Of all the inimitable cool girls emerging from European epicentres of culture, the Scandinavian style set are amongst the most recent, meaning we have a lot to learn from this crowd of colourful dernier cri.
Take the Scandi Hairline trend that’s dominating TikTok, for instance. While Swedish fashion designer and content creator Matilda Djerf has long been hailed as the standard of Scandi beauty with her enviable cascading blonde tresses, millions of social media users (yes, all 43.8 million of them) are uncovering the secret to achieving high shine, lit-from-within locks that the Scandi savants have become proponents of.
For the uninitiated unaware of the Scandi Hairline technique, may we first congratulate you on your social media detox, and second direct your attention to the benefits of brightening the baby hairs that frame your complexion.
The technique involves taking the finer pieces of hair that line your forehead two or three shades lighter than the rest of your tresses, leaving your roots and length either your natural colour or a hue slightly darker than that at the base. The results are lived-in yet face-brightening tresses that appear as a radiant halo around your face. Talk about extending the summer glow year-round.
“This is an amazing technique to brighten the face, giving a sun bleach feel to the colour,” explains leading hair specialist Jaye Edwards, who is based in Australia. “The key is to use a very fine brush to pick up the finest section of hair,” notes the hair colourist and Edwards & Co. founder.
Similar to the softer “luxe blonde” colour sported by Gen-Z poster girl Sophia Richie Grainge, the Scandi Hairline will leave you with a glossy, golden mane that extends the length of your hair’s natural shine because the technique lifts and smudges the roots.
“This technique is for the beachy blondes, it will enhance the sun-kissed vibe and soften the grow-out,” Edwards notes.
Given that netizens, and those amongst us who managed to get their travel plans out of the group chat, are currently embracing the merits of Euro Summer by emulating the ‘tomato girl aesthetic’, this slightly blushed root will channel the results of a day spent by the Mediterranean under the sun, all without risking any exposure to ultraviolet radiation.
Achieving the Scandi Hairline style is even easier, too. “The technique is a scalp bleach, you want to lift the hair 2-3 shades lighter to create natural brightness around the face. The key is to lift to a colour that will compliment your base, this will help it grow out subtly,” maintains Edwards.
And with the look being very low-touch, the style services those who can’t be bothered fiddling with a blowout or maintenance, like other cuts and colours require, see: the bob. Wearing your hair both up and down will achieve the same glowing effect Edwards tells GRAZIA, but for effortless up-dos reach for a volumising product at the roots to make the hairline really gleam.
It would be remiss of us, however, to not leave you with a word of warning about the wonderful world of hair bleaching. Like in any instance, you should proceed with caution so as to not damage your strands.
“For a scalp bleach, this is a pretty low maintenance technique, as baby hairs around the face tend to grow super slowly. It is super important not to overdo it and compromise the quality of the hair,” Edwards says. “You want this technique to look super soft and natural.”
