Believing that hair should be enjoyed, Ricardo Vila Nova isn’t opposed to colouring your hair if it’s what makes you happy. He does, however, suggest you follow the below coloured hair hacks to keep your tresses in the best possible condition…
Choose wisely
“When it comes to choosing a colourist, it’s important to do your due diligence. Find out how long they’ve worked as a colourist, ask to see their before and afters, make sure you feel like they understand exactly what you’re looking for and above all, ensure that they have an understanding about hair health. The best colourists will use dyes and techniques that are as gentle as possible and if you’re wanting to go a lot lighter then they will likely advise you to do this over a course of time, with treatments in between, rather than in one fail swoop.”
Add protein
“Just as a diet rich in protein is important for our health – impacting everything from heart health, tissue repair, and muscle growth. It’s equally incredibly beneficial for the hair – boosting growth, strengthening tresses, increasing shine and more. However, when it comes to caring for coloured hair, the protein in your diet can only do so much.
Diet and supplements help maintain healthy hair growth, density, shine, texture etc, but once your hair sprouts, any damaged caused by external factors like colouring, can’t be fixed internally. Cue, our personalised, active packed treatments where we expertly blend hydrolysed keratin and B panthenol with other high-performance hair and scalp friendly ingredients. B panthenol draws in moisture, smooths the cuticle and reduces frizzing, splitting and breakage. While hydrolysed keratin is a protein molecule that has the ability to penetrate the hair cuticle. In so doing it works to address the damage caused by colouring your hair. Namely, increasing elasticity, strengthening, locking in hydration and restoring hair density.”
Scalp care
“Regularly dying your hair can impact your scalp too. The chemicals present in most hair dyes can cause irritation leaving your scalp dry, flaking and itchy. To counteract this, don’t wash your hair a day or two before you dye it. Your natural sebum will help protect the scalp by acting as a barrier between your skin and the dye. Also, invest in a moisturising mask with actives like hyaluronic acid, amino acids, aloe vera and tsubaki oil to add hydration, soothe irritation, and moisturise post colouring.”
Avoid chlorine
“Coloured hair is more susceptible to damage as the colouring process tends to lift the outermost part of the hair shaft, making strands less resilient. Dyeing also makes the hair more porous. So, with that in mind, if you’re partial to summer days spent in the water try to avoid chlorine exposure. This chemical disinfectant can strip your colour and leave it faded, and even green. Plus, the drying nature of chlorine makes coloured strands feel like straw.
Now you don’t have to avoid pools altogether, but it’s best to not swim underwater, or thoroughly wet your hair in the shower first so that your porous tresses soak up all the non-chlorinated water, leaving no room for the chlorine to penetrate. Follow this protocol and then add a swimming cap if you want to protect your coloured hair even further.”
Colour with care
“If you’re super keen on switching up your look, but your hair is naturally fragile, try the tone-on-tone colouring technique. This gentle colouring technique won’t lighten or darken the hair tremendously but rather the colour will be close to your natural tone. However, your colourist will create depth by adding highlights and shading to give a natural but new lease of life to your hair. This non-permanent dyeing method is uber gentle as there is no bleaching involved. Plus, the alkaline based dye provides a protective film over the hair that smooths the hair shaft, reducing the appearance of split ends, while also keeping hair well hydrated.”
To protect your colour treated hair, book in for a consultation and personalised treatment using the link below.