Healthy Highlights

How to keep your bleached hair healthy

When I first got my hair highlighted at age 15, I was worried as I could see what the bleach was doing to my hair. You see bleach is unlike any other hair coloring. In fact, it’s not even really “coloring.” Coloring is only something added to your hair. Bleaching literally takes away the natural pigments in your hair that hold your natural color, leaving it almost “clear” which is why it makes hair lighter.

I'm naturally a brunette. But I’ve actually bleached my hair with highlights on and off for about 4 years, so I have become accustomed to keeping my hair as healthy as it can be while it is bleached. I’m going to go through a few things to help you keep your hair healthy – even if you don’t bleach your hair!

Remember, bleach isn’t necessarily good for your hair, but there are ways to keep your hair as healthy as it can be while it’s bleached:

1. Don’t wash your hair so much! How often do you wash your hair? Every day? Every other day? Washing your hair too often will prevent your hair from maintaining it’s healthy glow and will definitely dry it out. Drying your hair out is obviously bad, but when you have any kind of bleach in your hair, it's ten times worse. Now, washing your hair less may sound gross, but your hair gets greasy according to how often you usually wash it. For instance, if you wash your hair every day, it is going to get greasy on the second day. But, if you consistently wash your hair every other day, it will get greasy on the third day. Make it a habit to wash your hair less and your hair will adjust. The natural oils that your hair produces are very good for your hair.

2. Rotate shampoo/conditioner brands every other time your wash your hair. Your hair becomes immune to the important nutrients and vitamins that are found in your shampoos/conditioners, so rotating every other wash was will nourish your hair to it’s fullest. For example, I use Bed Head’s Dumb Blonde shampoo and conditioner every other wash, and I use Tresemme’s Moisture Rich shampoo and conditioner on the other washes. Tresemme is fantastic in that I literally feel like I am using a $30 bottle of shampoo when really I spent about $3.50 for a 32 oz bottle. Plus, Moisture Rich is specifically designed for dry or damaged hair, which is extremely helpful for bleached hair. 

Dumb Blonde can be found here on amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Colour-Combat-Blonde-Tween-2x750ml/dp/B004RDP6GE/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1378154065&sr=8-1&keywords=bed+head+shampoo+dumb+blonde

Tresemme can be found at Walmart, Target, or any drug store. 

3. Use a heat protectant before blow-drying, straightening or curling. This sounds simple, but it is a necessary point to stress. The heat protectant I use is CHI’s “44 Iron Guard”

It can be found here on amazon at http://www.amazon.com/CHI-GUARD-THERMAL-PROTECTING-SPRAY/dp/B000VTVD6A

4. Stay away from the ends of your hair when you’re straightening and curling. If you can avoid placing the ends of your hair between two metal plates that reach up to 370 degrees, you will reduce your split ends by a lot.

5. Trim your hair often. It is imperative that you get your hair cut every 6-8 weeks. Now, I know that it seems that it means that your hair my not grow fast. But as bleach makes your hair brittle, spit ends are bound to come. Some split ends may break off shorter than others, causing the hair to look thin and uneven – and yes, shorter. So your hair will be healthier and thicker if you get a trim often.

Happy bleaching! :)