So, you’ve found the perfect color on Pinterest and now you’re ready to book your next hair appointment! Yessss! But, is it really a Balayage that you’re looking for or is it a dimensional highlight? You may not think it makes that much of a difference when you’re scheduling your appointment, but it does! Here are the reasons why: time, cost, and expectations. Let me explain.
Balayage, baby-lights, slicing, teasy-lights, bleach & tone, and root smudge—these are all techniques that are used to achieve a certain look and they all serve a very different purpose. They aren’t necessarily bound to a certain result and they can be combined to achieve the result, so it’s important to be open to allowing your stylist to use whatever technique they choose depending on what you’re asking for. For example, during my consultation appointments I’ll have clients sit in my chair and show me their picture of inspiration and they’ve already decided that they want “this balayage” when in fact, the picture is the result of a heavy, teasy-light foil with a root smudge. It may be disheartening to learn that you’re not actually getting a balayage or that your stylist doesn’t have enough time blocked off to give you what you really want, so I’m going to explain the difference between the more common techniques that are used by most stylists today.