Thinking about switching up your look? Blonde hair with highlights and lowlights is an excellent way to add depth, dimension, and vibrancy. The combination of lighter and darker tones creates a multi-dimensional effect that makes the hair appear fuller, more dynamic, and visually interesting.
Highlights add lighter shades to hair strands, creating contrast and brightness. They mimic the way that the sun naturally lightens the hair, creating depth and dimension, and work well for anyone aiming for a sun-kissed, natural look with added texture. Lowlights, on the other hand, are used to add dimension and depth by applying darker tones to your hair. Lowlights are an excellent way to add depth, dimension, and a more natural look to blonde hair, preventing it from appearing flat and one-dimensional. By strategically placing darker strands of hair throughout the blonde, lowlights create contrast and richness, mimicking the natural variations found in hair with sun-kissed dimension. A balance of blonde highlights and lowlights will give you a more natural-looking blonde.
The fundamental difference lies in the direction of color. Highlights lighten sections of the hair to add brightness and dimension, while lowlights add darker tones to create depth and contrast. Highlights lift the pigment out of the hair, while lowlights replace the pigment back into the hair.
Blonde hair with highlights and lowlights offers versatility, allowing for a range of looks, from subtle sun-kissed styles to bolder, contrasting effects.
Choosing a highlighting or lowlighting technique that complements your hair texture is recommended to achieve a look that is natural and flattering. For example, straight hair often shows off highlights and lowlights in a more defined way, giving it a smooth, polished look. The contrast can make the hair look sleek and shiny. Curly hair, on the other hand, tends to suit softer, more blended tones. This helps the colour flow naturally with the curls and adds depth without looking too bold.
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The tone of blonde highlights and lowlights can be adjusted to suit different base shades of blonde. Cooler blondes often work well with ashy highlights or even platinum lowlights to add contrast and brightness. For warmer blondes, golden or honey tones can create a softer, more natural look.
Here's a breakdown of some popular blonde hair with lowlights looks:
Ash Brown: Ash brown is a cool-toned brown with a slightly smoky finish. Ash brown highlights can gently lift darker hair, while lowlights can tone down lighter hair and add richness. It’s a great way to keep your colour looking soft and natural. It works best on naturally light to medium blonde hair but can also be achieved on darker hair with lightening. Use a texturising spray to bring out movement and give your hair a soft, lived-in finish.
Blonde and Brown Face-Framing Highlights: These add soft or more striking streaks of blonde and brown around the face to brighten. It’s a great way to refresh a look without committing to a full head of colour. Whether subtle or high-contrast, it can be a very flattering choice. Blow-dry the front sections away from the face or curl them softly to showcase the colour contrast.
Blonde and Brown Balayage: This technique uses a freehand painting technique to create a seamless, sun-kissed blend of colour. It’s perfect for adding dimension and depth without harsh lines and is a lower-maintenance option. The mix of tones makes the look multi-dimensional and natural. Ideal for medium to long hair and suits straight, wavy, or curly textures. Add loose waves to highlight the different tones.
Read also: Achieving the Perfect Blonde with Brown Lowlights
Brown and Blonde Natural Colour Blocking: This features bold, sectioned panels of brown and blonde that contrast without harsh stripes. It’s a softer take on traditional colour blocking, offering a more wearable and natural result with a stylish edge. Style sleek and straight to emphasise the separation between tones.
Brown and Blonde Dip-Dye Highlights: These involve the ends of the hair being dyed blonde, while the roots and mid-lengths stay brown. It’s a bold, playful style with a clear contrast that is relatively low maintenance. Best on medium to long hair. Try beach waves or a half-up style to showcase the two-tone effect.
Brown to Blonde Ombre: This features a smooth, gradual transition from darker brown roots to lighter blonde ends. It creates a natural, sun-kissed look that’s soft and flattering. This style adds dimension and light without the need for frequent touch-ups.
Chunky Blonde and Brown Highlights: These mix thick sections of blonde and brown for a striking, statement-making look. This style adds contrast and volume, giving the hair a vibrant, dimensional appearance. Create volume with a root-lifting mousse or blow-dry for fullness.
Brown and Blonde Babylights on Short Hair: These are very fine, delicate highlights that add subtle brightness and depth without harsh contrast. On short brown hair, they create a soft shimmer effect and natural dimension. Babylights are a subtle hair colouring technique that mimics the natural, delicate highlights seen in children's hair. Yes, absolutely. Babylights on dark hair add soft, natural-looking brightness without drastic contrast. They can create a sun-kissed effect, especially around the face or throughout the hair for dimension.
