Balayage Highlights: How to Choose the Highlights that Reflect Your Personality

Women seeking natural, sun-kissed hair are turning in droves to balayage: the French highlight technique that delivers soft regrowth for a stunning low maintenance look. If you’re curious about balayage, we’ve broken down everything you need to know to find your perfect highlights.

What is Balayage?

Balayage is a freehand style of hair highlights that creates a graduated, natural, sun-kissed look. The word balayage comes from the French “balayer” meaning to sweep or to paint, and the technique is so named because hair colourists use a brush to paint the dye in long, sweeping strokes.

Who Should Get Balayage Highlights?

Balayage highlights are perfect for a wide range of hair types, so they can be a great choice for anyone. They’re the ideal options for women who:

• Want a natural look. Compared to traditional highlights, the balayage technique creates a more natural look.
• Want a low-maintenance hair colour. Because they are hand painted and less uniform than traditional highlights, balayage highlights have softer regrowth lines. This means you won’t have to return to the hair colourist as often.

How Do I Know if Balayage is For Me?

If you’ve ever wanted to try highlights but are worried about the maintenance involved, then balayage is for you. Balayage achieves a natural, sun-kissed look with soft regrowth lines that don’t need to be touched up as often as traditional highlights. It also grows out beautifully if you decide to try something different, so it’s the perfect way to try out highlights without committing to them long-term.

The best part about balayage is how customisable it is. Balayage highlights can be adjusted to suit your needs and personality, so no matter your hair type, you can achieve exactly the look you want.

What’s the Balayage Process Like?

The balayage application process takes longer than traditional foil highlights but is well worth the effort for the stunning and low-maintenance results. Here’s what to expect:

• Consultation. First, your colourist will assess the condition of your hair. You’ll then work together to decide what you want, and they’ll help you choose a colour scheme that reflects your unique personality and sense of style.
• Application. Once you’ve decided on your colour scheme, your colourist will apply the balayage highlights. This process requires a stylist who is specially trained in balayage because they’ll be applying the dye freehand using a brush to create that natural look. It can take from 90 minutes up to 3 hours depending on the type and amount of hair you have and how much balayage you are getting.
• Touch-Ups. Although the application takes longer than traditional foils, you’ll be rewarded with a very low-maintenance colour. You can come back as little as every 12 to 14 weeks for touch-ups. If you decide to try something new, the soft regrowth lines allow the hair to grow out without needing any touch-ups at all!

Why is Balayage So Popular?

Balayage has exploded in popularity in recent years, and for good reasons. The many pros of this technique include:

• Low maintenance – The softer, blended regrowth means you don’t have to return to the salon for touch-ups.
• Low impact – Because your hair is processed more gently, it can leave your hair looking healthier over time.
• Natural – Balayage achieves a blended, softer tone that looks more natural.
• Customisable – There are so many variations to try with balayage, so you can customise it to suit you no matter your style.

Can Every Hair Type Try Balayage?

Yes! You can get balayage highlights done on any hair texture or colour, including if your hair is very dark or kinky-curly. The natural and customisable look means that your colourist can apply the dye to suit you no matter your hair type.

How to Maintain Your Balayage

So many women love balayage because it’s very low maintenance. While this means you can spend less time in the salon each year, there are still important things you can do at home to maintain your balayage and keep your hair looking fresh between visits:

• Use a rich, hydrating hair mask to maintain your hair’s healthy shine and keep the colour looking fresh.
• Use a purple-toning shampoo to balance out any brassy tones that appear between appointments at the salon.

How to Choose the Right Highlights for Your Personality

The best way to decide on the right approach for your hair and colour goals is to have a conversation with your colourist. Colourists trained in balayage can show you your options and help you find a combination you’ll love.

You can add balayage highlights of almost any colour from warmer to cooler tones, and even bright unnatural colours like purple and blue! To get you started, here are some of the best ways to choose the right highlights for your personality:

Blonde

Blonde balayage can convey a sense of boldness, youthfulness, and a love of being the centre of attention. If you want your hair to show off your fun-loving and carefree personality, then blonde is the way to go!
If you’re a natural brunette, adding blonde balayage highlights lightens your hair and gives it that sun-kissed beachy vibe. For natural blondes, these bright highlights add dimension and create a shimmering effect.

Popular people with blonde hair include:

• Emma Stone
• Jennifer Lawrence

Light Brown

Touches of caramel and coffee can create a beautiful, subtle balayage in light brown hair. Add interest to the ends of long, flowing hair with a palette inspired by all your favourite desserts: chocolate, caramel, and honey all work beautifully.

Light brown balayage can convey a sense of approachability and moderation. If you’re looking to balance the sense of work and play in your appearance, light brown is an excellent choice.

Popular people with light brown hair include:

• Bella Hadid
• Jennifer Lopez

Dark Brown

Dark brown balayage can convey a sense of security and warmth, and often suits serious and hard-working women. If you’d like to add a sense of groundedness and dependability to your appearance, dark brown is a great addition.

Thin chestnut highlights add rich life and dimension to brown hair. You can add warm hues for a multi-tonal, autumnal feel.

Popular people with dark brown hair include:

• Elizabeth Taylor
• Winona Ryder

Red

Red balayage can convey a sense of mystery and romance. Women with red hair are often said to be fiery, confident, and seductive. If you want your hair to reflect your unique, spicy personality, then red is the perfect choice!

Light tones of strawberry and toffee create a subtle, realistic look over warm auburn or chestnut hair, adding stunning dimension.

Popular people with red hair include:

• Dale Earnhardt, Jr.
• Winston Churchill
• Lucille Ball

Black

Black balayage can convey intelligence and confidence. Women with black hair are often seen as quick witted, logical, and introspective. If you want to appear more enigmatic and introverted, black is an excellent choice.

Balayage is a beautiful option for black hair, which is the most common natural hair colour in the world. Add charm with a honey or rose gold balayage, impress with a deep crimson undertone, or express your uniqueness with a blue balayage that catches the sun.

Popular people with blonde hair include:

• Becky G
• Katy Perry
• Kim Kardashian

Get Balayage Highlights at Cutters Hairdressing

Whatever your personality and style, balayage highlights are the perfect way to achieve a natural, low-maintenance look that will turn heads.

At Cutters Hairdressing we offer premium hair colour services to help you achieve the perfect results for your personality. Our highly skilled staff are specially trained in the balayage technique to deliver the hair colouring service you deserve.

Call now to make an appointment!