4 Top Tricks for Lived-In Blonde

Jul 23rd, 2024

In this article, we break down the reasons behind the rise of the lived-in blonde, we reach out to industry experts to find out how you can achieve this look on your clients and find out the favorite products and tools to make lived-in blonde a reality.

Courtesy of Eleni Kotretsos and Marissa Mae Neal

There is something so breathtaking about a bright blonde! But, maintaining bright blonde locks takes effort and time for both the client and the stylist, and the price of this maintenance and the damage that can result may deter many clients from keeping up with their regular visits. Then came the lived-in blonde look, which has risen in popularity, giving clients the blonde they crave with less maintenance and less money. In this article, we break down the reasons behind the rise of the lived-in blonde, we reach out to industry experts to find out how you can achieve this look on your clients and find out the favorite products and tools to make lived-in blonde a reality.

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Behind The Lived-in Blonde Popularity Courtesy of Marissa Mae Neal

Clientele are gravitating toward the lived-in blonde look for a few reasons, among them less maintenance, a lower cost and a more relaxed vibe.

Raylene Robertson (@hairbyraay), stylist and owner of HBR & Co. Salon in Calgary, Canada, explains, "Most people are gravitating towards more of a lived in blonde for so many reasons! With a lived in color, people are able to extend their color life 6 months+ because of the soft grow out application. Over time, it just ends up looking more like a balayage/ombré with no harsh lines!"

Robertson furthers that rising costs are also contributing to clients looking for a more lived-in blonde, saying "Instead of clients spending $350+ every 2 months, they are able to spend that around twice a year."

Lower maintenance is also echoed by stylist Amber Bona (@hairby.ambermarie), who adds, "Many of my lived-in color clients can go 6+ months in between color services, which honestly saves on time and money in the long run! The grow out is also so much more natural looking and seamless!"

"The reality is that people are busy," notes stylist, educator and Copper Hair House owner Marissa Mae Neel (@maeipaint). "There is a way to still have their hair look good after 2, 3, 4+ months, which means less overall time in the salon. I think after the pandemic so many people noticed their hair was still looking good after going longer in between, which led them to wanting more of a lived-in look. It’s also more cost effective at the end of the year for them!"

Stylist Impact on Lived-in Blonde Courtesy of Eleni Kotretsos

Some stylists may read the above and think, 'why should I get behind the lived-in look if my clients are coming in less?' The answer is simple. Clients coming in over longer stretches allows you more time to seek new clientele. Also, your regular clients will still come in for their maintenance services.

Robertson explains, "Most stylists see this as a potential negative for their books; however, it allows more freedom, so we don’t have to close our books and can actually see more people in a calendar year. Not to mention, this kind of service allows you to fill more gaps in your schedule, as those twice a year clientele will more than likely be booking in for those awkward 1-2 hour gaps for tone maintenance or cuts between appointments."

So, what are the best tips to achieve a beautiful lived-in blonde look? We went straight to our experts to find out.

1. Overdirection

Robertson's favorite tip for a perfect lived-in look is overdirection. "I often find myself still using the classic Mohawk foil section on the top of the head, but instead of applying lightener directly to the root, I will overdirect each foil to the first foil I put in around the hairline, creating graduation as it goes back towards the crown," she details.

Robertson also adds, "Apply the back and sides utilizing larger, diagonal back sections and slicing to not only make it more timing and application friendly, but also super impactful for placement of brightness, while maintaining depth!"

2. Technique

Technique is super important for lived-in blonde application, according to stylist Eleni Kotretsos (@elenikhair). "My best tips for creating looks like these would be focusing on your technique! Root taps/melts/teasylights are all important techniques to perfect to be able to create these looks!"

3. Two-tone Melt Courtesy of Raylene Robertson

Bona recommends choosing two different shades for the root for a seamless result. She explains, "I think it’s always a great idea to melt their natural color root into a softer tone and gradually melt down into the brightest parts on the ends. Sometimes that means using two different shades on the root (one matching their natural, plus one directly below a shade or two lighter then their natural) and brushing them down into your global gloss for a perfect, seamless result."

4. Less Is More

Both Neal and Bona said it is important to remember with lived-in looks that "less is more." Neal adds, "Lived-in blonde needs depth and, more often than not, that depth can come from our clients’ natural color. Overall, being really mindful of placement will help you create the most seamless, organic look."

Bona agrees noting, "The more depth you can leave out, the more natural the result is going to be. It also ensures that you get some nice dimension, which I feel a lot of clients enjoy!"

Ways To Learn Lived-in Blonde Techniques Courtesy of Raylene Robertson

If you want to brush up on your lived-in technique, there are plenty of ways to do it, many of them cost effective. You can watch tutorial videos online of your favorite stylists, sign up for online courses, attend classes at shows and invite clients, friends and relatives to let you practice on them.

Robertson taught herself how to perfect the lived-in blonde look. "I self taught the art of lived in color when my clientele was asking for a longer period between appointments! We decided that if we left some more root and did a seamless transition to the natural, that’s how it would grow out! I watched hours and hours of my favorite hair artists performing services like this and made sure to implement the notes I took into my routines."

Bona perfected her lived-in technique with online classes and practice, sharing, "I took a lot of online classes and would soak in as much education as I could. During COVID, shutdowns were when I really buckled down and learned so many things about lived-in color. My mannequins got the pleasure of getting some really nice color during those times, and I got the benefit of perfecting lived in color!"

Neal has always loved the lived in look, so lived-in color's entrance to mainstream was a big benefit to her. "I’ve always been obsessed with creating hair that looked more natural. I grew up painting and drawing, so blending of colors has always come somewhat easy to me. Over the years, I learned how to be intentional with coloring and understanding where dark and light should live, and it changed everything for me!" she adds.

Lived-in Blonde Challenges Courtesy of Eleni Kotretsos

When it comes to creating lived-in blonde looks, there are some challenges and issues stylists should be aware of to master the technique. Most stylists agree that the biggest challenge is the transition. Robertson explains, "I find the transition between the previous close foil application to the lived in color outcome the most challenging. It took a lot of practice to be able to maintain a natural result without the client feeling like they lost their blonde identity! Practice makes perfect, and now I know the skills needed! These type of appointments no longer intimidate me because knowledge is power!"

Kotretsos echos, "The biggest issues I have faced and see happen would be that stylists aren't doing enough blending with their foil work! Using a root shadow should be the icing on the cake! However, the seamless blend of the highlights should be created first while foiling. This means smaller and thinner sections. Over foiling is also a common mistake, especially with finer hair. You need to leave some dimension for the growth to blend with their natural hair as it grows out."

Patience is in part the key for Boya, who adds, "The biggest issue I run into with lived in blonde would be making sure that the color is seamless and the brighter pieces don’t just have a hard 'stop.' A lot of that is solved with patience — allowing the root melt and gloss to process correctly and checking your work really well."

Neal agrees that patience is important when you are creating this service on a client that hasn't been in for a long time. She notes, "It can be somewhat time consuming to refresh when clients are going 6 months or more in between, but I don’t mind spending a bit more time with them to achieve the hair they want! Now, if they're trying to achieve a certain goal and it’s going to take more than one session, going a long time in-between will definitely be an issue. As long as they’re consistent until it’s achieved, then they can go as long as they want!"