Does your hair get lighter during summer?

[sakuramoon08]

I was wondering if this happens to other people, and if it means your hair is getting damaged. Someone told me it's because your hair is losing protein and the hair is getting damaged. Can someone enlighten me on the matter?

[Nymph]

I'm not sure it gets damaged. My hair always switches shade in summer, some streaks get really blonde even. I don't find the lightened bits to feel more damaged or to show more damage.

[Hiriel]

My hair does. Sunlight bleaches most things. And if it's damage I think it's in the "rather unavoidable" category.

My hair gets natural highlights when it sunbleaches, which impresses people ;)

[CrystalStar]

Mine doesn't, but I think that is due to the fact it is henna'd!

[krissykins]

Sun bleaching is damage. But I don't think it's completely unavoidable. A nice hat or scarf over the hair protects it better than going without :) my hair doesn't normally get bleached, but this spring I've been rinsing my hair with chamomile tea, so it is lighter than past years!

[Bianca]

Mine does. My ends are golden blonde and i'm only at apl, when I bring them up to compare to my roots, it looks like I dyed it. But I like it and am not protecting it from the sun a all. Summetime here is short, so cant be too damaging. So far my hair is doing fine. I'm thinking, I CO, I dont dye or heatstyle. So a little sun wont hurt it too much:p

[PianoPlaye]

My hair gets lighter in summer if I go around uncovered. Since two of the lads burn like paper, we tend to be hatwearing en masse & so I've stayed in my "winter colouring".
Somewhat to my distress, as I like the colours the sun reveals.
Chamomile tea seems like cheating a bit - how does it work?

[krissykins]

My hair gets lighter in summer if I go around uncovered. Since two of the lads burn like paper, we tend to be hatwearing en masse & so I've stayed in my "winter colouring".
Somewhat to my distress, as I like the colours the sun reveals.
Chamomile tea seems like cheating a bit - how does it work?

You calling me a cheater?! :o

I'm not sure *how* it works, but I'll go dig up some information for you. Be back soon!

ETA: So this (http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showpost.php?p=23658&postcount=21) is the best theory I could find with a quick LHC search, Google is not providing anything particularly useful right now. Since I don't normally go out into the sunlight, I just get the golden tones from chamomile tea, which makes my rather dark hair look lighter. :)

[dulce]

Yes,so I up the hair moisturizer,but I do like the varied sun highlights.

[gthlvrmx]

My hair does. Sunlight bleaches most things. And if it's damage I think it's in the "rather unavoidable" category.

My hair gets natural highlights when it sunbleaches, which impresses people ;)
Same here!

[luthein]

I experiencing permanent lightening due to summer weather. I have a natural ombre color when I hold my roots against my scalp. If I'm going to be out in the sun all day, I'll wear a hat, but I've found that the lightening cannot be completely eliminated.

[TheBluffs]

Yes, and I like it! :D Then again, I live outside in the sumer

[Mannaz]

Yeah, it does. So far I've had it up in high bun when in the sun so it hasn't been fully exposed. I know wind does more damage to my hair than the sun, and if I keep it well moisturised and containde when in the sun, the damage won't be that bad.

One thing I've been wondering: if I'd braid my hair in a particular way many days in a row when out in the sun, say in two dutch braids, would the hair lighten in a pattern? Cause I thought it did one summer I was wearing a lot of full braids. :hmm:

One thing I can't figure out though is how the hair then seems to darken in the winter again... I mean I can see the sun being lightening but the darkness being darkening? :confused: :D

[owlathena]

My hair usually gets a little redder. Its naturally very ashy. But I henna now, so I dont know if it will change at all this summer.

[krissykins]

Yeah, it does. So far I've had it up in high bun when in the sun so it hasn't been fully exposed. I know wind does more damage to my hair than the sun, and if I keep it well moisturised and containde when in the sun, the damage won't be that bad.

