Balayage is the technique of choice among the most discerning clients, celebrities, models and fashionistas
who demand hair color that is designed exclusively for them.

Clients love that Balayage is less expensive to maintain than traditional highlights.
Color grows out without showing a noticeable and obvious re-growth, requiring fewer trips to the salon.

Balayage allows for a sun-kissed natural looking hair color, similar to what nature gives us as children, with softer, less noticeable re-growth. The principal idea being less is more when creating a natural, multi-tonal finish. The technique uses patches of light and shade to create multiple dimensions to the color.
It’s a great method if you want to refresh your color but don’t want to go for a bold color overhaul.

As well as looking much more sophisticated and natural, the big appeal of Balayage is that it’s bespoke, a skilled colorist in Balayage will look at your face and place the highlights to perfectly flatter and enhance your features, They can also place the color wherever suits the way you wear your hair. That’s why most A-listers, opt for Balayage.

Lately, we have seen many celebrities with highlights that are floating though the mid-lengths and ends of the hair rather than all the way from root to tip.
This technique has actually been around for decades, but other trends and technologies took center stage for a while.

Before there was frosting, before there was foil…there was balayage.
In French, balayage means “to sweep”. So, the term suggests that the balayage highlighting technique is the way your colorist sweeps the lightener or color vertically down the hair strand to produce a blended, sun-kissed result.

The beauty of this look is that, it usually has a deeper (darker) root area than a traditional foil highlight, so the maintenance could be less often, depending on your desired end result.

Balayage allows your colorist the artistic freedom to visually place the color wherever the sun naturally hits the hair.  An extremely well trained certified balayage colorist can paint and drift pieces so small that, It will look like the natural highlights you had when you were a child.

Always find a hair salon with certified colorists for balayage! You can also request multiple shades to be used, either for dimension or contrast. If you have gray hair and need a root touch up, ask for a few pieces of balayage around your face to soften the demarcation as your hair grows. If you normally request foil highlights and you want to try something new.

How is Balayage applied?

Balayage is painted on the surface of the hair strand and not saturated through the section until the very tips. This ensures a smooth, blended stroke of color. It can also be called a freehand technique because no foil or meche are used to create the highlights.

What sets it apart from traditional hair coloring?

Balayage is quite different to traditional highlights because no foil is used and the color is painted on freehand. The finished result is less uniform than typical highlights. If you’ve ever been worried about having stripy color after a visit to the hairdressers, balayage is a sure way to avoid that harsh contrast between colors, especially if you’re going blonder.

The color created is totally bespoke to you and can even be placed in a way to compliment or distract attention away from certain features on the face.

How long does it take to do Balayage?

The depth of Balayage can vary so much from a few small highlights that will only take a matter of minutes to a full on, triple process look that can take up to 3 hours. Though it can take quite a long time to do a multi-tonal, layered Balayage compared to regular color the benefit of the application means you will be able to leave longer between your next color appointment. If you want a few Balayage babylights this may take as little as 45 minutes.

Does Balayage require a lot of maintenance?

Typically Balayage requires far less maintenance than traditional color because it grows out beautifully and there are no strong regrowth lines. It also means you can wait for longer between appointments so it’s ‘the perfect technique for a modern, busy woman.

If you want to make your Balayage last as long as possible, opt for a babylight, it’s the most subtle type of color you can go for. Investing in some good quality color care styling products is also advisable to keep your color looking fresh for longer.

If your color turns brassy after a while you can refresh it without going for a full top up with a toner or gloss to give your shine back.

can people with short hairstyles or male clients get Balayage?

YES, One type of hairstyle that can benefit from a Balayage treatment are the shorter  looks, like a pixie cut, short shag or men’s hairstyles. The reason for this is that because there is less hair to work with, foil highlights will stick out more and look less natural.
On the other hand, a natural appearance will be created by the Balayage and the different colors will be much more subtle.

Another area where Balayage reigns supreme is for adding color to the finer hair found at a woman’s hairline. Foil simply cannot reach these points and the Balayage technique will make the hair more manageable by requiring less frequent visits to the salon.

Can people with Blonde, Brunette Red or Dark hair color, all benefit from Balayage?

ABSOlLUTELY YES,
All hair colors can benefit from Balayege.
It works on both light and dark hair depending on how much lighter you want to go and all hair textures. Whether it’s straight, wavy or curly the color will still work well and look great.

What’s the difference between Ombre and Balayage?

Balayage is a totally blended hair look, there are no lines or blocks of color and the graduation between shades is much more subtle. Some lengths of the hair are kept darker for a seamless color finish.

Ombre hair has a more defined contrast between the roots and tips of the hair with color starting mid-way down the strands. Ombre color is a more noticeable, statement look compared to Balayage.

Does Balayage work on grey hair?

Balayage works for all colors but the only thing is it won’t cover grey hair, it will only help blend in the grey to disguise it so if you want full coverage for grey it might not be the right choice for you.

What makes Balayage timeless?

Balayage creates a totally bespoke, personalised color finish. Healthy, natural looking hair will always be ‘in’ which is why the technique has remained popular for so many years. Depending on what you’re looking for the finish can be subtle or quite bold. It’s the ability to completely tailor the colour effect that makes this such a popular colour choice.

Special Note:

If you are ready to experience the balayage, It will be best served by going to a Balayage certified professional colorist that has extensive training and experience with the technique.

A Professional Balayage expert will be able to place the color to suit your skin tone so it’ll look amazing and really light up your features and It’s totally bespoke to you!

It’s true that Balayage can technically be done by anyone, but a small mistake can easily lead to a costly problem (several different unwanted tone along with chemical hair damage) that even a professionals will have a hard time fixing it.