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Thanks to DpHue's Gloss+, My Overgrown Highlights Are Gone

As much as I love the look of caramel balayage on my hair, color care is a full-time job that I'm not ready to commit to. I learned this the hard way after trying the look at a swanky salon. Sure, I fell hard for my new color the minute I stepped out of the salon chair, but after a few weeks went by, my very limited knowledge of maintaining bleached strands left me with dry, brassy chunks. Considering that touch-ups are expensive and time-consuming, I've gone the route of concealing my now-overgrown highlights in the comfort of my own home in as little as 20 minutes.

I do this by using DpHue's Gloss+, a genius semi-permanent color that acts as a hair tint and a conditioner. For those of you who feel intimidated by at-home hair dye kits, let me preface with the facts that 1) I've never dyed my hair at home before finding this impressive pick, and 2) it's way simpler to use than most dye kits. Think of this product as more of a color conditioner: I simply apply the formula on the areas of clean, damp hair that I want to tint, let it sit for up to 20 minutes (or as little as three, depending on your desired color intensity), and rinse out. Et voilà, salon-worthy color at a fraction of the time and the cost (a bottle goes for $37).

To maintain my semi-permanent color, I touch up with Gloss+ for a full 20 minutes once every three weeks, which is also within the range of reapplication that Lorena M. Valdes, a hair colorist at Maxine Salon in Chicago, suggests. "You should apply Gloss+ about every three to six weeks, but you should know that after every wash and hot tool, the semi-permanent color will fade a little," she says. I'll admit that I have noticed minimal color fading after each wash, but it's nothing that a weekly five-minute touch-up in the shower won't fix. 

Valdes also notes that swimming, sun exposure, skipping heat protectant, and not using a color-locking shampoo are all factors that could significantly fade your color, regardless of whether or not you're reaching for DpHue's hair color or going for a professional treatment at a salon — so keep these factors in mind.

Since I was genetically blessed with raven-black hair, the shade I use (Medium Brown) only colors my bleached strands. If your hair is lighter than mine, I suggest sectioning the areas you want to dye before applying, because things can get messy. Both DpHue and Valdes suggest testing the color on a small section of hair at first, and if you're pleased with the results, to go forth with the rest of your head. I leave the conditioner in for 20 minutes to get the closest results to my natural hair color while having a very subtle highlight effect for definition. But timing really depends on which color you're using and how intense you want your results to be.

As the Gloss+ turns my highlighted sections from a brassy caramel to a rich espresso, I also notice how much softer my hair feels after using this pigmented treatment. This could be due to the addition of ethylhexylglycerin, a synthetic form of glycerin that's known for its hydrating abilities. "Ethylhexylglycerin has some humectant properties but it is also primarily used in preservative blends because it has a synergistic effect when combined with other preservatives like phenoxyethanol, which is also in this formulation," says cosmetic chemist Kelly Dobos. In layman's terms, Dobos says this ingredient protects the integrity of the formula.  

This formula also contains dimethicone, which is a silicone that's known for its gloss-inducing properties (though it can weigh thinner hair types down). "Dimethicone can coat the hair cuticle making it feel smoother," says Dobos. Dimethicone also has a high refractive index, meaning it has the ability to impart a lot of gloss to hair fibers. 

Though the brand notes on its website that the Gloss+ isn't a permanent solution to grays, I also noticed that its highly-concentrated formula also conceals my minimal amount of silver strands — we love an added bonus. After every use, I hop out of the shower with freshly-colored hair that feels as divine as it looks, so this has become my secret weapon for covering my brassiness without leaving my home. 

Want to try DpHue's Gloss+ for yourself? You can grab it for $37 at ulta.com, nordstrom.com, and dphue.com, right now.