Highlights & Hair Straightening

Hair stylist and client
Photo: Lakov Filimonov/Shutterstock
Q: I was searching your website and had question on two chemical services. I am going to have my hair relaxed or straightened using either a relaxer or straightened via a cold smoothing technique. I also want to get highlights put on my top/front section.
 
My hair is light brown/dark ash blonde and I'm not sure what to do first and how long to wait between the services. I was thinking to get highlights done first, but I'm not sure. My hair is about 4 inches in length in most places and very coarse/thick and a bit on the dry side.
 
A: Generally speaking, it's usually better to color or lighten the hair AFTER having a chemical texture service. This is because chemical texture services can alter the color results of a color service.
 
You really don't want to spend money on highlighting and get the balance just right, and then find that after you have the hair straightened, your highlights are too pale or that the contrast between the highlights and base color is increased.
 
As for the wait between services, it depends largely on the condition of your hair after the first service. In typical cases, a stylist will recommend that the client wait a week between two chemical services, but with healthy hair, the wait isn't mandatory, and multiple chemical services (color and texture) can be performed in one appointment.
 
You need to trust your stylist's professional assessment of your hair to make that determination.
 
©Hairfinder.com
 
See also:
 
Hair straightening
 
How safe is it to straighten colored hair?
 
Can healthy, color-treated hair survive being straightened?