1. For light brown hair: It's all about lightness and even if your hair is already a lighter shade, you can still add depth and shine with a beautiful balayage. If you do not want to radically change colour but simply brighten up your natural colour with a few highlights then you just need to leave the bleaching product on for a different amount of time depending on how light a shade you want - from golden to honey to caramel. This is an easy way to update your look without doing anything too drastic!
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2. For red hair: On a base of natural red hair, the ideal is to bring shine with ultra-fine wicks and cleverly placed highlights. Amber, copper, orange, honey, caramel ... Play on the contrasts by favouring a deeper, more intense colour at the roots, then lighten the shades as you move towards the ends. Be sure to blend the colours well, starting with the darkest shades, to ensure your hair doesn't end up looking stripy!
3. For the brunettes: Forget the heavily contrasted, '90s style blonde highlights that will harden your face. The ideal for dark brown to brown base shades is to go down one to two shades from your natural colour and to opt for rich tones such as chocolate, caramel or hazelnut. Thanks to these warmer tones, you'll bring shine and softness to your hair.
4. Caring for your balayage: Although a balayage is not the same as a full dye, you should still use shampoos and treatments specially designed for colored hair to preserve your colour as much as possible. Avoid too much exposure to the sun or immersing your hair in the pool or your colour will turn and lose its shine. Finally, use a nourishing care for your hair once or twice a week to protect it from damage.
5. Redo your balayage once every three months: Unlike a full dye, which is recommended to be redone every six weeks or so (root regrowth time), a balayage can wait three months before needing to be redone. As dyes can be harsh on your hair it's much better to be able to leave this amount of time between colours. The balayage will stay looking good for longer.
Check out the video above for more beautiful balayage tips!
