Everyone in Michigan knows the first Gretchen, our governor Gretchen Whitmer. Love her or hate her, I don’t envy anyone in any kind of leadership role who has had to deal with all the challenges and ever-changing landscape of this pandemic.

But the result of Gov. Whitmer’s restrictions, along with the recommendations of other health officials, has been to send us outdoors as much as possible – out into the fresh air and sunshine and wide open spaces – but closer to home, rather than traveling far afield.

The Second Gretchen

During this time, I ran across the story of a second Gretchen: a 19-year-old beagle who lives in our community. Or, I should say, lived. Now 19 is pretty old for a beagle – or any dog – but this intrepid canine and her owner, Natalie, decided to visit all 12 of the parks in our city of Wyoming, Michigan, during the pandemic. (Gretchen was one of the founding members of the local Wyoming Dog Park.)

Sadly, Gretchen passed away a few parks short of the total, but she and her owner did hit the majority of the parks, creating many happy memories along the way.

My Own Park Exploration

I was impressed by the dog’s age and spirit, but I was just as impressed by the fact that our small city has 12 parks. Who knew? I certainly didn’t! So in the spirit of Natalie and her late, great hound dog, I decided to explore local parks – only with some combination of my six local grandchildren in tow, instead of a dog.

I also decided I would start with the ones within a 5-mile radius of my house.

First on the list was Heritage Park, which is technically not in Wyoming but across the line in Grandville, Michigan. Still, it’s only 5.3 miles from my house and just up the road from two of my grandchildren, so it seemed like a good place to begin.

I previously had no idea, simply no idea, that this park existed… and it’s vast and beautiful! There is even a lake in the middle. My two granddaughters, ages 5 and 9, had fun feeding the ducks, and my older granddaughter climbed a tree – absolutely what I would have done at her age!

Meeting the Monarch

On our second trip to the park, we checked out the nicely landscaped playgrounds then headed back along the lake where, quite by happenstance, we discovered a monarch caterpillar on a milkweed plant.

Also by happenstance, I had a “critter cage” in my car so we brought the little guy home with us. Sharing him with the other local grandkids, we enjoyed observing the entire cycle from caterpillar to chrysalis – to Monarch butterfly!

On our third visit, we returned him to his original spot by the lake. With a little encouragement, he finally left the butterfly cage. We watched him dip and swoop over the lake – and then return to us! He landed on a nearby bush, enabling the girls to say good-bye to him.

We learned from our research that early summer Monarchs live for only eight weeks but that late summer monarchs – like this one – live for eight months and migrate all the way to Mexico. Bon voyage, little friend. Safe travels!

What a fun adventure for my grandchildren, all because we spent time at this hidden gem of a park, within just five miles of my house.

Discovering Treasures Closer to Home

I am still confounded that I never even knew this park existed when it is so close to where I live. That’s been the silver lining of this pandemic – discovering treasures closer to home.

Even more surprising was next visiting a park less than a mile from my house!

I did know this one existed because, just up the road from our neighborhood, I had passed the sign for “Buck Creek Nature Preserve” dozens of times. But from the road, only a parking lot along a tree line was visible. It just didn’t look that intriguing.

Tired of being cooped up, however, and lured by an unusually warm early November afternoon, my seven-year-old granddaughter and I decided to bike there. Our bike ride lasted seven miles when we discovered a long, lovely trail through the woods. It took us along streams and a series of small ponds and ended at yet another local park (Lemery Park), which featured a lovely playground.

After playing on the equipment there, we explored along the stream banks, found deer prints in the mud, threw twigs in the water to see them float downstream, and watched serenely swimming ducks.

Simple pleasures. Simply perfect afternoon.

So, what’s within five miles of your house? What hidden local treasures have you discovered during this pandemic?

Is there anything better than getting your hair cut and/or colored, leaving the salon and feeling like a supermodel? No, we don’t think there is. But because of the current climate, seeing your hairstylist might not be as easy and getting your split ends cut off or your roots done might just be a quick in-and-out appointment without all the fun. That’s one reason why we’re so obsessed with actors and influencers who switch up their look on a dime. We’re jealous, sure, but it’s also aspirational AF. So, we’re rounding up the best celebrity hair makeovers of 2021 as they come so you can drool with us.

Though, it’s not just about drooling over these looks. Saving this page and referring back to it at the hair salon can help you decide if curtain bangs or a bob is right for you. Hairstylists actually love when you show them photos because they can get a real feel of the vibe you’re looking for and can adjust the look into something that suits your wants and needs. This goes for color, too. Did you ask for balayage when you really meant a shadow root? It’s easier to just give examples of what you want.

Some of these celebrity looks aren’t permanent. Stars love to play around with wigs, extensions and faux bangs. But there’s nothing wrong with that. Real or faux, we’re taking inspo from our favorites to figure out our next look for 2021 and beyond.

Our mission at STYLECASTER is to bring style to the people, and we only feature products we think you’ll love as much as we do. Please note that if you purchase something by clicking on a link within this story, we may receive a small commission of the sale.

