You see your favorite actress or signer strutted down the red carpet with rockin’ hair. Next thing you know you are looking through different highlight styles on Instagram, and you’ve even given thought to a reasonable budget. So, you’re thinking about getting highlights – Now what? We hit the books and talked to professionals and came up with some suggestions for making the most out of your next hair appointment. Whether you’re a newbie or a pro at the hair highlights game; we compiled a guide on some tips and tricks you could use before you schedule your next appointment. Everything from highlights terminology to promising hair salons in Hong Kong to get that show-stopping look you wish for
Let’s start with the basics – what are highlights anyway? Highlights are simply the process of changing a person’s hair color using lightener or hair color. It is meant to give a fresh and youthful look by adding dimension to your hair color and the illusion of fullness. The hype is real though, highlights can do a lot for you – they can accentuate your eye color, bring out your cheekbones, and even make your face look slimmer. We’ll break down all the different types of highlights you can get for your hair.
Before you decide on whether you want to go for the balayage or ombré you need to know the difference between partial and full-head highlights. Why? Well, for one thing your stylist will charge you depending on how many highlights you get. Partial head highlights apply only to one portion of your head – for instance, this technique requires fewer strands of hair. The end product – you’ll be left with a subtle and gradual look like if the sun naturally lightened the front sections of your hair. Partial head highlights are less expensive than full head highlights. Whereas, full hair highlights involve highlighting hair in every section of your head you’ll be left with an overall brightening or framing effect on your face.
Depending on how you wear your hair or the style you wish to achieve your stylist will decide whether full or half head highlights may be more suitable for you. Keep in mind that because full hair highlights are more intense, they require to be retouched more frequently. The good news is that you can save some money by alternating between partial and full head highlights, after all, highlights that are placed in the back of your head or underneath the crown don’t show that much; thus they show less growth than the ones in the base. Now that you are clear on how partial vs. full head highlights work, let’s talk about styles and techniques, shall we?
Styles and Techniques
Foil
Foil technique involves as the name suggests using foil paper to separate strands of hair, which will be lightened from strands of hair, which will remain its natural color. Once the lightener has applied, the foil is then folded and “processing” time begins, which means the amount of time needed to achieve desired results. The magic of highlights is that you can get a different trend depending on how close or far apart they are.
Babylights
While the technique is similar to traditional foil highlights, it’s created by using very fine hair color techniques. The idea is to mimic the natural hair color seen on children’s hair hue where the crown is usually brighter than the bottom. If you have really fine hair and you are looking for a subtle change that is not as dramatic as balayage or ombré, babylights are the way to go.
Ombré
It basically means from darker to light resulting in a dramatic, two-toned hair color effect. To get this look, your stylist will lighten the lower half of your hair using traditional highlighting foils, leaving your natural roots and color intact. Ombré is versatile for all hues and suitable for most extended and medium hair lengths. What you’ll love the most about this style is that it’s easy on the budget. Why? well, as the top sections remain dark, you don’t have to touch it up very often.
Balayage
With no foil insight, Balayage is French for the motion of ‘sweeping’ or creating a seamless blend. To get this look, stylist physically paints the color directly onto selected strands of hair. The goal is to get natural-looking, sun-kissed hair. This style is certainly a crowd’s favorite. Perhaps one of the reasons Balayage is a crowds favorite is the fact that your highlights you don’t have to get touchups every couple weeks; with this style, as the highlights grow out, it’ll look totally intentional.
Price range
The price range of highlights in Hong Kong varies quite a lot depending on the salon’s standing, the therapist’s experience and your hair length. It starts as cheap as 438HKD and rise up until 2180HKD for a premium service. On average expect a full-head highlights treatment to be around above 1000HKD.
Takeaways
Knowing your natural skin color and natural hair color can make a big difference when deciding on a style that will help you look your best. Determining your skin tone is not always an easy task so, If you still have some questions, we highly recommend you visit thehkhub for an in-depth guide on natural skin tone and what highlights work best for you.
Edited If you are ready for the next step, you can schedule your appointment here. Whether it is your first time or not, it is highly recommended you look for pictures of what you want. Pinterest and Instagram are great sources to get inspired – We recommend you look under this hashtags #balayage, #haircolor, #mastersofbalayage, #brunettehighlights, #blondehighlights, and #hairdressermagic. However, if you are not entirely sure of what you want, then look for pictures of what you don’t want.
The key to great hair highlights is making sure the hair you are coloring is healthy. You want to make sure your hair is in the best condition possible. We recommend that three days before your appointment, you apply a Deep Conditioning Protein mask. You can try our personal favorite Egg Yolk and Honey Hair Mask. Healthy and moisturized hair will undoubtedly achieve better results while decreasing the risk of damage.
Pre-Highlights DIY Hair Mask
While the idea of someone cracking an egg on your head made every Halloween even more terrifying, eggs can do wonders for your hair. It is no secret that eggs are rich in vitamins; thus, adding an egg yolk to your hair mask may make your hair more resistant to damages. The high concentration of vitamins and biotin in egg yolk will nourish and protect your hair. Besides, it will add moisture and contribute to hair growth.
Here is a DIY hair mask. You can do this from your house on your pajamas while watching your favorite TV show.
Where to get Highlights in Hong Kong
Now that you are all prepared and ready, it’s time to get that look you’ve wished for. We came up with a careful selection of our favorite trustworthy hair salons in Hong Kong. Our partners will make sure you get the very best look and hairstyle:
Sheung Wan
Central
Causeway Bay
Wan Chai
Tsim Sha Tsui
If you wish to see our entire selection of hair salons offering Hair Highlights click here.