The Science behind "Red"

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Planky1

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Hello Hair Geeks :)

I'm not a hair pro so I hope it's ok that I'm posting here. If not, then Mods please feel free to move my Post to wherever is more appropriate :wink2:

I have dark brown hair and some time ago experimented with Red, one style I had that I particularly loved was my normal hair colour with flashes/slices of bright red through it, it looked amazing! I stopped having it done because the Red faded so quickly. Looked amazing for the first week or two but then faded and just looked washed out and horrible. I miss this style, I always got lots of compliments about it and I really loved it.

This just got me thinking about Red as a hair colour and why it fades so quickly, what is the science behind this one colour and the reason for it's fast fade and do you think it will ever be possible to get a red that stays red? I know all colours grow out and fade slightly but red seems to be notorious for super quick fading. I'm just genuinely interested to know why this might be.

Not knowing about hairdressing or anything about the science or technical side of it, it's intriguing me. As a nail tech I remember the days when we used to say "If only there was a polish that dried instantly and lasted longer" and low and behold, years later along comes Shellac.

Is the same kind of thing possible for a colour? Will there ever be a red developed that stays that way? Sorry if this comes across as a thick question, like I say, just genuinely interested :wink2:
 
The molecules in red pigment are the largest molecules which makes them harder to get into the cortex (depending on what type of colour this is) this is why it fades quicker
 
Hello Hair Geeks :)

I'm not a hair pro so I hope it's ok that I'm posting here. If not, then Mods please feel free to move my Post to wherever is more appropriate :wink2:

I have dark brown hair and some time ago experimented with Red, one style I had that I particularly loved was my normal hair colour with flashes/slices of bright red through it, it looked amazing! I stopped having it done because the Red faded so quickly. Looked amazing for the first week or two but then faded and just looked washed out and horrible. I miss this style, I always got lots of compliments about it and I really loved it.

This just got me thinking about Red as a hair colour and why it fades so quickly, what is the science behind this one colour and the reason for it's fast fade and do you think it will ever be possible to get a red that stays red? I know all colours grow out and fade slightly but red seems to be notorious for super quick fading. I'm just genuinely interested to know why this might be.

Not knowing about hairdressing or anything about the science or technical side of it, it's intriguing me. As a nail tech I remember the days when we used to say "If only there was a polish that dried instantly and lasted longer" and low and behold, years later along comes Shellac.

Is the same kind of thing possible for a colour? Will there ever be a red developed that stays that way? Sorry if this comes across as a thick question, like I say, just genuinely interested :wink2:

i use a red highlighting system and it lasts for ages! i think it depends on the hairdresser that does your hair, the products they use, and how they use them...there are plenty out there that dont understand products enough to use them to their full potential :)

personally i would say red is the best fashion colour, the easiest and longest lasting. :)
 
i use a red highlighting system and it lasts for ages! i think it depends on the hairdresser that does your hair, the products they use, and how they use them...there are plenty out there that dont understand products enough to use them to their full potential :)

personally i would say red is the best fashion colour, the easiest and longest lasting. :)

I've been to several hairdressers over the years and no red has ever lasted on me. But that's intriguing, as I loved that style and would have it done again. I thought all reds were the same and maybe there was a more technical reason as to why it happens.
 
I've been to several hairdressers over the years and no red has ever lasted on me. But that's intriguing, as I loved that style and would have it done again. I thought all reds were the same and maybe there was a more technical reason as to why it happens.

