Highlighting for dark hair 2021: medium, short, long

Modern highlighting on dark hair allows you to change your look without harming your curls. In 2021, relief, complex coloring techniques are in fashion - air touch, fine, relief highlighting, with an indentation from the roots. There are many techniques - choose the one that suits you.

Modern TOP technologies

Complex types of coloring remain the most popular. The smaller, more natural and more prominent the pattern, the better. Zonal, large-scale coloring, such as balayage, also does not lose its position. Each type of coloring has its fans.

Glare highlighting

Every year new techniques appear, one of them is glare highlighting. These are light highlights that look very natural.

Fine highlighting

Using a ponytail comb, very thin strands are separated. The thinner and more of them, the more beautiful and natural the coloring will be. Small is suitable for any structure and length of curls. With its help you can visually create volume.

Air touch

With the help of a hairdryer, foil and a brightening composition, a natural, relief pattern is created. The master separates a small strand and blows it from above with a stream of air from a hairdryer. Small hairs that have fallen out from below are separated, and the rest is lightened. This allows you to get a smooth transition from the root zone to the length. Air touch allows you to go without correction for up to 6 months.

Balayage

Balayage is the perfect solution for dark-haired women. Beautiful stretching allows you to refresh your look. The peculiarity of the technique is the lightening of wide strands, with an indentation from the root zone. Looks good on haircuts with torn ends, asymmetry, curly hair, and large curls.

Remains in demand over the past few years. Such highlights look beautiful in a hairstyle for medium hair.

Frequent

Many hairdressers use frequent lightening followed by tinting to change the color from dark to light. This technique allows you to gradually transition to light brown or even blond without harming your curls. It can be done over the entire volume or only on the upper part.

Venetian

Venetian highlights on dark hair are very popular among celebrities. It is characterized by light red tones fading into warm blonde. The main thing when painting is randomness. There should be no clear lines or geometry. You should get the effect of sun-bleached strands.

Rare

Rare highlighting on dark hair allows you to highlight several strands and add highlights to your hairstyle. With its help, they create an accent on the face, lightening the bangs area or at the temples. This is an easy way to refresh your look without resorting to drastic decisions.

Ombre

It is not inferior in popularity to the balayage technique. The main idea is a smooth transition from natural color to lighter color. It’s as if after a long vacation on a sunny beach, the color has simply faded. The effect is amazing.

American highlighting on dark hair - photo

To create a natural pattern, use wide strands. They are lightened and tinted. For tinting, several shades are chosen, but the main task is that they do not differ much from the original color. The effect of naturalness is important. The resulting highlights and shine give the hairstyle visual volume.

Through the cap

To do highlighting at home, a cap is the best solution. You need to comb your hair well and determine the parting you always wear. If there are no holes in the hat, you need to make them. We put it on top and use a hook to pull small strands out through the holes. Apply the brightening composition to them and wait 35-40 minutes. Carefully remove the cap and wash off the brightening composition. If necessary, we do tinting.

From the roots

Recently, types of coloring with an indentation from the roots have gained particular popularity. But not everyone likes them. Highlighting from the roots allows you to lighten the entire length and visually obtain root volume. But it has its drawback - correction will have to be done more often.

Light highlights for dark hair

Barely noticeable highlights allow you to get a beautiful effect. This is a way to add depth and relief to a flat, monochromatic color. Light, caramel, copper strands on black curls will look good. For dark blond, brown, and chocolate shades, cold, ashy highlights are suitable.

Not from the roots

Coloring with an indentation from the roots is a fashion trend for 2021. This method allows you to do without color correction for a long time. It helps solve the problem of lack of volume. When applying the lightening mixture, make an indent of 5 centimeters and shade it well so that the transition is smooth.

Colored

Colored strands look beautiful on black curls. This is the most striking way to change your image. This method is used for zonal staining. Select an area near the face, lighten it and tint it in a bright color. Only the bangs can be highlighted. Colored highlighting looks bright on a bob or pixie cut.

