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Chunky Highlights and Lowlights

Pragya T
Getting chunky highlights or lowlights can completely change the way your hair looks. Read this post to learn how to pick the right hair color shades.
If you are bored of your plain natural hair, then try getting some chunky highlights or lowlights. But, before you try them out, it is important to understand which hair color suits you. Because, trying out any weird hair color ideas, can make your hair look like a disaster. Here are some guidelines and useful tips to use on brown hair, blonde hair, and other base hair colors.

Chunky Highlights vs Chunky Lowlights

You can achieve an elegant, sober or vibrant look by choosing to highlight or lowlight your hair. When you dye a chunk of your hair few tones lighter than your base color it is a highlight and when you color a chunk of your hair a few tones darker than the base color it is a lowlight. For doing highlights, chemicals like ammonia are used, while lowlights are gentler, because they don't contain ammonia.

What are the Right Colors for You?

When it comes to hair coloring, people can be divided into two categories. People who belong to cool category and warm category. On the hair color wheel, there are certain colors which suit one category, and colors which suit the second category. It is important that you pick hair color which suits you, otherwise it can make your complexion look dull, pale, or overly bright.

Hair Color for Cool Skin Tone

People with cool skin tones like dark brown, medium complexion with light pink undertones or no color, medium complexion and golden undertones, olive complexion, pale complexion with pink undertones or no color, or bronze or brown complexion after tanning.
The eye color can be blackish brown, dark brown, grayish blue, hazel colored with light flecks, or dark blue. If you have such complexion or eye color, then opt for shades of icy white, mink, honey, wheat, ash, burgundy or purple hair colors.

Hair Color for Warm Skin Tone

People who belong to the warm category can have a freckled complexion, pale complexion with peach or golden undertones, ruddy complexion, brown skin tone with pink or golden undertones. The eye color can be hazel eyes with brown or golden colored flecks, green eyes, greenish blue eyes, or golden brown eyes.
Such people can go with dark brown shades, golden brown, chestnut shades, shiny blond, reddish-orange, copper, golden-brown or golden shades as chunky highlights.

How to Get Highlights/Lowlights?

For highlights, you can use a kit at home or visit a stylist. However, for lowlights you have to take professional help.
Make sure you select the appropriate shades according to your category of skin tone. For example, for blonde hair, pick a lighter shade of blonde for lowlights, and dark highlights of brown or darker blonde shade are a good idea. If you are planning to get highlights for brown hair, then get blonde shade highlights and dark brown or black lowlights.

Aftercare

After you get your hair done with hair highlights and lowlights, it is important that you take care of your colored hair, to maintain the color longer.
Firstly, use mild shampoos and conditioners or use hair care products, which are especially made for colored hair care. To protect your chunky hair highlights while swimming, dilute them with bottled spring water, and apply a leave-in conditioner, and then go for swimming. Also, wear hats or scarves when out in the sun.
So, pick the right hair colors, and visit a stylist to get good looking colored chunky hairstyles!