Fashion

Lazy Girl Hacks For 2016 Hair Color Trends

by Rosie Narasaki

Another year, another set of hair color trends. Here's the real question, though: Will we have to drag ourselves to and from the salon every few weeks for touch-ups to get them? Well, luckily for us, there are lazy girl hacks for 2016's top hair trends — and you'd be seriously surprised how accessible some of the new styles are. Heck, even the most salon-averse of us all might be willing to give them a try.

Of course, some hair trends are going to be high maintenance, and there's no way around that (side note: if you've found a lazy girl hack for the multi-faceted oil slick hair, or the pearl-based opal hair, please share) — but some of the trends? Well, they only involve lightening or darkening a shade or two, which means your roots will be less noticeable, leading to less touch-ups. Another trend constantly on the rise are the hand-painted, smoothly-integrated highlights that are all the rage — and again, their blended appearances means that they happen to require less salon visits.

So, with all that in mind, read on for some of the most lazy girl-friendly hair color trends for 2016. Will you be taking any of them out for a spin this year?

1. Bronde

As its name might suggest, "bronde" is a trendy new hairstyle midway between blonde and brunette. It's a pretty easy way to shake up your look, especially if you already happen to be a lighter brunette or a darker blonde. If you tend to be a lazy gal when it comes to hair, bronde might be just the 2016 hair trend for you — after all, all it takes is punching your color up or down a shade or two.

Since it's not as drastic a change as going full-on brunette or full-on blonde, you can achieve the style at home with relative ease — in an interview with Today Style, Manhattan hair stylist Keith Bocklet recommended the Touchback Color Depositing System for DIY-ing the look. As he put it, "This system picks up and creates ... blonde lowlights and highlights, it accentuates them [without making] the hair all one shade."

2. Ronze

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If bronde isn't quite your jam, you might want to give ronze a try — ronze is a popular blend of red and bronze hair, which creates an eye-catching yet subtle look. It's another nice hair color trend for low-maintenance folks to take for a spin — like bronde, it doesn't need to be too much of a departure from your natural shade, and as such, it's flattering for all complexions.

3. Balayage

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Balayage highlights are all the rage — since they're handpainted, they have a softer look to them (which translates to fewer touch-ups at the salon). Luckily for the salon-averse, it's also possible to get the look at home, with a little box dye and TLC.

4. Babylights

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Babylights are another popular highlighting trend — their name was so coined because they mimic the natural highlights your hair had as a child. They tend to be quite subtle, so like Balayage highlights, upkeep is fairly simple — you won't need as many salon visits. They take a certain amount of artistry, so you might want to leave this trend to the professionals — still, though, once you have it, it requires minimal upkeep.

5. Rainbow Highlights

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Rainbow hair was all the rage in 2015, and chances are, it'll continue to be quite the popular look in 2016. Unfortunately, there's no low maintenance version of a full head of cotton candy pink hair, or the covetable opal hair — but colorful streaks (or even a dip dye) can make the trend more manageable.

To DIY this look, you'll need first to lift your natural color with bleach (unless you already have lighter hair, of course). Then comes the fun part — paint on rainbow highlights at will! Personally, I've had the best luck with Joico Intensity Semi-Permanent Hair Color and Special Effects Semi-Permanent Intense Hair Color.

6. Rainbow Tints

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A subtle tint is another fun way for lazy folks to get in on the rainbow hair trend — after all, adding a tint of a vibrant shade to your natural hair color means you can avoid the dramarama of bleaching. There are certain high-pigment shades (such as deep reds and purples) that can add a subtle tint even to dark hair (unless, of course, you have Morticia Addams-level black hair like I do).

7. Natural Color

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How's this for the easiest hair trend to achieve, ever? Apparently, natural shades are officially in — as celebrity hairstylist Nick Arrojo told Bustle, "After many seasons of wild hair colors — ombre, pastel, sand art, rainbow — things are changing in 2016. Colors are getting softer and so are placements. There’s a resurgence of traditional highlights and single process shades."

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