Balayage is an effective, low-maintenance hair color technique that will keep you out of the salon every six weeks. This technique offers an effortlessly glamorous yet natural appearance.
Balayage offers lightness without clearly defined lines of demarcation and can work on all hair colors, making it the ideal way to lighten blonde or brunette locks without creating obvious areas of difference in tone or shade. It creates an indirect and softened finish for blondes or brunettes alike.
1. Lived-In Blonde
Lived-in hair color trends are becoming increasingly popular for those seeking a natural aesthetic with subtle contrast. This technique utilizes various shades of blonde to achieve this natural-looking sun-kissed effect and softened shadow roots.
Be it through balayage, foiling or babylights, the key to creating a lived-in look is finding a shade that suits both your skin tone and lifestyle. People with warm undertones typically opt for warm blonde shades like honey or golden blonde, while those with cool undertones can wear platinum or ash blonde hues.
Balayage and ombre both work effectively when applied to living-in blondes, as they allow lighter highlights to blend seamlessly with darker roots. Both techniques require more time and precision than other coloring services; to maintain vibrant lived-in blonde color use purple shampoo regularly to combat brassiness and deep condition your locks regularly.
2. Lived-In Highlights
Lived-in highlights may sound like something out of an online classifieds listing, but this trending technique allows your hair color to fade gracefully without harsh lines at its roots. Similar to balayage and ombre but applied differently, lived-in highlights allow your color to gradually shift away without creating harsh lines at its roots.
While lived-in highlights take longer in the chair, they save money in the long run due to reduced salon visits and touch ups. A great lived-in highlight will also last months before needing another appointment to refresh it.
No matter your hair color choice, lived-in highlights create natural looks that give the illusion of sun-kissed and lived-in locks. Here, caramel face-framing highlights are blended seamlessly into a warm blonde bob, giving it that beachy glow. Tiny caramel pieces also work beautifully on a rich chestnut brown base to create this cheerful sunflower blonde shade!
3. Lived-In Brown
Brunettes love this trend because it adds shine and dimension while maintaining their dark bases. Additionally, it helps with grow-out, meaning fewer trips to the salon for touchups of roots or whole head recolors are necessary.
Brunettes often opt for warm honey hues when selecting their desired balayage shade, like this look that adds natural-looking golden highlights to a rich brown shade. Furthermore, this lob-length cut features face-framing blonde sweeps on its bangs which give this style some additional character.
Rose gold balayage adds extra warmth to a deep mocha brown, providing cool-toned brunettes looking to renew their hue without going lighter with something new.
Sue Tyrrell of Sue Tyrrell Hair Color gave this client’s one-dimensional brunette locks an array of depth with lived-in color techniques that blend the base shade to soften its roots. As a result, this natural looking color only requires touchups every six months for maintenance!
4. Lived-In Dark Browns
If you prefer blonde hair without dealing with stark two-tone contrast, consider asking your colorist for lived-in highlights. This technique involves delicately coloring each strand with shades that blend in seamlessly with your natural hue, providing a less noticeable alternative to ombre and balayage techniques.
Brunettes also benefit from warm tones like cinnamon and caramel that add personality to their mane, or you could opt for dramatic dark auburn balayage effects.
Cool-toned browns can be combined with warm golden streaks for an eye-catching yet natural-looking style that doesn’t wash out olive skin tones. Stylist Sue Tyrrell created an effortless shade by pairing her client’s dark walnut roots with light-gold balayage midlengths through ends; creating a barely there shade that perfectly compliments her cool toned complexion.