Blonde Care Bible

You went blonde!

We love that for you! Or maybe you were already blonde and you’re just looking at this because you can never know too much about caring for your hair right?

Well whatever it is that brought you here, check out our “Blonde Care Bible” for all the tips and tricks we could fit on one page to get the absolute most from your blonde locks.

Having blonde hair can sometimes feel a little bit like having a beautiful, high-maintenance bestie. She’s gorgeous, turns heads and gets compliments everywhere she goes, but without a little bit of extra love she won’t be happy. It doesn’t need to be a chore, lets keep you and your hair on good terms!

The 3 main points:

Lightened hair often feels a bit drier, and that’s totally normal. And while dry doesn’t always mean damaged, sometimes it does, and we don’t want either of those things to get worse! It’s important to use gentle, hydrating and repairing products. We’re not here to force you to buy products from us, although we do have some pretty awesome options which we’ll recommend further down the page.

Blonde hair is thirsty:

Low maintenance rarely means no maintenance and unless your hair is so white that it is transparent (in which case it will likely have broken off and be on the floor instead of on your head), it will fade warm. Toners don’t last forever, and purple shampoo will not make it lighter. To keep your hair looking its absolute best year round, a little bit of maintenance is key.

Blonde always fades warm:

Kinda like that beautiful bestie again, your hair may be a strong independent women, but a little bit of protection never hurts.
Following a few simple rules when styling, swimming and spending time outdoors will save you time, money and heartache, keeping your hair as beautiful between big appointments as possible.

Blonde hair needs protection:

Let’s expand on that..

  • As above, the right products could be make or break (literally).

    If you’d just spend a few hundred dollars on a beautiful cashmere jumper would you take it home and wash it with dishwashing liquid? Probably not, so why would you do the equivalent of that to your hair?

    The right products will make such a difference to the colour longevity, the condition and the health of your hair.


    See the very bottom of the page for a list of our current fav products and why you would choose them!

  • Keeping with the cashmere jumper analogy, would you just grab your iron and give it a go it without checking the care tag? If blonde hair came with a care tag, it would say: Always use a heat protector!

    Your hairdryer, straightener and other hot tools will often clock in between 150-200°, which when you think about it is pretty damn hot!

    Burnt blonde hair will look warmer, it will appear dull and can actually begin to look darker.

  • Chlorine and salt water can dry your hair out significantly. To help avoid this, we recommend wetting your hair with clean water, braiding it and popping in a leave in conditioner before you swim, then rinsing it asap when you’re done!

    This will also help avoid chlorine and copper build up turning you hair green. If you have managed to turn your hair green already, don’t try any of the weird home remedies, there’s a sachet we can sell you for $7.20 which will remove the green and neutralise the minerals causing the problem.

    Just get in touch and we’d be more than happy to help!

  • Without naming any names, we recommend avoiding products with heavy non water soluble silicones, waxs, oils and harsh soaps.

    A lot of popular supermarket brands fall in to this category and while we’re all for you doing you and working within your budget etc. it can become a problem in that build ups can cause a negative chemical reaction during your lightening appointment.

    If you’re desperate to continue using your chosen go to products, you can avoid potential reactions by using a professional clarifying shampoo followed by a mask every few washes.


    The sun obviously burns our skin, but did you know repeated exposure can also burn your hair? You probably don’t want your freshly blonded hair getting a tan, so using a leave in product with UV protection is a pretty great way to keep it safe.

  • Hard water, tank water, copper pipes, overly chlorinated water and a plethora of other things can create mineral deposits in your hair, which can cause dullness, brassiness and limp hair.

    The are also very likely to react with hair lightener, causing a negative chemical reaction which causes a lot of unnecessary damage.

    The easiest way to avoid this is by using a shower filter (Filtered Beauty is our #1 pick!), but you can also use a Malibu C hard water sachet or the Malibu C blonde wellness products to neutralise the minerals and keep your hair looking it’s best and avoid reactions.

