Bleached Hair Aftercare

Wednesday, August 30, 2017

For the last 18 months or so, I’ve had my hair bleached around 2 or 3 times. I have foil highlights done at my hairdressers, to give me a more caramel/honey toned head of hair. For the longest time, I’d wanted light brown hair but was so scared that it would go wrong or wouldn’t suit me and my hair would be ruined. Thankfully, I have the best hairdresser in the world who knows just what to do and just what I wanted. I last had highlights around 4-6 months ago and my hair is still a gorgeous shade of honey blonde while being dark at the roots.

Another fear I had was that my roots would look horrendous when my hair grows out. But the way that my hairdresser did the highlights, has made it just look ombre’d a little when it grows out. It looks so natural and healthy to say that it’s been bleached. Which is why I decided to do a post on how I looked after my bleached hair, especially considering I do have Afro Caribbean hair which I regularly use heat on.

My hair routine isn’t anything out of the ordinary and I primarily use products from the drug store or Amazon. All the products are affordable and pretty basic yet manage to keep my hair healthy, even though it is bleached and heat damaged.

Firstly, when washing my hair there are a few different shampoos and conditioners I like to use. I feel that switching up shampoo and conditioner every few months refrains my hair from getting used to the product and having it not be very effective.

A brand I’m completely dedicated to is OGX. I’ve been seeing their products everywhere for the longest time now but for some reason, never thought to try them. About a year ago, I started using the Argan Oil of Morocco Extra Strength shampoo and conditioner. I brought extra strength because my hair was really damaged and soaks up any product that I use on it. Using both the shampoo and conditioner worked wanders on my hair and after the first use I noticed a difference in the condition of my hair. It only got better from there. The argan oil helped to soften and hydrate my hair, which meant it didn’t look as dry as beforehand.

My hair routine can differ in terms of washing it. If I’m leaving my hair curly, I’ll condition my hair, then rinse it and then condition it again and rinse a little with cold water (to stop frizz) and leave the conditioner in my hair. This is because, like I said, my hair soaks up any products I leave it in so this helps to keep it hydrated and prevent it from going dry and sparse when it’s curly. However, if I’m straightening my hair, I’ll shampoo and condition as normal, rinsing everything out after.

I decided to switch things up after a few months of trying the Argan Oil shampoo and conditioner. I tried the Anti Breakage Keratin shampoo and conditioner. Despite how good the first shampoo and conditioner was, this one didn’t do anything for my hair. It didn’t leave it feeling soft and hydrated, if anything it felt dry and stiff.

I didn’t notice it much until I brought a different set from OGX which was the Moroccan Argan Crème shampoo and conditioner. I realised how bad the Keratin formula was for my hair when the Moroccan Argan Crème worked a dream. Even better than the first shampoo and conditioner I tried from them, this formula helped to soften my hair as well as smoothing it down, hydrating and making my hair silky and shiny.

My hair definitely feels better when using OGX shampoo and conditioner together, but if I’m low on money and conditioner, I will stray towards Tresemmé. Their products come in bulks; you can get so much product for so little money and I heard a lot of good things about them so I thought I’d try it. I brought the Vitamin E Moisture Rich Conditioner in a 900ml bottle for around £4. I must admit, the effects on my hair aren’t as good as OGX but the Tresemmé conditioner definitely does what it says in locking in moisture and making my hair shine. The conditioner moisturises my hair and keeps it looking healthy. Although I still prefer OGX, if you are low on money and want to stock up on conditioner, I definitely recommend Tresemmé.

Another pro with OGX and Tresemmé is that they have so many different lines of products to suit different hair types. You’re not restricted to one kind of shampoo and conditioner, you can specifically choose products that will be best for your hair and have a better end result.

When my hair is washed and not soaking wet, I’ll get to applying oils.

The first product, I’ve been using for years and never realised it was OGX, is the Argan Oil of Morocco Extra Penetrating Oil for dry and coarse hair. This product is a holy grail. Something I couldn’t live without. The oil helps to hydrate my hair, especially in any dry and coarse areas, which for me is predominantly the back of my head and the ends of my hair. This product also helps to smoothen my hair and give it a radiant shine.

The next product is Frizz Ease Polishing Serum, something I’ve also been using for a long time. The main use of this product I have is to prevent my hair from being so frizzy and add a little more shine. You’ll notice most of these products help to add shine which is what you want for healthy looking hair. It won’t look greasy, more so giving it a healthy glow so long as you apply the correct amount.

The last oil I will use on my hair is the Fantasia Carrot Serum – Triple Strength. I don’t apply this all over my hair because I’ve already used a fair amount of oil and anymore will definitely leave it feeling greasy and heavy. I use this serum on the ends of my hair and a small amount at the back in dry and coarse areas. The Carrot Serum Beta Carotene, antioxidants and vitamins a and e to help condition and restore strength and shine to weak, damaged hair. This serum really helps to keep my hair healthy due to all the good ingredients it contains.

So that’s all I use on my hair to keep it healthy after being bleached. I don’t use any purple shampoo or anything like that to keep it blonde as mines more of a caramel/honey blonde colour that looks natural in my hair. All (if not most) of these products can be brought in drug stores or from Amazon, I’ll leave the links below to where I brought mine from!

(I haven't included the price as they all vary depending on where you get them from and what discounts different shops have on at the minute. But they are all under £10!)

OGX Products;

Argan Oil of Morocco Extra Strength shampoo: http://www.boots.com/ogx-argan-oil-of-morocco-extra-strength-shampoo-10202116

Argan Oil of Morocco Extra Strength conditioner: http://www.boots.com/ogx-argan-oil-of-morocco-extra-strength-conditioner-10202096

Moroccan Argan Crème shampoo: https://www.superdrug.com/OGX/OGX-Luxurious-Moroccan-Argan-Cr%C3%A8me-Shampoo-385ml/p/381604

Moroccan Argan Crème conditioner: https://www.superdrug.com/OGX/OGX-Luxurious-Moroccan-Argan-Cr%C3%A8me-Conditioner-385ml/p/381602

Argan Oil of Morocco Extra Penetrating Oil: https://www.superdrug.com/OGX-Moroccan-Argan-Oil/OGX-Renewing-Moroccan-Argan-Oil-100ml/p/579757?gclid=Cj0KCQjwierMBRCHARIsAHl9i4GlJreD1etWl2zfvn5SFaeJeSv8rPJMU65s-A6q0DHMMqaji7c9w64aAu3lEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds&dclid=CKHA95Gv6NUCFUoS0wodilEO2A

Tresemmé Vitamin E Moisture Rich Conditioner: https://www.superdrug.com/3-for-2-on-selected-Tresemme/TRESemme-Moisture-Rich-Luxurious-Moisture-Conditioner-900ml/p/428213

Frizz Ease Polishing Serum: https://www.superdrug.com/John-Frieda/John-Frieda-Frizz-Ease-Perfect-Finish-Polishing-Serum-50ml/p/876757?gclid=Cj0KCQjwierMBRCHARIsAHl9i4HH65KV1PQpZDqgHF4WFtSATvS-npILsbyy3VQmc7eEgFtW8rix6mEaAln1EALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds&dclid=CMbYpqav6NUCFU0j0wodaSwCKQ

Fantasia Carrot Serum – Triple Strength: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Fantasia-IC-Polisher-Carrot-Growth/dp/B0056HCBUY

If you have any products you use on damaged or bleached hair, let me know in the comments below!

Thanks for reading!

Phoebe