So you’re headed to the hair salon with a handful of photos and a vision of how your bold and beautiful new locks will look. You’ve been sifting through photos for weeks now trying to decide on the perfect new color for the season, and now you’ve finally settled on that iconic teal blue that Kylie Jenner loves.

You may have envisioned walking into that salon with drab hair, and exiting with luscious locks that shine mermaid blue in the sun; however, that may not be exactly what you get. Unfortunately for many salon hopefuls, changing your hair color to one of the latest lilac blues or fiery oranges isn’t going to be all it’s cracked up to be. The following are 5 truths about the bold and pastel hair color trends you should know before booking in with your stylist:

Celebrities are not a good example.

Okay, so Kylie knows how to rock a bright teal hair color flawlessly. But when she’s adorning the cover of a magazine, do you ever wonder how long ago she had it done? Chances are she just walked straight from the salon and onto the set to show off the dye job at its very best. If you saw her on the cover two weeks later, you may see a hair color that’s drastically less bright and much more faded than it was the day she had it done.

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For celebrities, it’s much easier to maintain their brighter hair colors because their schedule allows for it, and their wallets do as well. Kylie will likely be able to visit the salon once every few weeks to have the color re-done or styled to show it at its best; however, that’s not always manageable for everyone. While celebrities are certainly a large part of starting some of the newest hair color trends, it’s important to remember that their access to constant hair maintenance is generally far greater.

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Colors will fade quickly.

While bold and pastel hair colors will look awesome initially, it’s important to know that they’ll generally only last a few weeks at best before they start to fade. This is mainly due to the fact that our hair follicles do not have these bright colors living within them, and, as a result, they also cannot hold them. The colors are unable to cling to and penetrate the hair follicles, making them fall off more quickly than other more natural tones.

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A good rule of thumb to remember is that the lighter the color, the less it will hold. If you’re going for something darker, the color will obviously last longer with more shading to lose. A light color such as lilac or pastel pink will fade more quickly, so if you really want a pastel look you need to take this into consideration.

Darker hair will require more steps.

Individuals who have darker hair may spend a much longer time at the salon, or have to visit a few times to achieve the look that they want. This is because individuals who have dark hair and who are looking to go pastel will need to lighten their hair first before it can be dyed to the color they want. This process will include some form of lightening, such as bleaching.

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Bleaching hair, while effective, can be harmful and damaging to hair if it’s done too frequently. It’s important that individuals have their hair dyed by a hair color specialist who will use products of the highest quality, and give you advice for maintaining the color safely and effectively. If you have dark hair and want light colors, remember that you’ll likely be spending some extra time in the salon chair; your options are not more limited, but they may be harder to maintain.

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Maintenance can be pricey.

We’ve all been there; we finally save enough money to get our dream hair color, and that’s all we’ve got for the next few months. If your hair is fading within weeks, how would you feel about your hard-earned money fading with it? Whether you’re having your hair dyed dark brown or having it dyed light pink will make no difference in a salon; your hair dresser will charge the same. If you want something long-lasting, where you’ll get the most bang for your buck, consider going for a darker color or something that will hold much longer.

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Not every photo is as it seems.

A photo that you see of someone’s bold or pastel hair might look amazing, but be aware of the possibilities with Photoshop these days. The hair color you see on a model could be completely made up after the picture was taken! Not to mention, other factors like hair extensions, lighting, and editing can surely make a color look brighter and more vibrant than is actually possible.

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If you want to be sure that what you’re looking at is a real photo or a hair color, consider heading into the salon ahead of time and looking at their magazines first. These magazines will have hair color options that have been done on real models and which use some of the products that your salon will be familiar with.

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If you’ve been longing for a pastel pink or a bold burgundy hair color, it’s important that you do your research. You don’t want to go into a salon with one vision, and come out with a color that looks totally different or which fades in a matter of weeks! The best thing you can do is be open-minded about your options and speak to someone at a qualified hair salon ahead of time.

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By meeting with a stylist before your appointment date, you can show them what you’ve been thinking of for your hair and whether or not it’s attainable. Once your stylist can see your hair, and they know what they’re dealing with, they will be able to tell you if the hair color is possible, how much it will be, how long it will last, etc.