helps-I use all of the Marco Pelusi Collagen Color Guard Products(for those of you that don’t know me, that’s my really good friend and amazing colorist here in L.A.) If you’re used to washing your hair more, you can rinse your hair(that takes away excess dirt/oil, and then take a really small amount of conditioner and run it through your hair concentrating on the ends)Concentrating your conditioner more towards your ends also helps you, as it’s the ends that need more-you still do need some all over, but your scalp doesn’t need very much, and that will also allow you to shampoo less. Oh Courtney, I wanted to tell you that the new Color Moisturizing Shampoo is sulfate free-if you ever want to try it let me know! I’ve used it when my hair has been dryer, but normally and now I use the Color Health Shampoo, the Color Hydrate Conditioner-Deep conditioning is so helpful like you said! I use the Marco Anti -Frizz Leave-In Conditioner. That would be my product for heat-I don’t use a lot of heat, but if I do I definitely use it, but I also use some even without heat when I get out of the shower concentrating on the ends. I love this product, really keeps your condition in shape, which helps your color. (Also, a tip when shampooing is to focus on shampooing the scalp, and let the shampoo run down to your ends). When I have time, I will get out of the shower and put my hair up in a towel and leave my regular Color Hydrate Conditioner on longer. I love your tip about swimming in the pool or ocean, the conditioner will really protect it! I will have to check out the Dry shampoo from Eva NYC! It’s great that you have suggestions for cruelty free dyes like Pravana, Manic Panic and Paul Mitchell. I love PM’s commitment to stay cruelty free. Some salon tips(if you are going to someone new,or going into a salon for color) make sure that you ask for someone who specializes in color(some salons will have people that exclusively focus on color-they may be called ‘colorists’ and they will also be great at cutting, but they will know color. You can ask on the phone when calling for an appointment who they might recommend, it could be that most of their stylists do a lot of color, or the opposite) A good colorist will do a consult with you-things they will consider are the current condition of your hair, the current color you have, and a biggie is maintenance-how often are you able to come in? That way they can tailor their suggestions with what you want too-and use color techniques that will fit that-so you end up happy! Awesome post Courtney! xoxo
By the way I forgot to add your hair color and style is absolutely stunning!!! So pretty, I’m in love with the rombre(red ombre at the roots to pink!-ahhh <3 You hair is such a great example of how you maintain color-gorgeous reds and pinks are colors that fade faster.
I agree with everything especially using a deep moisturizing mask and sun protection. Those two things really help me and my 22 yr old daughter with our hair, because we live in Florida too and living here with so much humidity and heat/weather we often use a mask, and always sun protection. Thanks for sharing, you rock!
some great tips but most of these brands sadly aren’t available in Australia
Have you ever used a cleansing conditioner? My stylist recommended it but I’m worried it wouldn’t clean very well. I think I would have to use sulfate free also since my color fades so fast!
I know this is a few days old, but I can answer that for you! Cleansing conditioners aren’t meant to be used daily, just in between regular shampoos. It doesn’t lather as much and has just enough cleansing properties to get the grime out of your hair, but if you only co-wash, eventually you’ll get enough scalp buildup that your hair will fall out. They’re really great if you work out, too, because then you’re not washing your hair twice a day or every single day.
My personal favorite (I’ve tried A LOT, I used to work for a professional beauty supplier) is the Framesi Color Lover No-Suds cleansing conditioner. It’s vegan, sulfate-free, etc. and it’s cleansing enough that my thick, coarse hair doesn’t feel gross afterwards and moisturizing enough that my hair won’t feel like straw, either.
Great tips! So many don’t realize how important color safe shampoo & conditioners are!
Thanks So Much Courtney for Sharing Your Tips On How to Take Care of Dyed Hair, I Really Appreciate it! I Really Need All of the Help I Can Get at the Moment b/c I Have Hypothyroidism and Aside From the Weight Gain, the Extremely Dry Skin, Being Tired All of the Time & the Depression it Has Also Made My Hair Very Dry and it Falls Out in Clumps! Luckily My Dad Has a Ton of Hair and I Take After Him b/c if I Didn’t Have a Lot of Hair I Would Be Bald By Now! I’m 35 Yrs Old and I’m Starting to Notice a Few Gray Hairs Coming Through So I Do Believe it’s Time I Start Coloring My Hair but it’s Been a While Since I Have Colored My Hair So I Don’t Know What Shade That I Want to Go! I Really Appreciate All of These Awesome Tips and I Can Definitely Benefit From Them b/c I Really Need to Bring Some Life Back into My Dull, Lifeless Locks! Thanks Again for Sharing With Us Courtney, This All is Very Helpful and I Will Certainly Remember This When I Do Color My Hair! Have a Fabulous Day Courtney! – Jana
Use the It’s a 10 Miracle Deep Conditioner! It’s great on virgin hair too!
Hey Jana, I hope your color not only revitalizes your look but helps you feel refreshed and revitalized-I know it does for me! It’s totally normal with health stuff to have your hair go through a lot-the same thing happened to me, so I know what you mean- I had to have big surgeries and that can really do that. Thankfully, something that good haircolor can do is actually make your hair’s condition better! I just turned 35 and I now get some greys because my body has gone through a lot. I have just always loved hair color so my colorist, who is also my really good friend(he’s been doing my color since I was probably 19!) switched to a permanent, yet still multi-faceted deeper red, and that covers my greys) and I’m so glad that you have Courtney’s tips whether you do your own or go to a salon! I gave some tips on my previous comment for working with a colorist at a salon to find color that you love if you decide to do that. Going a bit darker, staying on the richer, darker side(rather than going lighter than your natural color) is a general rule of thumb to help rejuvenate your condition-when my hair was a lot dryer, we just would throw on a color that was deeper and richer,and that will help(plus all the conditioning products and tips Courtney mentioned of course and the masks!) xoxo
Great tips ~ bookmarking this post!
Happy to help! You know I love all things hair 🙂