When it comes to innovative cuts, a handful of styles are reigning supreme right now: the shag, the mullet, and '70s-inspired curtain bangs (The Crown's Emma Corrin and Bridgerton's Phoebe Dynevor are fans). But hair color, that's a little more of a mixed bag...
From sunset-inspired copper hues and buttery blondes, to dusty pinks and face-framing highlights, post-lockdown color knows no bounds, with London's expert hair colorists whipping up all manner of bold shades to satisfy the need for major change. It makes total sense: Switching up your hair color is exciting — not to mention empowering. As everything still seems so wearisome, welcoming something fresh and different is a first step to feeling brand-new.
Whether you prefer understated shades or something more out-there, prepare to be inspired by these eight post-lockdown color transformations.
This story was originally published on Refinery29 UK.
"My hair was a natural dark brown before, and this was my first time coloring it. Now, it's bright orange with red and dark pink closer to the roots. I got it done at Not Another Salon with Norman Boulton and the whole process was new to me, but amazing. I wanted a real change to my hair and my friend told me to look at [the salon's] Instagram page. I was in love with all of the vibrant hair colors, so I started a collection on Instagram with inspirational pictures and colors that I liked.
Before getting my hair colored, I tested all the hair filters on Instagram and TikTok, which really helped to match the hair color with my face and see how it would look. I started looking around in December — the appointment was a birthday gift from my boyfriend — but thanks to lockdown, I got the appointment in April. I was a bit nervous, but Norman was really supportive and explained all the details of coloring. As for the final result, I love it! I was really afraid of not getting used to the new hair color matching my face, but I think it now speaks for my personality."
"I actually shaved my hair two years ago for charity. When it started to grow back so fast, I realized just how much fun I could have with it. Life is for living and hair is for the changing. Before my current transformation, I had a very-warm copper balayage. I did enjoy it for awhile, but it didn't quite satisfy my blonde urge. My best friend Anthonia has beautiful short-blonde hair, and she's the one who encouraged me to take the plunge. I would describe this color combination as a 'reverse ice-cream cone' — a lot of chocolate with a hint of vanilla.
My hair transformation was courtesy of the absolutely-gorgeous Linnaean Living salon. Anthony was the mastermind behind my color choice, and he knew exactly what I wanted even before I explained the whole thing. My initial idea for my hair was to dye the majority of it back to my natural black so that it would match my natural eyebrows. But Anthony advised that I step out of my comfort zone and go for a chocolate brown. I was so excited to do this, but I was a little scared, too, because my eyebrows are a very-deep jet black. Luckily for me, my aesthetician convinced me to take the plunge and bleach my brows, too! The brows definitely made the whole look more cohesive.
I think people can see that I have a lot of hair, so Anthony had a really big task on his hands. We started off by sectioning off the part that would be going blonde. He foiled each section while coating it in lightener. Once my hair began to lift, it was on to the chocolate-brown portion. We divided the rest of my hair into four and actually used 4 times the amount of color most people would because of thickness and length. Let's just say this transformation was a real journey. I definitely lost track of time because of how relaxing Linnaean is. But as an estimate, I will say it took about 4 to 5 hours.
The final result is everything I wanted; I feel like me again. I have always found my hair is the best way to reflect my internal being and this gives me the right amount of fun, but with a natural-looking base. I want everyone to experiment with their hair because hair grows back; life is short and hair transformations make you happy. You should never feel restricted by your hair density, curl pattern, or porosity."
"My hair history is a bit complicated: I used to have almost stomach-length blonde hair, but then I stupidly dyed it brown, then wanted to go back to blonde. Before the last lockdown, I went quite a dark blonde as part of my journey to lighter hair, but then, obviously, couldn't get an appointment for months! I had really long re-grown roots and very fragile hair that was a bit too dark for me.
I got my hair done with Federico at Not Another Salon, and the experience was amazing. It was my first haircut being out as non-binary, and the salon and Fede did everything possible to make the experience comfortable and chill. Fede spent over 7 hours on my new silver hair — but I'm super happy with the results. It's shockingly easy to style, which is definitely a testament to Fede's skills, as I have super-flat Asian hair. I was quite nervous, but Fede's enthusiasm with a razor and meticulous skills put me at ease. I'm so happy with the results; he honestly managed to make it a statement without being crazy bold."
"I have really thick hair that is hard to manage, and half the time I thought I looked like Hagrid. Honestly, I just got so bored of that Harry Potter look, so I decided to go red. I got my color done at the incredible Josh Wood [salon] by the amazing Veronica. The whole process was very long — maybe around 6 to 7 hours. First, I got my hair cut by the very-talented Maisie. After that, the bleaching process began.