Source: Instagram

Ciara

“Pelirroja,” Ciara wrote on Instagram. (Pelirroja is Spanish for redhead.) The singer is looking stunning with long ginger hair giving off a bit of a sexy princess Ariel vibe.

Instagram.com/sophiet.

Sophie Turner 

“Ya gal’s bang’d up,” the Game of Thrones star wrote on Instagram stories over the weekend. The choppy, piece-y style is different from the blunt bangs we’ve seen her rock before. We love this low-key fringe for summer because it’s easy to pin back or grow into curtain bangs.

Source: Instagram

Kim Kardashian

We’ve seen the media mogul try just about every hairstyle but the lob will always be our favorite. This one has a gorgeous curled-under ’70s vibe.

TikTok.

Charli D’Amelio

We’re obsessing over D’Amelio’s new chop with ’90s-style layers that feel so fresh for summer.

Source: Instagram

Miranda Cosgrove

She’s back, baby! Hairstylist Clayton Hawkins gave Cosgrove pretty blonde highlights for the iCarly revival.

Instagram.com/kimkardashian.

Kim Kardashian

Look who’s blonde again! But it was only for a few hours. Kardashian was shooting an upcoming campaign either for KKW Beauty or Skims. She actually did get her eyebrows bleached and we actually loved the look with her naturally dark hair. But then when they put the blonde wing on it was like, whoa. Right before she left the studio, she snapped a photo showing us she’s back to brunette again, including the brows.

Source: Instagram

Sabrina Carpenter

Say goodbye to curtain bangs and hello to ‘Bardot bangs!’ Hairstylist Laurie Heaps gave Sabrina Carpenter piece-y bombshell bangs inspired by the iconic French star Brigitte Bardot. We’re obsessed.

Source: Instagram

Selena Gomez

In an Instagram photo promoting her beauty brand, Rare Beauty, in April 2021, Gomez showed off her newly dyed blonde hair. The picture saw the former Disney Channel star light blonde tresses and dark roots. She most recently dyed her hair blonde in 2017 in a color dubbed by her hairstylist Nikki Lee as “Nirvana Blonde.” Gomez’s 2021 color was also done by Lee and Riawna Capri. “We’ve been doing Selena’s color for over a decade now. She typically keeps it pretty natural, but this time she went for a big change. This blonde is unique to her as we had to make sure there was an equal balance of cool and warm for her skin tone. It’s an edgier look and perfect for summer,” the hairstylists said in a statement.

https://twitter.com/eolsenarchive/status/1372591228886396930

Elizabeth Olsen

At the virtual launch of The Falcon and the Winter Soldier miniseries, Olsen debuted a totally different look from her usual copper-blonde hair. The bangs! The darker color! So chic.

Source: Instagram

Chrissy Teigen

We love how Teigen is playing around with wigs lately and experimenting with hair color. Although she only kept the silver shade for a day, we hope she brings it back. It looks amazing on her.

Source: Instagram

Kristen Bell

It seems like Bell is dressed up in character to film a TV show or movie but we’re loving these piecey bangs on her and we hope she keeps them up IRL.

Source: Instagram

Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez

While filling us in on the Covid-19 relief package, AOC showed off her adorable new haircut. When followers commented saying they loved the chop, she replied, “Let’s not start another national crisis over it, right?”

Source: Instagram

Gigi Hadid

The model mom returned to the runway, walking in the Versace fall 2021 show. Hairstylist Panos Papandrianos wrote “Ginger for Gigi” on Instagram, making us believe he really did dye the model’s hair this gorgeous red shade for the occasion.

Source: Instagram

Olivia Rodrigo

The ‘Drivers License’ singer jumped on the curtain bang trend thanks to hairstylist Clayton Hawkins. They’re subtle but make a big difference in her look. One interesting note: Sabrina Carpenter has them too.

Source: Instagram

Lana Condor

The actress looks so great in this pastel pink wig, maybe she’s considering doing it IRL? “Get ‘Anyone Else But You; to 5 mil streams and I’ll keep it,” she wrote on Instagram. Though, she told STYLECASTER last year, “I don’t know that I’d ever dye dye my hair. I think my mom would kill me, you’d know?”

Source: Instagram

Ashley Graham

The model had everyone thinking maybe she got a pixie cut but her hair is actually the result of new growth post hair loss. “Postpartum baby hairs come through!” she wrote on Instagram.

Source: Instagram

Emma Roberts

A new color and cut for the birthday girl! “Emma always looks and feels her best blonde,” said her hairstylist and Nine Zero One co-founder Nikki Lee. “We decided to keep her a warm blonde and went for a ’90s supermodel vibe. With a new baby and a big birthday, we went out with a bang! Lisa Satorn added extensions for length and fullness. I kept her haircut free and flowing with piecey layers around the face.” Lee keeps her client’s hair healthy with the In Common 3 Step Treatment System ($105 at In Common).

