Auburn refers to the family of natural looking shades where red meets brunette or dark blonde – if your hair appears brown until you stand under a light source and reveal a halo of shimmering red or strawberry highlights, then chances are you’re already an auburn kinda gal.

Auburn is a great choice for anyone who wants to revamp their look in a classy and subtle fashion, particularly if you are a natural brunette or your hair is a darker shade of blonde.

If you are lucky enough to have natural red highlights then an auburn hair dye can really add shine and lustre to your locks, be prepared to dazzle!

How to achieve an Auburn hair color

The great thing about auburn as a shade is that’s possible to try it out using temporary tints and dyes so you can make absolutely sure you like the tone.

Lets be honest, there is a limit to how much temporary dyes can do (for example they won’t lighten your hair) but the auburn tones are where they really come into their own. Also, there is a great selection of natural hair dyes, including henna, in auburn shades so you can change the color of your hair without damaging your locks.

Another great way to achieve an auburn effect is in the form of lowlights, meaning that you have just a few bits of red throughout your hair to catch the light. This is a great way to build up to a full head of red if you’re a little too afraid to take the plunge in all one – you can gradually add more and more lowlights, getting a deeper overall color as you go.

This is also a fantastic way to get multi-tonal color. If you like the sound of lowlights its probably best to visit a professional salon as it can be a difficult technique to get right at home.

There are a whole range of permanent home dye kits in auburn tones, and in fact auburn is one of the shades that the big brands produce really well, as it’s such a natural and universal color it is relatively easy to carry off.

Check out the hair color charts to see the huge range of formulas and shades available in auburn tones – as long as you stick to a shade that is no more than three shades away from your natural color you can’t really go wrong.

For the best effects, avoid going lighter or darker and instead look for a shade that is the same ‘level’ as your natural color, but further towards the red end of the color spectrum. Do make sure you are happy with the tone you have chosen as red hair will stick around for a very long time even if you dye over it – particularly if you have gray strands or lighter highlights.

Once you have done the deed you need to take care of your hair with shampoos and conditioners specially formulated for red-heads, as these will help to look after your hair whilst also adding further tones and highlights to the hair to keep it looking shiny, healthy and lustrous.

Auburn hair: the color working it’s way through Hollywood!

Auburn hair has massively increased in popularity over the last five years or so, as many celebrities are embracing their natural auburn locks while others enhance their natural color with red dyes.

However, as little as five years ago, red was really not a popular hair color and many natural auburn-haired beauties were dying over their natural locks and going blonde or brown instead.

Nowadays, natural blondes and natural brunettes are taking a walk on the wild side, and it may surprise you to know that there are an awful lot of celebrities out there who we think are natural redheads who are most definitely not – Debra Messing, Sophia Loren and Rose McGowan to name a few.

There’s no doubt about it, auburn hair is certainly back on the fashion radar and here at Hair Color Code, we absolutely love the sophisticated effect of red-hued locks!

Welcome 2012 with a new hairstyle!

Changing up your hair color or style is proven to be a great confidence booster, and is a great gift to give yourself! There are many approaches to creating a look you love and most importantly feel comfortable in.

Here are five ways you can update your look, whether you want a drastic change or something minimal.

1. Highlights/Lowlights

Highlights are a perfect option if you are considering going blonde, but are afraid to go blonde all the way. They can be chosen in various shades of blonde such as honey, gold, strawberry-blonde, natural blonde, or platinum. Bring pictures of the color you’d like as a visual aid for your stylist. Be sure to ask questions prior to and doing a strand test so you can see the final result on a strand, before commiting to your whole head and not being satisfied with the results.

Lowlights are done to frame your face and add more depth with browns or reds. Lowlights are a good option if you have very dark hair. Realistically speaking going from jet-black to platinum is not so simple, and will take more than just one process. There are great shades you can play with such as chocolate brown, caramel, mahogany, bright red, or burgundy.

2. Go short!

If you have had medium-long hair for a while and are looking for a drastic new look, chop it off. Though we women occasionally become attached to our hair, sometimes that prevents us from exploring other styles which might actually look better or make you appear younger. There are many charities which allow you to share your long locks to make wigs for cancer patients. Which means two people get a new hairstyle for the price of one. A good thing about shorter hair, is less time styling it!

