Have you ever wondered what happens when leaving blue shampoo in hair for an hour? Nowadays, ashy hair is more fashionable than ever, and for this reason several brands have launched blue shampoos to tone down the orange reflections of the hair.
The reality is that this type of hair toning is temporary, since it acts only superficially. Therefore, if you leave the blue shampoo in the hair for an hour, you will achieve approximately 20% more brassiness neutralization, but you will not be able to completely tone the orange hair either.
It is also important that so that you can take full advantage of its effects, your hair is slightly damp or dry. In this way your pigments will not be diluted.
Leaving blue shampoo in hair for an hour
If you are in this article, it is because you surely want to use blue shampoo on your hair to tone it. Today there are blue and violet shampoos. They both have very different results!
Now I will explain the difference between them, because if you apply blue shampoo and your hair is platinum blonde you can turn your hair slightly green.
What is blue shampoo?
The blue shampoo is a special shampoo that serves to neutralize the unwanted reflections of brown hair. Normally this type of hair tends to oxidize orange which is not pleasant at all!
Blue shampoo is not recommended for blonde hair! This is super important for you to keep in mind. Imagine, if your hair is yellow and you make it blue, you will make your hair greenish.
If your hair is blonde you should use a violet shampoo to tone your hair. In this way you will make your hair more ashy without turning greenish.
Blue shampoo is recommended if your hair is brown or looks more orange than yellow. The blue pigments will beautifully neutralize your hair and help remove brassiness residue.
What happens if i leave blue shampoo in hair for an hour?
The truth is that if you have brassy orange hair and you leave the blue shampoo on for an hour, there is nothing you need to worry about, but don’t expect a magical neutralization either.
The truth is that while you wait, it will seem that your hair looks blue! But nothing beyond reality. As the blue shampoo only acts superficially, by the time you rinse it off all the excess pigment will wash away.
The results you can expect if you leave the blue shampoo on for an hour is a slightly more intense shading of the brassy highlights than if you used it normally when washing your hair. Your hair will look less orange and more caramel ash, and it will even look shinier.
On the other hand, if you let the shampoo work for an hour and you have blonde hair, it is very likely that you will turn your hair a little greenish. This happens because light blonde hair absorbs any type of pigmentation easily, and putting blue pigment on yellow hair will make it look green.
Therefore, it is important that you use blue shampoo only if your hair is brown with caramel or honey highlights (orange background). This way you will have the best results.
How to use blue shampoo for best results
The best way to use blue shampoo is to apply it once a week. In this way you will not let your hair stay brassy and you will keep it harmonized between washes.
Yes, it is true that you can leave it on for an hour, however in my experience this can dry out your hair quite a bit. Instead I recommend you use it this way:
- Wash your hair first with your normal shampoo to remove all excess oil and dirt.
- Rinse the shampoo and squeeze your hair with a towel to remove excess water from your hair.
- Apply the blue shampoo generously throughout your hair, but avoid rubbing it too much so as not to activate the foam. Instead, gently distribute it with your hands.
- Let it act for 5 to 15 minutes.
- Rinse it with water as fresh as you can stand to seal your cuticle.
- Apply a blue sealing conditioner like Redken Brownlights to increase the duration of the effect..
The best blue shampoos you can get
The truth is that the quality of the blue shampoo is the most important factor to have a good result, more than letting it act on your hair for an hour.
If you choose a poor quality blue shampoo, the pigments could make your hair more greenish than normal, or on the contrary, it could simply dry out your hair without any beneficial effect.
Good quality toning shampoos do not usually dry out or damage your hair, and the pigments they deposit are of good quality, which will give you a toning with spectacular shine.
There are only two lines of blue toning shampoo that I recommend, Redken and Fanola:
Redken brownlights
This is my favorite blue shampoo. It works fantastic on orange hair as it makes your hair look ashy and shiny. Plus, thanks to Redken’s protein technology, this shampoo will help repair your hair and keep it feeling stronger with every wash.
You can use this shampoo daily, however I recommend that you use it a maximum of 2 times a week to avoid overpigmentation.
Fanola no orange
This is my second favorite blue shampoo. It has powerful enough toning pigments to remove the brassiness from your hair, and it’s a more affordable version of toning shampoo if you don’t have much budget.
I recommend that you use this shampoo once a week to avoid drying out your hair.
Bottom line
I hope you liked this article to find out what happens when leaving blue shampoo in hair for an hour.
You really don’t need to leave toning products in your hair that long. Even with color masks, half an hour will be more than enough!
To tone your hair, the quality of the products always works better than the time you let them act.
If you have any questions, leave them in the comments! Until next time.
