Best Blue & Purple Shampoos to Enhance Your Balayage Highlights
I’ve had my foilyage highlights for about 2.5 years now, and I love the look. However, I’m not gonna lie – my hair definitely feels lifeless where the strands were bleached, and now requires some extra maintenance to look decent. Is all that effort worth it, though? I honestly don’t mind spending more time on it, so I added a few extra steps to my haircare routine that are kind of non-negotiable for any brunette that decides to go blonde [or even part-blonde, like me].
The first thing you’re going to need is a blue or purple-toned shampoo to keep the brassiness away. I own both kinds and now use them on alternate days. I’ve tested about 6 different purple shampoos and 3 blue ones, but these two are my favorite.
1 // Drybar Blonde Ale Brightening Shampoo ($27) – One thing I noticed with purple/blue shampoos is that they can often be drying, but this one is different, which is the main reason why it works so well for me. It has a lot of purple pigment making the shampoo look almost black unless you put it under a bright light. The formula is free of sulfates, phthalates, and parabens [tbh, that last one is not a huge deal to me, but the first two definitely are], and works for all hair types and textures.
2 // dpHUE Cool Brunette Shampoo ($26) – Because I did balayage and didn’t go full blonde, I still need to care for the brunette part of my hair, so I alternate between blue and purple shampoos. I guess, blue shampoo is supposed to make the color transition look smoother and more natural, but what do I know! I tried a few other blue shampoos but didn’t like any of them as much as I like this one. First of all, I appreciate the very short ingredient list and the fact that the formula is sulfate-free. It also has a nice floral scent, which may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but it works for me. I actually like that it’s scented because if you ever went brunette to blonde, you know how your hair sometimes stinks for weeks when it gets wet [like a wet wool sweater], so the fragrance helps counteract that.
Another step that I often used to skip entirely before getting my foilyage is deep conditioning. I mean, my hair is normally fine, flat, and straight, so it wasn’t even a candidate for deep conditioning treatments anyway. But now that half of my hair is essentially toast, I like to breathe some life into it by using a mask or a thick bonding conditioner to nourish and seal in the moisture until the next wash. I’ve come across some really good treatments while searching for my HG, but this one is truly a step above the rest and it’s the only one I’ve been repurchasing.
3 // Olaplex No. 5 Bond Maintenance™ Conditioner ($28) – The thought of paying $28 for a conditioner seemed insane, considering I go through conditioner 3 times as fast as I go through a bottle of shampoo, however… I don’t know what kind of magic juju they used at Olaplex, but not only does one bottle last me literally months, it outlived several bottles of shampoo and a jar of hair masque! What even is this witchery?? Basically, this is a thick, almost balm-like hair treatment that revives even the most hopeless and crunchiest of hair. It’s formulated without sulfates, phthalates, parabens, and whatever other 47 ingredients to wear a “Clean at Sephora” badge. The website describes No. 5 as a “highly-moisturizing, reparative conditioner that protects and repairs damaged hair, split ends, and frizz by re-linking broken bonds”, and if that sounds too good to be true, I don’t blame you. You really gotta try it to believe it.
Drastically changing my hair color was a bold move, but it made sense to me at the time and it matches the vision of myself that I wanted to see in the mirror. I dreamed of this hair color and this haircut for a long time before chopping off my waist-length brunette locks, but the end result feels so right like it was meant to be! So yes, maybe it requires some extra maintenance, but if your new hair makes you feel good about yourself, then it’s all been worth it.
Have you ever changed your hair color or length drastically? Were you happy with the result? If you use blue or purple hair products, which ones are your favorite? Let us know in the comments below!
