How to Keep Blonde Highlights Bright After Bleaching

Many women prefer to dye or bleach their hair blonde or add blonde hightlights. Not only do they prefer that color, but they go one step further and choose platinum blonde.

The requests for platinum colors have increased, but there are still a few die-hard caramel and honey blonde fans. Most of the people who wear this color are breathtakingly gorgeous. Brunettes and redheads long for change, and many decide to take the plunge.

Once the mind is made up to bleach the hair blonde, you’ll want to maintain it and keep it looking eye-catching. Other times, you may not be a fan of the color and want to change it back or use another color that’s completely different from the one before.

The bleaching process should be done by a professional, but it can be done at home successfully. Of course, you do need to be careful. It’s all too easy to burn the scalp with bleach, especially if your skin is sensitive (or you’re learning how to perform the process the right way).

How to Keep Your Hair Blonde After Bleaching

To get vibrant blonde highlights without the help of a stylist, one will need to take specific steps. Keep scrolling to find out how to keep blonde highlights bright.

1] Shampoo the Hair Less Often

Washing or shampooing the hair causes hair color to fade away gradually. In light of this, don’t wet shampoo as much. Instead, use a dry wash to save the color. The dry shampoo should soak up excess oils to help keep the scalp dry and hair smelling fresh and clean.

The best dry shampoo is the one made especially for blondes. We recommend Batiste Dry Shampoo for Brilliant Blonde. It contains just a smidgen of blonde hair color to revitalize the strands and any new growth.

2] Use Color-Protection Shampoos

Color-safe shampoos protect the hair color, so the color stays on longer. Harsh shampoos strip away highlights and remove precious, natural oils.  Shampoos containing sulfates do too much and damage the hair. Sulfate-free shampoos counteract damages done by bleaching.

3] Follow-up With a Cool Water Rinse

Almost everyone knows hot water will clean the hair the best because it opens the cuticles. It only makes sense to close them when finished washing. This will require cold or cool water.  This will also help to keep blonde highlights bright longer.

4] Correct Color with a Purple Toner

Try a purple toner to help extend the life of the blonde highlights.  The lilac wipes out the partial orange highlights to give it that balance.

5] Use a Tomato Mask

The green tint happens to more than just old ladies. Yes, swimmers develop that greenish color in their hair.  Not to worry, though. Take twenty minutes to neutralize the locks with a tomato mask. It may sound weird, but trust me… it works like magic.

6] Add Beer to Your Shampoo

The next time someone leaves a bottle of beer around, don’t throw it away. Take advantage of it by washing the hair with beer. Of course, a little lemon won’t hurt. In fact, it will help keep blonde highlights bright.

7] Add Shine with a Spray

Spray on the shine to have hair that glows in the dark. Style the hair like normal and as a final touch, spray on the shine for highlights that gleam in the night.

How to Brighten Blonde Hair at Home

More women are going blonde for the summer. It seems there’s a wave of blonde highlights everywhere there are women. If highlights are on the list of things to do, try not to damage the hair with harsh chemicals. Instead, use alternatives to harsh ingredients.

Try a homemade recipe to highlight dull looking hair. It’s best to use natural ingredients, especially if you’re allergic to the chemicals in store-bought brands. Besides, it’s a lot cheaper to do it at home with natural remedies than to buy online or off the shelves.

Without further ado, let’s find look at a few home remedies:

1] Cinnamon

Not only does it look tempting, but it smells fantastic, too.

Mix cinnamon powder and conditioner in a small container or pour into the palm. After the two are married, cover as much of the entire head as possible. Combing or brushing the hair thoroughly will help spread the mixture.

Put the hair into a ponytail or bun and cover with stocking or shower cap. Cut the lights off and go to sleep. When morning comes, rinse the hair first and then wash it. Repeat as often as desired.

There are no side effects to using cinnamon on the hair and scalp to keep blonde highlights bright.