    If you’re not wanting to do any of those, but know you have any of those things, please let us know before we start your service so we can attempt to neutralise it in salon to avoid reactions

  • We love a good purple shampoo moment as much as the next girl, but did you know that purple shampoo actually doesn’t have the ability to lighten your hair at all?

    It’s a common misconception that it can make your hair blonder, but all it actually does is leave a little bit of a purple coating on the outside of your hair shaft, and since purple and yellow are opposites, it will give your hair a less yellow appearance. But if you overdo it, this can start to make you hair look flat, dull and even darker!

    If your blonde is on the lighter side, or if you’re not a fan of overly grey or ashy tones, less is definitely more.

    For most blondes, once a week is enough to keep brassiness at bay without overloading your hair. If your hair is super light or you want to maintain a slightly warmer tone, scale it back to every other week or even once a month. Keep an eye on how your hair looks and adjust as needed.

    Other options include using a purple conditioner, an in salon toner or a custom toner mask

  • With the above in mind, did you know we can make you a custom toning mask? This can be in any shade you like.
    Warm, cool, beige, honey, peach, blue - you name it! The benefit of this is that we can match it to your in salon toner, so you can maintain your salon fresh look for much longer.

    If this is something you’re interested in, let us know! We love crafting these for each individual look.

  • You may have done this before you left the salon, but just in case, here’s when we recommend you look at coming back:

    Bleach on scalp: 4-6 weeks
    Foils: 6-12 weeks
    Balayage: 3-6 months

    If your stylist has advised a different time frame then absolutely do that! Our recommendations are generic and they know your hair :)

    Our appointments tend to book pretty well in advance, so if you have preferred days and times it usually pays to get in touch at least a few weeks before to make a booking so you don’t miss out :)

Blonde Refresh Menu

Your blonde deserves the best, even between your main appointments!

Blonde Refresh services are specially discounted maintenance appointments for our regular girlies who want to keep their blonde in tip top shape, between full colour appointments!
Available exclusively to existing Salem clients, these services must be completed within 12 weeks of your last full appointment.

Refresh Toner + Blow-dry - $79

An express toner plus a blow-dry and styling - usually $101

Refresh Toner + Trim - $99

An express toner plus a trim, blow-dry and styling - usually between $120-134
You can also add a root shadow for another $10

Mini Foils + Mini Toner + Blow-dry - $99

Up to 10 foils, 20g of toner plus a blow-dry and styling with a junior stylist (usually $159)
You can add a root shadow for $10 or upgrade to a full toner for $20

Ponytail Foils, Toner + Blow-dry - $150

About 20 foils that cover your parting and all the hair you’d expect to see regrowth with your hair in a ponytail, a toner plus a blow-dry and styling (usually $229)
You can add a root shadow for $10 or add a trim for $20

You can book online under “Refresh Services” or we can book one for you :)


Please keep in mind:
These services are already discounted, so they can’t be combined with any additional offers.
They’re designed to complement - not replace - your full appointments, so think of them as your “in-between touch-ups” to stay looking fresh!

Product Recommendations

We will always recommend Keune products, because we actually love them!
All Keune products are colour safe, all styling products include heat protection and the treatments are amazing. There’s a few others we love too, so you’ll see them sprinkled through!

  • All of these products will be great for blonde hair, so choose one that aligns with your primary concern

    Oily Scalp:
    Keune Care Absolute Volume
    Keune Care Derma Sensitive

    Fine/ Limp Hair:
    Keune Care Derma Activate
    Keune Care Absolute Volume
    Keune Care Derma Sensitive

    Breakage/Damage
    Keune Care Vital Nutrition
    Keune Care Blonde Savior
    Keune So Pure Restore
    Olaplex #4

    Frizzy Hair
    Keune Care Keratin Smooth
    Keune So Pure Polish

    Dull/Dry Hair
    Keune Care Satin Oil

    Dandruff:
    Keune Care Derma Exfoliate

    Curly Hair
    Keune Care Confident Curl
    Clever Curl Cleanser

    On a budget
    NAK Care Colour Pack (normal hair)
    NAK Care Balance Pack (fine hair or oily scalp)

  • If your hair is particularly dry or damaged, you can also use a treatment every time you wash your hair, in place of conditioner!