Source: Instagram

Katy Perry

Why not start with one of the biggest hair chameleons? Though she’s been ultra-blonde for a while, we can’t help but miss a brunette Katy Perry. It’s classically chic and fits her personality. So, when we saw these photos of backstage at Jimmy Kimmel Live, we were so excited to see the long brown hair. But it seems it’s a wig and she’s already back to blonde.

I grew up in Beverly Hills, where everyone looks one of two ages: Kylie Jenner’s or my grandma’s. Grandma took me for a plastic surgery consultation at 16 (in her defense, I’d begged her to), where the surgeon said I needed rhinoplasty, as well as cheek and chin implants. I didn’t get them. And this was way before the Zoom Doom boom of Botox and fillers.

Today, I’m 29, and even with the email “hangryfeminist91@gmail,” I’ve completely given into patriarchal beauty norms for women. Despite “knowing better,” I’m preoccupied with aesthetic (and unattainable) perfection: A Mexican Jew, I’m so Western-beauty-and-peroxide-processed I look like I hail from Sweden. At 28, seven months into the pandemic, I was hit by “Zoom Doom,” and got Botox. Then, the Cali Glam Instagram filter brainwashed me into pursuing under-eye filler—an impressive feat considering my severe fear of needles. I fainted during the procedure, but love(d) my results. Prior to my loss of consciousness, the surgeon said the same as the one from my teens: My nose, cheek, and chin needed volume.

If my flaws are anything, they’re consistent!

Unfortunately, today no matter the hometown, everyone is equally subjected to arbitrary aesthetic comparisons. FaceTune allows you to trim your waist, clear blemishes, change your eye color and more— and that’s to say nothing of what filters can do in the first place, essentially displaying your “after” photo in your very own front camera. The pandemic only exacerbated an already prevalent issue, and today unparalleled numbers of patients are pursuing plastic and cosmetic surgery and injectables, provoked by the phenomenon surgeons have coined “Zoom Doom” or the “Zoom effect:” The process of noticing every little flaw in your face while staring at yourself on Zoom, which according to Stanford research, primarily affects, and is much worse for, women.

Source: Instagram

Meanwhile, on TikTok, women as young as 18 are being inspired by “filler TikTok,” going on to chronicle their own filler procedures on the app and ultimately going viral. They then influence someone else their age. And so it goes: Cosmetic patients are trending younger by the minute.

“It’s because of social media and reality TV,” says Renee Moran, D.O., injector and owner of Moran Medical Aesthetics in Newton, MA. “We see a lot more popularity [in procedures] among millennials.” Craig Forleiter, M.D., a plastic surgeon in Palm Beach, FL, has observed the same, of “the selfie generation.”

Injectables refer to either neuromodulators or synthetic fillers. Neuromodulators, also called neurotoxins, are most commonly known by their brand names Dysport, Jeuveau, Xeomin and Botox, and temporarily paralyze the muscles into which they’re injected—like a sports bra for your face.

Filler, on the other hand, inflates the area into which it’s injected, like a padded bra. They’re customarily made of hyaluronic acid, a naturally occurring sugar in your body, although other types of filler include Calcium hydroxylapatite (brand-named Radiesse) and Polylactic acid (brand-named Sculptra). Hyaluronic acid is the most popular, accounting for brand names Juvederm, Restylane and Bolotero, and is responsible for many pouts with which I’m familiar.

The major uptick in teens and twenty-somethings pursuing filler has steadily increased over the past few years, but skyrocketed amid the pandemic alongside the pandemic plastic surgery boom prompted by Zoom doom—and likely spending so much more time on social media while stuck at home. Research has found that one of the most prevalent factors in young women pursuing injectables and/or facial surgery is to look better in selfies, and these decisions are often influenced by photos they see on social media. And now that cities are opening back up, more women are pursuing injectables than ever.

Source: Instagram

“People are trying to look like a filter,” Marc Mena, a celebrity hairstylist and beauty expert, says of the trend. “We have face dysmorphia.” How could we not? Social media is continually feeding its impressionable audience with Photoshopped footage of “perfect” people, with no way to differentiate between original and edited images. We’re comparing our actual selves to fabrications.

Actual apps alter our appearances, too. Filters refine features and conceal imperfections when you take your picture, often emulating the after-effects of aesthetic surgery. Smooth skin, larger lips and higher cheekbones are all possible via filters—even Zoom has a “touch up my appearance” blurring feature.

“The airbrushed effects of some apps immediately send the message, ‘You are not enough as you are,’” Kara Lissy, L.C.S.W, a New York therapist, says. “People quickly internalize thoughts like, ‘My cheekbones should be higher; my lips should be fuller.’ Teenagers and young adults are particularly vulnerable.”

Source: Instagram

Some Instagram users, concerned by this messaging, have actually created filters in response to the falsified phenomenon. Faye Dickenson, a 28-year-old content creator in London, launched a split-screen “Filter v. Reality” filter, in which one half of the selfie camera displays what an individual resembles with a beautifying filter and the second half shows what the user looks like naturally.

