How To Get and Maintain Your Ash Blonde Hair Color

If you feel like your current hair color needs an update, consider trying an on-trend hue. Enter one of this season’s hottest hair colors: ash blonde. There’s a reason why more and more people are rocking this cool-toned hue in recent years—it’s a great way to brighten up your look. However, ash blonde hair isn’t necessarily easy to achieve. Here, learn all about how to get an ash blonde hair color, including how to use our best ash blonde hair dyes to get the look, how to care for your newly-colored strands, and how to prevent your hair color from fading.

What Is Ash Blonde Hair?

Ash blonde hair encompasses any cool-toned blonde hue with hints of gray. A light ash blonde shade can look a lot like platinum blonde hair, but oftentimes, ash blonde is paired with darker roots to add dimension and a more natural feel. It’s also customizable because you can sport it as a solid color or add highlights to take it up a notch. You can also choose to go lighter or darker with it—medium ash blonde and dark ash blonde hair are just as stunning as the lighter iterations.

How To Get Ash Blonde Hair

If you plan on getting an ash blonde hair color, consider these tips to help you achieve your desired look.

Tip 1: Find your inspiration

A good starting point for any hair color change is finding an inspirational photo to use as a reference. If you plan on heading to the salon to achieve ash blonde hair, having a picture is a great way to show your colorist exactly what look you’re going for. If you’re planning to DIY, it’s still important to have an end goal in mind while you’re coloring.

As with most hair colors, there are various ash blonde shades to choose from. This includes the basics we mentioned earlier, like light and medium ash blonde, but there are also spinoffs of the trend, like mushroom blonde and silver blonde. So do some research to see which color you prefer. If you’re having trouble deciding which hue is right for you, check out the L’Oréal Paris Hair Color Concierge, where you can consult with an expert for personalized advice and hair color recommendations.

Tip 2: Decide on professional dyeing or DIY-ing

If your natural hue isn’t too far off from the color you’re seeking, dyeing your hair at home can be pretty easy. You can use an at-home coloring kit, like the L’Oréal Paris Superior Preference Fade-Defying Shine Permanent Hair Color in the shade Light Ash Blonde or Dark Ash Blonde for a gorgeous, fade-defying color.

However, if your base color is darker, you may need to bleach your hair before coloring or toning it to that perfect ashy color. Because bleaching your hair can damage your strands, you may want to enlist the help of a professional colorist—they’ll be trained to work with bleach safely. Also, with darker hair, multiple bleaching sessions could be required to achieve your desired hue. It will just take a bit more time and effort, so you may find it’s best to leave bleaching in the hands of a pro.

At-Home Bleaching Tips

Many people accomplish beautiful dye jobs at home, but bleaching is often the trickiest part. With that said, it can be done—you just need the right know-how. So, grab the L’Oréal Paris Féria Hyper Platinum Advanced Lightening System Bleach and keep these tips in mind for a seamless hair bleaching session.

Tip 1: Remember the two-shade rule

Unless you’re going for a super dramatic look, you’ll probably want to keep your ash blonde hue looking as natural as possible. Use your natural eyebrow color as a reference, and don’t bleach your hair more than two to three shades lighter in a single session.

Tip 2: Evaluate your starting state

If you’ve ever colored your strands before, then you no longer have virgin hair. It’s not a problem, but it could affect the outcome of your color. Generally, the best coloring results are attained on hair that’s never been colored before. Previously colored hair is also more prone to damage from the bleaching process, so it may be wise to book an appointment with a pro colorist, at least for this part of the process.

Tip 3: Take it slow

We understand the excitement of a new hair color, but regardless of your base color, don’t rush through the process. Even medium-toned brunettes could need a few bleaching sessions to achieve a light enough blonde tone—and then you still have to add in the ash blonde hair dye. If you need a few bleaching sessions, you’ll also need to wait at least two to three weeks between each. In other words, remember that if you’re going to do this yourself, the process takes some time. Rushing will only cause serious damage to your hair and scalp, so go slow.

How To Care For Ash Blonde Hair

After dyeing your hair, it’s important to care for your new color to maximize its lifespan. Read on for our top tips on how to care for your ash blonde hair color.

Tip 1: Opt for color-safe hair products

When you have color-treated hair, you should use a shampoo and conditioner that can help protect your color and prevent fading. Reach for products specifically formulated to preserve colored hair, like the L’Oréal Paris EverPure Sulfate-Free Bond Strengthening Color Care Shampoo and L’Oréal Paris EverPure Sulfate-Free Bond Strengthening Color Care Conditioner. Both are safe on color and help to strengthen weak hair bonds that can occur due to bleaching.

