One of the conversations on a recent Zoom chat was about hair color and roots, and what you can do during quarantine. I know it feels a little silly to be worrying about this stuff right now with all that is going on, but having our hair color done makes us feel good. It's one of those instant mood lifters and we could all use that right now.
One friend, who has the prettiest blonde highlights, told me she bought an at-home Balayage kit and was planning on doing that soon and others I know are buying boxed color. I'm lucky that I got highlights done right before this all went down, but now I want to make sure I preserve my color and make sure it doesn't fade, get brassy and look dull.
I reached out to my colorist Jamie Millmather, co-owner of Love Culture Salon here in Providence, Rhode Island on what we should we doing with our hair color during this time. Jamie is a hair color maestro and I trust her with everything when it comes to color. If you're thinking of buying that box of color at the drugstore or trying to get color from your colorist delivered to your door, think again.
Check out Jamie's recommendations below:
How do we preserve our color during this time?
A good way to preserve color is to wash it less and add in weekly treatments such as Wella FusionPlex mask, which is great for adding strength and moisture to hair.
What should we use if we are showing major roots?
What about blondes? What can help to preserve color?
Blondes usually always need shine and condition to look their best. A variety of at home masks can help keep blonde hair vibrant and in good shape. You can try
this one from Wella.
People think they can call their colorist and get color prepared and dropped off at their house. What are your thoughts on this?
As for "curbside color" or "color delivery" I don't really stand by that. Once, I mix the color it starts to oxidize, which means by the time I get to your house, the color has already been developing, aka losing strength. The color would not take the way it should and most likely would not cover grey hairs that well.
What about box hair colors you can buy at the drugstore?
Box color contains more ammonia than professional hair color, which means it could be extremely damaging to your scalp and hair. It could result in scalp abrasions, hair loss or even developing an allergy to hair color (box color is formulated with molecules that could increase your risk of developing an allergy). The professional color I use at the salon is free of these harmful molecules.
What about highlight kits?
Again, no one should be playing with bleach on their own head or the head of others without a license to practice. You could potentially chemically burn your scalp. These temporary fixes could create irreversible damage to your hair and scalp, or your color could get worse, which means you will need a color correction to fix the mistakes made. And, color correction could be pricey.
So, what do we do with our hair during quarantine?
Right now my advice is to breath and take this one day at a time. Use this time to repair your
scalp and
hair, use less heat styling and enjoy this time with your family. We will be back in business before you know it.
Image by the talented Angel Tucker taken in Warren, Rhode Island.
