Highlights for Curly Hair Natural Curls: Shimmering Crown

Introduction

Long and thick wavy curls with a burgundy shade, flowing down to your shoulders. Isn’t just the thought of it that makes us feel beautiful not just from the outside but also inside? Yes, Highlights for curly hair has its own amazing beauty and significance.

Well, the dreamy curly hair is a dream for many but those who are blessed to have curly hair often don’t consider it to be a blessing but rather a curse. This is due to the high maintenance required for curly hair. 

While the natural curly hair in itself is tough to deal with, maintaining highlighted or treated curly hair is another uphill task. Before talking about some quick and easy steps to maintain highlights for curly hair, let us take a deep dive into why curly hair often tends to turn drier than straight hair and how the beauty of curly hair lies in embracing it.

Embracing the Beauty of Curly Hair

As per a report by one of the leading shampoo brands in America, Head & Shoulders, there is a medical reason behind curly hair turning dry more quickly than straight hair. “The curls stop the natural flow of oil down to the tips of the strand, preventing your hair from getting the adequate lubrication it needs for protection. The moisture barrier breaks and is unable to retain any moisture, which causes your hair to turn frizzy” the report says. 

Breaking it down into simpler terms, our scalp regularly produces natural oil which keeps the moisture intact on both our scalp as well as hair.

While straight hair allows the oil flowing down from the scalp to easily reach its roots, curly hair due to its wavy or spiraled shape often obstructs the flow of the naturally produced oil hence leaving us with frizzy curls. 

Though, having curly hair is not bad at all. They just require some extra care and you are all set to flaunt your wavy, curly locks in your next party or outing. A lot of teenage girls and working women are opting to go bold with their hairstyles, especially after two years of being homebound due to the COVID-19 pandemic. As the world has now opened up, women are itching back to embrace trendy styles including new-age hair colour and highlights 

Unveiling the Magic of Highlights for Curly Hair

Being a curly-haired girl, I especially my mom have struggled to maintain my hair. From expensive shampoos to home remedies we have tried it all to manage my curly, frizzy hair but it takes more than that to ensure a picture-perfect hairstyle with curly hair. 

As I grew up, I was impressed by the dyed hair of my boss who has long, silky, smooth and straight hair. She never shied away from experimenting with her hair, as a result, I would see her sometimes with red hair then green hair then blue and whatnot. 

I had my own set of fear as I grew up having curly and dry hair and the thought of putting more chemicals and dyes on my hair made me feel scared. However, I had an undying urge to colour my hair and I finally went for it. After three hours of a long process, I got red, shiny highlights which sparkled over my black hair and my happiness knew no bounds.

Highlights add a new dimension to your hair and you can’t stop looking at yourself in the mirror repeatedly. While getting a global hair color done, which means when your entire hair is colored can look like a scary perspective, the first-timers can opt for some quick highlights on a few strands of hair to see if that suits your face and overall look or not.

You can continue experimenting with different shades of color. 

While blond, mahogany, brown and chestnut colours are quite common among those who colour their hair, bold options such as burgundy, auburn red, white or platinum blonde are also a good pick in case you want to create a lasting impression on those around you. 

Chapter 1: The Art of Highlights

Now finally, when you choose to get some highlights on your hair instead of a global hair color, the first question which strikes most of us is whether should we buy a nice hair color from the market and do a streak or two ourselves or should we visit a salon, spend more money and get professional streaks or highlights. 

The answer is quite simple. If it is your first time, I would suggest seeking professional help. A stylist or a local salon can do a great job with hair color provided they have some experience.

Depending on your skin color (nothing racist but it has a lot to do with whether the hair color will compliment your face or not), the stylist can suggest a few hair colors that will suit you and you can pick one and get on with the process. 

Some people prefer to go for a uni-color highlight, which means all the highlights will be of the same color while some adventurous people go for multi-colored highlights such as bleached white hair with a combination of green and yellow highlights (Uhh, too much, isn’t it), but trust me, such a combination of highlights will perfectly suit a rock concert look or a beach party look where you can wear some neon or fluorescent clothes while your hair let do the magic. 

Both the ability to paint highlights and to carry the highlights gracefully is an art. 

