First-time bleaching tips to prevent damage.

First-time hair bleaching: Essential tips to prevent damage and ensure success.

2024-09-17｜Lena

A common saying online goes, 'Once you bleach your hair, there's no going back.' But what does this really mean? The main reason is that if you don’t properly care for your bleached hair, not only will the color fade quickly, requiring frequent touch-ups, but the quality of your hair will also deteriorate significantly. Many people are tempted by unique hair colors but are afraid of the potential damage bleaching could cause, so they hesitate to book an appointment with a stylist, keeping beautiful hair color photos saved as treasures instead. However, as long as you do your research, understand what could lead to a bleaching disaster, and take proper care afterward, you generally don’t need to worry about your hair quality getting so bad that you'd need to cut it all off and start over.

Catalogue

I.What is hair bleaching? Are there hair colors that don’t require bleaching?

II.Things to consider before bleaching your hair for the first time

What is hair bleaching? Are there hair colors that don’t require bleaching?

It’s always beneficial to understand what you're about to do. "The principle of hair bleaching involves using a bleaching agent to open the hair's cuticle, allowing hydrogen peroxide to penetrate the hair and break down dark pigments, removing the original color and lightening the hair, making it easier for subsequent dyes to adhere," explains professional stylist Miyake. During the bleaching process, depending on the time and number of bleaching sessions, the hair color will gradually change from black → dark brown → reddish-brown → orange → yellow, and eventually to a near-white shade, becoming progressively lighter. There are typically two reasons why bleaching is necessary. The first is to achieve brighter and more vibrant special colors, as bleaching allows for a broader range of color choices. The second situation is when someone wants to cover gray hair but previously dyed their hair deep black, or if long-term use of bubble dye caused color buildup—both cases where bleaching is required to achieve the desired final color.

Things to consider before bleaching your hair for the first time

First-time Hair Bleaching Precautions – Point One

Proactively inform your stylist of your hair coloring and perm history

It’s crucial to proactively inform your stylist about your past experiences with hair coloring and perming before undergoing any bleaching, coloring, or perming treatment. This is especially important if it’s your first time with that stylist, as it helps them more accurately assess your hair condition and determine if it can achieve your desired color. If you’ve had a perm, your hair may be damaged and need time to recover before bleaching. If you’ve colored your hair before, it’s also essential to inform the stylist, even if you used at-home bubble dye. This is particularly important if you’ve dyed your hair deep black, as the stylist cannot tell by sight whether it’s been dyed black before, and this greatly impacts how the color will turn out.

First-time Hair Bleaching Precautions – Point Two

Avoid washing your hair two to three days before bleaching

Bleaching involves an additional step compared to simple hair coloring, so it’s recommended to let some natural oils accumulate to protect your scalp. By not washing your hair for two to three days before bleaching, the oils can build up and form a protective layer for your scalp. This also helps reduce the risk of irritation or itching caused by bleach powder coming into contact with the scalp. For those who are used to washing their hair daily, simply rinsing with water for two to three days before bleaching is sufficient—try to avoid using shampoo, as it can strip away the protective oils.

First-time Hair Bleaching Precautions – Point Three

Strengthen hair care before bleaching

This step is called "priming"! If you’ve decided to bleach your hair, start a hair care routine at least two weeks before your appointment. The chemicals used in bleaching can irritate the scalp and hair strands. If your scalp is too dry before bleaching, you're more likely to experience stinging, and the hair will become even more frizzy due to moisture loss. Pre-bleaching care acts as a proactive measure, helping to reduce the damage caused by bleaching. Use a hair mask with every wash to strengthen and nourish your hair, and apply hair oil after blow-drying to smooth frizz.

First-time Hair Bleaching Precautions – Point Four

Understand how many bleaching sessions your desired hair color requires

Even if two people aim for the same target color, the number of bleaching sessions needed can vary depending on their current hair condition. For example, those with natural black hair will require more bleaching sessions compared to people with lighter hair. If you’ve previously dyed your hair a dark color and it caused color buildup, you may need even more bleaching sessions than someone with natural black hair. This brings us back to the first point—it's crucial to inform your stylist about your hair coloring history so you can accurately determine how many bleaching sessions you’ll need before starting the process.

First-time Hair Bleaching Precautions – Point Five

Listen to professional stylist advice

Trusting the professionals can help you avoid regret later on. If your stylist evaluates your hair and says, “Your current condition won’t allow you to achieve the color you want,” then it’s best to take their advice and choose a different color. This could be due to frequent use of store-bought dyes, leading to severe color buildup, which prevents your hair from reaching a clean platinum blonde even after several bleaching sessions. In such cases, your color options may be more limited.

First-time Hair Bleaching Precautions – Point Six

Understand the color after bleached hair fades

Bleached hair fades faster than regular dyed hair because the bleaching process damages the hair, leaving the cuticles partially open. This makes the hair lose pigment more quickly when it comes into contact with water. It’s recommended to ask your stylist in advance what the chosen target color will look like after it fades, so you can avoid being unhappy with the faded result.

Recommended hair care products before bleaching

Recommended Hair Care Product – Hair Mask with Aqua Green Packaging

Magical Jungle Hair Mask

Provides ultimate deep repair for your hair

▲ Salon-grade home hair care essential! Super deep hydration, replenishing lost nutrients from the inner structure. Convenient for both dry and wet use, offering the highest level of repair with ease.

▲ Powerful formula with "six natural repair factors and hydrolyzed keratin" to strengthen hair structure, moisturize, and provide deep repair.

▲ What’s special about this product is that it can be "mixed with dye or bleach powder"! This allows you to protect your hair during coloring or bleaching, preventing damage!

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Further Reading:

[Hair Care] Can you perm your hair after bleaching it?

Do you need to use color-depositing shampoo after bleaching and dyeing your hair?

What to do when your hair turns green after bleaching fades? Miyake shares how to conquer green tones.

Why can’t you perm your hair after bleaching? A must-know for beauty lovers.

Should you use shampoo after dyeing your hair? Follow these 5 tips to make your color last longer!

How long does dyed hair last? How often is it safe to dye your hair? Professional hair stylist Misa from ROUND2 explains!

Hair color recommendations for yellow-toned skin, with Chic Salon’s Rebecca guiding you to the best colors!

The 4 main categories of hair care products to use after dyeing your hair and when to use them!