2] Honey, Olive Oil, and Vinegar

Another great recipe for keeping blonde highlights their brightest is as follows:

• One cup of raw honey
• One tablespoon extra virgin olive oil and
• Two cups of vinegar together with
• One tablespoon of cinnamon or ground cardamom

Stir until smooth and apply to moist hair. Brush or comb through for even distribution or the areas where highlights are to go. When ready, wrap hair using plastic wrap, swim cap, shower cap or is a towel.

Leave the ingredients in overnight and rinse/wash out the next morning. What’s so fascinating about this recipe? The honey has tiny traces of hydrogen peroxide in it, so the hair gets lightened further.

3] Salt Water

Mix water and salt together to get an all natural highlight. Take a part of salt with five parts of water and rinse the hair but don’t wash out yet. Let the salt water stay in the hair for about 15 minutes and rinse.

4] Chamomile Tea

Who knew chamomile tea would help keep blonde highlights bright? Evidently, lots of people knew to use it as a lightener. Try this recipe to extend the life of the dye.

• One tea bag
• Cup of water

Boil water and steep the bag of tea for approximately ten minutes. When the water is cool, rinse the hair with the tea and leave in the hair for up to 15 minutes. Repeat two or three times before washing or shampooing.

5] Lemon Juice

You can brighten blonde highlights with lemon juice. Take one cup of water and two tablespoons of pure lemon juice and pour it on the hair. Relax in the sunlight and let the hair dry. The bonus is getting a slight tan while laying out in the sun.

6] Baking Soda

Lots of people use baking soda every day for numerous reasons, but never thought to try it to keep blonde highlights bright. It also strips the hair of buildup of harmful chemicals. The only negative aspect of using baking soda is lightening won’t happen overnight. However, it will work.

How to Lighten Already Bleached Hair

Typically, a semi-permanent dye doesn’t last as long as permanent hair color. If bleaching the hair at home, remember to go one or two levels lighter than the original hair color or darker if that’s the goal.

Most box dyes come with a chart to help determine the color before and after, with ten being the lightest blonde. Sometimes, it doesn’t come out the way we see it in the magazines. With this said, no one said it had to remain that color.

There are ways to correct a botched bleach job. Let’s check them out:

1] Clarifying Shampoos

Use a clarifying shampoo to strip away any color. Some shampoos contain chemicals that harm hair. Ironically, it’s the stuff that makes the lather people love when washing their hair. If anyone is unfortunate enough to use a brand such as this, they will require a deep conditioner when done.

• Kenra Clarifying Shampoo does a great job of restoring the hair’s natural appearance. It’s designed to remove buildup and to brighten bleached hair. Kenra also is a great find for individuals using well water or hard water.
• Neutrogena Anti-Residue Shampoo is a popular product that helps to provide volume to all hair types. Use it once during the week to help remove the residue that dulls the hair.
• Fekkai Apple Cider Shampoo is a clarifying shampoo that removes sticky buildup and refreshes the strands, giving it new life. Many people love the sweet pear and fresh apple fragrance. By the way, it does have apple cider in it.

2] Use Color-Removing Products

If not satisfied with the results, you should remove the new color and return it to the original hair color. Find the best solution for the problem, regardless of whether it’s a color that’s too light or too dark.

The summer is one of the worst times for keeping blonde highlights bright. People tend to participate in water sports, and by doing so, it could turn the highlights green even. Stylists recommend using a red-based toner to fix dull blonde hair.

Hard water can fade highlights and make the hair appear more yellow or brassy than anticipated. This, too, is an easy fix. Try a violet-based shampoo and conditioner, such as Fanola No Yellow Shampoo, to keep unwanted hues at bay and lighten blonde hair.

Often, the hair gets drier following a bleach or dye treatment. Of course, dry hair is drab hair. The more the hair is highlighted, the more it becomes dry and brittle. Use a hydrating shampoo or mask to keep the hair moist. Make sure they are sulfate-free, however.

Protein is vital to the hair. It serves as a barrier, so the moisture doesn’t escape the strands, and it will make the hair and roots stronger as well.