#Hair color and highlight kit professional

It’s definitely possible to lighten your hair naturally, but you need to have realistic expectations (the first being that nothing will lighten your hair as fast or effectively as bleach). Can I get highlights without bleaching my hair? Translation: Hair dye can’t lift hair dye, so an at-home kit with bleach is kinda your only option, unless you want to try a natural alternative (more on that in a sec). Unless you’re working with virgin, undyed hair (in which case, you should definitely stop reading this and book a future appointment instead!), the only way to highlight your color at home is with bleach. These picks are a great place to get started:Īnd because I know you're thinking it: No, you can't use regular hair dye for highlights.

At-home highlighting kits all work a little differently, so follow the directions to a T to make sure you're getting the best results possible. No matter which formula you choose, you'll want to kick things off by reading (and then re-reading) the instructions closel y. If you're highlighting your hair at home for the first time, it's best to grab a kit that comes with all the essentials (the Madison ReedLight Works Balayage Highlighting Kit is one of my personal favorites, since it has an applicator, gloves, clean-up wipes, and even a toning glaze).

What is the best at-home hair-lightening kit? Oh, and btw, if your base color is anything darker than medium blonde, O’Connor says you should stay far away from at-home highlights: “At a salon, your colorist customizes your dye and developer to give you the exact color you’re looking for, but at-home highlight kits are kinda like a one-size-fits-all situation.” That means it’s super easy to end up with brassy highlights when you’re attempting it yourself- especially on brunette shades (think: the darker your base color, the more “lifting,” aka lightening, your highlights have to do). Translation: Don’t be overly ambitious just start small. Bonus point? If you f*ck it up-which, again, you might-you aren’t stuck trying to fix your entire head. “That way, you’re connecting the front of your hair to the rest of your color so it won’t look as grown out,” she says, recommending that anyone with blonde hair try DpHue’s Blonding Brush.

#Hair color and highlight kit professional

Okay, if you're ignoring all professional advice and going forth with at-home highlights anyway, O’Connor recommends you-at the very least!-just stick to your hairline. Another thing to keep in mind: If you've already committed to highlighting your hair at home and nothing can stop you, it's not a bad idea to still touch base with your hairstylist before you take the plunge (especially if you're going to end up in their chair for some color-correction down the road). Hear that, people? Highlights are genuinely best left to the pros-so if you can wait, pls do. “ Your highlights can turn out spotty and orange if you don’t know what you’re doing, and chances are, you’ll need to get them fixed if you attempt them yourself.” “Since highlighting hair involves bleach, it takes a lot of time and knowledge to do it correctly,” says Meri Kate O’Connor, colorist at Loft 647 in West Hollywood. Okay, I know you don't want to hear this, but ask any expert and they'll give it to you straight: If you have the means, it's always best to skip the DIY and book an appointment with a professional-especially when you're dealing with something as strong (and, uh, as damaging) as bleach.