One thing I've been wondering: if I'd braid my hair in a particular way many days in a row when out in the sun, say in two dutch braids, would the hair lighten in a pattern? Cause I thought it did one summer I was wearing a lot of full braids. :hmm:

One thing I can't figure out though is how the hair then seems to darken in the winter again... I mean I can see the sun being lightening but the darkness being darkening? :confused: :D

Whatever is exposed to the sun will be lightened, so I assume it would be in a pattern.

And I don't think that the hair will just get darker in the sun. It's a similar process to bleaching, I believe.

[CareBear]

Mine gets lighter, especially at the temples, so when I pull it back it has cool streaks.
When I was a kid, I LIVED in my Grammas pool one summer. The sun bleached my hair really blond, and the chlorine in the pool turned it green :P When I french braided it, the braid part was noticably more green than the rest. It turned some heads! :)

[Stub]

My hair lightens in summer and darkens again in winter. If the sun is causing damage I don't see how it could go 'undamaged' in winter when it darkens again. I think sun lightening is just natural for some hair colors, and not TOO damaging.

[Druid of Alba]

If I am in the sunlight enough, my dark brown hair will lighten slightly, maybe one shade or so, and also go ever so slightly red. I really like the reddish tone the sun brings out in my hair... I just don't like going in the sun!

[Mannaz]

Whatever is exposed to the sun will be lightened, so I assume it would be in a pattern.

And I don't think that the hair will just get darker in the sun. It's a similar process to bleaching, I believe.

I am assuming you meant lighter, not darker? I'm not sure sun lightening would be the same than chemical bleaching though, at least not as bad... Does the sun open the hair shaft like bleach does?

[sakuramoon08]

If I am in the sunlight enough, my dark brown hair will lighten slightly, maybe one shade or so, and also go ever so slightly red. I really like the reddish tone the sun brings out in my hair... I just don't like going in the sun!
That happens to my hair too! I have natural blonde streaks, I was a blonde baby before it naturally changed to brown. So in summer it gets very noticable. Thanks for all the replies everyone! :D

[Venefica]

Yes my hair get a bit lighter during the summer I think, though I am not much out in the sun. However a bit of black number 1 solves that problem. :P

[flourish]

My hair lightens during the summer if I'm outdoors a lot. Theoretically I would like this, as it turns a deep auburn color, but it looks like crap with my natural almost-black hair. I invariably look like I have the worst fake highlights ever by the end of August.

[krissykins]

I am assuming you meant lighter, not darker? I'm not sure sun lightening would be the same than chemical bleaching though, at least not as bad... Does the sun open the hair shaft like bleach does?

Oops, I really meant hair wouldn't get darker when taken out of the sun. That's just what I think from what I've read about hair and sun damage. It's not the same as chemical bleaching process-wise, I was suggesting that it was similar in the effect it ended up having.

:shrug: I may be out of my mind, though. I don't know a whole lot about what the sun does to hair, so I'll look into it.

[Mannaz]

Oops, I really meant hair wouldn't get darker when taken out of the sun. That's just what I think from what I've read about hair and sun damage. It's not the same as chemical bleaching process-wise, I was suggesting that it was similar in the effect it ended up having.

:shrug: I may be out of my mind, though. I don't know a whole lot about what the sun does to hair, so I'll look into it.

Ok I see what you mean now :) And no, I don't think it would darken either, it's just that every autumn when the days start to get shorter and darker, also the hair seems to get darker (not shorter...now THAT would be horrible...). Maybe it's the general darkness that makes also the hair to seem darker, it's funny cause I think the same way as you: hair that has been bleached by sun or chemicals can't darken on it's own.

[elbow chic]

My ends and canopy are pretty much white. :eek: It doesn't seem to take much-- I'm not what you'd call the outdoorsy type. Pool or playground trip, an hour's worth of yardwork every week, and that's enough to do it.

