Balayage

The word balayage comes from the French, meaning “to sweep”. The technique hand-painting, or sweeping, soft highlights throughout your hair free-hand, allowing us to place your highlights exactly where they will look best. The aim is to give your hair a beautiful natural look, as though you have been out in the sun all day. The colour is painted free-hand and there are no hard lines, meaning that the effect is subtler than that achieved with conventional foil highlights. Using balayage we can create a bespoke individual look, which can be adapted to your individual personality and style.

Yes, absolutely. Balayage looks stunning on all shades of blonde, brown, red, auburn or even grey hair. As an alternative to using natural hair colour shades such as blondes and warm caramel tones, you could also use balayage to try out fashion colours such as on-trend pastel shades.

Our skilled hair colour technicians will paint the balayage colour directly onto your hair, applying it more finely closer to your roots and with bolder brush strokes towards the ends. This freehand technique allows us to highlight areas where the sun would naturally lift your colour. This will give you a finish that’s both subtle and multi-dimensional.

The length of your appointment will depend on the length of your hair and also whether we are adding balayage throughout your hair or just a few highlights, for example to frame your face. We will advise you on how long it will take if you book in for a complimentary consultation Please note, if your hair is damaged, it will take longer to achieve the desired result. If this is the case, we will work to improve the condition of your hair so it is ready for the colouring process. We recommend using Olaplex to improve your hair’s strength and condition and produce a more vibrant colour.

Ombré produces a contrasting two-toned effect from root to tip. By contrast, balayage is a subtler technique, in which the colour is more blended and only a few sections of highlights will be added. Ombré gives colour that is dark at the roots and gradually becomes lighter towards the tips in a defined way, whereas balayage is more multi-dimensional and the colour is strongest at the tips of your hair.

There are many other hair colouring techniques and variations on balayage. These include babylights, baby balayage, root melt, root stretch, colour melt or free-hand highlights. If you’ve seen a hair look you love, bring us in an image and we’ll adapt the look for you.

Book a complimentary hair colour consultation at our Canterbury salon and we will assess the colour and condition of your hair. After this we will advise you on the results we can achieve. Your hair’s health is always our top priority, so our colour experts will tailor your hair colour to create the perfect look without damaging your hair. We may also recommend a strengthening treatment such as Olaplex.

We will also ask you to come in for a quick skin allergy test at least 48 hours before your hair colour appointment to ensure you will not suffer any adverse reactions to the colours used.

Call us on 01227 768418 to book a complimentary consultation and we will give you a no-obligation quote.

At your appointment, we will advise you on how to keep your balayage looking fabulous for longer. One of the best things about balayage is that it is relatively low maintenance – your root regrowth will be less obvious than with conventional foil highlights.

To keep your colour at its best we recommend visiting your Blakes colourist every 8-12 weeks. In addition, we would suggest a quick colour glossing touch-up session every 6 weeks. This will keep your hair looking really fresh between appointments. We also recommend using Paul Mitchell professional-quality colour care shampoo and conditioner, to keep your colour fresh and vibrant.