All You Need To Know About Colour Fading In The Summer

It always happens the same way. Spring comes, we excited about the sunshine and feel inspired, so we go get a new fresh color done! Spring turns into summer, and we are out and about on patios, the beach, road trips, and camping, and we’re having a blast. Until we look in the mirror one morning and see areas of our hair where the color has faded or gotten considerably lighter. But we JUST colored it…ugh!

“Your hair absorbs sun as easily as it does water!”
- Jonathan Torch

The theory that explains why hair color fades is simple when you break it down, so here’s quick science lesson. The chemical name for Water is H2O, and for hydrogen peroxide, it is H2O2, where the oxygen is doubled. When our wet hair is exposed to direct ultraviolet sunlight for an extended period, the water in your hair bonds with the oxygen around your head, and it is converted into microscopic amounts of peroxide - which causes color to fade. Who would’ve thought our hair went science deep? Sorry peeps, rich colors will fade even faster depending on the quality of the color used in your hair. Therefore, it’s important that you take precautions to protect your hair color from the sun by wearing a hat at the beach, especially after you’ve been swimming!

As we’ve discussed in previous articles, curly hair is very porous, so it absorbs water easily. It’s this characteristic that makes depositing color pigment into the hair so easy to begin with. But the problem lies in excessive exposure to sunlight with no protection – your hair absorbs sun as easily as it does water! So aside from wearing hats, what else can you do? Invest in great products that are designed to protect your hair and maintain it all year around.

Curl Keeper® products are created with a pH level designed to keep hair cuticles in a closed position, and they are great for keeping the colour locked into your hair. Our Treatment Shampoo contains ingredients that strengthen curly hair from the inside out, ensuring that the color is maintained for a longer period. Strong hair is easier to moisturize and holds color well, which is critical if you do color your hair regularly. Another favorite of ours is Curl Keeper Slip: it detangles but, in this instance, it’s beneficial to use after being in a pool or lake because the pH level closes the hair cuticle in 30 seconds, also helping to lock in hair color.

It’s not likely you will be able to avoid color fading altogether once the summer weather comes around but taking the proper precautions can help your color last a bit longer. Knowledge is power!

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