YOUR ANSWER TO THE MOST ASKED HAIR QUESTION

IT’S one of the top internet searches, so we asked Tim Scott-Wright, award-winning hairdresser and founder of The Hair Surgery to explain everything you need to know about this colouring technique.

Invented in a Paris hair salon in the 1970s, balayage’s popularity has risen in recent years.

Tim explains: “Balayage is freehand painting of hair colour to create highs and lows in the hair. It’s anything done by eye. It’s almost a form of contouring.”

WHY IS IT SO POPULAR?

“IT’S very low maintenance,” says Tim. “People can come in once or twice a year and then freshen it up at home with great products like silver shampoos to keep that blonde looking fresh.

“The other reason it’s popular is because you can actually be blonde even if you’re brunette. If you look at people like Jennifer Lopez, inset or Sofia Vergara, they’ve been able to have blonde hair without it looking yellow or orange.”

CAN YOU DO IT ON ANY HAIR COLOUR?

“I ALWAYS say with balayage: There’s a blonde out there for everyone. You can have dark Asian hair or you could be a Scandinavian blonde, and you can still have some type of balayage.

“Even if you’re a redhead, you can still go into copper gold or rose gold, and on darker hair, you can go to chestnuts and reds – and in some cases you can have blue balayage, but it’s quite difficult to achieve.”

ARE THERE ANY DOWNSIDES?

“ALTHOUGH balayage looks easy to do, not every hairdresser is capable of doing it – if you get a bad balayage, it can look atrocious.

“Colour placement is essential. If the colour isn’t in the right areas, you can end up with demarcation lines where it looks patchy, or with quite orange or yellow looking stripes.

“And it’s always got to be toned and glossed up afterwards but if someone doesn’t use the right toner, it can look a bit dodgy.”

WHAT IS A TYPICAL SALON COST?

“BALAYAGE is (usually) priced by charging for a full head of highlights, plus 50%.”