Aiming for that solid gold or sterling silver dye? Getting constantly frustrated when those pesky yellow undertones creep up on you? Meet brassy hair, the bane of every light colored hair.

But, what is brassy hair?

Brassy hair makes its appearance when your hair gains more warm tones than would be necessary from a variety of post-dye factors, therefore altering your original dye with a brass-like look. We are here to clear up the confusion once and for all. Here's what you need to know to protect yourself from and fix brassy hair.

Table of contents:

• How to Spot Brassy Hair
• Why Does Hair Turn Brassy?
• Toner Fade-Out
• Naturally Brassy Undertones
• Unfiltered Shower Water
• Residual Chlorine
• What is brassy hair: Keeping Your Blonde Hair-Do Brass-Free
• Avoid Washing Your Hair Daily
• Condition and Then Condition Again
• Cold Water Rinse
• Beloved Purple Shampoo

How to Spot Brassy Hair

The greatest distinction between having brassy hair and just having warm-toned hair is found in its placement. If the warm hair colors are placed towards the middle and ends of your hair, it will look natural and pleasing, but it will give your hair a rather unnatural look if this brassy hair tone is found towards the roots. This is the type of brassiness that you want to run away from.

Our roots are usually cool toned. If you take a look in the sun at natural brunettes and blondes, you will instantly notice that the roots are cooler and possibly darker, while the rest of the hair bounces off the light with its warmer hair colors.

Another instance where warm tones, aka brassy hair, are not wanted is when people go for a concentrated light blonde color or even a white-colored tone. When this kind of colored hair is uncared for, yellow and orange patches can appear, causing an aesthetically unpleasant brassy hair effect, because of the contrast between the cool blonde and warm yellows and oranges.

Why Does Hair Turn Brassy?

If you dyed your hair blonde, you have probably seen how much work is involved in taking care of it. Keeping both the scalp and the hair follicles healthy is a challenge in and of itself but added on top of that comes the struggle of fixing the yellow streaks that appear seemingly out of nowhere. But, in reality, discovering undesired warm tones in your light blonde-colored hair is not uncommon at all, and it is quite simple to understand why brassy hair happens. 

Toner Fade-Out

One of the main reasons blonde hair becomes brassy is that the toner eventually fades. When you bleach your hair, you might notice that it does not lift directly to the desired hair color but to yellows and oranges, which is a very common occurrence.

Seeing as all hair has some kind of warm tones in it, once it has been stripped of any hair color, the warm tones are the ones that remain. This is why your stylist will use a toner to get rid of that unwanted 'brassiness.' However, after a few washes, the toner is bound to stop working, and that's when brassy hair makes its appearance.

Naturally Brassy Undertones

As mentioned before, all hair has some kind of warm undertones, and oftentimes they fight against the bleach, eventually winning the battle.

Of course, this mostly happens to people who don't have natural hair color in blonde tones. However, suppose you are one of them with natural hair color in blonde tones and still suffer from yellow rebel streaks. In that case, you might want to start protecting your hair from surrounding air pollution, unfiltered water from your shower, or any residual chemicals found in public pools. All of these can contribute to the accentuation of naturally brassy hair undertones.

Unfiltered Shower Water

The minerals and contaminants found in the unfiltered water that we shower with have been proven to be highly damaging for our health. That damage can greatly affect both your skin and your hair, being a potential cause of brassy hair or discoloration you might be struggling with. For this reason, you might want to consider getting a shower filter installed for a softer and cleaner washing experience. 

Residual Chlorine

If a natural blonde has to protect their hair from all these external factors, people with bleached hair and blonde hair color must pay extra attention. The residual chlorine found in public pools is an aggressive chemical for your hair color, attacking it and making it susceptible to all kinds of damage, including stripping away the bleach or the nurturing products used to maintain it. 

What is brassy hair: Keeping Your Blonde Hair-Do Brass-Free

As we've already established, it's best to start protecting your hair from harsh chemicals and minerals by avoiding dipping it in the pool, keeping it protected, or by filtering your water. Beyond this tried-and-true advice, we have even more solutions for preventing and fixing those warm tones that can turn your blonde locks into brassy hair:

Avoid Washing Your Hair Daily

Washing your blonde hair daily is not something you want to do, especially after bleaching and stripping it of its natural oils. If you're going to keep your hair color for as long as possible, you should try to wash your hair only two times a week. You might find it hard at first but trust us when we say that it's for the best. When your hair starts getting a little greasy, give it a spritz of that dry shampoo. 

Additionally, before washing your hair, try applying a cold-pressed oil mix to it for at least 30 minutes before shampooing or overnight for the best results. This will ensure that your hair maintains its natural shine without the unwanted brassiness that would ensue without the added protection. 

Condition and Then Condition Again

We have mentioned the dangers of chlorine, now let's see how to save your color treated hair from it. 

If you can't keep your hair out of the water, you should at least wet your hair beforehand with tap water so that you grant it an extra layer of protection. In doing so, your hair will have already soaked all the water it could, so the chlorine won't do as much damage. 

When you return home, you should shampoo and condition your hair with the most nourishing products on hand, such as our Moroccan Argan Oil blend. After that, go one step further and use a deep conditioning treatment full of nutritious oils for extra hydration. After all, moisture is the one saving your blonde hair's appearance!

Cold Water Rinse

Hot water will never help keep the integrity of your hair, instead of harming it further due to the added heat. When you take a bath, all of your pores open up, including those on your scalp, which is why you need to give your hair a final cold rinse to help close the hair follicle and lock in moisture in your hair shaft, giving your color treated hair a shiny final touch. 

Beloved Purple Shampoo

When you decide to go lighter and enjoy blonde hair, purple shampoo (and possibly blue one as well) will be your best friend. It's a simple color theory: yellow and purple are on opposite sides on the color wheel. These complementary colors neutralize each other, which is why purple shampoo is the best choice if you're looking for a way to fix brassy hair, while the blue shampoo is adequate for orange streaks. It's the safest way to get rid of the brassiness invading your hair color immediately.

There you have it – all we know on what to do about brassy hair. Opt for this hair care regimen and give your hair all the love it needs to get rid of brassy tones.

Explore the WOW website for more natural hair care products.