I love that we have finally reached a point where it’s not considered emasculating for guys to wear makeup, actually do their hair, or give a shit about their clothes. In fact, I can’t believe we ever had a culture of that not being ok, but we did – and more and more, dumb sexist shit like “ya can’t style ya hair if you’re a bloke” is going out the window. Enter 2020 hair trend boylayage – a type of balayage for guys hair.
[jwplayer G09aGnNy]
Yes, yes. It’s technically just balayage on dudes, but look – every trend likes a nifty title and boylayage is this one. It’s also not entirely the same as the old mid-10s balayage trend.
“Boylayage is about creating a super natural and sun kissed finish,” explains Amanda Tua, Sydney-based legendary hairdresser & stylist.
Basically, it’s perfect for any guy with mousy tones – think natural blondes not ~ blessed ~ with natural highlights, mid-brunettes with no depth to their colour, and so on. With more and more men growing out their hair for a (extremely sexy, absolutely call me) 70s Led Zeppelin vibe, it makes sense that hair colour is on the rise for guys looking to refresh their natural hair colour.
“The best thing about boylayage is it’s so natural looking, it only needs to be maintained twice a year,” says Amanda.
Basically, your hairdresser will keep your roots close to your natural hair colour, if not leave them entirely product-free. Then, they’ll hand paint highlights through the mid-lengths and ends, working with whatever vibe you want. Thinking a naturally-sunkissed look, like you’re a pro surfer who spent the last 3 months in Hawaii? That’ll likely be more of a lift from your regular colour and require more highlights.
Just after a bit of depth to your brunette hair? This will likely involve a few different colours being put through to achieve a more vibrant finish.
Whatever the case, this is DEFINITELY one of those hair trends where you want to show up with picture examples, not just “I want boylayage, thanks”. No hairdresser is a mind reader, and taking photos of the colour vibe you want will help them determine how to replicate it for you.
It won’t be cheap – highlights run from the $100 mark upward. But the beauty of this type of colour is you don’t have to keep seeing the hairdresser because your roots are showing – your roots will blend with whatever the root colour of the dye is, meaning you can even push your visits to once a year if you like.
