Shedding of Red Hair Color

Faded red hair
Photo: Nastya22/Shutterstock
Q: I had bright red streaks put in my hair at the hairdressers. I think they used a {brand name omitted} color. After each wash the color was coming out everywhere. All over my towels, chairs and on my straightener. I went back to the hairdressers, and they couldn't work out what the problem was and put a dark brown dye over it. I then had blonde highlights the next two times I went. This does disguise the red for a while.
 
However after about two weeks it starts to come back through and after about four weeks I have a very vivid pink color where the red was. I am getting married in August and obviously want my hair to look its best. What should I do?
 
I have asked about a bleach wash to rid my hair of the red, and they are refusing to do this. Also, I live in a fairly small town, and my hairdresser is definitely the best around they even have 5 stars in the good salon guide! Do you have any suggestions? Thanks.
 
A: Okay. It sounds as though your problem is actually porous hair, which explains the shedding of the red hair color, and the rapid fade of the darker color applied afterward. I'm guessing that they are refusing to perform the "bleach wash" because they are aware of your hair's porosity and know that the hair might not withstand such a process.
 
If the salon is as good as you say, you should simply tell them what you consider to be the problem and ask them what you can do to correct it. If they won't do what you ask of them, they should at least be willing to offer some solution or explain to you why they won't.
 
The first thing I would do is to start you using a shampoo and conditioner combination containing fruit pectin where the acidity will help to seal the cuticle layer. You should also rinse the hair with cool water after conditioning. Depending on the condition of your hair, you may even want to start using weekly deep conditioning treatments.
 
In addition, if your salon suggests another hair color treatment to cover the offending color tones you presently have, ask about having them add a glaze to the process, which should help to seal the cuticle layer and will leave the hair very shiny as a result.
 
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See also:
 
Hair coloring
 
Basic hair care
 
How to carry out a hair porosity test
 
How to make your hair color last longer