“The idea behind [the filter] was to create something to show people how these dramatic beauty filters rid selfies of skin textures, tones, scars, everything that makes you,” Dickinson explains over email. “It is easy to feel insecure, seeing how so much of the content we consume daily is filtered and photoshopped. Everyone looks picture-perfect; it’s hard not to point out your flaws, so I created both filters to show people don’t believe everything they see on social media. Online isn’t real.”

Source: Instagram

But of course, that’s easier to say than actively remember when scrolling through a sea of seemingly flawless influencers. Thus, it’s no surprise injectors have turned to social media to advertise their work, considering screens’ influence on consumers. Kristina Kitsos, a Beverly Hills aesthetic nurse who shares her procedures on TikTok, was initially reluctant to promote her practice via social media. Having been in the field for more than 17 years with a client base of more than 5,000—all through word-of-mouth and business cards—she felt she was doing just fine. Then her ‘aha moment’ came when she was invited to train doctors and nurses in aesthetic techniques.

“The [company] owner made an announcement and said that we had a ‘rock star’ here with us today. Since I was doing the training, I assumed he was talking about me.” she says. “He wasn’t. One of the trainees, who’d been practicing for three years, had 70,000 followers. He meant her.”

Kitsos was shocked. She couldn’t believe so many people assumed practitioners were better when they had more followers, regardless of their qualifications. She’s since dedicated her TikTok content to properly educating followers on best aesthetic practices.

Injectors aren’t the only people documenting procedures on TikTok: Patients are doing it, too. And it’s become so popular that there are accompanying “challenges” encouraging users to post before-and-afters of their aesthetic modifications. Nina Tylutki, an 18-year-old student in Ohio, posted one of these videos, chronicling the four days leading up to “having an upper lip” (her words), as in the day she received half a syringe of Restylane Kysse in her top lip.

Filmed and posted to TikTok on December 22, 2020, the video collected more than 8.5 million views in a month. “I want to make it known that it’s perfectly okay to get lip fillers,” she says. “You should have no shame getting anything done to please yourself.”

While I certainly agree, it would be remiss of me to overlook the very real risks of filler, and reiterate that any form of injections should not be taken lightly. Faulty filler injection can cause infections, blindness and necrosis, which is death of skin cells and tissue due to a lack of blood and oxygen, and if unnoticed and/or untreated, a necrotic wound can discolor and change the texture of the skin, turning dark brown or black, and “leathery.”

Injectables are a long-term financial investment, too. In order to maintain a desired aesthetic, filler must be touched up every three to four months, and Botox costs an average of several hundred dollars per individual treatment, while one filler treatment can range from $800 to $2,500—sometimes more.

Teenage boys, like Simon Petterson, a 19-year-old in Sweden, broadcast their cosmetic endeavors on TikTok, too. Petterson, inspired by influencers and celebrities online, has received filler in his lips, nose, jawline, chin and cheekbones, as well as a Polydioxanone (PDO) thread lift. He’s pleased with his results.

Georgiana Dusa, a 23-year-old student in Toronto, also got a thread lift—but her experience wasn’t as positive as Petterson’s. “I started swelling a lot and couldn’t find anything online,” she says. “I called my doctor: I had a very rare side effect. Usually, people do not get as swollen as I did.” Once she healed, she shared her experience as a warning.

Others are using TikTok to caution users of potential injectable risks as well. Desirae Bolich, a 21-year-old living in San Diego, CA, posted a video captioned “lip filler journey over the last four days,” sharing her less-than-ideal experience with the after-effects of lip filler, when her lips swelled to the point that she felt like “a duck that got punched in the face.”

“If you were thinking of getting filler, let this be your reason to not,” she says in the clip.

Gisele Ayora, a beauty influencer in New Jersey, also seeks to educate her followers. Her most popular video, “Five Things I Wish I Knew Before I Got Lip Filler,” reiterates the importance of researching injectors beforehand, inspired by her bad experience with filler, despite her experience having worked in a medical spa.

Her former place of employment provided injectables, and Ayora always assumed injectors had to undergo extensive training for certification. I, too, was under the impression that only doctors, or well-trained nurses, could inject filler—which is sort of true. You must be a registered nurse, physician’s assistant, nurse practitioner or medical doctor (M.D.) to administer injectables, though these rules vary state to state. Normally, non-M.D.s can only administer injections under the supervision of a physician, which sounds comforting. What isn’t is how many practices define being under a doctor’s supervision.

“The physician who’s supposedly ‘supervising’ is never even there,” Beverly Hills dermatologist Harold Lancer, M.D., says of some practices with which he’s familiar. “[The doctors] get a percentage of the profits, and hire staff to do injections, who are supervised, long-distance, by physicians, [who] could be unlicensed psychiatrists.”

It’s also important to note that titles like “doctor” or “M.D.” don’t necessarily mean someone is more qualified. My psychiatrist is an M.D. and I’d rather she didn’t inject my face, while I also don’t exactly want my dermatologist prescribing my anti-depressants.

So knowing all of this atop my severe phobia of needles, why do I keep getting injectables? “It’s an addiction,” Mena says. “The new drug dealers are the injectors.”