Ash color

Ash highlighting is ideal for women of a cold color type - Winter, Summer. Silver highlights will look beautiful on dark brown, chocolate, and black hair. Girls with warm, dark skin and chestnut curls should not choose it. The ash will be dissonant with the warmth of the skin.

White

White on dark is very bright. If you want to create a bright image, feel free to choose white highlights. White is suitable for owners of Winter and Summer color types. It belongs to the cold range, which is combined with light milky or porcelain skin. Eye color from blue to green. White coloring will not suit those with olive, dark skin and brown eyes.

Red

Red can be anything from ruby to scarlet. It can be warm or cold, and it depends on which tone is right for you. Red highlights will look good on women with freckles, olive, tanned skin. Dark skin is highlighted with bright red shades.

Caramel

Caramel is quite a warm shade, it awakens dark hair and brings contrast and brightness. To freshen up the look, go for an ombre look with slightly coppery caramel highlights. This shade will immediately “warm up” your face and add shine to it.

Cold

Cold highlighting - ash, silver, pearl, purple. There is not a drop of gold or orange pigments in it. To get a beautiful color, you need to lighten it to bright yellow and tone it with paint with ash pigment. Cold shades are quite capricious, the ashes are quickly washed away. To preserve it for a long time, you need to use a tint anti-yellow shampoo and a tint balm.

Red strands

The palette of red is very rich - from ash-red to bright fiery. If you have delicate, light, porcelain skin and light eyes, choose a calm, even faded or carrot color. Golden blonde or caramel would be suitable. If the face is dark, olive, swarthy - red, copper tones of red.

Color selection

Fashion trends in recent years advocate naturalness, so if you don’t want to shock others, it’s better to choose shades that are close to the natural range. The choice of lightening shade, as a rule, depends on the original color of the strands.

Highlighting light curls involves creating a feminine, delicate image. In any case, it is better for blondes to avoid intense shades; they look too provocative. A great way to refresh your look is to lighten individual strands by several tones; this will not disrupt the naturalness of the composition.

Highlighting using several tones looks impressive. The main rule for blondes is that cool types, for example, those with ashy hair, are an excellent background for cool shades, golden for warm ones.

For brown hair

This is one of the most current shades of recent seasons; blondes are actively dyeing their hair light brown to match modern trends. For fair-haired people, it is enough to refresh the image with light highlights, and the versatility of their natural pigment allows them to lighten the strands in a different number of tones.

On dark colored ones

Most often these are brown, chestnut tones of varying saturation. They are perfectly emphasized by bleached strands. Here it is very important to maintain a measure of contrast, since the unnaturalness of the transition will look inharmonious. Stylists recommend the American type of highlighting for this type of strands and contact a specialist, since the behavior of colored strands can be unpredictable.

For gray hair

With age, everyone experiences gray hair. For some it is later, for others it is earlier. Many women strive to cover up their gray strands. But when painting, there are various nuances, because their structure is different from a regular curl.

When using any type of paint, you need to know your color type. It’s good to understand which shade will suit you best. To cover gray hair, experts recommend a golden palette with all its tones.

If there are less than 50% gray strands, highlighting will be an excellent option. There are several ways to do this.

A stylish option, suitable for those who have a lot of gray hair, is called “Salt and Pepper”. The essence of coloring is the transition from gray to black. Relevant for different age categories.

With not a large number of gray strands, classic highlighting looks good. Painting is needed no earlier than after three months.

Coloring is no different from classic highlighting. Looking closely at the length, choose what is more convenient: foil or a cap. Sometimes a special comb is used. To consolidate the result, it is better to protonate the strands.

On black

It is also not recommended to highlight this type of hair yourself unless you have the appropriate skill. It is black strands that are the most capricious in terms of highlighting. An incorrectly chosen shade can create a sloppy, unkempt appearance, especially since you need to carefully consider the size and placement of colored curls. Highlighting black short hair with side bangs looks impressive.

