What Is Palm Painting?

Bonjour Dah-ling! Word on the street is there’s a new highlighting technique in town…and it just might be the new balayage - palm painting! It involves everything we love about the balayage technique, but without the paintbrush. Instead, this technique involves spreading hair color throughout your strands with your hands. The result? Grown-out, sun-kissed highlights that will have onlookers convinced your color is the result of a recent vacation to Saint-Tropez. Palm painting is taking Europe by storm, and we have no doubt it will soon reach peak popularity in the States, too!

What?

Palm painting takes natural highlighting to the next level. It’s almost identical to the balayage technique, except it’s done freestyle with a colorist’s hands without foil. The color is massaged in freehand to large sections of hair, staying away from the roots. Because it doesn’t follow any pattern or structure, you aren’t left with any harsh lines or stripes.

Who?

Palm painting isn’t just reserved for blondes. This technique can be used on any hair color, from brunettes to redheads. It works best on mid-length to long hair, so if you’re currently rocking a pixie cut, this might not be the technique for you. The longer the hair, the easier it is for the stylist to play around with tones to give hair more dimension and flow.

Why?

Stunning hair aside, there’s another major reason to give this technique a shot – it’s healthier for your hair than other forms of coloring. Foils accelerate the dyeing process, but it can weaken hair follicles in the process because the dye is absorbed so quickly. Palm painting ditches the foils, so the hair isn’t overly processed and the color lifts much slower. The less the hair is processed, the less damage you’ll do to your follicles. Not to mention, you won’t have to get your hair done as often since the color isn’t applied to your roots. Even though this technique is less harsh on your hair, it's still important to treat your strands to a little tender love and care post color. We recommend our Hydrating Shampoo and Condition to restore moisture and keep your new color in tip-top shape! Piece-y, kissed by the sun highlights full of dimension, but without the damage? Sign us up!

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