When it comes to red highlights, it depends on the brand and whether the correct peroxide is used...find a salon/hairdresser near you that uses Affinage and ask for bRed highlights/flashes....aslong as the hairdresser knows the product well enough, they'll use it with a low peroxide to prevent colour blow and prevent cuticle damage so the colour will stay locked in. :)

My partners sister has always wanted red in her hair so i put a few slices of the above in about 3 months ago, and they've hardly faded...she uses professional shampoo, sulfate free to prevent fade, and only washes her hair 3 times every 2 weeks...everything contributes to colour fade, not just the colour that's used :)
 
When it comes to red highlights, it depends on the brand and whether the correct peroxide is used...find a salon/hairdresser near you that uses Affinage and ask for bRed highlights/flashes....aslong as the hairdresser knows the product well enough, they'll use it with a low peroxide to prevent colour blow and prevent cuticle damage so the colour will stay locked in. :)

My partners sister has always wanted red in her hair so i put a few slices of the above in about 3 months ago, and they've hardly faded...she uses professional shampoo, sulfate free to prevent fade, and only washes her hair 3 times every 2 weeks...everything contributes to colour fade, not just the colour that's used :)

This sounds great! :) I know the salon I go to don't use this, can't remember what they use but I know it's not this, might be Wella perhaps? That seems to ring a bell.

And how does she get away with washing so infrequently? My hair goes very greasy after 3 days, so I have to do mine every other day, sometimes can get away with washing on the 3rd day but that's at most.

How would I go about finding someone that uses this colour then? I would absolutely Love to have my hair with red slices in again (even though I'm getting old now and probably shouldn't!!) Lol!
 
This sounds great! :) I know the salon I go to don't use this, can't remember what they use but I know it's not this, might be Wella perhaps? That seems to ring a bell.

And how does she get away with washing so infrequently? My hair goes very greasy after 3 days, so I have to do mine every other day, sometimes can get away with washing on the 3rd day but that's at most.

How would I go about finding someone that uses this colour then? I would absolutely Love to have my hair with red slices in again (even though I'm getting old now and probably shouldn't!!) Lol!

i think it's purely out of habit and how your hair reacts to getting washed. if you wash your hair everyday, your scalp will produce more oils so it will need washing everyday, its breaking the habit and pursuing with you're hair being greasy to be able to leave it longer but to be honest, every other day is fine.

what shampoo and conditioners do you tend to use?

im not 100% sure how you'd find out, possibly if you go to affinage.com/uk give them a ring and they can put you in contact with your nerest salon or distributor, and if they put you in contact with a distributor, you can ring them and they will be able to tell you which salons in the area they supply affinage to. :)

you'll have to make sure they use the whole range though as some salons say they use one brand, but use different bits and pieces from old ones because they havent yet been trained in the new products or arent confident with them :)

They don't just do red, the have 5 different shades...il paste them below i can lol.

ive taken out the 5th one as you need to have relately light hair for it to work as it's a purple, but the red violet is gorgeous!
 

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i think it's purely out of habit and how your hair reacts to getting washed. if you wash your hair everyday, your scalp will produce more oils so it will need washing everyday, its breaking the habit and pursuing with you're hair being greasy to be able to leave it longer but to be honest, every other day is fine.

what shampoo and conditioners do you tend to use?

im not 100% sure how you'd find out, possibly if you go to affinage.com/uk give them a ring and they can put you in contact with your nerest salon or distributor, and if they put you in contact with a distributor, you can ring them and they will be able to tell you which salons in the area they supply affinage to. :)

you'll have to make sure they use the whole range though as some salons say they use one brand, but use different bits and pieces from old ones because they havent yet been trained in the new products or arent confident with them :)

They don't just do red, the have 5 different shades...il paste them below i can lol.

ive taken out the 5th one as you need to have relately light hair for it to work as it's a purple, but the red violet is gorgeous!

Wow, I love that red violet!!! Right, on a mission now to find somewhere that uses the whole system, not sure this will be an easy task to find out though :confused:

Shampoos wise, you won't want to know ;) Lol!! I just chop and change regularly, no one particular brand but cheap and cheerful I'm afraid :o since having my son I have had to cut back on luxuries and that includes my lovely professional shampoos etc I used to use as well as half decent make up etc. But I know to avoid ones like Head and shoulders because it strips the colour, as do baby shampoos I've heard which is slightly worrying!! :eek:
 
Also, not sure if the base hair colour makes a difference.
I have mid brown hair naturally, but dye blonde, but my dad is ginger so I have red naturally in my hair. When I used to dye it red it stayed in for ages.
x
 
Mines red and it's lasting really well but I'm not getting on with the shampoo that I've got. I found though that the colour leaked loads for ages, its stopped now but it's the third week of it being red.
 