If you are trying to choose the color for highlights on your own, here are some simple steps to do it – 

1. Look at yourself in the mirror and imagine yourself with some different hair colors or highlights and visualize to understand better which highlight would suit you the most 

2. Then peep inside your wardrobe to find out the dominating color, that is clothes whose color or shade occupy the maximum space, meaning you are likely to buy similar shaded clothes in the future. This will help you choose a perfect hair color 

3. Then look up some images on the internet to check out how that color looks on other people, while it is not the most ideal way to choose a hair color but it will surely give you an idea and steer you in the right direction

A Brush with Color: The Essence of Hair Highlights

The essence of hair highlights lies in two things – First the color itself and second the texture of your hair. If your hair is virgin, that means they have never been colored before, dark colors are likely to stay on your hair longer even without bleaching hair. 

However, if you regularly get your hair colored or highlighted, then it is advisable to get your hair strands bleached so that the color sticks onto the hair for a long time and the right shade reflects on the hair. 

As the word suggests, highlights means anything which stands apart from the rest and the role of hair highlights is just the same. It helps to highlight a few strands of hair with the help of differentiating hair color, which is a color which is different from the natural color of your hair. 

A brush with color is not just a brush with a color which paints your curly hair locks but it literally paints your dream look. If you are blessed with curly hair, then the hair color is bound to look even brighter as it helps to highlight every beautiful curl and enhances your overall beauty.

Don’t blame yourself if you are already standing in front of the mirror and imagining yourself having lovely highlights. Trust me, if the job is done right, after getting the highlights done, you will love those highlighted curls and keep flaunting them, which you once used to loathe. 

Painting the Canvas: Techniques for Curly Hair

Getting the hair highlighted is similar to painting the canvas, just keep your trust in colors, experiment a bit and the colors do their magic on the canvas, which is your beautiful hair. While the steps to do hair color are quite simple, people with curly hair often worry about their hair quality, and some special techniques to color their hair. 

It is true that, unlike straight hair which lies perfectly on the silver base strip allowing you to color them flawlessly, curly hair often proves to be mischievous and keeps getting entangled and disheveled. 

Here are some simple techniques to color your curly hair. 

There are several ways to highlight the hair

Pintura Highlights

Pintura means ‘to paint’ in Spanish. This involves painting the hair by hand. You take a generous amount of color on your fingers, hold your hair straight using your other hand and start applying the color in from tips to upwards. This doesn’t involve the usage of a brush. 

The benefit is no heat or foil is used while coloring and when the light falls on the hair, it reflects brightly. 

Curly Hair Balayage

A French hair coloring technique Balayage derives its inspiration from the process of sweeping. Yes, sweeping as the color is swept along the surface of curly hair. You can also experiment with different colors on your curls. The balayage hair coloring technique is suitable when you want some highlighted curls in between the rest of the hair 

Clouding

Instagram is full of reels on viral curly hair highlighting techniques which claim to be the easiest ones to try as part of DIY – Do-It-Yourself hair color tips.

One such viral technique is Clouding. This hair coloring technique has been invented by hair stylist Lindsey Olsen who is also the brand ambassador of one of the leading hair color brands – Redken. 

As part of the highlighting technique – Clouding, the stylist or colorist will apply the hair dye on hair using their bare hands. Firstly, they will bleach your hair and then they will apply the color using their fingers. They will fill some hair in their fist and then scoop in some strands of your hair and close their fist. The result is dramatic hair color on your curls.

Beyond Blonde: Exploring Color Variations

Now that we are through with knowing the different hair coloring techniques, the time has come to choose the right shade. Going back to the tips shared above on how to choose the right hair color, there are two main criteria –

First is the texture of your hair and the second is your facial color and look. One size doesn’t fit all. This famous phrase also applies, while you are choosing the right hair color. 

You are bound to get attracted to new and trendy hair colors. Still, you must evaluate the right hair color depending on the purpose – Are you looking for a professional – fit for an office look or a party, casual look? 

When it comes to highlighting, you can keep experiment with different hair colors. This is the major advantage of hair highlights vs global hair color as global hair color tends to completely alter the nature of your hair color while highlights often play hide-and-seek with the virgin hair, thus lessening the risk involved. 

While blonde remains to be the safest color option for hair, I recommend you push yourself a bit and try experimenting with bolder hair color. 

