When Selling Sunset star Chrishell Stause hit the 2021 People’s Choice Awards red carpet at the Barker Hangar in Santa Monica, California, jaws dropped. Her SoCal blonde hair was gone and a deep brunette shade was in its place. But Stause’s brown hair isn’t exactly what it seems. If it looks really real, that’s because her hairstylist Bradley Leake didn’t just throw on a wig. Instead, the detailed process is actually fascinating.
Stause loves to switch up her look for the red carpet. Remember her blunt bangs at the 2020 People’s Choice Awards? Leake was responsible for those too — which were also temporary. This brunette color is, as well. You didn’t think the blonde would be gone forever, did you? Leake showed the behind-the-scenes process and it’s not at all what we expected.
“There are so many great options to change up the hair color without long-term commitment!” he wrote on Instagram. First, he had to prep his client’s own hair for the transformation. He applied Color Wow Dream Coat Supernatural Spray ($28 at Amazon) to smooth and seal the cuticle. He blew dry her long hair with the Boujee Beauty infrared blow dryer and used the brand’s 1.75-inch curly iron to add soft waves to her ends. Hidden Crown Hair’s Extra Long Curl Bar 1.25-inch wand helped create more defined waves.
Source: InstagramHere’s where things get interesting. Leake used L’Oreal Professionnel Hair Touch Up in Dark Brown ($17.80 at Walmart). You can also use L’Oréal Root Cover Up in Dark Brown ($10.99 at Ulta). You can these for bigger areas than just your roots! He clipped on matching extensions, and finished with Color Wow Extra Mist-ical Shine Spray ($29 at Sephora) and a root concealer powder “to refine the hairline.”
The result is a rich, shiny brunette shade that washes out at the end of the night. Genius!