For redheads

This background in itself is quite bright, but it can be luxuriously emphasized, adding volume and expressiveness with the help of highlighting. The palette is perhaps the richest for red-haired people. Faded light strands look great.

Highlighting on dark hair with tinting

If you need a specific shade, without yellow and orange pigments, you need toning after highlighting. During lightening, the natural pigment of the hair is destroyed and the lightening background always turns out warm. To cover it up, you need to add cold pigments.

How to tint hair after highlighting

After lightening, paint is used, which is mixed with a low percentage oxidant or a tinting balm. The paint allows you to get any desired tone. The balm suppresses unwanted pigment.

After highlighting yellow hair - how to tint it to remove unwanted nuance

To remove the yellow nuance, you need a blue or purple pigment. Blue works better with yellow, but purple removes the orange nuance. To do this, use blue shampoo to wash your hair and a toning mask or balm to obtain a light ash or silver tint.

Hair care after highlighting

After the fine highlighting procedure, the structure of light brown hair changes.

In this case, experts advise following the following care rules:

It is recommended to use special shampoos and balms. It is necessary to pay attention to products designed specifically for highlighted hair. The components included in their composition will help restore hair, give it shine and a well-groomed appearance;
If possible, you should avoid using a hair dryer and straightening iron. This must be done in the first month because the hair must recover;
it is necessary to reduce exposure to direct sunlight, because after the highlighting procedure, the strands need to restore the water balance. It is also advisable to temporarily avoid visiting the solarium, beaches, or postpone the procedure to a cooler time of year. Otherwise, if exposure to the sun cannot be avoided, you need to hide your hair under a hat;
You need to wash your hair properly. Avoid using too hot water. For washing your hair, water at room temperature is suitable, preferably boiled or spring water. Salt water also negatively affects highlighted strands, so you should not swim in the sea in the first few weeks after dyeing;
you need to use masks and oils for care . Oils can be used 2-4 days after highlighting. With their help, the hair restoration process will go much faster. The oil is applied to the ends of the strands 25-35 minutes before washing your hair. Hairdressers advise making masks at least once a week. Not only store-bought products are perfect, but also homemade formulations. For example, fruit or egg masks.

For many seasons now, the fashion for fine highlighting has not lost ground. Owners of light brown hair prefer this technique because it visually gives volume to the hair and gives shine. A woman is instantly transformed, and her hair takes on a well-groomed and elegant look.

Sources

https://vplate.ru/melirovanie/na-chernye-volosy/
https://flakonn.com/melirovanie-na-svetlye-volosy-foto/
https://vplate.ru/melirovanie/s-chelkoj/
https://u-ksyushi.ru/melirovanie/
https://prichesochki.ru/modnoe-melirovanie-volos-2020
https://krasotka.cc/krasota/pricheski/obzor-populyarnyh-tehnik-melirovanie-na-kare
https://ladysdream.ru/melirovanie-na-chernye-volosy-foto.html
https://u-ksyushi.ru/melirovanie-na-temnye-volosy/
https://ladyup.online/volosy/okrashivanie/melirovanie/dlina-i-strizhka/na-srednyuyu-dl.html
https://ladysdream.ru/melkoe-melirovanie-na-rusye-volosy.html
https://womanadvice.ru/melirovanie-na-temnye-volosy-20-idey-shchadyashchego-okrashivaniya
https://www.ladiesproject.ru/articles/melirovanie-na-tyomnye-volosy

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For short hair - bob

Highlighting on dark short hair allows you to highlight a stylish haircut. A graduated bob, a classic bob or an elongated bob will look beautiful with relief coloring.

