My Hair Colour Needed a Subtle Lift For Winter and This Vegan Formula Delivered

Take one step outside and you’ll quickly come to realise that winter is well and truly around the corner. With only a few days left till June, people are dusting off their coats and knitwear, in preparation for the next three months.

Winter is my favourite season. It’s a controversial opinion, I know. However, for me, nothing beats winter fashion and beauty trends. Chunky scarves, cable-knit jumpers and darker makeup all make an appearance from June to August, and personally, if I could rock that look all year round, I would. 

As I was restocking my winter wardrobe, I knew something else had to change: My hair. Let’s face it, your hair is one of the first things people notice about you, and good hair can help elevate your entire look. I have a bit of a love-hate relationship with my locks. To provide a bit of context, my hair is long, thick and dark, and while I adore the way it looks when I walk out of a salon, I have no idea what to do with it when I’m in charge of it. 

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My signature hairstyle is straight and down … and not by choice. For me, straightening is easy and doesn’t require much thinking, and because I’m usually running late, I don’t have much time to ponder on decisions when it comes to my hair.

The last time I had my hair coloured was in the summer of 2021. I had what you would call a bronde balayage, and while I loved the way it looked, I knew it was time for a change. My natural, jet black hair colour was in serious need of some TLC, and while I still wanted some light dimension, I did want to go slightly deeper with the overall tone.

I decided to hit Hairhouse Blacktown, where I met with hairstylist Cassandra Gray-Smith. I immediately knew I could place my trust in her — not only because Hairhouse has been an expert in professional haircare for 30 years, but if Cassandra could make my hair look half as good as hers, I would be happy. After asking me a series of questions about my hair and my lifestyle, Cassandra recommended getting a few highlights towards my roots and toning the overall colour to a dark mushroom brown. 

She started off by applying bleach to thin strands of my hair towards my roots, making sure to cover any pesky greys that popped up over the COVID pandemic. Once that was done processing, she washed it out and applied the Matrix SoColor Sync range — a vegan, pre-bonded formula that helps protect the structure of the hair.

“All of our colours contain a bond-protecting concentrate. So when it’s applied to your hair, not only is it preserving its structure but it’s also helping to restructure it. So you can maintain the integrity of the hair, colour after colour,” Educator Expert for Matrix & Biolage, Gabrielle Tobias, told POPSUGAR Australia. 

The vegan formula is free from ammonia, lasts up to 20 shampoos and leaves hair feeling conditioned from roots to ends. Learning about the technology that’s present in the Matrix SoColor Sync range really helped put my mind at ease. I knew that despite having my hair bleached, the bond protecting system would help preserve the integrity of my hair, giving me the result without the damage. 

Once the colour was developed, and my hair was treated and washed, it was time for the fun part — the styling and, of course, the big reveal. As Cassandra blow-dried my hair smooth, I started to see her vision come to life. My hair looked shiny, nourished and beautifully blended, and frankly, it had never looked better. 

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It had a subtle dimension that suited my skin tone so well. Before heading home, I was given the Matrix Total Results Brass Off Duo — a blue shampoo and conditioner that helps counteract orange and red tones in the hair. 

“You need blue to counteract red, which is present in darker hair levels. We’re talking about Latina hair, Asian hair, Indian hair, Afro-textured hair which has a lot of deep pigment in it,” said Gabrielle. “You can’t send everyone home with a purple shampoo, because purple is only good for blonde hair. It won’t do anything for red [tones].”

Chatting with Gabrielle helped answer a long list of questions I’ve had. Firstly, I found out that Asian/South Asian hair is more prone to damage than Caucasian hair, which explains why my hair doesn’t respond well to bleach. Second, purple shampoo isn’t for everyone, and Matrix has a line of shampoo and conditioners for every hair colour and type for that exact reason. 

It’s been a few days since my appointment and my hair has never looked or felt better. It’s soft, manageable and glossy, and I can’t help but admire my reflection every time I walk past a mirror.

If we’ve inspired you to freshen up your hair for winter, then we suggest you book into a Hairhouse salon (if you book any salon service, they’ll even throw in a hair treatment for free). To redeem, customers must call or visit their local Hairhouse salon, book a salon service and ask for the “POPSUGAR add on”.

Terms & Conditions:

Offer available from 9.00am AEST 03/06/2022 to 5.00pm AEST 30/06/2022. Appointment must be booked in-store or over the phone. Subject to appointment availability. Free treatment is Matrix Mask applied during salon service. Offer cannot be used in conjunction with any other offer(s) and is not transferable or redeemable for cash.