Help wanted with frazzled hair

[harbat]

Please can you help? I need advice about my hair - which is fine, mousey brown, straight. I have tinted highlights and it is layered - the top layer is frazzled and has been for 2 or 3 years. This is what I do which I think may cause a problem - but don't want to STOP everything as I like the result:

wash/cond hair EVERY day (as go to gym)
blow dry hair every day with heat spray
use heated rollers 2 or 3 times a week
use Elnett hairspray
I have 3 shades tinted highlights (no bleach) on t-section every 4 weeks
Every 4 months I have hi-lites as above all over
Every time it is highlighted it is taken through to the ends

I can't advise what highlights I have or what strength as my hairdresser doesn't advise. She uses a good pro make and is v prof in her job. Sorry if this is double-posted - if so it is in error.

 

[ColourGirly]

Could be the colour being overlapped - I'm not sure what colours you have but if the are lighter than your natural hair then there's no need to have then ends done each time. There may be a reason she does this but I I can't see why.

 

[Kristalinx]

How light are your highlights? Is she taking you to blonde or just a few shades lighter than your natural hair? If she's using high lift tint instead of bleach this can be just as damaging if it's being overlapped all the time.

 

[harbat]

ColourGirly and Krystalinx - thanks for your replies.

One of the colours is a light blonde - but my hair dresser doesn't seem to want to tell me what strength it is or what exact shade.

I was thinking myself that the overlapping might be weakening my hair.

I was considering going for an overall colour in a mid-shade, instead, so that at least it will only get the colour once-over, or maybe twice but not every 4 weeks.

As hair pro's - what do you think about this as a suggestion?

 

[ColourGirly]

It's the type of colour that's being used.

If it's a colour designed to lift your hair it will be more powerful. Your ends don't need lifting anymore so it should only be your roots being touch up.

An all over colour will need to be refreshed but putting colour in should be more conditioning. You will need to have your roots done every 4 weeks too.

 

[harbat]

Thanks for your replies. I firstly have a few high lift blonde highlights, secondly a shade lighter than my natural colour but not hi-lift blonde, third a brown shade. It looks very nice and natural. But all the colours are overlapped each time it is highlighted every 4 weeks.

I thought if I swapped to having the 2nd shade all over and have my roots re-touched every 4 weeks then it would only overlap once or twice. I would still be a little lighter than my natural shade.

As I say, my hairdresser doesn't say what % peroxide I have or what colour shades, so I can't help there.

What do you think about me swapping to an all-over colour? Do you think that by alleviating the overlapping of highlights it may help with the condition?

 

[ColourGirly]

It's not as simple as popping that on your roots. Your highlights are multi tonal - a root colour is not. I'm not saying it's bad to put colour on your ends, it's the Type of product being used. I'm surprised a hairdresser would overlap highlift tint every 4 weeks, it will cause major damage. Ask her not to do it or find another stylist.

If she applies like this now then she may not be able to do the colour correction needed for a full colour, or she may overlap the full head colour - who knows!?!

 

[harbat]

Thanks for explaining - I hadn't realised it would be difficult to match the colour. I'll see what she says. I don't want to carry on with highlights as I did query the overlap ages ago and I think she said it was only with the darker one, but she seems to do it with all 3 shades. Am I right, though, in thinking an all over mid-shade without overlap would be better for my hair?

 

[harbat]

Update - My stylist did an all over root retouch but it came out light yellow blonde. My stylist was shocked too and suggested I see how it goes and if I don't like it, she will tone it. I had wanted it light brown/dark blonde with a few highlights at the front (my own hair is light to medium brown). I don't want to mess around too much as the whole aim is to get my hair in good condition but it does need toning down. I will be getting my roots retouched every 4 weeks. I will ask for it toning and hope it goes OK. I'm not sure whether it was me that wasn't clear, or what.

 

[Amberjox]

Update - My stylist did an all over root retouch but it came out light yellow blonde. My stylist was shocked too and suggested I see how it goes and if I don't like it, she will tone it. I had wanted it light brown/dark blonde with a few highlights at the front (my own hair is light to medium brown). I don't want to mess around too much as the whole aim is to get my hair in good condition but it does need toning down. I will be getting my roots retouched every 4 weeks. I will ask for it toning and hope it goes OK. I'm not sure whether it was me that wasn't clear, or what.

I also think washing it every day isn't helping, which I know u can't avoid if you are at gym. I would recommend using the rollers less as I've seen they damage hair from over use. And using a good shampoo and Conditioner, coconut oil or a conditioning treatment every week if you can xxxx

Sent from my HUAWEI Y300-0100 using SalonGeek mobile app

 

[harbat]

Thanks - yes I have been doing this and the condition is improving - even the new yellow roots are OK. Just want to achieve my long-term goal now to get darker (but lighter than natural shade), then have regular root re-touch so that I don't have colour over and over again on the ends.

 

[ColourGirly]

Thanks - yes I have been doing this and the condition is improving - even the new yellow roots are OK. Just want to achieve my long-term goal now to get darker (but lighter than natural shade), then have regular root re-touch so that I don't have colour over and over again on the ends.

So she just put a colour on the roots - nothing else? Surely you still have lots of different colours on the ends and bright yellow roots, why was she surprised? Does she know what colour is needed next time to get the right result?

 

[harbat]

Thanks for all your replies. She's normally very good on colours. If it hadn't gone so light it would have been OK I think it would have blended. I hope the toner doesn't fade in the future leaving a yellow stripe around my hair! I just can't understand why she used a hi-lift. Anyway, it's done now and she is going to tone it down so should be OK then.

 

[ColourGirly]

I'm going to be blunt - she overlaps your colour which even you know has caused damage to your hair, she then just applys a highlift to your regrowth which again you knew was wrong and she was surprised it went light yellow.
Even after the toner, will she know what to use next time. You may very well have banding, a darker colour on the roots then the light yellow, then highlights on the ends.

 

[harbat]

I returned for a free toner but it still was too light - it doesn't look too bad as it is only really light on the roots - the ends are more of a dark blonde. I'll be returning in 2 weeks for my 4-weekly root retouch. I'm thinking of asking to see the shade charts before she starts - is that an insult? I would like to see what she used to use for my highlights and what she used for my roots as they must be different and make sure we can settle on something suitable that we can then use every time I have my roots done. As a hairdresser would you be offended if I asked to see the shade charts?

 

[ColourGirly]

Shade charts are to be taken with a pinch of salt, she may need to use something that looks totally yucky to achieve the result you want. But a competent stylist should be able to show you have it would come out, even if that isn't the shade that she uses.

If she used a colour in a foil then applied it to the scalp it would look lighter as there is just a singular colour in one area.

You were advised not to have this done, I wouldn't be surprised if the next time it wasn't right. It isn't as easy as just testing out colours on your regrowth. You will end up with bands and darker ends. It needed a colour correction in the first place and still had to be corrected.

It doesn't sound like you have much faith in her.

 

[harbat]

Thanks for replying - I do appreciate your input. I do have faith in her - been going for highlights every 4 weeks for almost 10 years now. Always been nice except for the fact that the ends were becoming frazzled - but that could be over-styling on my part as well as colour through to ends. I suppose I was expecting a lot to go from one method to another. I'm still hoping we'll get the colour right and hoping as time goes by the condition will improve by colouring the roots and not the ends.