Tip 2: Have purple shampoo on hand

While your cool hair color may not go brassy as fast as other shades of blonde, maintaining it still takes work. Purple shampoo neutralizes unwanted brassy yellow hues and revives your blonde hair color. So once brass starts to rear its ugly head, reach for a purple shampoo and conditioner like the L’Oréal Paris EverPure Sulfate-Free Brass Toning Purple Shampoo and L’Oréal Paris EverPure Sulfate-Free Brass Toning Purple Conditioner.

Tip 3: Use heat protectant

High temperatures from heat styling can damage your hair and cause your color to fade. To help prevent this, always use a heat-protectant like the L’Oréal Paris Elvive Dream Lengths Heat Slayer Pre-Iron Spray Leave-In, which protects your hair from heat up to 450 degrees.

Why Does Ash Blonde Hair Become Brassy?

To understand what causes brassiness, you need to have an understanding of how bleaching works. Bleach penetrates the hair shaft all the way to the core to remove the pigment (melanin) from your strands. Once the melanin is removed, a hair dye is applied to alter the color of your strands.

No matter what color you choose, the hues are composed of red, blue, and yellow pigments. As your hair color fades due to exposure to elements and the wear and tear of washing and styling, you may notice your once blonde color has taken on an orange hue. That’s because the blue pigment tends to fade the fastest of the three, leaving behind red and yellow pigments that blend together to create a brassy orange hue. While any hair color can turn brassy, it’s more noticeable on lighter hair colors.

5 Tips to Help Maintain Ash Blonde Hair

They say blondes have more fun, but that doesn’t mean you won’t have to make any sacrifices. Being a bottle blonde is high maintenance, and if you want your ash blonde hair to look and feel its best as long as possible, consider a few lifestyle changes that can help maintain your hair color and combat brassiness.

Tip 1: Protect your hair from the sun

Improper washing and styling aren’t the only things that can wreak havoc on ash blonde hair. The sun can actually cause your ash blonde hue to fade.

When it comes to protecting your hair from the sun, the rules are very similar to sun protection for your skin. According to the Cleveland Clinic, the best ways to protect your ash blonde hair are to stay out of the sun when possible, cover your strands with a hat, and invest in products with UV protection.

Tip 2: Create a post-swim hair routine

Chlorine is notorious for turning blonde hair green, but the American Academy of Dermatology Association has a few quick and easy tips to avoid swampy-looking locks. Before you jump into the water, saturate your strands with fresh water and apply a moisturizing leave-in conditioner. Consider covering your hair with a tightly fitted swimming cap to minimize your hair's contact with the chlorinated water. Once you’re done swimming, replenish your strands with a shampoo and conditioner specifically formulated for post-swim care.

Of course, chlorinated water isn’t the only kind you have to be careful with. While salt water may not turn your hair green, it can often leave it feeling dry and brittle. Luckily, you can nourish your strands before and after the beach with the same tips and products you use to refresh your ash blonde hair after a dip in the pool.

Tip 3: Invest in a shower filter

Even something as basic as showering can sometimes contribute to brassiness. Of course, it isn’t the act of bathing, but rather the minerals in your water supply that are the issue. Thankfully, there’s an easy fix: A shower filter will ensure you can wash your hair without exposing it to hard minerals. Using the filter can help preserve your color for longer, especially when paired with a good shampoo and conditioner for color-treated hair.

Tip 4: Try in-salon treatments

If you went to the salon for your new hue, your colorist likely explained the benefits of maintaining a regular salon schedule. But even if you opted to DIY your color, your hue may benefit from regular salon toning services. A hair toner is a type of semi or demi-permanent dye that allows your colorist to alter the tone of your hue without changing the color. Toners can help you experience a new type of blonde hair color or correct brassiness to return your hue to its original ash blonde color. Your toning schedule will depend on how fast your color fades, but many colorists suggest returning to the salon for a refresh every six to eight weeks.

Tip 5: Learn to address common maintenance issues

Beyond your new color, your hair may look and feel different once it’s dyed. Don’t panic. There are several common maintenance issues that many people with ash blonde hair experience, and they have pretty simple fixes.

If you’re dealing with dryness…add a moisturizing hair treatment like L’Oréal Paris Hyaluron + Plump Flash Hydration Wonder Water, Sulfate-Free, to your routine.

If you’re dealing with damage…swap your moisturizing hair mask for a repairing one like L’Oréal Paris Elvive Total Repair 5 Damage Erasing Balm Rinse-Out Mask.

If you’re dealing with an uneven tone…refresh your color with an at-home toning gloss like L’Oréal Paris Le Color Gloss One Step In-Shower Toning Gloss in Cool Blonde or Platinum Pearl.

While many of these issues can be managed at home, if they are persistent or your efforts don’t seem to improve the look and feel of your hair, schedule an appointment with a trusted colorist.

Next Up: How To Use Purple Shampoo for Blonde Hair

Photo Courtesy of L'Oréal Paris