3. Get bangs

Bangs are a simple way to update your style, without sacrificing length. Try side-swept bangs to offset a round/oval face. Or blunt-across bangs for a long/ square shaped face. You can also add texture by asking for a feathered/ choppy look. Or add some blonde chunky highlights on your bangs for a fun look.

4. Reinvent your look

You know how as you grow up from various stages in your life, your fashion style changes? Well, do the same to your hair! Don’t keep the same hairstyle you had when you were a teen, now that you are thirty. Update your hair, either by cutting it to a style that suits your face and personality, or by coloring it. Add some layers, change the part, wear it curled or straighten it out.

Adding color doesn’t have to be a permanent commitment. If you have virgin hair and are worried about coloring, try a semi-permament dye. Remember, semi-permanent only deposits color, so you can’t go lighter without bleaching. But you can try a beautiful burgundy, or chocolate brown, and not have to worry about becoming a color addict.

5. Go long!

Tired of short hair, and can’t wait any longer for long locks… Get extensions! They are a great way to add length temporarily or for an extended length. Good quality extensions look and are taken care of as real hair would. Some salons are also able to sew on extensions and charge you only for the cost of labor if you bring your own extensions in. If you’d prefer a more temporary increase in hair length, clip ins are a great and affordable option.

Hope these tips were useful. How often do you change up your hair style/color?!

Guest post by Beautycareme – Beautycareme.com is a blog for women of all ages. Focused on beauty, fashion, fitness and health. Check it out for great articles, reviews, giveaways and more! Follow on Twitter or Facebook to stay up to date with Beautycareme

If you are a regular visitor to HairColorCode, the chances are that you have dyed your hair once or twice (or a hundred times) in the past, but how many of us have ever consider white as a shade?

You may be surprised to hear that white-hued locks are no longer just for the twinset and pearls crowd, youthful celebrities and models are now jumping on the bandwagon and enjoying the dramatic look of white hair and the blank canvas it offers for adding other bright colors. Although white hair used to be associated with premature aging, that is most definitely no longer true, and you only need to look at the catwalks for proof that this color is firmly in vogue.

Stars who are rocking white hair

Celebrities such as Agyness Deyn, Gwen Stefani and Mary-Kate Olsen have all rocked white hair in their time, as has Christina Aguilera. But we mustn’t forget that these celebs have plenty of stylists to keep their locks looking smooth, shiny and healthy – and for white hair to look good, it needs much more maintenance than ‘regular’ hair colors.

There’s no denying that white hair is a dramatic look but it is more difficult to achieve than other colors as it involves bleaching and toning the hair a number of times to get the desired shade. You will then need to use a purple-toned shampoo which will help to reduce any yellowness or brassiness in the hair, and along with your toner will help to keep the hair pure white. Rinsing with cold water and white vinegar will also help, and you will need to use plenty of conditioner to keep the hair in tip-top condition.

Who can pull off white hair?

Although white hair is very fashionable, it doesn’t suit everyone – those who are very tanned, olive-skinned or dark-skinned should usually steer clear of white hair as it can wash out your complexion. While it is obviously a fake color, you want it to look as though it’s completely right for you and so it should compliment your skin tone.

White hair usually looks best on a fair complexion, but rules are made to be broken and if you enjoy experimenting with other fun colors such as pink and blue you may well be able to carry off a shock of white.

If you want to try this new hair color trend but are a little too afraid to go the whole way, try dyeing a few bits of your hair underneath the fringe or underneath the hair itself, this will allow you to figure out if the color suits you or not.

Whether you choose to go bright white or whether you’d rather stick with golden blonde, rock your hair color with confidence and you’ll definitely turn heads!

The best white hair color products

Blue may not be a color that you’ve ever thought of in terms of coloring your hair, but blue-tinged locks are taking the celebrity world by storm and they’ve been spotted on a host of singing starlets, from Katy Perry to Nicki Minaj.

Can you really pull off blue hair

But can you get away with blue hair without looking like you’ve had a blue rinse? Of course you can! Even if you’re not particularly edgy in your personal style, you can still jump on the blue bandwagon with a few light blue streaks through the ends of your hair, a la Lauren Conrad.

When it comes to hair color, blue and pink have always been associated with mature ladies who rely on a regular rinse to keep their gray hair looking a certain way, but nowadays everyone is having more fun with their hair color choices and blue is suddenly a cool and fashion-forward shade. Pink, purple, blue, green, yellow… we’re seeing all of these colors on the catwalks and the red carpets, meaning that our hair color options are more exciting than ever before!