Some of the popular hair color combinations are – 

• Black and burgundy
• Brown and red
• Brown and golden highlights
• Dark roots with light ends
• Black and brown

Apart from these conventional choices for hair color, here are some wacky, or out-of-the-box color and combinations for your curls

• Black and Gray Ombre
• Black and Blue Ombre
• Caramel Highlights on Black Hair
• Black and Dark Red
• Black and Purple
• Honey Blonde
• Ash Blonde
• Platinum Blonde
• Red Hair with Blonde Tips
• Light Blonde with dark roots
• Blonde Hair with multi-colored tips
• Light blonde hair with strawberry low-lights
• Auburn Hair color

Chapter 2: Choosing the Right Shade

While a lot has been explained above about how to choose the right shade of hair color, such as considering your facial skin tone and the kind of events you are likely to attend 

1. Skin tone is the most important criterion for deciding on hair color.

2. Color of eyes – Yes, something that we tend to ignore is our hair, facial tone and eyes are often seen as part of our profile, hence it is important to consider them while choosing the hair color. 

If the eyes are usually dark black colored, or dark brown colored, then a similar hair color would be better, though it is not mandatory to be in sync with the color of the eye.

3. Your personal choice – Well, above all, this is what matters. How do you want to be looked like – do you wish to blend in the crowd or stand out, hair color often plays an important role in that. 

Brown-shaded highlights or for that matter even auburn or light red shaded hair are more usual hair color but dark pink, blue or grey streaks or highlights can make you stand apart

Finding Your Perfect Match: Skin Tone & Highlights

We all have varied skin tones, and as told above this part plays an important role in determining if a particular shade will suit us or not. 

There are two kinds of body color tones – cool and warm 

Some of the key indicators are blue and purple veins are cool-toned green veins are warm-toned, darker shades of iris in eyes such as black or brown are warm-toned and shades of blue or green in the eyes are considered to be green.

Cool-skinned people can go for Ash Brown color like that of pop stars Miley Cyrus and Taylor Swift or Cool Brown color, cool red, or warm black. 

Those with warm tones can go for cool black, warm red and warm blonde.

Going Bold or Subtle: Balancing Your Style

Bold colors like red, blue, and grey can help you look stand apart. Such highlights often make you look more vocal, sometimes rebellious and of course risk-taking whereas, colors like brown and auburn which are closer to the natural color of hair are considered to be the safer options and present you as a conformist or someone with a subtle personality. 

Though these are just theories, at the end of the day, what matters is how you want to see yourself in the mirror. So go bold or go subtle, but always carry your hair highlights with style and a positive attitude 

Sun-Kissed Locks: Blonde Highlights for Curls

In general, the skin tone of Americans is fair, hence blonde highlights on curls look good. Honey Blonde is one of the most favorable shades of blonde-style highlights. 

It is a warm and golden blonde shade and helps to accentuate the looks of the curl. 

When the rays of sun rays pass through these curls, your hair will look like a dream.

Rich Radiance: Brunette and Red Highlights

Woahh now comes your turn. The Red. The Brunette. The Bold. Well, increasingly, people are going with the red hair highlights, especially those with curly hair. As hair color brands are coming up with safer options to dye your hair, people are not shying away from trying bolder shades and red is one of the most favorable ones. 

If your natural hair color is brunette which is black or dark brown colored, then red highlights would complement your overall look. Red and Black are a classic combination of hair color.

Chapter 3: The Maintenance Regime

Oh boy, one of the main reasons people shy away from getting their hair colored is the fear of the high levels of maintenance required after the coloring procedure. 

While, it is true that once you put some chemicals on the hair and your natural or virgin hair gets treated, you will have to give some extra to them. 

Though, you don’t have to fret about it, as here are some easy ways to maintain your highlights 

Protecting Your Crown: Aftercare for Highlighted Curls

Curly hair is a bit difficult to manage and when they are highlighted, it often requires extra care as chemicals and dyes can turn them drier than before. 

Sulfate-Free Savior: The Right Shampoo & Conditioner

While a lot of parlours would recommend you to get a regular hair spa after getting highlights, the first step towards taking care of highlighted curls is choosing the right shampoo and conditioner. 

There are some basic types of shampoos available for post-colored hair. One is for the curly hair, one for the oily and one for normal hair texture. 

You can choose the one made for curly hair. I often go for L’Oreal Color Protect shampoo and conditioner as I also choose the same brand for getting my highlights done. They help me protect the texture of curls and the color to last long. 

Further, Dove also offers a wide variety of products for highlighted curls

The most important thing is to go for sulfate-free products to avoid harm to the highlighted tresses. TRESemme’s ProCare Curls Sulfate-Free Shampoo for Curly Hair is also a good option. You can also consult your stylist for more options 

Introducing the ‘Pineapple’ Technique

This is a viral technique to take care of your curly hair. 

Gently massage your hair using some lubricant or leave-in cream. Then gather all the curls and tighten them into a high ponytail. Put a scarf on the base of the ponytail. 

