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Your Top 10 hair questions answered

We know you’re on top of the latest hair trends, so a few weeks ago, we invited you to email us with your most pressing ‘back-to-basics’ hair questions. We took the ten most frequently asked, then consulted some of the leading international hair stylists and colourists to bring you ten definitive answers. Here’s exactly what you wanted to know:

Pass on the brass

Q: I’m bored of my dark brown hair. I’d love to go lighter, but am afraid of ending up with brassy stripes or hair the colour of straw.

A: Because straw only looks good on a stable floor, going from dark to blonde needs a ‘softly softly’ approach, says senior colourist at John Frieda Phillipa Locke. ‘Going from dark to light should be a gradual process, and you’ll need to visit your salon for an in-depth consultation, so you and your stylist can work together to find the right “bespoke” blonde for you.’
‘Consider lifting your natural colour with tinted highlights rather than ones containing bleach,’ says leading hair authority Trevor Sorbie. ‘It’s bleach that makes colour go brassy – and it’s not exactly kind to the condition of your hair. Ask for caramel, toffee and beige tones – and take current pictures of Mischa Barton and Jessica Alba with you as reference as they’re both good examples of hair that has been lightened significantly without any brassiness.’
You could also try the ‘high lift tint’ at Daniel Galvin. ‘It infuses hair with an intensive blue tint that kills any orange or red pigment, meaning hair can be taken shades lighter with very little bleach,’ says Galvin Jnr.
Baliage is another method of lightening hair that’s having a bit of a moment right now. ‘It focuses on lightening the ends of hair – a bit like reverse highlights – giving a natural, sun-kissed look that’s very fresh,’ says head colourist at Daniel Hersheson Sibi Bolan, who calls her version of the technique Up-lighting. It’s what she uses on clients Alexa Chung and Rosie Huntington-Whitely.

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