While “addiction” sounds like a strong word, it can indeed be the case. “Anything that gives us a dopamine hit has the potential to develop into an addiction,” Lissy explains. That said, it’s complicated, considering self-care, which is highly encouraged by most mental health practitioners, is almost synonymous with beauty regimens. So where do we draw the line? “When it starts interfering with your budget or your ability to see yourself as a worthy, beautiful person,” she says.

I pause on the word “validated,” and think of everyone pursuing injectables to improve selfies. What are photo-sharing apps if not validation bait—a constant competition for who gets the most likes?

A few hours after my filler-induced fainting spell, my sister, who is 22 and still lives in LA, yelled at me over FaceTime. “You’re going to look like everyone else!” The next day, my sister calls again. “Should I get under-eye filler?” I say no, she’s 22. “But now I’m scared I need it.”

And so it begins.

If you’re a so-called “bottle blonde,” and have to resort to salon services to maintain your lightened locks, you know that being blonde is not only expensive AF, but it’s also just downright hard. Before taking a deep dive into our comprehensive blonde hair color guide informed by Los Angeles based colorist (and bona fide blonde guru) Linet K, let’s first address some of the potential reasons for why we oftentimes find ourselves leaving the salon dissatisfied (and sometimes straight-up horrified) with the end result. The most common reason for leaving the salon in a state of distress is that your expectations simply weren’t realistic and/or weren’t matched with your budget, the condition of your hair, your natural color’s aptitude to lift (lighten), or the time limit you’d allotted for the service.

If you’ve ever tried to go from a brunette (or worse, redhead) to blonde with only one salon session, you’ve probably been told that this transformation is virtually impossible to undergo within one day if you plan on actually leaving with some hair left on your head. Of course, aside from consulting with your colorist about possibilities and options, it’s also possible you weren’t specific enough in communicating your hair goals or simply didn’t even know what you wanted (all you knew is that it wasn’t what you left with).

Even if you have the most amazing colorist in your city and bring in the most illustrative inspiration pics the margin of “error,” walking out of the salon with the exact shade, undertone and effect you dreamed of us is unlikely without the right vocabulary.  Not only is there a highly nuanced shade palette when it comes to a vast range of different hues under the broad “blonde” umbrella, but there is also a slew of different tones (ash, neutral, golden, icy…and the list goes on). There’s also a ton of different blonding techniques that will each give you a different look.

On top of this, colorists and hairstylists seem to have adopted their own language choc-full of mystifying terms and descriptives, and if you don’t know the jargon, you may be at a disadvantage when you’re trying to distinguish whether you’re coveting dimension, a smudged root, or blended babylights, or whether you’re looking for a “bronde,” baby blonde or champagne-hued accent highlights. “The best thing to do is to take in photos of what you like because your interpretation or understanding of cool, neutral, and platinum are not the same or someone else’s understanding of those terms,” Linet advises.

Balayage, babylights and partial highlights offer the most natural-looking blonde requiring less maintenance and offering a more forgiving grow-up process, while bleach and tones give an all-over blonde (often platinum-white) but you’ll have to be religious about root touch-ups every 3-4 weeks to avoid stark lines of demarcation. “Balayage lasts for between 3-6 months, whereas highlights need a touch up every 4-6 weeks, so you can save money with a balayage with more infrequent salon visits,” she says.

According to Linet, it’s also important to factor in the condition of your hair, if you have a ton of breakage from previous bleach jobs or excessive heat styling, a bleach and tone or platinum highlights, aren’t ideal. “Balayage [tend to be] the least damaging because the bleach doesn’t go all the way up to the root, and there are fewer pieces of hair bleached compared to highlights or babylights,” she says. Regardless of which technique and tone you decide, ensuring you protect the integrity of your hair (another popular salon term, I’ve heard numerous times), selecting the right products to maintain your hair’s health and keep your locks bright and brass-free is essential.

The two products she recommends to her blonde clients? A good bond-builder and violet-hued shampoo. “Olaplex will keep the hair strong and healthy! Purple shampoo only once a week to keep it bright, otherwise, it will start looking grey,” she suggests. See below for some of our favorite blonde looks and find out exactly how to ask for them.

Our mission at STYLECASTER is to bring style to the people, and we only feature products we think you’ll love as much as we do. Sally Beauty is a STYLECASTER sponsor, however, all products in this article were independently selected by our editors. Please note that if you purchase something by clicking on a link within this story, we may receive a small commission of the sale.

Courtesy of ImaxTree.

Icy Platinum Bleach & Tone

A bleach and tone service involves the process of applying bleach in section to the entire head to a pale yellow or white level and then applying a toner to get the desired undertone. This icy (white, cool-toned cast) is achieved by using a purple or ash-toned glaze over pre-lightened locks. As mentioned, bleach and tone blondes should expect a high-maintenance and expensive salon routine because root regrowth looks stark compared to sectional highlights, hand-painted balayage, or super blended babylights.

Courtesy of Color Lux.