Let your curls rest on the scarf. If done right, this will create a beautiful pile of curls on top of your head resembling a pineapple.

Chapter 4: DIY vs. Professional

Coming back to the confusion about whether to highlight your curls yourself or seek a professional.

Home Adventures: DIY Highlighting for Curls

Some of the easy DIY highlighting techniques for curls are – 

• Choose high-quality highlight kits. Several brands offer a customized highlighting kit for curly hair. 
• Take a brush and properly detangle your curls.
• Pick every curl, individually and hand-paint it 

In case you need to bleach your hair, follow the steps on highlighting kit

The Salon Experience: Professional Touch & Expertise

But, if you want to save yourself from all this hassle, just walk into a salon and seek professional help. They will help you choose the perfect color for your highlights, and do the magic. Ensure to look for some reviews for that place before opting for it.

Do follow the post–highlight care tips given by the colorist.

Chapter 5: Celebrities’ Choice

Well, isn’t it obvious that our favorite celebs often influence us to go for highlights? Seeing some star celebs flaunting their dyed tresses certainly encourages us to paint our tresses the same way. 

Spotlight on Hollywood: Celebrities and Their Highlighted Curls

Pop stars like Miley Cyrus’ wavy hair with skunk-style roots, Doja Cat’s front blonde highlight streaks and wavy caramel hair look, and Billie Eilish’s cool silver, cobalt blue, neon green and Barbie blonde highlights are some of the most talked-about looks of the celebrities including their highlighted curls.

Inspirational Styles: Get the Celebrity Look

Skunk-style roots have been a huge rage on TikTok and after Miley was spotted with a similar hairstyle, her fans wanted to try a similar look. You can go for some bold and contrasting colors and color the hair starting from the roots while leaving the edges in the natural color. 

Billie Eilish’s cool silver, cobalt blue, neon green and Barbie blonde highlights Billie Eilish’s cool silver and then cobalt blue look has left all of us wanting to have that hair. 

Her Seafoam Green look was done to match her hair color to that of her eye color. If you are also blessed with some unique colored pupils, you can go for matching hair color for your highlights. 

Margot Robbie’s Barbie not just created a rage in theatres but also in the lives of people, as Barbie Pink became the color and the flavor of the season. 

Not just Barbie’s pink clothes but also her hair color became quite a rage. Billie Eilish was recently spotted with Barbie blonde highlights. 

Step 1 – Use the baby light technique to highlight hair 

Step 2 – Try to get a golden-light blonde color 

Step 3 – Use an after-highlight shampoo and conditioner to wash and rinse hair

Step 4 – Tone the blonde hair by using a shiner

Step 5 – To finish the ends, use a gel activator

Step 6 – Rinse and shampoo again

Chapter 6: Inspiring Curly Hair Stories

There are so many lifestyle and beauty creators on social media who often share their routines to take care of their curly hair. Most of them are trying to break the stereotypes around curly hair that can’t be stylish as they experiment with not just their hairstyle but also their hair color by getting some quirky and bold highlights which accentuate their entire look.

Real-Life Curl Tales: Transformations with Highlights

A digital creator Hortencia going by the user name Style Feen on Instagram often posts some inspiring stories about how she embraced her curls. From highlighting them to styling them on her own, she literally makes all of us have nice curly highlights 

https://www.instagram.com/stylefeen/

How Highlights Boost Confidence

I have often felt undermined due to my curls. Society has been traditionally in favor of long and straight hair and curls are often associated with confusion and entanglement. 

Highlights are a way to reverse the tables and turn those not-so-good-looking curls into the most prized attribution.

Frequently Asked Questions

While the above article would answer most of your queries regarding the maintenance of curly hair, here are answers to some of the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Conclusion

I hope all your queries related to the curly and highlighted hair are resolved. The best advice is don’t overthink and just go for it. 

Yes, you must consult a professional, in case this is your first time to understand the nature and texture of your hair and choose the color and brand accordingly. Though, simple DIY steps are also easier and more economical 

Embrace the Radiance of Curly Hair Highlights

Don’t shy away from experimenting with your hair, even if they are curly. Embrace your curls and make them look amazing with some quirky highlights. 

Your Journey to Highlighted Perfection

I got my curls highlighted once and since then I have not been able to stop myself from trying new shades on my curls. I have tried both salons and the DIY kits, and trust me both have their charm. 

Citations/ Bibliography 

https://www.headandshoulders.co.in/en-in/healthy-hair-and-scalp/hair-care/tips/curly-hair-problems-and-solutions