Wow, I love that red violet!!! Right, on a mission now to find somewhere that uses the whole system, not sure this will be an easy task to find out though :confused:

Shampoos wise, you won't want to know ;) Lol!! I just chop and change regularly, no one particular brand but cheap and cheerful I'm afraid :o since having my son I have had to cut back on luxuries and that includes my lovely professional shampoos etc I used to use as well as half decent make up etc. But I know to avoid ones like Head and shoulders because it strips the colour, as do baby shampoos I've heard which is slightly worrying!! :eek:

Well as i presume you use professional wholesalers for beauty, why not buy yourself a big salon size shampoo, by the time you've bought small shop shampoos, it would probably work out the same price if not cheaper to buy a bigger pro one, depending on the brand ofcourse :)
 
Mines red and it's lasting really well but I'm not getting on with the shampoo that I've got. I found though that the colour leaked loads for ages, its stopped now but it's the third week of it being red.

What shampoo are you using?
 
Well as i presume you use professional wholesalers for beauty, why not buy yourself a big salon size shampoo, by the time you've bought small shop shampoos, it would probably work out the same price if not cheaper to buy a bigger pro one, depending on the brand ofcourse :)

Why didn't I think of that?! I'm not called Planky for nothing! :rolleyes: Which brand would you recommend? My salon uses Redken and my hair feels amazing after, would this be a good one or are there better ones?
 
Why didn't I think of that?! I'm not called Planky for nothing! :rolleyes: Which brand would you recommend? My salon uses Redken and my hair feels amazing after, would this be a good one or are there better ones?

Ive never used it, but some of the top geeks on here like persianista use it in their own salons and rate it so i presume you could order yourself in a big bottle with your next hair order :)
 
What shampoo are you using?

Mines the swartskoph (I can't spell it lol) and I know your going to tell me off but i've now got head and shoulders for coloured hair and I'm trying that bacause I love head and shoulders
 
Mines the swartskoph (I can't spell it lol) and I know your going to tell me off but i've now got head and shoulders for coloured hair and I'm trying that bacause I love head and shoulders

to be honest, there's nothing goo about any shampoo you can buy in the shops, unless the odd few you can get in the body shop that are organic but still wouldn't trust these either...

why do you love head and shoulders?

if you're a beauty geek, then why don't you buy proffessional products from the wholesalers you use?
 
to be honest, there's nothing goo about any shampoo you can buy in the shops, unless the odd few you can get in the body shop that are organic but still wouldn't trust these either...

why do you love head and shoulders?

if you're a beauty geek, then why don't you buy proffessional products from the wholesalers you use?

The problem is I didn't know what to buy and so the one I got from the wholesalers I hated.

I've tried loads and they tend to make my hair feel horrible but head and shoulders doesn't do that so that make me like it and I know I shouldn't I just don't know what else to go for
 
The problem is I didn't know what to buy and so the one I got from the wholesalers I hated.

I've tried loads and they tend to make my hair feel horrible but head and shoulders doesn't do that so that make me like it and I know I shouldn't I just don't know what else to go for

what wholesalers do you use?
 
I use a few there's Sally's, Adel Direct, Hazelhurst's and Ritz beauty. I don't know if some of those are just Rotherham based
 
I use a few there's Sally's, Adel Direct, Hazelhurst's and Ritz beauty. I don't know if some of those are just Rotherham based


and what's your hair like? whats the feel you get from other shampoos you don't like and what were they?
 

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