Can you do a keratin treatment and color on the same day? Which should you do first?

 

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How soon after coloring my hair can I get a keratin treatment?

 

So, just to be clear.

 Can you do a keratin treatment and color on the same day? 

 

NO.

 Which one should you do first? 

 

Keratin.

And just so you’re clear, I’ll tell you a story that happened a few weeks ago in my salon.

 

Jessica, a new client, came to the salon to color her hair. It was time for a dye renewal and she chose a darker color than her usual color.

We chose an ash brown 4.1, which went perfectly with her dark skin and green eyes.

The result was stunning, so stunning that before she left, Jessica asked me to give her a keratin treatment to control frizz and repair some areas that were dry.

 

I explained to her that  to apply the keratin treatment on her newly dyed hair, we had to wait two weeks.   Because otherwise, her hair would get damaged and the keratin would fade the dye, since the keratin treatment includes heat.

I must admit she wasn’t happy about waiting fifteen days, so she left the salon quite upset.

 

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A few days later, while I was ordering some products, I heard someone enter the salon. At first, I didn’t recognize who it was, but after looking at her for a few minutes, I realized it was Jessica.

Except her hair was reddish looking, with yellow tips and a lot of frizz. I asked her what had happened and she confessed that after leaving my salon, she had gone to another professional to have the keratin treatment done.

 

I never knew if she had told the other stylist that she had dyed her hair a few days before. What I do know is that I had to do a lot of work to try to fix her hair.

I explained to her that  keratin can lighten the color of freshly colored hair up to two numbers .

So it’s crucial after applying keratin to wait two weeks before coloring the hair. And this is not a whim of mine, or of very picky stylists either.

It has a very logical explanation. And that’s what I’ll talk about next.

 

Why you can’t do a keratin treatment and color on the same day

In principle, it’s because both treatments are very invasive.

 

And here’s the key problem: heat. You apply keratin with heat, that is, you seal it in the hair. You pass the straightener through at a very high temperature, so the protein penetrates completely into the hair fiber, repairing it.

 

Therefore, you should always allow two weeks between keratin and hair color application if you want long-lasting results and care about the health of your hair.

And this brings us to the next question. The order in which you should apply the two processes to your hair.

 

You should always apply the keratin treatment before coloring your hair

For the keratin treatment to work properly, you have to apply it at a high temperature. Thanks to this temperature, the protein penetrates inside the hair, repairing its structure and filling the empty spaces of broken cuticles.

 

That’s why, after receiving the keratin treatment, you’ll notice your hair won’t be frizzy.

 What will happen if you color your hair first and then apply the keratin treatment on the same day? 

 

Keratin will lighten your hair, up to two numbers.

Let’s say you dyed your hair dark brown 4 and then applied the keratin. When you wash your hair after two or three days, and after your hair dries, you’ll notice that the color actually corresponds to a dark blonde 6.

 

But what’s worse, it won’t be a solid dark blonde 6. Chances are some sections of your hair will be yellowish and others will be orange.

 

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On the other hand,  what will happen if you apply the keratin treatment and then dye your hair on the same day? 

 

What will happen is that the chemicals in the dye will remove some of the keratin. Therefore, your hair will go frizzy again.

Because you haven’t waited a fortnight for your hair to finish absorbing the keratin.

 

But the most tragic thing is that you won’t get what you want from any of the treatments, regardless of the order in which you apply the processes on the same day.

Your hair won’t match the color of the dye you applied and you won’t have eliminated frizz and repaired your hair with the keratin either.

And most likely, your hair will be more damaged than before.

That’s why it’s essential you always leave fifteen days between treatments to get the best results from both.

 

Conclusion

Never apply a keratin treatment and hair color on the same day. My professional advice is that if a salon promises you they can do both treatments on the same day, consult another professional.

Because the only thing you will achieve is ruining your hair. You should always do the keratin treatment first, and after fifteen days, color your hair.