Purple Shampoo 101: What It Is, What Does It Do & How Do You Use It?

Purple shampoo, often also known as silver shampoo, delivers the perfect solution for brass. Its clever pigmented formula works to neutralise your hair’s warm tones, allowing you to wear your blonde as ashy or silver as you want.

So, what is purple shampoo? What are the before and after effects and how does it work? This tutorial will get you up to speed on everything you need to know about purple shampoo.  

What is silver shampoo?
Using a silver or purple shampoo regularly helps to keep blonde or grey hair colour vibrant and salon-fresh. It’s a great option for banning the brass in both dyed and natural blonde, silver and grey hair. Think of it as an added colour-care benefit which will keep you looking fabulous and prevent too many trips to the salon, or DIY nights in with the hair dye.

What does silver shampoo do?
When hair is lightened, the natural warm undertones often come through, creating a yellow or coppery hue. The purple pigmented shampoo works to neutralise your hair’s undertones, banishing the brass with each wash.  

Silver shampoo is also perfect for natural grey or greying hair, which can develop a yellow tinge when exposed to natural elements such as sun, rain and pollution. 

How does silver shampoo work? 
It’s all about the colour theory: purple and yellow sit opposite each other on the colour wheel, and when mixed, they neutralise each other. When you apply purple shampoo, a small amount of the purple pigment is absorbed, creating a cooler colour, free from brassy tones. 

Depending on how long you leave the shampoo in your hair, a silver shampoo can help you achieve a range of blonde shades from sumptuous honey to vibrant white. 

How to use silver shampoo 
Use purple shampoo as you would any shampoo. Massage a small amount into wet hair, rinse and condition as normal. 

You don’t need to use silver shampoo every time you wash your locks. Instead, alternate it with one of our colour protect shampoos, such as the Elvive Colour Protect shampoo. A good rule of thumb is to use purple shampoo every other wash. When you do use purple shampoo, do so instead of your regular shampoo – not as an extra step.

How much purple shampoo should I use?

If you have a full head of blonde hair, apply the silver shampoo evenly. You may find more yellow or brassy tones at the roots of your hair; if this is the case, apply the shampoo to your roots first and leave on for three to five minutes before applying to the rest of your hair. 

You can increase or decrease your usage over time depending on the look you’re going for. If you find your hair’s still brassy, start using it every time you shampoo. If it becomes a touch too bright for your taste, slow your usage. 

For those with ombré hair with blonde ends, only apply the silver shampoo to those sections. You can also use it on orange hair as a similar colour theory applies. 

How long should I leave the purple shampoo on my hair?

The length of time you leave the silver shampoo on depends on the look you’re going for. Always read the instructions on the shampoo bottle before you start. 
Get ready to see an immediate difference to your hair after using purple shampoo. Remember to take some before and after purple shampoo snaps and tag us on social media - we’d love to see how you’re banning the brass! 

Go even further
Now you’ve discovered there really are no limitations when it comes to bold, bright hair, why not experiment with grey or silver locks? The ‘granny look’ is seriously on-trend, and even more desirable with the absence of any copper undertones – check out our guide to dyeing your hair silver. 

Whatever platinum, grey or ash colour you embrace, do it your way. #BanTheBrass

Always read and follow the instructions on pack and in the instruction leaflet.
Always do an an allergy alert test 48 hours before use. For instructions on how to do this please refer to the instruction leaflet.