Hooray for our favorite season! Time for some much-needed vacation vibes, a nice tan, and certainly some flowing, beachy, sun-kissed hair of course! Summer’s finally here again, and for many gals, summer is the perfect time to switch things up and go for lighter hair. We at Secret of Medusa could not wait to share with you some fun tips to be able to perfect that glowing, highlighted hair that’s perfect to start off the season right. If you’re a DIY master or have always wanted to try to lighten your hair at home, you’re in luck! You can definitely achieve this highly popular summer look with hair extensions, or even some natural methods using ingredients you might already have at home Keep reading to find out more.
Achieving Sun-Kissed Hair with Lemon Juice
Arguably one of the easiest and natural ways to lighten your hair is with some lemon juice. For the best results, avoid washing your hair for at least a couple of days to allow the natural oils from your roots to protect your hair during the lightening process. With a spray bottle, lightly spritz your hair with water to dampen it (not dripping). Next, squeeze fresh lemon juice into a bowl. Use a wide-tooth comb to dip into the lemon juice and comb through sections of your hair that you’re trying to highlight. Now you’re ready to lighten! Get outside for some sunlight for the day, making sure to keep your hair down to get optimal sunlight. The sun rays will act as a natural bleaching agent as the lemon juice sets in your hair. After spending the day outside enjoying the sun, wash your hair as normal. You will start to notice lighter, sun-kissed locks to enjoy along with your glowing tan for the summer. Repeat steps as necessary to see a change over time.
Achieving Sun-Kissed Hair with Honey
Did you know that honey contains a little bit of hydrogen peroxide, which helps brighten your hair as it oxidizes? Well, now you do! Use this natural trick to add some fresh highlights to your hair. In a bowl, mix together 4 tablespoons of honey, ¼ cup of water, 1 tablespoon of cinnamon, 1 tablespoon of olive oil, and 1 tablespoon of apple cider vinegar. Set the mixture aside for about 30 minutes to allow it to fully develop. Then, apply it to your hair while making sure to avoid the scalp to avoid irritation and wrap it in a bun or showercap to lock it into place. Let the honey mixture in your hair soak for about 2-3 hours or so before shampooing and conditioning as normal. Your hair should begin to lighten a shade or so (depending on your natural hair color) as well as soften and appear shinier after repeating the process over time. There’s just too many wins in this scenario to pass up!
Achieving Sun-Kissed Hair with Chamomile Tea
Not only does Chamomile tea help you unwind after a long day, it can also make your hair slightly lighter than your natural shade! To achieve some nice natural highlights, brew a pot of fresh chamomile tea and let it cool completely. Pour the tea into a spray bottle and spritz your hair with the cooled tea mixture into the desired areas you’d like to brighten. Similar to the lemon method, go outside, let your hair down, and sit in the sun to help the tea set your hair. Keep in mind the sun will be able to reach mostly the outer layers of your hair, where the sun touches as opposed to your inner layers where the sun won’t get to most of the time. After spending the day outside, wash your hair as normal. Over time, the chamomile method will slowly lighten your hair as you may need to do this more than once to notice a change.
Achieving Sun-Kissed Hair with Bleaching
If you want to change your locks from dark to lighter instantly, you might want to consider dyeing your hair a couple shades lighter or bleaching your hair to achieve a bolder look. The bleaching agents used to lift the color of your hair will depend on how light you want it. The bleach will usually strip the pigment of your hair color, making your scalp and skin vulnerable to irritation, itchiness, or sensitivity if not done by a professional.
Although we love achieving gorgeous hair as much as you do, we at Secret of Medusa care more about your hair health and strongly encourage leaving the bleaching to the professionals. An experienced professional hairdresser will be able to determine the best way to lighten your hair while retaining its health, sometimes requiring more than one session to get your desired color, especially if you are starting out with dark hair. To help protect your hair cuticles and retain color, ask for bond building treatment such as Olaplex or Brazilian Bond Builder. Some stylists may offer this with their color already or as an add-on.
Achieving Sun-Kissed Hair with Extensions
If you want sun-kissed hair without having to bleach your roots, you might want to consider trying the “money piece,” which involves scattering highlights from the midshaft of your hair towards the ends. This is a great way to drastically lighten your hair without having to bleach your whole head. You can even use extensions as your highlights and only bleach the hair in the front that frames your face (the money piece). You can also skip dyeing your hair and only add extensions if you want to avoid affecting your natural hair. Whether you are aiming for blonde extensions or subtle honey highlights, you can make it happen! You can also opt for instant brighter highlights using Secret of Medusa’s I-Tip, M-Tip, or S-Tape methods for a bolder statement! Consult with a professional hairstylist to carefully install some hand-tied extensions or weft hair extensions in layers to add depth and volume instantly to your beautiful head of hair without damaging it.
Secret of Medusa proudly provides only 100% Cuticle-Intact human hair for our clients and believe our products speak for themselves. Whether you are looking for Weft, Flat Clip-ins, S-Tape, M-Tip, or C-Tip extensions, all of our hair is sourced using the highest standards of ethics and quality. Make sure to shop our online store for all of your hair-extension or accessory needs and see why we stand out from the rest of the hair brands.
To get a better idea of the process, check out a super informative video linked above of one of the ways a professional stylist carefully installs hair extensions for their clients. After the client decides on the perfect shade of hand-tied weft extensions, the stylist works to lighten her client’s hair to match the extensions as well as dyes the hand-tied extensions as needed. After shampooing/conditioning and blow drying her client’s hair, the stylist begins to install the hand-tied extensions from layer to layer, working her way up starting from the crown of the head. After installing the extensions, the professional stylist then styles the hair, blending it to a beautiful finish. The end result is a radiant, lighter balayage guaranteed to turn heads!
Related: 4 Quick and Easy Hairstyles with Extensions
If your goal is to achieve lighter hair overnight, the natural methods may not be the ideal option for you as they may require repetition over time to see a difference. For a more noticeable change, dyeing and/or getting hair extensions may be a more realistic approach to get exactly the shades you want and in the same day. Whatever you decide to do for lighter locks, don’t hold it off any longer! The sun is out! Either give the tips above a try or get hair extensions professionally installed to have beautiful hair to match your sun-kissed skin and be ready to take on the summer heat with some major chill vibes. Goodluck!