Because my hair originally is a very-dark brown, it required a lot of bleach, which actually really burned my scalp. But I knew the pain was worth it because I had been manifesting the red for a very long time. Something about being in lockdown for month after month just made me think: Fuck it, crisis mode, and that’s how I ended up wanting to be a redhead.
You'd think sitting in the chair for hours would be super stressful — and maybe give someone time for having second thoughts — but I was just excited to do it. Any sort of change after such a repetitive year was such a welcoming thought to me. Also, I'm only 19 once, and this truly is the age you can get away with this sort of thing.
I could not have been more thrilled with my finished look; I am completely obsessed. On the day I was serving Princess Ariel vibes and my inner child was honestly just over the moon. From looking like Hagrid to being transformed into a Disney princess — could not have given me a bigger ego boost."
"Prior to making this change, my hair was mid-chest length and completely natural: no color or bleach. I follow a modified curly-girl routine, no sulphates or silicones. Now, it's a shaggy mullet, cut by the amazing Ollie Kelly at Blue Tit [salon] in Streatham. He did The Big Chop for me so that I could donate my excess length to The Little Princess Trust to make wigs for children with cancer.
I did the color myself after realizing I was a lot less blonde than before I cut my hair off. Having a baby can change your melanin levels, which changes your hair color, so my previous natural blonde had gone quite dark at the roots and I didn’t feel like myself. Hot pink seemed like a good option, so I used the Umberto Gianinni Flowerology Temporary Color Mask in Pink Delight. It was really easy to use because you just apply it the same way you would apply a deep-conditioning treatment, and I’m really pleased with the final result. I’ve previously had trouble getting color to stick in my hair because it’s not bleached, so I'm really happy with how vibrant this has ended up! My toddler is also a big fan and keeps making her sign for 'pink pig' at me. The Flowerology product smells great and was kind to my curls, so I'm excited to try the other colors."
"For the last 15 years plus, my hair has been dyed brunette all over. I needed to touch up my roots every two weeks, as I had many gray hairs that would show. Over lockdown I decided to let my roots grow out because I was fed up with having to dye them constantly, and I liked the idea of embracing silver hair color for a drastic change.
I wasn’t sure it would suit me at first, but the thought of not having to dye my roots every two weeks for the rest of my life gave me the courage and motivation to try it. When I saw my colorist Norman for the first time, my roots were around 3-inches grown, gray with brunette ends. This wasn’t a great look at all; I would wear a hat to cover it all up.
Fast-forward one year, I believe I am rocking my natural gray roots, and I am gradually bleaching the remaining brown to make it lighter and lighter. Currently, I have a wash of pink color applied to ends for a balayage effect. On my first salon visit, I thought I would be leaving with an all-over gray or silver, but my colorist was very honest and transparent; he informed me that it would be a journey and that I should give him a year to achieve the results I wanted. I was excited to start and fell in love with the look after each session. I fully trusted my colorist, and one year later, I am absolutely loving my hair.
My confidence has grown and I no longer feel the need to wear a hat to cover my grays. People often think my gray-to-pink hair is an effect that has been created, not realizing it’s my actual gray roots! It’s the best decision, and although the journey is not fully complete, I can’t wait to keep experimenting with different colors that work with my natural gray hair."
"I used to get platinum-blonde highlights every 10 weeks. But after numerous lockdowns, I had eight months' worth of light-brown roots. Finally, I’m back to a gorgeous bright blonde, with a tiny bit of natural root blended in for lower maintenance.
I got my color done by Sophia at Blue Tit London. I told her that I missed being fully blonde, but I would prefer to be able to leave it longer between appointments. She suggested balayage to keep a bit of the natural root and added face-framing highlights so it still felt really bright. She was amazing and really understood what I wanted. I hadn’t been to Sophia before, so I was initially a little nervous after not having my hair bleached for so long, but I was so excited to break up the dark root, as I’ve always been a blonde.
I couldn’t be happier with the outcome. I was only in the salon a couple of hours, but I came out feeling much more myself. My hair is so much brighter and the natural roots means I don’t have to go back as often as before. I won’t be leaving it eight months again, though!"
"During the most recent lockdown my hair grew out by a good few inches, going from a vibrant red with an orange face frame, to a soft pink after multiple washes. This time, I opted for a bright-yellow root bleeding down into orange for a sunset look. I go to Not Another Salon and see colorist Norman. The appointment is always an experience. I don't actually pick my own color; I allow my colorist to choose what he would like to do, and I enjoy giving him the creative freedom so it's always a surprise for me at the end!
When I arrived for my first appointment, my natural hair was waist-length, sandy blonde, and I had split ends; it wasn't very healthy-looking. At first I was nervous, but everyone there is so welcoming; it's like I was having my hair done at home. Time varies for the process, but it's usually between four and seven hours and I go back to the salon every six to eight weeks for root touch-up. I always thoroughly love the looks my colorist creates, and I always know he will never let me leave disappointed."
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