Colour Your Hair Beautiful

Sydney hairstylist Belinda Jeffrey, Expert Colourist for Clairol Nice'n Easy tells us how.

Oct 14, 2012

It’s not just the style of your hair but its colour that can make your face come alive – or make it look haggard, chubby or just washed out.

Finding the most flattering hair shade for your face shape is not something we tend to think of but it can have a huge affect on your looks.

`When deciding which colour route to take, face shapes can be split up into three main categories – wide, long and small,’ says leading Sydney hairstylist Belinda Jeffrey, Expert Colourist for Clairol Nice’n Easy.

`By following the “rules” for each shape, you’ll not only achieve radiant-looking hair but make the most of your best features, and minimise the not so good ones.’

Here Belinda shares her top tips with CosBeauty for achieving the most face-flattering shades for your tresses, along with a few hints for best home hair-colouring results:

Wide Face – like Mila Kunis

Belinda recommends that those with wider face shapes and larger features should stick to lighter colours with tonal highlights and variation, which will slim the face.

Avoid a single flat hair colour, which can widen the face, drawing unwanted attention to certain facial features. We’re not saying Mila Kunis needs to disguise her features(!) but her subtle caramel highlights in otherwise dark brunette hair give her face extra oomph.

For creamy skin tones, golden, honey and biscuit blonde colours look great. More subtle versions of these shades also suit olive and golden skin tones, and can be incorporated as highlights for brunettes looking for a seasonal change without being too light.

Try: Nice’n Easy 98 Extra Natural Light Blonde for blondes, and Nice’n Easy ColourBlend Foam in 6.5G Lightest Golden Brown for brunettes (Nice’n Easy, RRP $12.99; Nice’n Easy Colour Blend Foam, $17.99).

Long Face – like Sarah Jessica Parker

To soften a long face, weaving different shades of colour through the hair will help create more roundness. In addition, creating layers in the hair and breaking up the length will reduce the elongated look, balancing the face.

`One long length of hair will draw the face down, further elongating features,’ says Belinda. `For blondes, a mixture of creamy blonde, caramel and golden brown will counter this, brightening the face and skin tone and allowing features to shine.

`For those with darker skin tones and hair, try adding dimension with some natural lighter brown highlights.’

Try: Nice’n Easy ColourBlend Foam in 9 Light Blonde for a multi-dimensional blonde, and Nice’n Easy 117 Natural Medium Golden Brown for darker shades.

Small Face – like Amanda Seyfried

Small features and squarer face shapes can get away with wearing one solid, glossy colour, more so than wider or longer face shapes.

Try a rich shade of black, a dark chestnut or even platinum blonde, Belinda suggests.

`Smaller features can also wear hair that is all one length, and when paired with a colour such as Nice’n Easy 113 Natural Burgundy, the current geometric trends in hair shapes can look particularly sleek,’ she says.