When it comes to hair coloring, right after choosing the color you want, you will come across many other questions.
If you decide to dye your hair black, one of the questions that will surely come to your mind is: Does Black Hair Dye Fade Over Time?
The shortest answer to this question is yes, black hair dye, like any other color, fades. Although the pigments in the black hair dye formula are more durable and strong than in other dyes, they will eventually fade off the hair fiber like any other color.
To better understand what it means to fade hair dye, how much color remains on the hair, and answers to related questions, we highly suggest you continue reading the article and find out the answers.
Let’s get right into it!
The Difference Between Hair Dye and Hair Color
Although these two get mixed up often, there is a difference between hair dye and hair color. They may sound similar but are completely different things.
So let’s start by understanding the differences between these two things.
Hair dye penetrates the hair’s surface, whereas hair color remains on the surface and simply paints the hair from the outside. As a result, the effect of hair color necessitates frequent touch-ups.
Colors are used in both food and human hair, however, only a few decades ago, the dye was the term used to refer to hair coloring. Today, dyes have a connotation of being a more negative substance to use than hair color and are rarely used, whereas all corporations want to refer to their goods as hair color.
How Long Can Hair Dye Last?
As technology advances over time, we can see a clear improvement in products and their effects. The creation of products that are similar to each other with some differences is very common these days.
Due to the little differences that exist in hair dyes, we can divide them into three types:
- Permanent hair dye
- Semi-permanent hair dye
- Temporary hair dye
Permanent hair color (as the name implies) is intended to last longer than temporary and semi-permanent hair dyes. Even though the name says it’s permanent, hair dye can’t stay on your hair forever.
So, permanent hair dye penetrates the hair strands more deeply, locking in the color for longer than semi-permanent hair dye. If some of you are interested in additional information about permanent hair dye you can find them here.
The second type, right after permanent, is hair dye called semi-permanent.
Also, for this type of hair dye, we can say that it got its name because of its characteristics – it is not a permanent hair dye. After each wash, semi-permanent hair dye fades, revealing your natural hair color.
Semi-permanent hair dye is wiped out completely over time. Also, if you’d like to educate yourself further on this topic, check out our article about removing semi-permanent hair dye.
The scalp and hair are not affected by temporary hair color. Instead, it paints color on the outside of the hair shaft that washes off after one or two shampoos. Although there is no chemical reaction, the color might enter and stain the hair if it is damaged and porous.
Now that we have explained the different types of hair dye we can answer the original question of how long can hair dye last.
In general, hair dye lasts 4 to 6 weeks – one month or maybe even a month and a half. Permanent hair dye usually lasts four to 8 weeks before it fades or grows.
As a result, it doesn’t stay on your hair indefinitely; as your hair grows out, the color loses its effect and intensity as your roots reveal.
Does Black Hair Dye Fade Over Time?
Now that we discussed different hair dyes, we are back to the original question: Does Black Hair Dye Fade Over Time?
Although you’re using a permanent dye, some people’s black dye fades after a few weeks. This could be due to several variables, the most important of which is that permanent hair dye is water-soluble.
Every time you wash your hair, a layer of pigment is stripped from your strands, causing your color to fade over time. That’s why anytime you color your hair, it’s typically suggested that you switch up your hair care routine to make it last longer.
If your hair is dark brown or black, the color should last at least 6 weeks before fading. However, lighter colors, such as blondes, reds, and anything lighter, only last 3-4 weeks before exhibiting symptoms of fading.
Hair color may last anywhere from 6 to 30 washes, depending on whether your dye is temporary or permanent.
That implies that if you wash your hair several times a day or week, your hair color may fade faster.
We come to the conclusion that even if you use a permanent hair dye, the hair dye will definitely come off over time. Also, in response to the question asked in this article; we can say that black, brown, and other darker colors certainly stay on the hair the longest out of all colors.
Best Solutions To Slow The Fading Process on Black Hair Dye
As with most things in life, as well as with hair coloring, there are tips that, if you stick to them, you can achieve a longer-lasting effect and slow down the fading process.
So let’s reveal these little hair dye secrets we have to you.
Do not use shampoo within the first 72 hours after dying your hair
When it comes to dyed hair, one of the first and most common blunders is washing it too soon after it has been dyed. The dyeing process exposes the hair’s cuticle layer, which is where the color is stored in strands.
Giving the cuticle layers of hair ample time to seal completely before washing the hair is one of the first stages in keeping color. To do this, you must wait 72 hours after dying your hair to wash it.
Reduce the number of times you wash your hair
Shampooing causes hair to expand and allows color to leak even after the cuticle layer closes. You can help keep the color of your hair by just washing it less frequently.
If you are worried about what your hair will look like if you start washing it less often, don’t worry, we have a solution for that. Between washes, use dry shampoo to keep your hair looking and feeling clean.
Use color-safe dry shampoo if you have greasy hair and don’t want to wash it as often as you’d like. Dry shampoos are a great solution to provide your hair with a glamorous look without even using water or suds.
Use conditioners and color-safe shampoos
When you wash your hair in the shower, make sure to use a shampoo designed to protect dyed hair. Color-protecting shampoos and conditioners are now widely available and have strong effects.
These products help to seal the cuticles of your hair, which helps to keep the color inside the hair strands. In addition to color-protecting solutions, clarifying shampoos should be avoided at all costs because they can take color from hair strands and hasten the fading process.
However, some stylists may suggest using a clarifying shampoo the day before a color refresh to help peel the old dye and prepare the hair for the new hair dye.
Rinse your hair well enough with cold water
Although it may not sound appealing, wetting and rinsing your hair with cold water will help retain the dye. The reason for it is that cold water closes the cuticle.
Also, hot water should be avoided since it exposes the cuticles, enabling dye to escape.
In addition to avoiding hot water, frequent hair washing should be avoided in general.
After you’ve completely washed the shampoo and conditioner out of your hair, don’t just lean your head back and let the water flow through your hair; this will peel the dye.
Devices like curling iron, flat iron, and blow dryer should not be used excessively
Hair that has been colored is more fragile, making it more susceptible to heat. To keep your hair healthy and prevent fading you should avoid overusing curling irons, flat irons, and blow dryers when styling it.
We believe that there are many more ways to prolong the effect of hair dye on your hair, but we have selected the most successful ones.
Final Thoughts
As we said at the beginning of this article, if you decide to dye your hair we are sure you will encounter many different questions.
They are most often related to the damage that hair dye can do to hair, and immediately afterward to the appearance of hair dye. For this reason, the frequent question is: Does Black Hair Dye Fade Over Time?
Of course, the shortest answer is – yes, it fades. The answer to the question lies in the fact that, regardless of the type of hair dye you use, the color will certainly fade over time.
As already mentioned, there are three types of dyes that you need to pay attention to, and they are temporary, permanent, and semi-permanent hair dyes.
It is important to emphasize that colors like black and brown fade slower compared to light hair colors.