Color Lux Cleansing Conditioner

Using a color-depositing conditioner formulated for platinum blondes will help keep your hair fresher for an extended amount of time. Color Lux’s Cleansing Conditioner in the platinum will help counteract unwanted warmth and keep brass at bay in between your salon appointments.

Courtesy of ImaxTree.

Butter Blonde Highlights With Smudged Root

Butter blonde tones are universally flattering on a wide range of skin tones, and they require much less upkeep with maintaining the tone than ash, ice, platinum, and cooler-toned hues. She also appears to have what’s called a smudged root: a process that involves the colorist adding a glaze or demi-permanent gloss darker than the blonde color applied over your roots to soften any harsh lines from your highlights and to help make the grow-out look a bit more natural for those who prefer to only visit the salon for touch-ups a couple of times a year.

Courtesy of GemLites.

ColorLites Color-Depositing Shampoo

This pigmented color-depositing shampoo comes in a variety of hue-enhancing shades, including options for white platinums, golden highlights, and beige blondes. The shade “sandstone” is perfect for maintaining buttery blonde shades.

Buy: GemLites Color-Depositing Shampoo $35

Courtesy of ImaxTree.

Mushroom Blonde Color Melt

Mushroom blonde is probably one of the biggest hair color trends swirling about this summer, and for good reason. The ash-based hue is a combination of grayish-brown and neutral blonde, infused with highlights and low-lights in a myriad of different shades and tones for an ultra-natural look that still delivers ample dimension and character. The color melt technique is a popular way to nail this look because it concentrates on lighter shades at the bottom of the hair with a gradient effect from the root to strands. It’s one of the most fuss-free hair services you can choose from, and it complements the multifaceted ‘shroom shades beautifully.

Courtesy of Fanola.

Fanola No Yellow Shampoo

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, this violet-tinged shampoo is the ultimate brass-blocker I’ve found. Colorists swear by it — even to use in place of an actual toner. It’s that good. This formula will help keep the mushroom tones nice and ashy and will counteract brass.

Buy: Fanola No Yellow Shampoo $24.99

Courtesy of ImaxTree.

Golden Blonde Babylights

Babylights are one of the go-to highlighting methods used on clients looking for a super-natural looking blonde that mimics the enviable soft dimension you’ll see on naturally blonde tresses of children (most people lose this lustrous effect with age). This method offers a super-subtle look and tends to grow out beautifully depending on how light you go.

Courtesy of FEKKAI.

FEKKAI Baby Blonde Shampoo

This blonde-enhancing shampoo helps keep golden locks looking shiny and vibrant, but isn’t as pigmented as other purple-toned shampoos, so it won’t leave your locks looking ashy or silvery.

Buy: Fekkai Baby Blonde Shampoo $19.99

Courtesy of ImaxTree.

Silver Blonde Bleach & Tone

Another bleach and tone example, this striking blonde has been bleached to a pale yellow and toned with an ash or silver toner to create a grayish hue. If you choose to rock this look, prepare for some serious commitment when it comes to your maintenance routine. We advise investing in silver or violet-hued shampoo to maintain the brilliance and counteract brass (especially if your natural hair color is darker) in between salon visits.

Courtesy of Luesta.

Luesta Hair Brightening Mask

This two-in-one hair mask delivers anti-brass powers to keep yellow tones at bay, while also conditioning the hair to reverse breakage and bleach damage.

Buy: Luesta Hair Brightening Mask $26.90

Courtesy of ImaxTree.

Ash Blonde With Platinum Accent “Money Piece” Highlights

This ash-blonde look is accented with a touch of face-framing highlights positioned strategically around the face for a sun-kissed effect. I’ve also heard these accent or face frame highlights referred to as “pops,” money pieces, crown highlights, and frosted tip highlights in salons.

Courtesy of Kerastase.

Kérastase Blond Absolu CicaFlash Conditioner

This fortifying hair treatment will keep your brighter pieces healthy, strong, and hydrated while also boosting their brightness when your in-between visits to your colorist. It’s infused with hyaluronic acid fills, which work to help repair damage and prevent further breakage.

Buy: Kerastase Blond Absolu $49.99

Courtesy of ImaxTree.

Honey Blonde Balayage

Giselle’s signature beachy highlights look effortless and sexy — and they’re actually just as low-key when it comes to maintenance and grow-out as they seem. Balayage is a process of highlighting that (usually) favor the hand-painting technique for placement rather than foils for a more natural look. Balayage often has a rootier look, without being full-on ombre.

Courtesy of CHI.

CHI Ionic Illuminate Golden Blonde Conditioner

Keep your golden strands bright and healthy with this subtle color-depositing conditioner, which also doubles as a bond builder for repairing and restricting damage.

Buy: CHI Golden Blonde Conditioner $15.04

Courtesy of ImaxTree.