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Red, Blonde and Brown Highlights: These are a warm colour blend featuring tones of red, blonde, and brown that create a rich, vibrant dimension. It’s perfect for adding warmth and vibrancy to brown or strawberry blonde hair. Soft curls or waves help blend the tones seamlessly.
Mushroom Blonde and Brown Foilyage: This blends cool, earthy tones with soft highlights placed using a foil and balayage combo. It offers a smoky, multi-dimensional finish that’s subtle yet striking. When stylists create a balayaged look, colour is painted freehand onto the hair, focusing on the mid-lengths to ends. The process avoids harsh lines and creates a seamless blend.
Golden Blonde with Warm Lowlights: This adds depth and dimension, preventing the colour from looking flat or one-dimensional. This blend creates a rich, sun-kissed glow with a natural finish.
Golden Blonde Highlights on Brown Curly Hair: These add brightness and definition, accentuating the natural curl pattern and giving hair a vibrant, sunlit effect.
Champagne Blonde Lowlights Balayage: This is a mix of cool champagne blonde tones with soft lowlights painted in a balayage style, creating a refined and dimensional hair colour. It’s subtle but offers a beautiful contrast. Style with loose waves to showcase the tonal variations.
Dark Brown Lowlights on Blonde Hair: This creates a striking contrast and depth, adding richness to a light base and preventing the colour from appearing flat.
Honey Blonde with Light Brown Lowlights: This warm blend pairs honey blonde with soft light brown lowlights, giving a natural sun-kissed look that adds warmth and depth. Add soft curls to boost dimension or wear hair straight for a polished look. If you have brown or light brown hair to start with, lowlights add depth and richness by incorporating darker tones, enhancing your base colour’s dimensions. As your stylist for deeper versions of your natural colour (e.g.
Soft, Dirty Blonde Lowlights on White Blonde Hair: These create a natural, lived-in look that tones down the brightness without losing the icy cool effect. This blend adds dimension and prevents the hair from looking too stark. Use smoothing serums to maintain shine and reduce frizz.
Bright Blonde Money Pieces with Dark Lowlights: Bright blonde money pieces frame the face with bold blonde highlights, while dark lowlights throughout add contrast and depth to the rest of the hair. This style creates a striking and modern look. Wear hair sleek and straight to showcase the sharp contrast, or add loose curls for a softer effect.
Dark Blonde Lowlights on Platinum Blonde Hair: These soften the brightness and add natural-looking depth. This multi-dimensional style blends light and dark tones seamlessly for a luxe finish.
Blonde hair with highlights and lowlights does require regular maintenance to keep the tones looking fresh and balanced. Over time, colour can fade or shift, especially with sun exposure or frequent washing. For those looking to reduce upkeep, low-maintenance techniques like balayage or babylights are great options; they blend softly into the hair and grow out more naturally.
Here are some essential maintenance tips:
Thinking about taking the plunge? Describe the look as best you can using language your stylist will be familiar with. If possible, familiarise yourself with the hair colours you like before your appointment. For babylights, think about adding shades of warm caramel, cool ash, or honey blonde. Trust your hairdresser’s input.
Do you ever feel like a fresh mane of blonde hair looks somewhat dull? Sometimes, an all-over blonde colour can look artificial, but one way of softening that is by weaving in lowlights of different blonde shades. By introducing pockets of light and shade you reveal a more natural looking, multi-tonal blonde your client will love. Lowlights are also great for adding more dimension to a balayage result that may be a bit too blonde. Lowlights create depth, texture and volume and are great for enhancing the client’s facial features, working with their skin tone.
With the lowlight technique you are replacing the pigment back into the air with foils or freehand techniques.
If you are applying lowlights to darken hair that’s already been lightened, that’s an additional chemical service that can cause further processing to the hair and areas of damage. Therefore, it’s always recommended to add Wellaplex to your formulas to strengthen the bonds within the hair and prevent any damage.
It’s really important to understand what type of blonde your client is looking for. Does she want to feel significantly lighter than her natural colour, or subtly enhance her natural shade?
If your client does feel she has become too blonde, this is where lowlights come in to save the day. It’s also important to understand that a subtle change for us hairdressers may seem like a drastic one for the client so adding lots of darker pieces into their hair might seem too extreme. As a rule for lowlighting, chose a colour that is one shade lighter than the natural hair or two shades darker than the highlights.
Work with thicker slices through the back and the sides, and finer weaves around the face and through the parting. As blonde hair tends to be more porous, consider using shades with an element of warmth because cool shades may leave it looking duller and flat. Demi Permanent Hair Color like Color Touch 7/7 or 8/73 are great for lowlighting - if these are too warm, introduce some of your Pure Naturals into the mix.
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