The 5 Haircare Mistakes That Are Damaging Your Colour
We invest real time and money into our hair colour. So why does it seem to fade, go brassy or look dull faster than it should? In most cases, the answer isn't the colour itself — it's what happens in the weeks after the appointment. Here are the five most common haircare mistakes we see at Yanni Hair Studio, and exactly how to fix them.
Mistake 1 — Washing with Hot Water
This is the single most common and most impactful mistake colour clients make. Hot water causes the hair cuticle to swell open, allowing colour pigment to escape with every wash. Over several washes, this dramatically accelerates fading and brassiness.
The fix: Wash your hair with lukewarm water and finish with a cool — even cold — rinse. The cool water seals the cuticle, locks in colour and adds noticeable shine. It takes about 10 seconds and makes a real difference.
Mistake 2 — Using the Wrong Shampoo
Many people use whatever shampoo is on sale, or whatever smells nice, without considering whether it's appropriate for colour-treated hair. Shampoos containing sulphates (sodium lauryl sulphate or sodium laureth sulphate) are highly effective cleansers — but they strip colour from the hair aggressively with every wash.
The fix: Switch to a sulphate-free, colour-safe shampoo. Both O&M and Davines — our exclusive brands at Yanni — produce excellent sulphate-free shampoos that cleanse effectively without compromising your colour.
Specifically designed for long, fragile, colour-treated hair. Sulphate-free, gentle and nourishing — preserves colour while keeping hair strong and manageable.
Shop at Yanni →Mistake 3 — Skipping Heat Protection
Every time heat is applied to unprotected hair — even a brief blow-dry — it degrades the protein bonds in the hair shaft and fades colour molecules. Over weeks and months, this accumulates into significantly dry, dull, faded hair.
The fix: Apply a heat protectant every single time you use a blow dryer, flat iron or curling wand — no exceptions. It takes 20 seconds and protects both the structure of your hair and the integrity of your colour.
Mistake 4 — Washing Too Frequently
Daily washing strips both the hair's natural oils and the colour pigment. The more you wash, the faster your colour fades and the drier your hair becomes. Many clients wash daily out of habit rather than necessity.
The fix: Try extending the time between washes. Use dry shampoo at the roots to absorb oil on days you don't wash, and a light hair oil on the ends to keep them looking polished. Most hair types can comfortably go 2–3 days between washes — your colour will be significantly better for it.
If you find your hair gets oily quickly, it's often because you're washing too frequently — which strips the scalp's natural oils and triggers even more oil production. Give it 2–3 weeks of reduced washing and your scalp will naturally regulate and produce less oil.
Mistake 5 — Ignoring the Sun
UV radiation is a major cause of colour fading and brassiness that most people simply don't think about. In Melbourne, UV levels are significant year-round — not just in summer. Spending time outdoors without protecting your hair accelerates fade considerably, particularly for lighter blondes and vivid colours.
The fix: Use a UV-protective hair product — a leave-in spray or styling product with UV filters — before spending extended time outdoors. For very light blondes, a hat on a long day outdoors is genuinely the most effective protection.
"Fixing these five things costs almost nothing and adds weeks — sometimes months — to your colour. It's the most valuable advice we can give."
— Yanni Hair StudioOne More Thing — Trust Your Products
Using professional haircare products is not a luxury — it's an investment that protects your colour investment. The products we stock at Yanni Hair Studio (O&M and Davines) are formulated specifically to work with professional colour and keep it looking better, for longer. If you're spending hundreds of dollars on colour and washing it with a $5 supermarket shampoo, you're undoing a lot of that investment every single wash.