    Fine/Limp Hair:
    Keune Care Absolute Volume
    Keune So Pure Clarify

    Breakage/Damage
    Keune Care Vital Nutrition
    Keune So Pure Restore
    Olaplex #5

    Frizzy Hair
    Keune Care Keratin Smooth
    Keune So Pure Polish

    Dull/Dry Hair
    Keune Care Satin Oil
    Keune Care Vital Nutrition

    Curly Hair
    Keune Care Confident Curl
    Clever Curl Light or Rich Conditioner

    On a budget
    NAK Care Colour Pack (normal hair)
    NAK Care Balance Pack (fine hair or oily scalp)

  • Treatments are amazing and we think nearly everyone should use one at least a couple of times a month! This section is for masks vs leave in treatments which is below

    Fine/Limp Hair:
    Keune Care Derma Sensitive Mask
    Or use a leave in

    Breakage/Damage
    Keune Care Vital Nutrition Mask
    Keune Care Blonde Savior Mask
    Keune So Pure Restore Mask
    Keune Bond Fusion Phase 3
    Keune Revive Balm (leave in mask)
    K18 (leave in mask)

    Frizzy Hair
    Keune Care Keratin Smooth Mask
    Keune So Pure Polish Mask

    Dull/Dry Hair
    Keune Care Satin Oil Mask
    Keune Care Vital Nutrition Mask

    Curly Hair
    Keune Care Confident Curl Mask
    Clever Curl Treatment (this one is epic)

    On a budget
    Clever Curl Treatment (130ml is $21)

  • Fine/Limp Hair:
    Keune Style Thick Trick
    Keune Style Ultimate Blowout
    Keune Style Rush Hour
    Keune Style Resetter
    Olaplex #9

    Breakage/Damage
    Keune Care Blonde Savior Leave in
    Keune Revive Balm
    Eleven Miracle Hair Treatment
    Olaplex #6

    Frizzy Hair
    Keune Style Tame Game
    Keune Style Rush Hour

    Dull/Dry Hair
    Keune Care Satin Oil Oil

    Curly Hair
    Clever Curl Treatment

  • It’s kind of a on negotiable for us and it should be for you too!

    Fine/Limp Hair:
    Keune Care Absolute Volume Thermal Protector
    Keune Style Thick Trick
    Keune Style Cashmere Cloud
    Keune Style Rush Hour

    Breakage/Damage
    Keune Care Blonde Savior Leave in
    Keune Revive Balm
    Olaplex #6
    Olaplex #9

    Frizzy Hair
    Keune Style Climate Control
    Keune Style Tame Game

    Dull/Dry Hair
    Keune Care Satin Oil Oil
    Keune Revive Balm
    Eleven Miracle Hair Treatment

    Curly Hair
    Clever Curl Curl Cream
    Clever Curl Humid Weather Gel

  • These are best to be used alternating with your regular shampoo and conditioner rather than alone, and unless you want your hair grey/silver/purple, you’ll only need one :)

    Just not yellow
    Keune Care Silver Savior Shampoo
    Keune Care Silver Savior Conditioner
    Keune Care Silver Savior Foam Treatment (Leave in)

    Quite Cool/Ashy
    Keune So Pure Cool Shampoo
    Keune So Pure Cool Condtioner

    Silvery/Grey
    Fanola No Yellow Shampoo

    Custom Tone
    Beige, Honey, Peach, Champagne - you name it we can create it just for you with a Custom Toner Mask

And as always, please remember we are here to help! If you have any questions at all, please don’t hesitate to get in touch ♥︎