It’s always frustrating to see your hair dye begin to fade, and some colors fade faster than others, while others can end up looking uneven, dull and different from the color you originally wanted.
There are multiple reasons for why your hair color fades, from the color you choose, the condition of your hair, your haircare routine and even environmental factors like the sun.
Why Some Hair Colors Fade Faster Than Others
It usually comes down to the type of hair dye you’ve used, the depth of the shade and the condition of your hair.
The type of hair dye matters because different hair dye types use different color chemistry, like permanent hair dyes oxidizing the hair’s cortex, whilst demi and semi permanent hair types sit closer to the hair’s cuticle, and slip out faster.
The shade depth matters, as pastels and light coppers will show fading quicker than a deep brown, as there’s less concentration to mask the color change.
Your natural pigments will affect the longevity of your hair dye. If you have naturally dark hair, lighter tones will have to fight your natural color’s underlying warmth, which can make your hair look brassy quickly.
Your hair’s porosity from bleaching, heat styling or chemical treatments can leave your hair’s cuticle feeling rough, which lets the hair dye leak and look dull.
Exposing your hair to UV light will break down the hair dye’s molecules, and shift the tone, especially if you’ve used a red dye.
How Washing Your Hair Affects Color Fade
Every time you wash your hair, it lifts the dye molecules, especially if you lather your hair aggressively, or let the suds sit on your hair for too long.
Always check the ingredients list on your shampoo, as strong sulfates, harsh detergents and high-clarifying formulas will strip oils from your hair, and pull the color from the hair’s cuticle. If you need a deeper clean, use the shampoos sparingly, and always follow-up with a conditioner to smooth the hair’s cuticle.
The temperature of the water also matters, because hot water swells the hair shaft and speeds up the color run-off, whereas lukewarm water will keep the hair cuticle tighter.
How often you wash your hair is another factor, as daily washing can fade your hair dye faster, so try and space out your hair washes, and use using cleansing in-between. Try and balance the color protection with your scalp’s health, by cleansing enough to prevent build-up and itch without overstripping your hair.
How Using Heat Styling Tools Can Lead To Color Loss
Even if you’re careful with how often you wash you hair, frequent heat styling can still dull your hair dye fast.
Every pass with your flat iron, curling wand or blow dryer chips away at your hair’s smooth surface which helps the hair dye look rich, and heat damage can leave your hair looking rough and faded.
The high temperatures can also oxidize some color molecules, so your hair dye color will turn brassy or muddy sooner than you expected.
How often you style your hair can affect how quickly your hair color will fade, and you can slow the color loss by lowering the heat of your styling tools (where possible), doing fewer passes and letting your hair air-dry half way before you start using a blow-dryer.
Always use a heat protection spray before using any hot tools at all, and avoid using alcohol-heavy sprays which can make your hair dryer when using hot hair tools.
Try and use hair tools that allow you to adjust the heat temperature and the heat distribution, to minimize heat damage.
How The Porosity Of Your Hair Can Impact How Long Your Hair Dye Lasts
The porosity of your hair controls how easily your strands absorb and release moisture, as well as how well your hair grabs onto hair dye, and how quickly the hair dye escapes.
Your hair porosity type (low, medium or high) changes the dye penetration and color absorption from the very start. If you have low porosity hair, tight hair cuticles will resist water and pigment, so the dye may sit on the surface of the hair and rinse out unevenly, unless you use gentle heat during processing.
With medium porosity hair, you have a more balanced hair cuticle which supports a steady color uptake and stronger moisture retention, so your hair dye color will stay truer, for longer.
If you have high porosity hair, the raised or damage cuticles pull in color fast, but they can’t hold it as well, so frequent hair washing, UV light and heat will all make the hair dye pigment leak out.
To extend the longevity of your hair dye, match the hair products to your hair’s porosity level, with protein and bond care for high porosity, lightweight hydration for low porosity and consistent conditioning for all hair porosity types, to keep your hair as healthy as possible.