Bronde With Ribbon Highlights

Bronde (you guessed it, a slightly blonder brunette shade) is a great option for those on a budget or those who don’t want to fuss with frequent salon appointments to deal with roots. It adds just a touch of dimension and brightness to your natural (or color-treated) hue without a huge investment or commitment. This bronde shade has a pop of blonde with cascading, ultra-thin “ribbon highlights” position around the entire head (as opposed to accent highlights) where the sun would naturally hit.

Courtesy of DP Hue.

DP Hue Gloss+ in Dark Blonde

This color-refreshing gloss gives the perfect pick-me-up to keep warm bronde hues fresh. This low-maintenance look requires little upkeep, but adding a gloss like DP Hue’s will help you push back frequent visits to the salon.

Buy: DP Hue Color Gloss $35

If you’re a so-called “bottle blonde,” and have to resort to salon services to maintain your lightened locks, you know that being blonde is not only expensive AF, but it’s also just downright hard. Before taking a deep dive into our comprehensive blonde hair color guide informed by Los Angeles based colorist (and bona fide blonde guru) Linet K, let’s first address some of the potential reasons for why we oftentimes find ourselves leaving the salon dissatisfied (and sometimes straight-up horrified) with the end result. The most common reason for leaving the salon in a state of distress is that your expectations simply weren’t realistic and/or weren’t matched with your budget, the condition of your hair, your natural color’s aptitude to lift (lighten), or the time limit you’d allotted for the service.

If you’ve ever tried to go from a brunette (or worse, redhead) to blonde with only one salon session, you’ve probably been told that this transformation is virtually impossible to undergo within one day if you plan on actually leaving with some hair left on your head. Of course, aside from consulting with your colorist about possibilities and options, it’s also possible you weren’t specific enough in communicating your hair goals or simply didn’t even know what you wanted (all you knew is that it wasn’t what you left with).

Even if you have the most amazing colorist in your city and bring in the most illustrative inspiration pics the margin of “error,” walking out of the salon with the exact shade, undertone and effect you dreamed of us is unlikely without the right vocabulary.  Not only is there a highly nuanced shade palette when it comes to a vast range of different hues under the broad “blonde” umbrella, but there is also a slew of different tones (ash, neutral, golden, icy…and the list goes on). There’s also a ton of different blonding techniques that will each give you a different look.

On top of this, colorists and hairstylists seem to have adopted their own language choc-full of mystifying terms and descriptives, and if you don’t know the jargon, you may be at a disadvantage when you’re trying to distinguish whether you’re coveting dimension, a smudged root, or blended babylights, or whether you’re looking for a “bronde,” baby blonde or champagne-hued accent highlights. “The best thing to do is to take in photos of what you like because your interpretation or understanding of cool, neutral, and platinum are not the same or someone else’s understanding of those terms,” Linet advises.

Balayage, babylights and partial highlights offer the most natural-looking blonde requiring less maintenance and offering a more forgiving grow-up process, while bleach and tones give an all-over blonde (often platinum-white) but you’ll have to be religious about root touch-ups every 3-4 weeks to avoid stark lines of demarcation. “Balayage lasts for between 3-6 months, whereas highlights need a touch up every 4-6 weeks, so you can save money with a balayage with more infrequent salon visits,” she says.

According to Linet, it’s also important to factor in the condition of your hair, if you have a ton of breakage from previous bleach jobs or excessive heat styling, a bleach and tone or platinum highlights, aren’t ideal. “Balayage [tend to be] the least damaging because the bleach doesn’t go all the way up to the root, and there are fewer pieces of hair bleached compared to highlights or babylights,” she says. Regardless of which technique and tone you decide, ensuring you protect the integrity of your hair (another popular salon term, I’ve heard numerous times), selecting the right products to maintain your hair’s health and keep your locks bright and brass-free is essential.

The two products she recommends to her blonde clients? A good bond-builder and violet-hued shampoo. “Olaplex will keep the hair strong and healthy! Purple shampoo only once a week to keep it bright, otherwise, it will start looking grey,” she suggests. See below for some of our favorite blonde looks and find out exactly how to ask for them.

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Courtesy of ImaxTree.

Icy Platinum Bleach & Tone

A bleach and tone service involves the process of applying bleach in section to the entire head to a pale yellow or white level and then applying a toner to get the desired undertone. This icy (white, cool-toned cast) is achieved by using a purple or ash-toned glaze over pre-lightened locks. As mentioned, bleach and tone blondes should expect a high-maintenance and expensive salon routine because root regrowth looks stark compared to sectional highlights, hand-painted balayage, or super blended babylights.

Courtesy of Color Lux.

Color Lux Cleansing Conditioner

Using a color-depositing conditioner formulated for platinum blondes will help keep your hair fresher for an extended amount of time. Color Lux’s Cleansing Conditioner in the platinum will help counteract unwanted warmth and keep brass at bay in between your salon appointments.

Courtesy of ImaxTree.

Butter Blonde Highlights With Smudged Root

Butter blonde tones are universally flattering on a wide range of skin tones, and they require much less upkeep with maintaining the tone than ash, ice, platinum, and cooler-toned hues. She also appears to have what’s called a smudged root: a process that involves the colorist adding a glaze or demi-permanent gloss darker than the blonde color applied over your roots to soften any harsh lines from your highlights and to help make the grow-out look a bit more natural for those who prefer to only visit the salon for touch-ups a couple of times a year.