Pros and cons of highlighting

Advantages of highlighting on a bob:

Only strands that together make up no more than 50% of the total mass of hair are lightened, which is less detrimental to their health than complete dyeing.
Highlighting is an opportunity for a lady to try herself as a blonde without resorting to radical changes.
A growing highlighted bob also looks great for a long time, which allows you to adjust your hairstyle no more than once every 2-3 months.
There are about 20 technologies for performing highlighting on a bob, which means that every woman will be able to choose her own ideal technique.
Highlighting is applicable to any type of bob, regardless of its shape and length, as well as the color and structure of the hair.
A highlighted bob refreshes a lady, visually makes her younger and prettier, visually increases the volume of hair and makes the image more interesting.
Bobs and highlights have been at the peak of popularity for many years - this guarantees their owner that she will always look in accordance with the latest fashion trends.
The cost of highlighting is much lower than that of various hair coloring techniques.

Disadvantages of highlighting on a bob:

The whole process from start to finish lasts several hours - this is quite painful, considering that the lady has to sit in one position all the time.
Although highlighting is cheaper than fashionable coloring techniques (“Ombre”, “Shatush” and so on), it is still quite an expensive pleasure.
The procedure, albeit less, still harms the hair.
If your hair has recently been dyed, you will have to wait 2-3 months for the artist’s approval to perform highlighting, otherwise the result will not be the same, and your hair will suffer even more.
Subsequently, constant hair restoration procedures are required - the use of masks, special shampoos and balms.
It is not recommended to apply heat to highlighted hair (curling iron, hair dryer, flat iron), as bleached strands become very dry and brittle.

Highlights on dark hair of medium length to shoulder length

Shoulder-length haircuts are the ideal, golden mean. The length allows you to create various styles and hairstyles and is easy to care for. At medium length, you can perform any coloring technique - balayage, air touch, fine highlighting, ombre.

Highlighting techniques

On curls 10–15 centimeters long, do not use the traditional, but now slightly outdated, method of dyeing through a cap, because when pulled through the holes, the strands can get tangled. The optimal solution for medium hair would be highlighting with foil:

Thoroughly comb dry hair that has been washed no more than 2-3 days ago (a thin film of fat will serve as protection against the effects of aggressive chemical components of the dye).
Divide into several zones: 4–8, depending on the density of the curls. Separately secure each one using a clamp.
Wear a hairdresser's robe/robe/other clothing that you don't mind getting dirty. Gloves are a must!
Prepare the lightening agent according to the manufacturer's instructions.
Loosen your hair at the back of your head and form thin strands of it.
On the matte side of a piece of foil, paint a narrow stripe with a brush and brightener.
Place the workpiece under the first strand so that the “pocket” is under the roots.
Color your hair using quick brush/sponge movements from bottom to top.
Fold the edges of the strip or place the same piece of foil/film on top.
Secure the resulting envelope with an invisible pin.
In the same way, highlight the remaining strands in the back of the head, then on the sides. The crown and bangs come last.
For convenience, secure with hairpins those curls that you pass between the highlighted ones.
Maintain exactly the amount of time recommended by the manufacturer of the composition.
Proceed to rinse off the bleach. This should be done in the same sequence in which you dyed your hair.
Carefully unwrap each envelope and rinse the curl without removing the foil. This way you will maintain the clarity of the drawing.
After removing all the foil, rinse your hair thoroughly again.
The final stage is applying a balm or mask.

Attention! If necessary, you can repeat the lightening procedure after a few days. If you are satisfied with the result, tint your hair with the chosen paint.

Highlighting medium-length hair can also be done using a comb. For this:

Comb your curls, simultaneously forming several parts (4–8) out of them. Secure each zone separately.
Change into old clothes or put on a waterproof negligee.
Wearing gloves, prepare the clarifier.
Apply a little of the resulting mixture to the teeth of the comb.
Gently run the comb along the back of your head, starting from the roots. Try not to interrupt the movement.
Wrap the highlighted hair in foil and move on to the next section. The movement pattern is the same: from the back of the head to the crown.
Wait until the time specified in the instructions for the clarifier has passed.
Rinse your hair and moisturize it with balm or mask.

When highlighting with a comb, the main tool should have sparse teeth.

