Feature Image by @liscasanovahair
If you’re bored with your hair color, but don’t want to make any drastic color changes, you can add dimension to your base color for a subtle difference. Adding dimension essentially means accentuating your base hair color with lowlights and baby lights for a naturally bright look.
Ready to hit the salon? We asked a few hairstylists to share tips on what exactly you can request for a color refresh.
Very Dark + Prominent Balayage
Let’s start at the darker end of the base color spectrum with black or very dark brown hair. IGK colorist Olivia Casanova suggests, “In order to make a brunette more dimensional, you can add a face frame highlight/balayage for a more natural sun-kissed look. This is something that can be tailored to every individual’s skin tone and eye color.”
Dark + Warm Blonde
You can also take the balayage a little lighter and lower for a gradient look. “Warm blondes add a ton of dimension to darker base hair colors,” says Terra Harvell, CEO + owner of Harper Ellis Hair Co. and the founder and owner of Arkansas-based, Salon Five Zero Four. She adds, “For those who already have a base hair color of blonde, introducing more caramel-blonde tones will add that wanted dimension!
Bronde
Prefer something somewhere in the middle? Kristina Tabb, celeb hairstylist from Tabb & Sparks Salon in Santa Monica says, “The key to a happy brunette is to keep them brunette and not over-highlight. It’s that perfect in-between aka “bronde,” keeping it natural with warmer wheat highlights — nothing too bright or contrasting. Think of Jennifer Aniston’s classic look — a great example of maintaining a true brunette with a slight flare of lighter dimension.”
Dimensional Red
“For redheads, full scalp to ends dimension is perfect,” Stacie Magana, colorist at Maxine Salon in Chicago explains. “Lots of multidimensional colors work so great here because you want a lot of light to reflect off of the different tones, just as you would find in natural color. A small amount of brightness where you would naturally see the sun hit is perfect.”
Beachy Blonde
To achieve those beachy blonde vibes, Magana brings in depth from the top to the middle. She says, “This will allow the blondes to still feel like they have more dimension without sacrificing brightness at the ends.”
Platinum + Shadow Root
If you’re going platinum but don’t want to lose dimension, Magana recommends keeping the root a bit darker. She says, “With the brightest platinum blondes, just a small shadow root, and keeping most of the dimension underneath will add just enough depth in their color without taking away or dulling out those bright platinum strands.”
Platinum + Lowlights
For those who aren’t shadow root fans, there’s still dimension hope for you too. Casanova says, “If you’re feeling your blonde is looking a little too solid, you can ask your stylist to add some lowlights to create dimension without having to go darker.”
xx, The FabFitFun Team
