Ombre Hair Color

Q: Hi! I want to know how I can achieve the ombre hair color that a lot of celebrities and models are having. It's basically dark roots with the tips gradually getting lighter.

My entire hair is bleached blond and I want to know how I can achieve this look without it looking too harsh. My natural hair is dark brown, but my hair is platinum blond now. I preferably like the way model Lily Aldridge has her hair.

A: Actually, the look you see is most likely unintentional. Odds are good that the transitioning color you see is a result of growing out highlights. This type of coloring effect is generally seen in the process of growing out highlights and in post-summer new growth where the lighter hair of summer is gradually “replaced” by the naturally occurring color of the hair.

Now this doesn’t mean that the look cannot be duplicated, but given your statement that your hair is currently platinum blonde, you will need to use a foiling technique to isolate the portions of the hair that you don’t wish to have dark and plan your color palette carefully. You want to use a color that closely matches your natural shade on the portions of the hair nearest to your scalp.

Use foils as if you are planning to apply highlights to the hair, which you are. The exception to this is that you need to randomize the amount of hair you conceal within the foils. This will give you a more organic look as you complete the process, with the “highlights” appearing as though they were placed in the traditional manner. Your palette should include the base color, as well as two or more highlight colors.

Apply the highlights as you might do in a traditional foil service, but remember that these foils are meant to have been growing out so only wrap the foils partway along the hair’s length. Position the colors in a random fashion, or at least in the manner in which you might apply normal highlights.

Apply the “base” (darkest) color to the hair from the scalp outward (except of course, the segments that are concealed in foils) and process the color as needed. Working with so many colors, you may need to mix your color in smaller batches or else enlist assistance in order to work quickly enough to apply the color while it has plenty of processing time.

This, of course, presumes you are working from a starting point with platinum hair and that you are doing this at home. If you plan to go to a salon for the service, the stylist will work out the best method of dealing with the technical aspects of the color application.

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See also:

Foiling technique

The base color of hair

How to achieve gradient hair coloring

How to achieve two-tone hair color