According to Denton Koh, Shiseido Professional Color Creator and creative director at District 19 Salon by E-Jean, there are two important factors that influence how long your hair colour lasts: how dark it is and its tone intensity.

While we all know that the darker your colour choice, the longer it will last, Koh says that the opting for colours with richer pigments will also help your look last longer. For instance, a deep pink has a longer fade-out period, resulting in a pastel pink over time, while a pale pastel pink will wash out in a matter of days.

Wai Kan, associate director at Chez Vous Hair Salon, agrees, and adds that pastel blonde-like shades fade easily, especially with daily washing. If you want something striking, opt for purple and green hues as they last the longest. C.Y. Wang, senior hair designer at Prep Luxe, also suggests red hues due to their stronger colour pigments.

Protect your soon-to-be dyed hair with a pre-colour treatment. “Many customers cannot understand why their hair still feels so damaged, dry and dull, even when they might have done multiple hair treatments in the months leading up. But that’s because during chemical services, your hair cuticles are ‘opened’, causing the amino acids, moisture and CMC to ‘leak’ out. This, in turn, leads to hair breakage, brittleness and dryness,” says Wai Kan.

More importantly, he adds that unlike your skin, your hair does not have the ability to regenerate itself, which is why it is important to reduce the damage before it happens.

According to Wai Kan, sharing what your hair has been through is crucial in helping your hairstylist understand how to get you the hair colour of your dreams.

Not informing the stylist that you’ve recently undergone a keratin hair treatment might give them the impression that your hair is healthier that it really is, and able to withstand multiple rounds of bleaching. The last thing you want is hair breaking off during the bleaching process.

If you’ve previously coloured your hair black or have constantly coloured it darker over the years, you need to ’fess up. “Dark stubborn pigments tend to stay inside the hair, which is difficult for bleach and even the best colour removers to get off, resulting in your hair colour looking patchy and uneven. This might also mean that additional rounds of bleaching would be required to lighten the hair, which in turn, can aggravate the damage caused,” Wai Kan explains.

And we’re not just talking about hair colour. Other future chemical services like perms and straightening should also be discussed prior to your colour appointment. According to C.Y., treatments that use intense heat, like rebonding and perming, do not go well with hair that’s been heavily bleached.

“If you have a regular hairstylist, bring up a list of styles you are open to trying, and they will be able to advise you on what you can or cannot do. They can even help plan the sequence and time frame to help you get all the styles you want over the course of a few months.”

 A version of this article first appeared in Her World