Do you know what happens to your hair when you dye it?

Although hair color goes back to ancient times when different cultures used natural ingredients to darken their hair, we will start this blog in 1907 when the chemist Eugene Shcueller created a color formula that he marketed successfully among French stylists, over time and unknowingly this man changed the history of humanity forever, his small business acquired the name of L'oréal and gave rise to a multimillion dollar industry.

Let's talk a little about the reasons why a woman dyes her hair, we could take as an indicator the different stages of life.

- Women up to 25 years old: It is the time to define identity, to be fashionable, to follow influencers and while living this stage, hair color is a way to feel unique and different.

- Women from 25 and up to 40: welcome to working life, although society has changed and is much more open to urban culture, the combination of maturity and a new environment often drives a change of look to face a new stage of life.

- Women in their 40's: Women who are accomplished in many aspects of their lives, are clear about what they want and what they don't want, and many of them don't want beautiful shiny white gray hair.

This is just a general point of reference, because in the end everyone will have their own reasons.

Now let's leave the history and general concepts behind and talk about the chemistry in your hair while you're getting a hair color

To obtain the magic of color in the hair there are different products to do it, we will tell you the most used ones.

These are hair dyes with very small pigment molecules that can be completely introduced into the hair. They contain peroxide, ammonia and hydrogen peroxide, which activate and penetrate the color more. They are used to cover gray hair or if you want a longer lasting color.

These are hair dyes that are applied without a bleaching process, as they are composed of small molecules that penetrate the hair cavities. They are recommended for damaged hair because they don’t contain peroxide or ammonia.
They contain large pigment molecules so they do not penetrate the hair so much, but only coat it: this is why they fall out easily with each wash. They are recommended if you don't want a radical change or for special events.

In this section we will focus on permanent dyes, let's say you already have color in your hair and you go for a new session at the salon.

Current diagnosis: Dyed hair, blonde tone, last process 2 months ago, currently has roots and you want a lighter blonde. At the moment you do not use any specialized hair care product. You notice that when you wash your hair it becomes elastic and difficult to untangle.

As with all cosmetic products, not all hair dyes have the same quality, perhaps they all meet the basic principle of providing color, but you will find all kinds of compounds, some very good and others that will leave serious consequences on the quality of your hair strand.

So regardless of your stage of life, if you are willing to invest in the color in your hair, please invest in the care of color and hair strand at home, the process you do in the salon is the beginning of a transformation in your hair forever, take it bright, radiant and healthy depends on your care during the following months.

When you take a strand of hair in your hands, you see a thin strand, but inside that tiny fragment is a complex universe.

The door to that world is the cuticle, the most superficial part of the hair, which is responsible for making your hair look shiny and feel soft. In the process of color with dye it must be modified and worn; this is how it is lost progressively and not to mention when you bleach the hair there is a higher percentage of cuticle is lost.

In dyeing or bleaching processes, depending on their technology, there are nano pigments and macro pigments.  The nano technology manages to open the cuticle a little and enough pigments will enter to fill the spaces well, which will help it last longer. In macro technology the door must be opened wide, and not all the spaces will be filled by the same size of particles, then closing the door will not be so easy and the duration of the dye will probably be shorter.  

To achieve a blonde tone as desired, the peroxide must be mixed with the bleach the lighter you want the color, the more peroxide and the more invasive the process will be for that world that lies behind the cuticle.

As you can see, even though we can't see it, there is a huge chemical reaction going on in that small space.

Fortunately, for stylists who are able to perform calmer processes and for all women who love color, a couple of years ago the concept of Plex was born, which I'm sure you've heard a lot about in salons.

The Plex are products created with the intention of stopping the damage caused in the hair strand by repairing the rupture of the bonds by the color processes, especially when they are high discolorations, using a Plex during the chemical process helps to prolong the posing time, which improves the possibility of reaching the desired tone, using specialized home care products under the plex technology that helps to reinforce the process started in the salon and that the hair soon regains its natural movement, shine and softness, are the best complement for the care of your hair.

During the last 120 years hair dyes have evolved a lot not only in the use that can be given in terms of beauty concepts but also in the technology that surrounds them, this allows all women who like to wear a certain hair color or change it with a certain frequency to do so with the peace of mind that their hair will always be healthy.

Anahí L.M.


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