Switching up your hair color is always an exciting event, especially when you’re entering into a new season of your life. If you ask us, no change is more transformative to your overall look than your hair color. A new hue makes a bold statement about who you are and what you want to become. But committing to a new color can be intimidating. Where do you even begin in your search for the perfect hue?
If you’re in need of hair color ideas that complement your complexion and style, we’ve got you. From mega-dramatic tones that give you a whole new look to low-maintenance colors that suit your busy lifestyle, this guide offers hair color ideas that will work for you. Concerned about compromising the health of your hair? We’re also here to offer tips on maintaining your color and keeping your locks in prime condition.
Best Hair Color Ideas: 6 Fabulous Options to Consider
We firmly believe that any color can work for any person. If you want bright pink hair with blue highlights in a pixie cut, go for it! But there are some guidelines to help you choose the best hair color idea for your complexion — let’s explain.
Most hair colors either lean towards warm or cool tones. The same goes for your skin tone. If you have yellow, gold, or peachy undertones, you have a warm complexion. If you have blue or pink undertones, your complexion is cool.
Not sure which one describes you?
Here’s a quick trick: Examine the color of the veins on your wrist to determine the type of complexion you have. Blue veins mean you have cool undertones and green veins mean you have warm undertones.
For your hair and skin tone to complement each other, select a hair color that’s within your warm or cool color family. Let’s review six on-trend hair color ideas to see which ones might work for you.
Chocolate Brown
Chocolate brown is one of the richest, most beautiful hair shades out there. It looks amazing on those with warm golden skin tones and can bring out any eye color. Since this is such a dimensional shade, we’d only suggest it for those with a lot of time to commit to the chocolatey aesthetic. If your natural hair color is much lighter or darker than chocolate, you’ll need frequent touch-ups to maintain this rich hue.
Pro Tip: Check out more brown hair color ideas.
Bronde
There’s a fine line between dirty blonde and light brown hair and it’s called bronde. This color blends blonde and brown tones to give you a trendy, low-maintenance look. Being “bronde” can truly work for everybody, so long as you choose the right shade for you.
If you have naturally dark hair and are looking to go bronde, we’d first recommend getting darker blonde highlights. Choosing golden blonde or caramel highlights will give you a bronde look you can easily maintain when your dark roots grow out. For blondes wanting to go darker, ask your colorist for lowlights in brunette shades like mushroom or light golden brown.
Gray
The gray hair color trend can look modern, playful, and sophisticated all at the same time. Gray shades work best on those with cool undertones. If you’re looking to layer a gray tone over your current color, choose a shade close to your natural hue. If you have naturally lighter hair, go with a light lavender or silvery blonde hue. If your hair is naturally dark, a charcoal or blue-gray shade will flatter your tresses.
Pro Tip: Explore more gray hair color ideas.
Black
Give your hairstyle the ultimate edge by dying it the darkest shade of all. Black hair is undeniably mysterious and dramatic, especially if you’ve been rocking lighter tresses for some time. If you’re not sure if this raven-toned hair color idea is for you, here are some things to consider.
Paler complexions with cool undertones will find black hair to be more flattering than those with peachy, warm undertones who may find that this dark shade washes them out. If you have a medium to darker skin tone, your richer pigment allows you to pull off this dramatic shade well. If your complexion is rich in golden or yellow undertones, mix in mocha brown balayage highlights to add multidimensional warm tones to your tresses.
Rose Gold
The pastel hair trend is still having a moment, but this time it’s veering into natural tones with redhead-adjacent shades of rose gold. This color looks kind of like strawberry blonde but has more pinky elements to it, making it best for those with warm, golden, or peach undertones. If you want to experiment with this cotton candy shade, layer a rose gold ombre hair color over your locks or add some peekaboo hair highlights to the ends of your tresses.
Pro Tip: Got redhead curiosity? Check out more red hair color ideas.
Platinum Blonde
Platinum blonde is an iconic shade that many desire but few have the guts to commit to. If you love this Barbie-like blonde hair color idea but are afraid you can’t pull it off, think again. Platinum naturally complements those with pale skin and light eyes, but having these features isn’t required to rock this cool blonde shade. If your skin has cool undertones (and you’re ready for all the attention this color is going to give you), go platinum!
The biggest question and concern about going platinum is whether bleaching it will destroy one’s hair. The answer is yes — unless you take the right steps to prevent major damage. The bleaching process is toughest on black or brunette hair because the darker your natural hair color is, the more rounds of bleach you’ll have to go through to get it to platinum. So if you’re dead set on taking your dark hair to the lightest of light shades, you have to commit to routine TLC for your tresses.
Pro Tip: Try a purple shampoo to preserve platinum color and combat brassy tones.
How to Care for Color-Treated Hair
The downside of committing to a new hair color is that it can come with some degree of hair damage. Hair dye works by penetrating hair cuticles to deposit or remove color in the cortex, causing swelling and some damage to the hair strands. Regular dye jobs can cause your hair to feel rough, dry, tangled, and frizzy. Luckily, using a hair mask can make your hair look and feel a lot better.
Function of Beauty’s customized hair mask is made to help replenish color damaged hair. It’s created with conditioning agents like argan oil, Japanese sake, and jojoba ester oil to give you more hydration than a traditional conditioner. Coat your strands with this product once or twice a week to improve softness and help restore the moisture your tresses need.
Now That You’ve Found the Best Hair Color Idea …
With so many hair color ideas, it can be daunting to choose one. But once you know how to choose a hair tone that works with your complexion — and understand how much time it takes to keep up with color commitments — it’ll be much easier to decide on a perfect hue.
To help maintain your new hair color, Function of Beauty has you covered. Take this hair quiz to build a custom shampoo and conditioner combo. This hair washing set can be optimized with goals such as color protection, which will prevent fading and enhance your strands for optimum color uptake and long lasting color.