They don't go back to being darker once they've gotten bleached either. Bleh.

Anyway, it's probably not good for the hair but I don't plan to start wearing a scarf all day so I'm just going to live with it. I try to take extra care to keep the ends tucked away if I'm going to be out in the sun. They've already probably been through three summers and don't need any more.

Bought a leave-in that purports to have UV protection built in. We'll see.

[monsterna]

I have no idea. It may do, but I certainly wouldn't notice it because... well... I'm a hermit, you see. :p

[knoxkatie]

Normally mine does and yes it is damaging. This summer I'm trying to minimize the sun damage with hats, coney serum, and coconut oil. I think henna is supposed to help too.

[krissykins]

Ok I see what you mean now :) And no, I don't think it would darken either, it's just that every autumn when the days start to get shorter and darker, also the hair seems to get darker (not shorter...now THAT would be horrible...). Maybe it's the general darkness that makes also the hair to seem darker, it's funny cause I think the same way as you: hair that has been bleached by sun or chemicals can't darken on it's own.

That's an interesting idea :hmm: I never thought of that!

And if hair gets shorter in the winter, I'm moving closer to the sun :lol:

[sugarpixie10988]

Yep, it does! I get natural highlights from the sun and it looks more golden and less ashy. Even though it's damaging, I don't protect my hair from the sun. I like the effect it gives!

[NotInPortland]

Mine gets noticeably lighter, so much so once someone who hadn't seen me for a few weeks thought I had dyed it! If it's damaging so be it I like the look and I don't do anything else damaging to my hair, I couldn't be bothered wearing hats or scarves all summer!

[2peasinapod]

Mine does, and I always wear a scarf when I go outside. It doesn't get sunbleached or highlighted, but it looks a bit lighter and feels a bit thinner. The opposite happens in winter. I just consider it summer vs winter coat.

[Baileygirl]

Minie does. I think it depends on the color.

[ashke50]

Yep, it does! I get natural highlights from the sun and it looks more golden and less ashy. Even though it's damaging, I don't protect my hair from the sun. I like the effect it gives!
Same here! But then, living in the UK, the sun is never really strong enough to cause that much damage, at least not in the half an hour a day I spend walking to and from train stations in the sunshine. When the sun does actually shine!

[SoulOfTheSea]

Yup my hair definitely gets lighter in the summer. My ends are are golden where as my roots are dark dark brown. It used to make AP Chemistry teacher very curious xD

[feralnature]

My hair used to be dark brunette. Then I moved to the farm 20 years ago and I was outside more and my hair lightened. I try to remember to wear a hat and sunglasses. The eye doctor said I have cataracts from the sun and another doc treated some skin cancer on my face. Keep covered up! You can get skin cancer on your scalp.

[QueenJoey]

I used to look forward to summer because my natural blonde highlights would always come back. Now my hair is growing out dye and it's not getting any lighter and I'm kinda sad. :(

[trillcat]

My hair bleaches in the sun. I went to visit my brother in Hawaii for two weeks, I came home a platinum blonde, I was outside from sun up to sun down though, in equatorial power sun. I was a little mad as I was growing out bleach at the time, and now I was all bleached again, 6 months of new growth bleached to almost white! I got very little sympathy.. lol. for the newly bleached locks. If I lived in Hawaii, my hair would look so awsome! though the salt air dried me out like a corn husk.My hair grew really fast, my fingernails grew amazingly fast as well, my bro said most people comment on that when they move there or visit.

[Saranne772]

Mine does, I get natural blonde highlights- especially when it is braided- I do get a pattern from it. Fond memory of mine is at 11 with my hair half up half down my father asking me "Sarah!! Have you dyed you hair??" He had no clue on the sun highlighting and thought Id dyed it (which was a very punishable offence in my household!! But I was 11, far to young to even considering doing so!)

