Trending Now: Bleached Blonde

Blonde hair is a perennial classic. It catches the eye, lights up a room and pops against bright makeup. But whenever you hear someone raving about bleached hair, you often hear them complaining about one thing, too: dark roots!

But fret not! Like many things, what was once a faux-pas is now all the rage. Dark roots are popular with celebrities, runway models, street-style stars and everyone in between. Why? There’s an inherently cool element of contrast—as well as rebellion factor—with the combination of bright and dark. And the best part is that if you bleach your hair at home, there is less upkeep, cost and time involved.

Because bleaching hair can come at a cost to your hair’s health, you want to ensure that you maintain your hair’s integrity, so look for products that contain nourishing ingredients or masks and treatments that you can use immediately after the product is applied to erase any signs of brassiness.

How to bleach your hair

The best bleach for hair is one that works quickly and effectively to bleach hair but also cancels out all the warm tones that can happen when hair with reddish undertones is lightened. The solution? The L’Oréal Paris All Over Colorista Bleach is a conditioning formula that will preserve the health of your hair while lightening it gently but effectively. The kit also includes an icy Brass-Defy Conditioner. If you’re happy with your new bleached hair, you can leave your hair as is, or you can take it to the next step and have loads of fun with L’Oréal Paris Colorista Semi-Permanent Color. The expansive colour range includes punchy pop-art shades and pastel hues.

To bleach hair safely, make sure you do it in a ventilated room and wear an old T-shirt. You should aim to gradually lighten your hair, attempting to bleach it slowly and surely every few months. Don’t aim to go from dark chocolate to icy blonde in one afternoon—that’s a sure-fire way to damage your hair! This may take a couple sessions of bleaching, and you should wait about a week or two in-between sittings to give your hair a chance to recover. The same rules apply if you’re attempting to go dark after a long period as a bright blonde, you’ll have to go to a reddish hue to bring back the warmth that naturally occurs in dark hair tones. Because when you bleach hair the first time, you will remove all of the warmth in order to prevent it from going orange. To keep hair preserved along the way, use L’Oréal Paris EverPure Blonde Shampoo. Thanks to the sulfate-free formula, your hair will stay silky smooth. It’s also excellent at neutralizing brassiness. Pair with the L’Oréal Paris EverPure Blonde Conditioner for ultra-hydrated locks.

Fun ways to play with hair bleaching:

1. Go punk-rock bright: Can you handle all that brightness? Then go all out and lighten your entire head a brilliant, bright blonde. Want to keep it super-modern? When you’re bleaching hair, leave about half an inch of dark roots and let them grow in for a month or two to exaggerate that modern contrast.
2. Play with ombré: Ombré is showing no signs of slowing down, and it’s understandable: It’s a flattering, low-risk trend to explore. If you’re over it? It’s easy to trim off.
3. Highlights: Paint individual strips of hair to create bold or subtle highlights. Start slowly, applying the bleach in thin strips to a test area before applying to your entire head. Always keep the colour at least one inch away from the root.

Matching your makeup to your bleached hair

There’s something about a brand-new hair colour that inspires a welcome, fresh shift in your makeup routine. If you went from deep chocolate to bleached hair, that burgundy lipstick you used to wear will look completely different. Here are a few new makeup looks you can explore after you bleach your hair:

Rimmed rocker eyes: You know those effortlessly cool girls who call pull off rocker-chic eyeliner? With your new bleached hair, you are now a member of that club. Layer on the black eyeshadow and rim your eyes with a sultry black liner like L’Oréal Paris Infallible Pro-Last Waterproof Pencil Eyeliner.

Fiery-red lips: Bleached-blonde hair and classic cherry lipstick are a match made in beauty heaven. You can also experiment with cherry red like L’Oréal Paris Rouge Signature Lipstick in I Don’t, or try cooler fuchsia and berry lip colours like 424 I Represent, which are trendy right now.

Bronzed all over: Sometimes your skin tone can look completely different with bleached hair. If you feel like you need to restore a little warmth to your complexion, reach for a bronzer such as L’Oréal Paris True Match Lumi Bronze It Bronzer and apply it all over your face, concentrating on the high planes of your face, your nose and the top of your cheekbones.

As for styling your new bleached hair?

1. Try experimenting with loose rocker waves; focus the curls on the ends of the hair, away from the root.
2. Go bold with a crisp centre part, which draws attention to the beautiful contrast between your darker roots and your new colour.
3. Use a texturizing spray to take bedhead to glam, giving edge to your new bleached hair.