An unexpected hair colour trend of the season is Honey Red – a mix of rich auburn and warm blonde that celebrities seem to be loving right now. Unlike deep reds – a go-to colour for Indian women – honey red is a brighter alternative that will require a certain level of pre-lightening with bleach. Veering into ‘ginger’ territory, this hue seems to be a go-to brief for summer 2022. And as you will see ahead, it’s going to be the best brief on red colours we’ve seen in a while!
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Similar to most hair trends, honey red’s supremacy with hair trends, and its subsequent favouritism among hair colourists, can be clearly tracked to its origins. As cherry caramel or auburn highlights became 2021’s autumn staple, Kendall Jenner’s runway appearances during the Milan Fashion Week solidified honey red as a bonafide hair trend. While Kendall may have catapulted the colour to its current viral status, we spotted some of our other absolute favourite fashion girls doing it with a subtleer approach; starting with eternal crush Zendaya…
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Z first showed off her red tresses with an IG story – soft, interspersed tendrils of honey red that get lost in her natural curls towards the ends. She finally debuted it on the red carpet at Valentino’s Paris Fashion Week presentations, perfectly pairing it with the hot pink that inspired the fashion house’s collection this season. Her tint looks incredible with the soft wave – a perfect option for anybody looking to go red but still maintaining their virgin colour on top.
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Full disclosure: It isn’t just celebrities who are seeing red this season. As a beauty writer and self-professed hair bleach/colour fanatic, I have been noticing red a lot. And with summer almost here (I say this while ordering a mint cooler!), the honey red version of the red invasion seems to be a logical choice for someone with pre-lightened hair like mine. Kirti Kulhari’s pink faded into honey red ends works as good inspiration for people who like to rock multi-toned tresses. Take a pick from an array of warm tints to pair with your fresh honey red paint.
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Take a cue from Euphoria’s Barbie Fareira who paired her honey red mane with brassy browns to transition her hair colour from a gloomy winter to happy (we hope!) summer. Like Zendaya, the honey tint is focused towards the back and the ends, with the warmer colour focused around the face to brighten up her look, and mood. Even with minimal pre-lightening, this hair colour promises to remain low maintenance and look stunning on Indian skin tones.
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Global coverage, highlights, lowlights or dip-dyed – the honey red will work well as your next colour experiment. Sit for a detailed chat with the colourist to understand the maintenance, colour play, and depth you wish to achieve because with every hair colour, including this, there’s a lot of scope to play with it. A tiny disclaimer though: while a fresh colour is a good idea for the summer, a honey red might stress out your tresses more than a regular brown or deep red. Just have a colour-care hair routine in place before taking the plunge!
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