To create the popular effect of regrown roots when highlighting medium hair, you can use ordinary elastic bands:

comb your curls, divide them into zones along the parting;
secure each with an elastic band, forming small ponytails;
Having completed the standard procedures (changing clothes, mixing the chemical composition), paint the areas from the elastic bands to the ends;
after the required time, wash the paint, remove the fasteners;
Rinse your hair again and apply a mask or balm to it.

The veil technique is another way of beautiful highlighting, ideal for shoulder-length strands. Step by step process:

Comb your hair well, separate the top part and pin up the bottom part so it doesn't get in the way.
Decide on the curls you are going to lighten. Remember: they must be thin. For the set, it is convenient to use the darning method, in which tufts of hair 1.5–2 centimeters wide are first formed, and then thin strands no thicker than 4 millimeters are separated from them in a checkerboard pattern.
Place the selected parts directly on the foil, and pin the rest with clips or clamps.
Having treated the entire upper part in this way, put on gloves and a robe and prepare a lightening composition.
Apply a little of the preparation to a piece of foil, place several strands of hair taken from a wide curl of hair on it.
Treat them with paint, cover with another similar strip.
Tuck and secure the edges of the foil.
Do the same with the rest of the prepared strands. Work at an accelerated pace: thin curls do not lighten for long.
After 10–20 minutes, remove the foil and rinse off the preparation. The exposure time depends on the structure of your hair and the recommendations of the dye manufacturer.
Apply balm or mask to your hair.
If necessary, tint the strands after a few days.

Highlighting on long dark hair

Long curls can be emphasized with a soft stretch. Venetian or Californian highlighting creates the effect of naturally sun-bleached locks. If you need a voluminous result throughout the entire volume, it is better to choose Airtouch.

For brown hair

Chestnut is trending, but be warned, brown doesn't suit everyone. It is not suitable for too angular faces, because it additionally emphasizes features, while blonde, on the contrary, softens them. Auburn should also be avoided if you have very fair, fragile or translucent skin. But it can be made softer and brighter with highlighting.

For those with chestnut color, French highlighting is suitable. The essence of the technique is that the colored strands are not separated from the entire volume; some of the dye also gets onto neighboring hairs, creating a more natural effect.

Highlighting on a bob according to its types

Each type of bob, complemented by highlighting, looks individual and special.

For a classic square

A classic bob is an ideal base for traditional (frequent or rare) and feather highlighting.

For an elongated square

An elongated square for highlighting is like an unplowed field, opening up wide scope for imagination. The techniques “Balayage”, Peek-a-Boo, Two-tone, “Mazhicontrast” and highlighting individual zones (partial) look great on it.

On a bob with bangs

By highlighting a bob with bangs, you can color the strands all over your head or highlight just the bangs, which is very important for the oblique variety.

On the Bob Car

Absolutely any technique is suitable for the Bob-Bob, but the Veil looks the most ideal.

On a square on a leg

When choosing a technique for a bob on a leg, stylists recommend giving preference to frequent, zonal or low-contrast highlighting.

On a graduated square

Most highlighting techniques look harmonious on a graduated bob, but only if they do not imply the presence of clear straight lines in the coloring of the strands, for example, like “Feathers”.

On an asymmetrical square

Highlighting can make an asymmetrical bob even more original and interesting, but the wrong technique can also ruin the haircut and make it look ridiculous. Therefore, it is not recommended to highlight such a bob at home, but only in a salon with an experienced professional.

On the Cascade square

The French highlighting technique looks ideal on a cascade-type bob.

Highlights on black hair

Always go for shades that are one to two shades lighter than your original color. If you're starting with black, you have many options - chocolate brown, dark chestnut or copper brown. Red or chestnut highlights guarantee a natural result. It is not recommended to go from intense black to platinum blonde or bright red.