[Masara]

A friend once described my hair as being like a squirrel because it was two different colours in winter and summer (this was when it was short)
One year, in my teens, I wore a French braid practically every day for a whole summer and I had the wierdest highlights, especially on the underside of my hair.
My hair doesn't seem to lighten in the summer anymore. I think it's due to henna build up. I suppose this is a good thing because it probably means my hair is protected, but I miss the lightening I had.

[lilasianvixen77]

Mine does get light in the summer but it don't bother me! In San Diego, we don't really have winters but my hair is significantly darker then! ;-)

[Cowgirl16]

My hair gets really light in the summer. Years past I wore my hair in a braid no protection. This year I am really trying to keep my hair out of the sun. :)

[Lianna]

Oops, I really meant hair wouldn't get darker when taken out of the sun.

I think a possible way for sun to darker hair is when someone has bleach blond hair, so the sun bleaches away the ashy/violet tones and leaves hair brassy yellow.

As for my natural hair (dyed atm), it didn't sun bleach at all, it was ashy all the way. And I live in a very sunny country all year long, I don't even own a winter coat. :p

[Persephone94]

I don't know about the damage, but my hair does get lighter. Jojoba oil is supposed to give you some UV-protection.

[lesbia]

Also mine gets lighter during the summer, but it doesn't seems to be damaged. I'm very carreful with my hair at seaside, I always take it up, I always rinse it after put it in the seawater and I use conditioner on it two times a day. So I don't think in this way the sunlight is excessive damaging :)

[JuliaDancer]

I have very dark brown hair, and my hair is definitely lighter at the ends than at the roots, though it's not that noticeable. It turns a reddish color.

[ZeppHead]

My hair always gets subtle highlights in the summer. I normally have a dirty blonde hair but in the summer months it gets golden highlights and looks a lot lighter. In the fall it starts to look like dish water....blah

[KittyLost]

I think it did when it was natural. I never noticed a colour change whilst it was dyed. I'll be looking forward to seeing if my natural gets lighter during summer once my dye is gone :)

[bluesnowflake]

Mine gets more shades of color during the summer. During the winter it's mostly a sort of golden brown, but in the summer I get everything from light to dark blonde tones mixed throughout.

[bluesnowflake]

Personally, I don't mind the little damage from the sun because I love the different colors.

[Firefly]

Mine will bleach under a light bulb. :rolleyes: Actually, the lighter strands go blond but the darker ones turn red. I do love the streaks of color, but I pay for it in the long run. I'm not a sun worshipper type, but just walking around it will lighten. If I know I'm going to be out for an extended period (I do like to be in my garden) I wear a hat or scarf/bring a parasol to minimize damage. Some is inevitable though. :shrug:

[Amara]

The strands around my face do get a shade or two lighter. It's a very pretty effect ... for free! :)

[Seharia]

my hair actually goes redder! Some people would probably hate it but I love it cause I get to have auburn ends on my hair but the hair near my face is brown which looks better with my coloring!

[ZaBasDa]

My hair will eventually turn reddish, but I have to be out in the sun all day for the entire summer to notice any difference.

[pink.sara]

Oh god yes and it's the reason I dye!
My hair grows out of my head a very dark brown almost black with a lot of red undertones, it shines red in the sun and is very pretty. For about an inch, then any sunlight at all starts making me Ginger. To the point where after 3 long holidays of swimming in the sea when I was 14 I had 60/40 Ginger/auburn and started dying it black and having red or other fun colour streaks.

I can't stand how 2 tone it is naturally.

[Shadow Walker]

My hair is sunbleaching to the point whwre I now have blondish streaks, mostly right down the middle of my hair in the back. I work outdoors every day and always have it tied back, so the same strands are constantly exposed to the sun. Might have to consider dying it if it starts looking too ridiculous, but I'll try to get some pictures up soon of what it looks like.

[TheStorm]

I've dark brown hair, almost black in winter. In summr it can go to mid brown even some streaks of light brown. In terms of damage it seems less moist and less bouncy.

