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Along with killer vocal cords, Madison Beer is known for her lusciously long brunette hair. The artist’s Instagram feed is a treasure trove of inspiration to style lengthy locks but recently the 21-year-old has added fresh highlights – and thus a new signature look is born with the California-born “Selfish” singer making a case for blonde highlights all year-round.
Beer debuted a nearly-blonde mane during her Alice In Wonderland-inspired music video ‘”Baby” in August 2020, complete with sweeping extensions. Following the single release, it appears the young celeb has stuck to the warm hue in different variations as the US headed into the fall.
Standard practice would see brunette salon regulars opt for deep chocolate or auburn colour during the cooler months, before peppering in highlights during summer – because blondes have more fun, right?! Lauded hairstylist and owner of RAW Hair Salon in Australia, Anthony Nader tells GRAZIA that it actually comes down to placement of colour for seasonal appeal.
“You’ll find that women can’t get enough of that famous French colouring technique (balayage) in the spring and summer, because the hand-painted splash that is only seen on the mid lengths and ends, embodies that beach vibe to pair up with golden tans,” Nader reveals. “Autumn and winter are slightly different tunes and the blonde appears somewhat softer and more foil work is applied from the root area and fading out down towards the ends. This is more of a seamless look and fuses beautifully so you don’t get that harsh regrowth in a month or so.”
Short answer: let your hairdresser work their magic (and please, don’t try it at home).
Generally, Beer has a simple hair routine. “I usually go to sleep with wet hair. When I wake up, it either has a really pretty wave, or I look like a poodle,” Beer told TeenVogue. And when it comes to truly drastic changes, the artist got a little advice from Ariana Grande. “She’s told me not to dye my hair a million times because she did that — changed her hair from red to brown to blonde — and that just killed her hair,” Beer revealed to InStyle. “So [Grande] warned me not to dye my hair.”
Unbeknown to many, a little more technique goes into the star’s look rather than splashing dye from root to tips. It’s far different to your run-of-the-mill highlights. In fact, beauty insiders would have noticed the recent colour trend that’s taken the internet by storm – and why we’re all so obsessed with Beer’s current strands. Nader says it’s due to her “halo of honeycomb and wheat-toned highlights shown on the top layers.”
“But mainly, it’s the wider, more bold, light panels on each side of Madison’s part line which have a presence, a confidence if you will.”
When it comes to venturing to the light side, Nadar says skin tone is a major “deal breaker”. While the Madison Beer honeycomb hair may work wonderfully for her, the Instagram-worthy shade might not work for you. “Lighter skin tones are blessed with a broad spectrum of blonde hues, whereas the darker your skin tone, you need to make sure your blonde isn’t too platinum or ash in appearance,” says Nadar. “Otherwise your highlights will look far too artificial and your skin may appear ruddy.”
The next consideration before taking the plunge (particularly for our fellow lazy girls) is maintenance. It’s crucial to tell your hair colourist the upkeep you’re willing to put in. Are you ready to visit the salon every couple of weeks? Or perhaps you’re wanting it to grow out with your natural colour? All important questions to ask yourself. Lastly, it’s noteworthy to mention product, there would be nothing worse than an expensive salon visit, all to ruin the colour using cheap supermarket shampoo.
“Make an appointment at your salon for a monthly top up as the shade needs to be prescribed to match perfectly and can’t be emulated in your bathroom at home,” Nader advises. “This is a little stronger than a coloured shampoo or conditioner which is applied once a week.”
For home treatments, Nader suggests a cosmetic shampoo and/or conditioner. “This purple pigment cream will brighten and clean out any unwanted brassiness tones from strands in a flash and make them brand new again.”
QUESTIONS FOR YOUR COLOURIST:
What colour will suit my skin tone best?
What technique will you use?
How often will I need to visit to refresh the colour?
I want a change in winter. What would you suggest?
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R+Co Sunset Blvd Blonde Shampoo, $45. SHOP NOW
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