Hair affairs: How to take care of dyed hair

If the motto for short hair is “short hair, no care”, the one for dyed or coloured hair is “Dyed hair, super duper extra care.” 

From ombrés to rainbow hair, and highlights to dip dyes, today’s generation is an experimental bunch. We have alternative hair colours to try out, along with tattoos, piercings, and what not. Our body is our canvas, and we really do know how to become artists. But all this comes at a high price (no kidding, going to a good salon to get your hair dyed is a costly affair) and let’s not forget the higher price paid for hair damage. Yes, colouring your hair will damage it. It will, and no one will tell you otherwise. It’ll make it dry and a bit frizzy but there’s always a way to get around everything and that obviously is loads and loads of conditioner and moisturiser. Any conditioner works fine, you don’t need a specific colour conditioner, but pampering your hair is always a good idea!

Also, there is no hair colour (colours like blue, purple, teal, pink, yellow, and all the funky colours that can give your mom  a potential heart attack) that’s ‘permanent’. It’s a myth. They are all ‘semi-permanent’ and will fade away within a month or six months, depending on how well you take care of your hair. My top four tips on how to take care of dyed hair so as to retain it for longer, and slower the process of the hair-colour stripping are:

1) Don’t wash it very often. Twice or thrice a week is okay. Do NOT forget to use a shampoo that is meant for coloured hair. They’re mild and work at cleansing the scalp without washing out your hair colour. I personally use Kiehl’s Sunflower Colour Preserve Shampoo.

2) Do not straighten your hair. Straightening your hair will strip it of it’s colour. You should rather just blow dry it. 

3) Wash your hair with cold water: Do NOT wash dyed hair in hot water. I have blue hair, when I wash it in hot water, it’s leaks like ink and then I have blue bathroom floors too.

4) Avoid direct sunlight: Sunlight can strip your hair of it’s colour and obviously make your already rough hair, rougher.

Hair colouring is quite a costly affair and it can really be heartbreaking when you hair colour fades away fast. Now, a money-saving trick would be to just bleach your hair at the salon. Bleaching your hair means dying it blonde, this is because  Indian hair already has a dark pigment and hence can’t absorb lighter pigments like blue or pink. So your hair is turned blonde/white to accept these colours. Bleaching is tricky and hence it’s recommended you get it done by a professional rather than on your own. However the colour dyeing bit is easy and can be done at home. You just need to get the dye, apply it, keep it on for a while or overnight and then wash it off and condition. I personally recommend ‘Manic Panic’. Doing it on your own also comes hand when the colour fades and you need a touch up!

So keep experimenting and keep having fun with your hair because you’ve only got this age to play around with it. Once you’re old, with hair fall and a 9-5 job and kids, electric blue hair won’t be something you can flaunt. (That won’t be stopping me but hey, you get the drift!)

(Priyanka Paul is an 18-year-old illustrator and poet who uses her art to express her opinion on various issues.)