[minaa]

I loved the color changes my hair had when I had natural hair in middle school, so I'll take the minimal damage for the natural changes my body goes through for the fun of it. :] I don't do anything else to my hair, now, anyway.

[catarinalaree]

Yeah my hair used to get lighter in summer when I lived in Portugal. Actually it was generally lighter all year round when I lived in Portugal as well as Spain. Now I'm in London I guess my hair is getting a lot less sun exposure so it's darker. I even lost my natural golden highlights :rolleyes: Another thing I've noticed is that my hair is considerable weaker now I'm without sun. So I don't really think hair getting lighter is a result from damage even though hair does get lighter when chemically permed.

[paintedhorse]

yes ! ever since i was a child the sun will give me bleach blond streaks in my hair they dont seem to be damaged

[Siiri]

I sort of experimented with this because I work(ed) outside for the summer. I used a scarf but my bangs were out. My bangs didn't get any lighter than the rest of my hair, so I guess no, I don't really get sun bleach. I have dark blond hair so I thought I would, but I'm happy I didn't :cheese:

[Curly Hermione]

My hair is (i hope)lighter, but that's because i've been taking advantage of the sun and using lemon juice/Lush's Marilyn treatment to make it blonder, so i'm really not able to judge if just sun on it's own will lighten or damage.

[AngelAblaze]

I'm upset because my hair is lighter cuz of then sun :( I wore hats and bandannas all summer but the few times I didn't I guess it got me. I love my hair dark! It's still brown but not as dark as I would like. Will it get darker again in the winter?? ALL of my hair not just the roots? The summer before last I was work

[AngelAblaze]

-ing all day everyday sun up to sun down(and then some lol) I had my hair covered except for one spot at the nape of my neck so now I have a blond "skunk tail" as I like to call it because that bit of hair got really damaged. & light but since the rest of my hair is nowhere that bad or damaged will it go back to being really dark in the winter??

[supbanana]

I'm upset because my hair is lighter cuz of then sun :( I wore hats and bandannas all summer but the few times I didn't I guess it got me. I love my hair dark! It's still brown but not as dark as I would like. Will it get darker again in the winter?? ALL of my hair not just the roots? The summer before last I was work

For me, my hair always lightens up to the color in my profile every summer, and then turns to a dark blonde in the winter - all the hair, not just the roots. I hope your hair is the same!

I never thought of sun lightening as damage. :( Buuut my hair is pretty healthy, so I'm not going to worry about it. :)

[Rusticular]

I look forward to summer for the highlights! An excuse to spend a lot of time in the sun is all I need!

[Siiri]

-ing all day everyday sun up to sun down(and then some lol) I had my hair covered except for one spot at the nape of my neck so now I have a blond "skunk tail" as I like to call it because that bit of hair got really damaged. & light but since the rest of my hair is nowhere that bad or damaged will it go back to being really dark in the winter??

I think it's permanent, just your roots will be darker. Many people with very long hair have lighter ends because it has been exposed to sun for a longer time. Sun damaged hair is also drier, and dry hair tends to look lighter (at least it does for light hair), so with good care it'll become more moisturized and may look a bit darker again.

[AngelAblaze]

I don't think that it's damaging if the sun exposure is limited! Thank you for replying! I can stop worrying now lol!:D

[elfgirl]

I have light brown/dark blonde hair, and it's been known to lighten during the summer and darken during the fall and winter. I have no idea how or why this happens, it just does! :)

[Haldir]

I have black hair... that is brown in the summer. Very odd!

[ArienEllariel]

If.. IF I go outside for extended periods of time.. haven't been outside much this summer. It's just too dang hot. :p

[MaryRose]

My hair is dark ash brown and usually gets lighter in the summer. My hair never seems to feel any different once it's sun bleached. I try to keep my hair protected from the sun just to keep my hair from turning lighter.