Beauty: Mane Priority

Shiny and healthy hair should always be a priority; however it's not always easy to keep up with new color trends and styles and maintain your mane's ultra healthy condtion. With healthy hair being the top hair trend for 2010, it’s no surprise many of Hollywood‘s A-Lister's are ‘going back to their roots'; turning heads with their Au natural take on tresses.



Some trendy salons are opting for alternative techniques, as opposed to foiling, in order to achieve this natural lightening effect. A very low maintenance French technique that has become a big deal in the world of fashion is called “Balayage.” This involves the stylist applying a lighter hair color in a sweeping motion, freehand, with a brush to hair strands of choice (mostly toward the ends). The end result: sexy sun kissed hair with more natural re-growth.



The “Ribbon” technique is another very similar way to get natural highlights. Created by Jo Hansford, a stylist also known as, the “first lady of color." The trick to this technique is to paint 2cm “ribbon” sections of hair from under the part with the lighter hair color; thus creating a peek-a-boo effect with the highlights. The end result: very multi-dimensional hair color, similar to foiling, but much less maintenance and more Au natural.



Another technique that is as easy on the bank account as it is the hair is some good old fashion lemon aid. Next time you’re out pick up some organic lemon juice and save a trip to the salon. Apply it freehand to strands you wish to lighten for a tres Au natural lightening effect. Some salons are actually offering a similar service to this DYI highlighting technique. First they bathe hair in organic lemon juice. Then more lemon juice is applied to various sections or strands of hair to create a highlight effect. This might be one of the oldest highlighting tricks in the book; however, it appears to work best on naturally blond or light brown manes.