Varieties of ashy highlighting and subtleties of coloring

The peak of the popularity of solid dyeing is gradually fading into the shadows, but it is being replaced by such techniques for changing the color of the hair as shatush, ombre, balayazh and, of course, highlighting.

Cold tones are now gradually taking hold, and one of the most fashionable colors is ash and all kinds of shades from crystal white to heavy gray with bluish and dark shades.

Ash highlighting is suitable for those girls who want to create a bright image, but do not seek to use flashy colors. This is the choice of elegant women who respect the classics, albeit somewhat modernized.

Ash highlighting is a rather unusual option for staining. This method involves coloring some individual strands in a cold silver color, which, if improperly stained, can take the form of an early gray hair.

But very harmoniously, strands of ashen color will look on girls of the cold type. They are owners of blond hair, eyes and skin. But we remember that girls of a specific color type in their pure form are very rare. Most often, we meet carriers of mixed type, therefore, recommendations for wearing ashy highlighting will be based on some separate appearance.

Ash highlighting looks good on brown hair, but only if you have very good skin, as any redness, acne and imperfections will only become more noticeable. The same thing will happen with smoky highlights on black hair.

Gray shades fall on fair hair very well, but you should turn to a professional for advice if you are very dark or lightly tan. It will also look strange highlighted smoky blond, if you have dark or bright green eyes.

And in no case do not try to highlight the graphite shade on red hair! They simply do not combine with each other, and as a result, a dirty tone can turn out.

Ladies of middle age or a little older should carefully choose this type of staining, as the ashen color can make it look several years older than it actually is. But the ash color is well suited for those who look much younger than their age and want to appear older and more serious. And also smoky shades well mask early gray hair, but here a lot depends on the color and the chosen shade, therefore, before painting, it is recommended that the master consult. For example, the shade of “ash blonde” will not only emphasize the early gray hair, but also create the impression of not the most well-groomed blonde.

The main types of highlighting are frequent (it is also frequency - this is the coloring of many small locks) and classic (locks of medium width are painted). Other highlighting techniques, one way or another, are based on these two, the difference is only in the number of colors used. Frequent highlighting is suitable for thin hair, as it can be used to give the hair such splendor and volume that it needs, as well as visually lift it up from the roots. It looks most natural, as it eliminates sudden transitions, and creates a natural, smooth gradient.

Ombre - uses two colors very close to each other. Often with ashy highlighting with the help of ombre, the ends of the hair are stained.

Zonal (it is also partial) - suggests, as the name implies, the allocation of certain zones on the hair. Often this is a frame of the face, bangs or tips. It is used to give the image freshness and energy.

Balayazh. This technique requires the use of several shades at once to create gradual color transitions from natural hair to highlighted.

Cold silver strands will look good on brown hair, but only with light eyes. And it will also be appropriate to use ashy shades on brown hair and in the presence of very fair skin, without redness, moles and freckles. With this option, you should choose deep smoky or ashy shades - refuse shining white tones. In dark gray colors, you can add a little pink pigment in order to revitalize the face and avoid doll coldness. The color of silver goes well with very fair skin, pinkish and porcelain, in other cases, it is necessary to observe the absence of a tan.

Ashy highlighting will add elegance to black hair, and with thin hair that cannot boast of splendor, it will significantly add visible volume. Perform such highlighting on black hair should be fair-skinned beauties with bright same eyes. This is a portrait of a cold winter girl. Strands of sparkling silver will look harmonious, which will complement the overall cold look, give elegance and mystery. The metallic shade will add rigor and seriousness, create the image of a determined and strong-willed lady.

On fair hair, ashen highlighting looks the most advantageous, however, much depends on the shade of the blond.Use light silver and ashy light shades. In general, the color of the strands of any smoky shade - from snow-white to wet asphalt - will fit well on fair hair. For a harmonious image, you only need to take into account your color type, hair length and such appearance features as freckles or age spots.

For blondes, the highlighting option is “salt with pepper”. A bonus to this is that if you are a dyed blonde, the ashen color will almost completely interrupt the yellowness that appears over time on all bleached hair with a golden blond.

Some types of highlighting are designed to be applied to long hair, respectively, to show a complete transition and play of colors, it will probably only be at a suitable length. Others, on the contrary, are not suitable for stretching the paint pattern over long transitions, and look most advantageous on short hair, which give volume and lightness.

Short-haired ash highlighting will give the wearer style and expressiveness, add volume to the hair, and in the presence of bright eyes, emphasize their color and fill with saturation. The advantage of short hair is the lack of need for permanent styling, and with ashy blond, slight negligence will only add charm. Only the growing ends should be tinted, but they can also be originally beaten in gray tones, which will look very natural.

Both types of highlighting are suitable for a short haircut - both frequency and classic. Wide strands (up to two centimeters) make the hair longer visually, and also help to better reveal the shade of gray.

Medium length provides much greater scope for colorist action. On such curls, pure highlighting can be performed (when only one color is used on the entire surface of the head, without transitions and extraneous shades) and other types.

With pure highlighting, a more rigorous image is obtained, which emphasizes facial features, gives them expressiveness and clarity of lines.

Another way is highlighting in graphite tones. In this case, all shades of graphite are used from the lightest with silver tint to dark - the color of a pencil rod.

Good on curls of medium length looks zonal highlighting. Here a lot depends on the area that you want to paint. For example, when brightening the area near the forehead or cheekbones, the face is more open and refreshed, and the eyes become deeper. Since this method uses several shades to create gradual transitions from a natural color to a smoky one, it becomes possible to gently highlight the bangs (if any).

Highlighting the bangs usually occurs last, when the result of dyeing is already visible, and the master understands how to properly dye the bangs so that it harmonizes with the rest of the hairline. One more point is important here - if the highlighting is incorrectly selected, the bangs can take on a groomed, “sleek” look. It is important to choose the size of the strands and the number of shades so that the bangs also look voluminous and thick. Highlighting looks best on a long bang or a bang of medium length with a diagonal cut. Staining of asymmetric bangs is not allowed.

Long hair allows you to quite unusual to reveal any type of highlighting. In this case, only those species that require the presence of short colored “feathers” are not suitable, since on long hair it will look just spotty and a little ridiculous. All other methods that allow you to stretch the color along the entire length (or for the most part) of the strand will fall well on both medium and long hair.

The alternation of light gray, light ash and snow-white shades will look good. This will help to fill the image of the bearer with grace and nobility. This alternation will look especially impressive on dark blond and black curls.

A method suitable for long hair is reverse highlighting. Very complex, but interesting in its execution: the entire mass of hair is dyed in the selected shade of ashen, after which the colorist paints individual strands with natural shades - light brown, chocolate, black coffee and others.

Another original variation of highlighting for long curls is highlighting “salt and pepper”. In order for this option to turn out not too complicated for execution, it is necessary to have natural hair of any shade of brown - light brown, dark blond, brown or chocolate. Separate thin strands are painted in the selected shade of the smoky range, and the remaining strands, which should also be thin, remain a natural color.

If you want to make sure that only the lower part of the hair becomes more prominent, then this is quite acceptable, but at the same time the hair growth zone (basal) and the upper part of the head should remain natural color, without changes. Starting from the zone in the back of the head, the highlighting lowers, gradually becoming more and more light towards the tips.

Ashen highlighting has a lot of positive aspects, for example, overlapping gray hair and the ability to use a huge number of colors and tint tonics, if you suddenly get tired of a gray shade. Even when highlighting in a graphic scale, the new color will easily fall on the smoky part, giving you a new image.

About how to make highlighting ashy, see the video below.