From Julia Roberts to Christina Hendricks, you always remember a woman with Auburn hair. It’s fiery, unusual and stands out, as well as being flattering on women of all ages.
Whether it’s dyed or natural though, Auburn hair takes the most care to remain glossy and rich.
To Dye or Not to Dye:
Auburn or Red hair is the world’s rarest hair type, with only around two percent of people having true ‘red’ hair. That means, unless you’re one of the lucky few, you’ll need to resort to a dye.
It’s also interesting to hear those natural redheads have the hardest time dying their locks. Red hair holds its own pigment stronger than any other hair type, so dying it is incredibly difficult (it’s why cool blonde on warm red hair is so difficult to achieve).
We won’t lie, it’s slightly beyond us why anyone lucky enough to be naturally auburn would want to change their hair but if you do, you need to pay a lot more attention to condition and strength.
Conversely, for those looking to go brighter, auburn and red is the hardest hair colour to hold onto and the quickest to fade, so if you’re dying it, it needs more maintenance to stay vibrant and glossy.
If you ARE going to dye your hair red, the best option will always be a Henna based dye. Henna is a plant-based dye, which can be mixed with other natural ingredients to create shimmering, glossy auburns without the harm chemical dyes can do to hair.
It’s also much longer lasting, although you are safe to use it more regularly than a box dye.
You can learn more about the benefits of Henna for hair in our Good Henna Guide here >
Protect and Care:
Those with naturally auburn hair usually have a lot of it – up to 10% more than the average human, but it is more prone to dryness and breaking then other hair colours, so requires more looking after.
Auburn hair can be seriously impacted by the environment, chemicals, hormones, and ageing, so it needs careful nurturing.
Reduce how often you wash
Many people don’t know that they wash their hair way too often. It actually causes the hair to overproduce oil and grease, making your hair oilier! Switch to a Gentle, Sulphate free shampoo once or twice a week instead.
Love a Leave In:
A light-weight leave in conditioner is a great. You can choose a light spray-based formula, or try co-washing, where you wash your hair with conditioner, but leave a tiny amount in the hair to protect it from drying and environmental harm.
Just make sure your conditioner is silicone free. Silicone is a type of plastic that is used to add shine, but weighs the hair down over time and damages it.
Massage your scalp:
A scalp massage is a great way to protect and nurture your hair. We advise tipping your head upside down and working from the centre out, using your hands in a ‘crab’ like motion to encourage blood flow. Then from the front to back, gently pull the hair in little sections. Finally press onto the pressure points at the side and top of the scalp.
We love a few drops of rosemary essential oil, mixed with our argan oil for this.
You can rinse afterwards and a couple of drops of the oil are fab for sealing split ends.
Always protect your hair in the sun:
ALWAYS keep red hair covered with a hat, or if possible, slick into a bun with a leave-in hair treatment mask to keep it protected. The pigments in auburn hair are easily damaged, so it’s important to be careful