Cologne writes: 

Looking to go longer between cuts and color? Since 57% of women in the US age 18-64 have colored their hair in the past year, I think it’s safe to say, regardless of the rocky economy, we still want to look our best. Fear not–there are many products that make color last longer and protect it from damage. I spoke with celebrity colorist Tracey Cunningham (clients include Cameron Diaz, Lindsay Lohan, and Jennifer Lopez) about summer trends and how to keep hair healthy.

Tracey’s top three summer hair color trends:

‘Light It Up’ with dimensional beachy and radiant highlights (think Cameron Diaz):

‘Cool It Down’ with dramatic highlights on a cool base (like Molly Sims):

‘Red-Nette Glamour’ with a blended shade of red and brunette (such as Emma Stone from Superbad):

For the first two trends Tracey recommends Redken’s new Blonde Glam Collection with lighteners and color enhancers. And for the last trend, she recommends Redken’s new Color Extend collection to extend the life and vibrancy of the color through deep conditioning systems and fade resisting complexes.

Pureology, meanwhile, has a new sulfate-free line–the Essential Repair system–which includes split-end corrector, leave-in conditioner and a hair masque to combat overprocessed, damaged, and highly sensitized color-treated hair. Take a free hair-consultation quiz on the Pureology site to find products that work for your hair needs.

I’ve been using these products for a week and my hair is considerably healthier and less dull.  I’ll try anything that allows me to extend time between color and cuts–after all, who wants to spend their hard-earned cash on expensive, frequent salon visits?