How Often Can You Dye Your Hair

With fashion trends evolving and prevailing in unison across the world, dyeing hair is one another obsession whose popularity is growing insanely high. Truth be told, we all have wished to dye our hair at least once in our lifetime. But the cost to do so keeps us lingering on evaluating the idea. Because yes, giving yourself a new hair color that may transform your persona may sound passionately exciting but it does come with a cost. You would need a high-maintenance haircare routine once you jump on the bandwagon of coloring hair, permanently or temporarily. While you would love the fresh hues of your new hair color, you will see it fading as well. And you will be forbidden to re-dye your hair again and again by haircare experts.
So what is the solution? How often should you dye your hair and exactly when? Does hair coloring treatment damage your hair? How do you maintain colored hair, not losing its luster and freshness?

When it comes to these questions, the anxiety gets real. But wait, this article will breakdown many confusions of you.

Let’s consider a few facts related to the hair dyeing process.

Chemistry of the hair dyeing process:

Chemicals like ammonia and hydrogen peroxide play along with developers and colorants to open the hair cuticles so that the new color be stored in the hair structure overcoming the older one on a permanent or temporary basis. If the hair cuticles are frequently affected by chemicals, the hair can become increasingly porous and brittle, hence damaged.

Why would you need to re-dye hair?

The new hair that grows on your head will be unaffected in color by any hair coloring treatment that you previously had received. This means that the newly grown hair on your scalp will be of your natural hair color. To maintain a balance between the colors of your dyed hair strands and newly-grown hair, you will need a root touch-up treatment. Moreover, as time passes the luster and freshness of your dyed hair color will fade and may present your hair persona as dull which is the last thing you would want after investing so much in transforming it. So you will definitely need a re-dyeing session.

Or in another case, you would simply need to re-dye your hair because you may just want a new hair color. Whatever be your reason, once you color your hair there is no going back from re-dyeing them whether with the same color or a different one (unless you use a temporary hair coloring product all the way in your hair-dyeing journey). To keep dyeing your hair, you need a safe break of 3 to 4 weeks at the minimum, generally.

To understand how exactly often one should re-dye hair color for the safest outcomes, one must evaluate the kind of hair type they have, the kind of hair coloring treatment they have used in the first place, and the kind of maintenance they are providing to their hair – under the guidance of your hairstylist.

How often should you dye your hair and exactly when? 

Dark Solid Hair Color – If you dyed your hair color with a dark solid color, then you would require 4 – 6 weeks of break before you can safely consider re-dyeing it or getting a root touch-up session. If your dyed hair color is closer to your natural hair color, then you can get a gloss treatment to freshen up your hair outlook instead of re-dyeing it right after a month.

Bright/Pastel Solid Hair Color – Unconventional hair colors like pink, purple, blue, yellow, or magenta, etc fade faster compared to dark solid hair colors. They require high maintenance and frequent root-touch-up sessions, as recommended by your stylist.

Balayage – Balayage is very easy to maintain and least harmful to your hair. You can go about 8 – 12 weeks without needing to re-do them.

Highlights – Highlights require low maintenance as well. One can go about 6 weeks before opting for re-doing them. If you want to keep your highlights very active and not blending in your hair, you may get a root touch-up session after 4 weeks or as recommended by your hair-stylist.

These are the general break time that one can consider when estimating gaps between dyeing and re-dyeing their hair. However, if you use color-preserving products and establish a strong haircare routine then you can surely prolong the life of your dyed hair color.

Maintaining The Life Of Your Dyed Hair Color

Here a few tips to follow for a great hair care routine.

1. Use a color-safe shampoo and conditioner. Make sure it does not contain harmful ingredients and is absolutely free of silicones or sulfates. The goal is to pick the best mild shampoo you can get and see if it can contain hair repairing properties.
2. Use hair masks. Dyeing hair can make its structure fragile and prone to dryness and dullness so it is very important that you keep each strand of your hair hydrated and deeply-moisturized. Hair masks can be your life-saver so try not missing them at all!
3. Go for leave-in products. The lesser you wash your hair, the better. Leave-in conditioners, balms, or other hair products will not only cleanse your hair but also moisturize and rejuvenate them twice more effectively.
4. Styling hair without heat-protectants is a sin you should always be aware of. Never ever style your hair whether with a blow-dry, straightener, or curler, etc without using heat protectant first.
5. Try Root-Sprays! If you are having a regrowth of hair after dyeing your hair and there is a disbalance between your regrowing natural hair color and dyed hair-strand color then try root-sprays. They come in a variety of shades and can save you from root-touch-up sessions temporarily.

The Bottom Line:

Re-dyeing hair can be essential but nothing is as necessary as focusing on your hair health. One should always give a healthy break of at least 4 to 6 weeks and a caring routine before coming in contact with any chemical hair treatment.