Denim: The Must-Have Shade for Hair
2016 sees a classic fashion staple crossover to hair colour.
Jack Howard at Paul Edmonds (colourist to Poppy Delevingne, Suki Waterhouse and Gillian Anderson amongst others) says,
The strongest trend coming through for 2016 has to be denim hues. Anything goes, from deep indigo to acid-washed shades.
Colour Director at Ken Picton, Paul Dennsion, says,
The trend has come hot on the heels of the announcement of the first ever dual colour of the year from Pantone. Rose Quartz and Serenity come together to create a distinctly rose toned denim effect.
John Spanton, Technical Education Director for Trevor Sorbie says,
The denim hair trend is a follow on from last year’s granny-grey tones. Pushing the toning of your blonde a little further in to the unnatural, you can go straight from the catalogue 'dad jeans' blue to that favourite old pair of washed out Sunday jeans. Clearly this works better on a cool skin tone and you need to make sure that you are the lightest blonde possible for it to work, as any hint of yellow will give more of a green tone. Speak to your colourist to see what depth of blue you want and make sure you understand the limited durability of this type of colour.
A-listers such as Demi Lovato, Nicole Richie, Jourdan Dunn, Gwen Stefani, Jaime King and Katy Perry have all embraced the denim trend, and British Hairdresser of the Year, Darren Ambrose, lead hairdresser at Fashion Week for the likes of Gyunel and PPQ, says it’s easy to wear...
It’s easy to change any existing bronde, balayage or adventurous blonde colour into a high fashion look by quick toning. It can change your image for spring/summer and revamp your haircut. It will instantly change caramel and blonde to a more mysterious tonal palette. It can be temporary with a navy blue/denim, which would fade up to a green-blue, then pale greens and lighter on a pre-lightened blonde, so the journey out is really interesting too. You would need to pre-lighten to get a really blue base. It’s an ageless colour; I have clients in their 60s wearing denim blue in small fashion placements of hidden colour so it just peeks through, while teens and twenties/thirties can wear a more vibrant version. Make-up wise, it can be nice to leave it fresh and nude on the face with a strong look like this.
Karine Jackson, former London Hairdresser of the Year and Organic Colour Expert agrees,
The Denim blue trend is exploding this year, and is really easy to achieve for those with blonde or pre-lightened hair. My favourite shade has to be the cool stonewashed shade – perfect for the transition from winter to spring, and much easier to wash out than the darker denims. In the salon we’ve launched the Go Blue service. The team will show you how to mix professional colour with a lesson on how to do it at home and the right products thrown in. We look at skin tone, placement and the denim shade you’re looking to achieve. This service costs £57 – which includes a blow-dry and two take home bottles of colour.
milk_shake Ambassador, Shelley Pengilly says,
milk_shake Blue Direct Colour (£28.49 for 8-10 applications) is ideal for achieving that perfect denim blue. It all depends on what you’re applying it on top of that will affect the shade. For a dark indigo, just apply the direct colour onto wet hair for 20 minutes. Not only will you achieve a super dark classic denim, you’ll also get a high shine which will give the look an edge. For something more intensely blue, it’s important to pre-lighten the hair to a very pale white blonde. If there’s anything warm toned about the hair, it’ll go teal or green! Denim is a super fun trend to try out, especially if you’ve got a tired Ombre and want something a little cooler. milk_shake’s Direct Colour range will fade so top it up at home to keep your colour intense, or enjoy the stonewashed shades as it fades out.