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There’s a time when blondes don’t have more fun: when their golden locks start to turn red and dull. This hair color phenomenon is known as brassiness, and can happen to the best of the blondes. While blonde hair colors can leave reddish, brassy highlights, they don’t have to. If you take some steps to protect your hair, you can keep the blond and skip the red.
Why Brassy Happens
Although you can’t see them individually, three colors go into making your blond hair color: yellow, red and blue. The blue shades seem to say bye-bye faster than the other pigments, which is why you are left with a lovely red/yellow/orange highlighted tint instead. This is why your hair color can start to look like it has red highlights after only a few post-dye job washings. Another factor is your natural hair color itself. While it may have been so long since you’ve seen it that you don’t even remember, hair color that is naturally medium brown or warm blonde will look more red because these hair tones naturally have some red in them.
Purple Shampoo
If your hair color is starting to look red, head for your beauty products store of choice to pick up a bottle of purple-tinted shampoo. This shampoo color neutralizes the red highlights that can start to show up by putting blue/purple pigments back onto your hair. While it shouldn’t be your everyday shampoo — it will make your hair look purple with overuse — using a purple shampoo once or twice a week can help to keep red highlights at bay.
Check Your Water
Sometimes the water you use to wash your hair can work against you. That’s because water contains minerals like chlorine and iron that deposit on your hair, making it appear to have red highlights. If you think your water may be to blame, consider installing a shower-head filter that can kick the minerals out before they reach your hair.
Make a Color Change
Blondes often love their sunny hair color, and the temptation to go lighter and lighter is almost always there. If you keep getting unintentional red highlights after a trip to the colorist, consider adding some lowlights to your hair, which involve painting on a darker shade like caramel. Lowlights won’t keep your hair from being blond, but they can keep you from looking brassy. Another hair-color option is to visit your stylist and ask for a toner, which can deposit pigments that help to reduce brassiness a few weeks after your hair treatment.