How to perform highlights on black hair:

Lightening. To destroy the dark pigment, lightening is necessary. Mix the powder with an oxidizing agent 3 or 6%. Separate a small strand, place it on foil and apply a lightening compound. After the last strand we time it for 30-35 minutes. We wash our hair well.
Toning with paint with 1.5% oxide. You can do without tinting if golden shades suit you.

Step-by-step instructions for beginners

Before highlighting, it is recommended to refresh your haircut by getting rid of split ends. If you color your regrown hair, the split ends will turn darker.
The drug is applied to unwashed, dry hair. They need to be thoroughly brushed to remove excess sebaceous secretions, dust and dead skin particles.
Highlighting can be done in 2 steps. First, the strands are lightened and then tinted. There are also single-phase preparations, they are better for dyeing light hair; they will not have the desired effect on dark or red hair.
Blonding powder is mixed with an oxidizing agent until smooth. For highlighting using the Venetian, Californian or Brazilian technique, backcombing is done at the roots.
The paint is distributed in loose strokes, no foil is used. The drug is applied from the middle to the ends, and finally a smear is made in the opposite direction, not reaching 2 cm to the roots. Backcombing allows you to create a neat stretch without clear stripes.
Before washing off the drug, your hair needs to be combed, otherwise it will form a shapeless lump.

With classic highlighting, thin or medium strands are pulled through the holes using a hook. This way it’s convenient to highlight bangs, as well as strands on the back of the head (we talked about what highlighting will look best on medium-length hair with bangs here). The more strands taken out, the more frequent the highlighting will be.

Highlighting with foil will help ensure a bright blonde:

The hair is divided into parts, then strands with a width of 3 mm to 1 cm are separated from each. It is convenient to separate them using a thin comb handle.
Pre-cut strips are placed under the strands, onto which paint is applied.
A curl is placed on top and covered with another portion of the drug. The foil is rolled up and can be secured with special clips for convenience.
The drug is kept for 10 minutes (for fine, light hair) to 45 minutes (for dark and coarse hair). This treatment allows you to lighten the strands by 3-4 levels.
For lighter shades, you will have to re-highlight. After the prescribed period, the drug is washed off with running water and mild shampoo.

To give the desired shade, the hair is tinted with ammonia-free dye mixed with oxygen and a transparent corrector. The mixture is kept for 10-20 minutes and washed off without shampoo. The final stage is applying a nourishing balm.

On our website, experts talk about various highlighting technologies for hair of different lengths and for different haircuts. By reading special publications, you can find out:

How is the procedure done for short hair and what highlighting is suitable for short haircuts?
Is it worth coloring a haircut with bangs?
How to choose a shade for a bob and what technique is suitable for a bob with lengthening?
How to do cascade highlighting yourself and what technique is suitable for a medium-length cascade?

For dark hair with gray hair

Refusal of excessively pronounced contrasts is the basic rule of any anti-aging strategy. If gray hair appears, it can be properly hidden with the help of proper coloring. If you're hesitating between two shades, always choose the lightest one. Light colors are more flattering to skin tone than dark shades. However, avoid warm colors such as caramel, beige or red. Lighten and tone to platinum or gray

For dark brown hair

Brown girls often want a lighter shade. Add contrast to move away from flat blond. Highlighting helps achieve this.

Natural dark blond contains more blue and gray, it is also called mouse. This is a cool color, which in summer, under the rays of the sun, can fade to medium brown. Cold highlights look good on fair-haired people - ash, pearl, platinum, cold beige.

Highlighting on dark hair Before and After

If you look at the Before and After photos, you can see how the face changes. It becomes softer, calmer. This is how light shades affect the appearance. They make the features less expressive.

What problems might arise?

Although highlighting is a simple and safe procedure, it can cause damage to your hair if done incorrectly. Girls with thin hair should not resort to such a procedure. If there are problems with the health of your hair, then after the procedure they will begin to bunch up, then nothing can be done about it. If your hair is damaged during such a procedure, it will stop growing normally. Another problem can be hair loss.

If this was observed before highlighting, then after partial painting the situation may worsen significantly.