How to Get Balayage Hair at Home: Tips for Perfect Highlights
If you want to get texture, depth and a sunkissed look to your hair, balayage may be the best hair coloring technique for you. The popularity of balayage has boomed this year, as celebrities like Alexa Chung, Rihanna or Jamie Chung have shown it off at many events. Think of it as a softer, more subtle ombré.
Balayage is a low maintenance technique that you can get done at a salon and you only need to touch up every month and a half or more. However, you can also apply balayage highlights at home in little more than an hour. Stay with us at oneHOWTO and learn how to get balayage hair at home with our tips for perfect highlights.
What is balayage?
While ombré is a popular hair coloring technique that adds a different shade at the tips of your hair, and dip dye is its loud and color-blocked cousin, balayage consists of painting in highlights in a subtle and delicate way, as happens in the summer when our hair gets lighter by the effects of the sun and the salt.
In the balayage technique there are no visible boundaries between the natural hair color and the dye. It is supposed to add texture instead of being too obvious. The name "balayage" means "sweep" in French, and it explains how it's applied with soft sweeps with a brush supported by a paddle.
As the effect is softer, it doesn't require setting the dye in patterns or using foil. The growth of your natural roots won't be so noticeable, and you'll only need touch-ups every six weeks or even longer.
How to apply balayage technique at home
To get balayage hair at home you will need:
- A balayage kit to use at home. Boxes can include lightener and toner in different shades. Crème foundation works better than gel hair coloring products. Always read the labels carefully.
- A tint brush.
- Gloves and towels.
- Hair grips.
How to get balayage hair at home step by step:
- Perform an allergy test at least two days beforehand. Skipping it is one of the most common hair dye mistakes.
- Section your hair in four large sections. Part your hair in the middle and then horizontally from ear to ear. Hold each section with the hair grips.
- Start applying balayage in one section. Simply take the hair and paint some of the locks in V-like patterns, using a palette or the back of your hand as support. Start painting at the middle and diffuse upwards, blending more thickly downwards. The tips of your hair should be more saturated with hair coloring, as they will look lighter. Do not rub the dye into your roots.
- Do the same for each section. It's best if you start with the bottom and work upwards.
- Apply more balayage product around your face, as that is the section that tends to get more sunkissed.
- Let your hair process the products for 45 minutes, or the time specified in the balayage product box.
- Rinse and dry with a towel. Some say to wash your hair with shampoo, but other experts recommend not to wash your hair with shampoo for at least three days, even if you do rinse and condition it.
How to choose the best balayage color for your hair
Most people choose to do balayage with blond shades, but you can carry out this technique with any color, just as you would ombré. In general, the following balayage combinations work better:
- Cool brown (ash or chocolate) or black hair: Light ash brown or khaki balayage.
- Warm brown (mahogany or walnut) or black hair: Auburn, burgundy, caramel or honey balayage. This can result in very attractive tiger eye hair.
- Cool red (scarlett or wine) hair: Strawberry balayage.
- Warm orange or red hair: Copper balayage.
- Cool blond (ash or champagne) hair: Beige or flaxen balayage.
- Warm blond (honey or sandy) hair): Golden balayage.
Here is how to get balayage hair at home easily and cheaply to get perfect highlights.
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