More of the Budget Smart Girl’s Guide to Hair Color
I hope that you’ve been putting some of the tips from last week’s Girl’s Guide into action and as promised, here are some more-
Tips and More
The following tips are from Sandy Taylor Furst, President/CEO of Style Like A Pro www.stylelikeapro.com
Scrub only your scalp, never the ends. Only massage the shampoo through the ends because they’re older and more environmentally stressed.
When conditioning your hair, only condition from mid-shaft through the ends because your scalp and root hair is fresh and doesn’t need conditioning.
Rinse your conditioned hair for eight seconds, rinsing longer just conditions the drain. Rinse until the hair feels silky not slimy or squeaky clean.
Towel-dry your hair and do not use the microfiber towels. They do the trick of opening the cuticle and pull out moisture, but they leave the cuticle open and your hair remains frizzy.
Don’t shampoo your hair every day. It wears out your hair and its valuable color.
Products to Look For
Lauren Leetun, a senior account executive with Massey Communications in Orlando, Florida, highly recommends the Watercolors Color Maintenance shampoo. “I use it once and a week and on the days I use it nearly everyone asks me if I had my hair colored again,” says Leetun.
You can buy the shampoo at www.haircarechoices.com, click on hair, then click on Tressa, and then Watercolors Color Maintenance Shampoo and select the color you want, cost is $10.99.
And Christophe of Beverly Hills has teamed up with CVS/Pharmacy to create color enhancing products at a budget friendly price. They have both a color extending shampoo and conditioner, available in 2 and 10 oz. bottles for $2.99 – 7.99. www.cvspharmacy.com
Stephanie Nimmer, a master colorist with Godiva Salon in Atlanta, Georgia, www.godivasalon.com says “Protect your investment with products that are specially formulated for color treated hair, look for the words color treated, color protect, color locking, color therapy.”
Her favorite pick is Color Protect Line by Paul Mitchell.
Some of My Own Tips for Saving Money of Hair Color
It’s Not Permanent
If you’re using a color for the first time and not sure it’s for you, try a product that washes out after a few shampoos. That way you don’t have to wait until your hair grows out.
Think First
Many years ago, I decided to give myself an all over color at home. I hated the results and ended up paying lots of money to have a professional put my hair back to its original color. Doing it yourself can save you money, but if something goes wrong it can end up costing you even more money.
Products
Check if there’s a sample size you can try before you invest in a full size bottle. Over the years, my bathroom cupboard has housed many almost full bottles of shampoos and conditioners that I didn’t like.
New Talent
In many salons, how much you pay for a service can depend on what colorist you select to do the work. Colorists who are just out of beauty school charge less. And don’t worry that they don’t know what they’re doing or that the results won’t be as good. One time the colorist who always highlighted my hair was out sick, so the salon booked me with a recent beauty school graduate. I came away with highlights that I was over the moon about, they seemed to last longer and I paid $50 less. In fact, I liked her work so much that I never went back to the original colorist.