How to get the stunning blue look

If you are thinking about diving in at the blue end of the hair color spectrum, you should consider the maintenance required to keep your hair looking bright, colorful and shiny.

Celebrities have armies of stylists on hand at all times to top up their hair color and to keep it looking in perfect condition, so whilst their hair may look effortlessly beautiful for weeks on end, you’ll have to work extra hard to keep yours looking the same way, especially if you’ve dyed it a wacky color.

Blue hair such as the bright tones we’ve seen on Katy Perry, Lady Gaga and Nicki Minaj is a really full-on look and will probably only work for you if you have the confidence to pull it off. You could get the effect with a wig if you want to try it out for an event or a party, but it is a little more difficult to achieve these shades on a permanent basis.

If you’re not naturally blonde, your hair will need to be bleached for the blue color to show up on your locks. Blue will appear very faint on brown or black hair as a tinge that you’ll only see in the light, so if you want it to be bright, you’ll need to bleach the hair before you apply the blue dye. You’ll then need to condition your hair really well so that it stays in tip-top condition, as bleaching the hair does damage it quite extensively.

Can blue highlights work?

If you’d prefer blue streaks instead of the full-on look of the celebrity starlets, you could put a few highlights through your hair in blonde and then dye the highlights. This is a simple way of achieving a hint of blue without the extensive bleaching and dyeing, plus it’s a subtle look that won’t damage your hair too much.

You could also dip-dye the ends of your hair, bleach the bottom three inches of your hair and then dye them with a blue dye. Leave the dye on for a shorter amount of time for baby blue ends, like Sky Ferriera, or for the full amount of time for bright blue ends.

The key to rocking blue locks, as with any bright color, is confidence – if you’ve got it, flaunt it!

The best blue hair color products

Feeling blue? Probably best to take it to the salon, but if you do want to experiment with a subtler look here are some of your at home options:

• Schwarzkopf Live Intensive-Color-Creme – Color XXL 90 Cosmic Blue
• Fudge Paintbox Creative Conditioning Color – Blue Hawaii
• Manic Panic Hair Dye – Bad Boy Blue

Are you looking to stand out at a party? You may have found the killer dress, or even the perfect lipstick, but to really be the life and soul of the party you should consider adopting a new hair color for the night!

There are so many party hair colors and accessories to chose from, dependent on if you want a slight shimmer in your locks, or if you want you hair to be the first (and only!) think people notice when they walk in a room.

Here at Haircolorcode.com we have tried both, and here is our list of the best products available for that special evening.

Color Glitters

If you’re attending a party and want to up the wow factor of your hair, you can try a color glitter. Starting at around $5, color glitters are sprays that add sparkle to your hair.

They typically come in aerosol cans and are also suitable for spraying on skin. You simply hold the can a few inches from your hair and spray the glitter all over your hair to give it a beautiful sheen and shimmer. Hair glitters come in a range of colors but the gold and silver are particularly effective for creating a sparkly effect that looks great. You simply spray the glitter on when you want the effect and then wash it out afterwards, making it perfect for a one off party or event.

One Wash Dyes

Not to be confused with color sprays, one wash dyes are a liquid dye that you can buy quite cheaply in individual sachets. The dye is applied to dry hair and then rinsed out to reveal the color results.

These are a great way to try out a new color because if you hate it, just rinse it out and voila, back to your old hair color! That’s the theory anyway, in reality one wash dyes are a bit hit and miss. If you have dark hair and try a one wash, then the change may be very subtle, with only a gentle shine to show for your efforts. In fact one wash or wash in wash out dyes won’t lighten your hair because they don’t contain bleach or ammonias.

On the flip side if you have blonde hair I would advise you to avoid one wash dyes in black or darker shades as there’s no guarantee that a color that strong will wash out straight after application. Use these with caution and don’t stray too far from your natural hair color to see the best results.

Color Sprays

Hair color sprays work in the same way as color glitters. You spray the color straight onto dry hair and wash the color out after use. Hair color sprays are better suited to blonde and lighter colored hair as the spray color shows up more vividly.

Hair color sprays come in some amazing shades – barbie pink, black, purple, bright blue, yellow, green, red and gold, the list is endless – so are a great way to try a new hair color without the expense of a permanent salon or home colorant. Also color sprays typically do not use bleach, tints or peroxide so won’t cause any damage to your hair.