Do you have beautiful, rich black hair but want to brighten your look with highlights? Or maybe you’re a hairstylist who wants to learn more about the best highlights for dark hair so that you can provide the best service for your clients. Either way, you have found the right article. Deciding which highlights are best for dark hair can be challenging for various reasons, which we will discuss. However, adding lightness to your locks is definitely possible — and it will look great!
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If you’re wondering which kind of salon developer to use to lift your client’s hair or which color is best for you, we will cover all you need to know here. So, let’s get into it!
Things to Consider Before Highlighting Black Hair
If your hair is dark brown or black, there may be some important factors to consider before you highlight your hair. Several factors may prevent your hair from having super light highlights, but that doesn’t mean that your hairstylist won’t be able to add dimension and lightness throughout your hair using professional hair color. Here are some things to consider before getting highlights:
- Your Hair Could Require Multiple Processes – Depending on your hair texture and history, your dark hair may take a little longer to get lighter. If you desire really light highlights, your stylist may need to do multiple processes.
- Multiple Processes Can Cost You – If your stylist has to double process your hair, you can expect your trip to the salon to be a little more costly.
- There Are Several Tones of Blonde – Your hairstylist can create highlights that look more natural and add dimension to your hair. They can also create highlights that add contrast and are much lighter than your natural hair.
- Damage Could Occur – Anytime someone gets highlights, hair damage can happen. This happens regardless of your hair color or texture, but it might happen more due to additional processes because your hair is darker.
- Highlights Are Absolutely Possible – Just because your hair is dark doesn’t mean that you can’t achieve highlights!
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10 Best Highlights for Dark Hair
While we think people with black or dark brown hair can achieve any kind of highlighted style they like, these are the highlights that look best on dark hair.
- Light Brown Ombre – If you or your client loves a lived-in look that keeps the roots dark but has lighter, warmer ends, a light brown ombre would be perfect. This style keeps the richness and darkness of the client’s natural hair, but adds warmth and brightness with the lightened ends.
- Espresso Brown Hair – You or your client could opt for espresso brown hair for a more gradual and natural-looking ombre. This style has dark roots with a smooth gradient of rich brown that gets lighter toward the end.
Blonde Highlights – If you want bright, blonde highlights, you can certainly do this with dark hair. We recommend going for a balayage style that incorporates the highlights in a more natural way.
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- Caramel Highlights – For highlights that look more natural and blended with dark, black hair, caramel tones are perfect. This style is also easier to achieve for darker hair. Whether you or your client chooses to start the highlights close to the root or they want more subtle, balayage-type highlights, caramel pieces give black hair dimension and warmth.
- Honey Blonde Highlights – To add warmth to dark brown or black hair, honey blonde highlights with face-framing money pieces and highlights will totally change your look or your client’s look.
- Copper Highlights or Ombre – If you like fiery locks, try copper highlights or an ombre style that heats up your natural black tresses.
- Black Hair with Red Highlights – Loving the copper highlights idea? Maybe you take it one step further with bright red highlights. This will take multiple processes and may require more time and money, but well worth it.
- Gray Highlights – Gray hair had a major moment, and from that came black roots with gray ombre or balayage highlights. Similar to the red highlights, this style may take multiple processes and visits.
- Black Hair with Money Pieces – If you want bold, face-framing highlights, you can always ask for two money pieces, which are bright and blonde. The rest of your hair will stay black.
- Bright Balayage – If you want platinum highlights with less damage, a bright balayage may be your solution.
Aren’t you excited to brighten your dark hair? We’re confident that you will love these styles.
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