Courtesy of GemLites.

ColorLites Color-Depositing Shampoo

This pigmented color-depositing shampoo comes in a variety of hue-enhancing shades, including options for white platinums, golden highlights, and beige blondes. The shade “sandstone” is perfect for maintaining buttery blonde shades.

Buy: GemLites Color-Depositing Shampoo $35

Courtesy of ImaxTree.

Mushroom Blonde Color Melt

Mushroom blonde is probably one of the biggest hair color trends swirling about this summer, and for good reason. The ash-based hue is a combination of grayish-brown and neutral blonde, infused with highlights and low-lights in a myriad of different shades and tones for an ultra-natural look that still delivers ample dimension and character. The color melt technique is a popular way to nail this look because it concentrates on lighter shades at the bottom of the hair with a gradient effect from the root to strands. It’s one of the most fuss-free hair services you can choose from, and it complements the multifaceted ‘shroom shades beautifully.

Courtesy of Fanola.

Fanola No Yellow Shampoo

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, this violet-tinged shampoo is the ultimate brass-blocker I’ve found. Colorists swear by it — even to use in place of an actual toner. It’s that good. This formula will help keep the mushroom tones nice and ashy and will counteract brass.

Buy: Fanola No Yellow Shampoo $24.99

Courtesy of ImaxTree.

Golden Blonde Babylights

Babylights are one of the go-to highlighting methods used on clients looking for a super-natural looking blonde that mimics the enviable soft dimension you’ll see on naturally blonde tresses of children (most people lose this lustrous effect with age). This method offers a super-subtle look and tends to grow out beautifully depending on how light you go.

Courtesy of FEKKAI.

FEKKAI Baby Blonde Shampoo

This blonde-enhancing shampoo helps keep golden locks looking shiny and vibrant, but isn’t as pigmented as other purple-toned shampoos, so it won’t leave your locks looking ashy or silvery.

Buy: Fekkai Baby Blonde Shampoo $19.99

Courtesy of ImaxTree.

Silver Blonde Bleach & Tone

Another bleach and tone example, this striking blonde has been bleached to a pale yellow and toned with an ash or silver toner to create a grayish hue. If you choose to rock this look, prepare for some serious commitment when it comes to your maintenance routine. We advise investing in silver or violet-hued shampoo to maintain the brilliance and counteract brass (especially if your natural hair color is darker) in between salon visits.

Courtesy of Luesta.

Luesta Hair Brightening Mask

This two-in-one hair mask delivers anti-brass powers to keep yellow tones at bay, while also conditioning the hair to reverse breakage and bleach damage.

Buy: Luesta Hair Brightening Mask $26.90

Courtesy of ImaxTree.

Ash Blonde With Platinum Accent “Money Piece” Highlights

This ash-blonde look is accented with a touch of face-framing highlights positioned strategically around the face for a sun-kissed effect. I’ve also heard these accent or face frame highlights referred to as “pops,” money pieces, crown highlights, and frosted tip highlights in salons.

Courtesy of Kerastase.

Kérastase Blond Absolu CicaFlash Conditioner

This fortifying hair treatment will keep your brighter pieces healthy, strong, and hydrated while also boosting their brightness when your in-between visits to your colorist. It’s infused with hyaluronic acid fills, which work to help repair damage and prevent further breakage.

Buy: Kerastase Blond Absolu $49.99

Courtesy of ImaxTree.

Honey Blonde Balayage

Giselle’s signature beachy highlights look effortless and sexy — and they’re actually just as low-key when it comes to maintenance and grow-out as they seem. Balayage is a process of highlighting that (usually) favor the hand-painting technique for placement rather than foils for a more natural look. Balayage often has a rootier look, without being full-on ombre.

Courtesy of CHI.

CHI Ionic Illuminate Golden Blonde Conditioner

Keep your golden strands bright and healthy with this subtle color-depositing conditioner, which also doubles as a bond builder for repairing and restricting damage.

Buy: CHI Golden Blonde Conditioner $15.04

Courtesy of ImaxTree.

Bronde With Ribbon Highlights

Bronde (you guessed it, a slightly blonder brunette shade) is a great option for those on a budget or those who don’t want to fuss with frequent salon appointments to deal with roots. It adds just a touch of dimension and brightness to your natural (or color-treated) hue without a huge investment or commitment. This bronde shade has a pop of blonde with cascading, ultra-thin “ribbon highlights” position around the entire head (as opposed to accent highlights) where the sun would naturally hit.

Courtesy of DP Hue.

DP Hue Gloss+ in Dark Blonde

This color-refreshing gloss gives the perfect pick-me-up to keep warm bronde hues fresh. This low-maintenance look requires little upkeep, but adding a gloss like DP Hue’s will help you push back frequent visits to the salon.

Buy: DP Hue Color Gloss $35