I’ve been highlighting my hair since the fifth grade. I started off getting five or six highlights once a year and it slowly progressed to where, around the end of High School, I was getting a full head of highlights. Back when I started I could get away with highlighting my hair every six months, but as I’ve gone lighter and my natural hair has gotten darker I’ve been going in for touch-ups every three months. Because my hair tends to be dry it’s very important that I make a conserted effort to hydrate it and protect the color from fading — something all the more likely to happen come the summer’s sun, sand, and water.

Kerastase, Redken, and Oribe all make great color-protecting products and now Bumble & bumble joins them with their Color Minded line which includes: Bumble and bumble Color Minded Shampoo 8.5 oz ($29), Bumble and bumble Color Minded Conditioner ($32), Bumble and bumble Color Minded UV Protective Styling Balm ($28), and Bumble and bumble Color Minded UV Protective Polish  ($28). There’s also an in-salon treatment for $35.

The key to the products’ efficacy is a color preserving complex that helps minimize color washout and fade and it’s the most concentrated in the five-minute in-salon professionally administered treatment (done during a color service). I haven’t done the in-salon treatment, but I’ve been using the sulfate-free shampoo and conditioner (they’ve got that light, clean smell that most of the brand’s products have), and they’re moisturizing and work to maintain shine in addition to protecting color – they’ve got shea butter, sesame seed oil, and jojoba seed oil in their formulation. My hair is long and knot-prone so I’ve been mixing the conditioner with Oribe’s color masque and I have to say the results have been pretty stellar.

As for the styling products, the UV Protective Styling Balm is a lightweight formula that give control without crunch and helps protect against heat and humidity (it’s best applied on damp hair). while the UV Protective Polish is a finisher that seals in your look, while protecting from the sun and fighting frizz/flyaways. Def worth checking out and I plan on getting my highlights touched-up at Bumble next month just so I can try the in-salon treatment!