Caring for coloured hair

I've had my fair share of different hair colours in the past 5 years or so. Growing up with a hairdresser Mum, she let me experiment with semi permanent dyes and various slices and flashes through my hair (Fudge paintbox, anyone?) However I'm not gonna be pulling any of those photos out from the dark depths of the internet! It wasn't until going blonde for the first time in my early 20's that I really started to take my colour into my own hands (no offence, Mum!) I think she was just worried about me ruining the quality of my hair, like so many others she had seen (and ultimately had to fix) over the years. To this day, despite my hair being pushed to the limit a few times, I think it's pretty safe to say it's still in a great healthy condition. So today I'm gonna share some tips on how I care for coloured hair.


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My natural colour is quite a warmish brown, almost strawberry blonde! So I went from that, to blonde, to pink, to blue, to dark brown, to ginger, then most recently re bleached and a variation of pastel colours including lilac and green. Thanks to my awesome hairdresser Paddy at Rainbow Room George Square, as of the weekend I am now a sort of Opal and Iridescent mix with pinks and blues and silver... to be honest it looks different in every light. I love it! Not gonna lie though, my lil dude Dexter = ULTIMATE hair goals.

I absolutely love the work which Paddy has done for me since I first met him last year. My Mum is a massive fan of him too, so I feel good that she knows I am in extremely safe hands. Each time I sit down in the hairdressers chair it's a totally open collaboration of 'right, what shall we try this time around?' I tend to give Paddy a very brief idea of what I'm after, and he just runs with it! Adding in his own suggestions and creative twist. I'm really enjoying having a blonde base, it feels like a blank canvass where we can very easily build something different on top each time.

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The only problem about toners and semi permanent dye, is the obvious fact that they are indeed semi permanent and will start to fade with each wash. In order to help make my colour last as long as possible, I only wash my hair every few days now. Which is a HUGE deal for me, as I used to wash my hair every single day! But at that rate, I would need to get it dyed almost every week and it would just be impossible to keep on top of. So, washing my hair only 2 or 3 times a week definitely helps, and when I do wash it I make sure to use a shampoo which is specially designed to help preserve colour. Right now I am using the Colour Protect Daily Shampoo from Paul Mitchell, which smells amazing and makes my hair feel extremely clean, with very little colour run during each wash. I tend to rotate this with Daddy-O Shampoo from Lush, which is almost like a mini toner and really helps to eliminate any brassy tones in your blonde, keeping it super fresh and bright. My hair definitely needs that extra nourishment after being bleached, so I use The Conditioner (again from Paul Mitchell) which is actually a leave in conditioner, but the thought of not washing a product like that out my hair freaks me out a bit, so I just use it in the normal way rather than leaving it in.

Once a week (normally while chilling in the bath) I pop on the Rahua Omega 9 Hair Mask. OH MY DAYS. Absolute luxury in a bottle. It makes my hair feel so soft and shiny, when I team this up with a face mask at the same time I come out the bath feeling like a new woman. The Rahua mask is a seriously intense treatment, similar to something you would get in a salon, and unfortunately has the price tag to go with it. At £47 a bottle I don't know if I could justify repurchasing this regularly despite how fantastic it is, but I've also heard good things about the H'Suan Wen Hua treatment from Lush too, so I'll need to give that a try soon. Before blow drying and straightening, it's really important to prime and protect your hair, so the Colour Protect Locking Spray does that  perfectly, with powerful UVA and UVB protection to help prevent colour fade.

I'm all for the products which help extend the life of your hair colour, so when it comes to not washing for as long as possible - dry shampoo is your best friend! Fed up of the nostalgic T In The Park smell of Batiste, I changed to No Drought while I was working at Lush over Christmas (which is a powder form rather than a spray) and I absolutely love it. It soaks up any excess moisture without looking powdery, and smells really fresh too. After a couple of days of dry shampoo and wearing my hair down, it's all hands on deck with kirby grips and head scarves! I'd pestered Amanda for ages about how she always beautifully ties her head scarf (along with making it looking effortless, dang gurl) and found this tutorial from her and Sheri - aka the Colour Pop Girls - extremely helpful! Practice makes perfect when it comes to using these scarves, and after watching their video a few times I can tie my hair up much quicker, and no longer need to use ten million clips like I did first time around.

// Scarf & Cardigan - Miss Selfridge //

(Picked up in the sale before my hair appointment on Saturday, cause it's still bloody freezing in Glasgow!)

I've been making a conscious effort this year to go completely cruelty free when it comes to my beauty, skin and haircare routine, and I'm really glad I've been able to find such great products by brands who do not test on animals. I'm using up the last of any items in my possession which are not cruelty free and I won't be repurchasing them. So I might be needing your suggestions for various alternatives very soon! I'll continue to expand my database of CF brands, and if you have any recommendations then please leave them in the comments box or drop me a message on twitter or instagram (@hellorogue) Next on the hair colour chart for me... I'm not too sure to be honest! What has been your favourite colour of mine so far?