It is a truth universally acknowledged, that bottle blonde is the most high-maintenance of hair colours.
Technically tricky to achieve and time-consuming in the salon, those who choose to dye their hair blonde have made a significant commitment to upkeep.
That commitment is also a financial one, given the expertise required, necessity to touch-up colour as it grows out, and the need for the right haircare to keep chemically-processed hair in great shape. Given the current economic climate, these challenges are feeding the latest hair colour trend.
Many of those previously willing to spend hundreds of dollars per visit for that perfectly-highlighted hair are re-thinking their ways, leading to their stylists providing more easy-to-manage (and affordable) options.
What is recession hair?
‘Recession blonde’, or ‘recession brunette’, are terms being given to those choosing to ditch costly hair colours, in favour of more natural-looking hues. These options, often designed to blend into the natural shade of hair as it grows, mean you can visit the salon less often.
The term ‘recession blonde’ is being bandied around on social media, with some women measuring their grown-out roots and jokingly using their hair as an indicator of the state of the economy.
Hairdressers agree, reporting more people than ever are ditching the dye completely, opting to return to the shade they were born with.
Beautifully blended options are a great middle ground, and include weaving in lowlights through light or platinum hair and even ‘herringbone highlights‘ to disguise – but not completely cover – greys.
Read More: Further ways to save money on your hair
Lowlights are a hair colouring technique where darker shades are added to the hair to create depth, dimension, and contrast. Unlike highlights, which lighten sections of hair, lowlights involve using a shade similar to, or darker than your natural or base colour, allowing natural hair to blend.
Letting your roots grow much longer than usually and then opting for a root shadow tone or root smudging, are other choices that is currently part of the recession blonde trend.
A shadow tone is where a colourist applies a slightly darker shade at the roots or for a more natural, blended look. It can soften the harsh contrast between your natural roots and lightened sections, giving the hair a more lived-in feel. This look can be extended each time until your roots are fully grown out.
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‘Lived in blonde’ a popular choice
Ditching the dye for a natural colour has even been embraced by celebrities in recent times, feeding the trend for a more ‘lived in, tone down’ blonde.
Think of Taylor Swift’s light brown tones, and even Ariana Grande’s middle ground between brown and blonde.
On trending hue, ‘Beurre brunette,’ or ‘brown butter hair’, is also a chic blend of brown and blonde, as is ‘bronde’ another popular approach.
Five ways to embrace recession hair
Blonde hair maintenance can be pricey, but here are five ways to make it more affordable:
1. Stretch out salon visits
Instead of frequent full-colour appointments, ask your hair stylist to try a hair technique like balayage (freehand, painted on highlights) or root smudging, which grow out more naturally and require fewer touch-ups.
DIY root touch ups
Use at-home toners, purple shampoos, or root touch-up kits to extend the life of your colour between professional visits.
Maintain hair health
Choose good quality shampoo and conditioner, masks and heat protectant made for you hair type to prevent dryness and damage, which reduces the need for costly colour corrections.
Go for a low-maintenance shade
Transition your blonde locks to a darker blonde, or consider going brunette. A single, all-over colour in salon is less expensive to maintain .
Consider box dye
While slapping a brunette box dye over the top of blonde is a recipe for disaster (very processed and lightened hair can be very porous and end up orange or a different colour to what you can see on the packaging), after leaving hair to transition to more natural colour, you could consider moving to box dye.
