How to Get Partial Highlights

You want highlights to spice up your hair but aren’t sure if you want partial or full highlights? What’s the difference between partial and full highlights anyway? Have a look!

Partial Highlights:Guides,Tips and Ideas 

What Are Partial Highlights?

Partial highlights are those women you see who have some color placed around the face for a brightening or framing effect. Your stylist may call them a “half head of highlights.” They will probably have most of their natural color peeking through from the back and around the nape of the neck.

How your colorist makes it happen: Using foils and color of your choice, partial highlights are placed either in the mohawk section of your hair, the top half of your hair or the top half and the front sides of your hair. Because highlights are only touching a part of your tresses, your stylist may recommend “lightening the base” so that you can take your highlights a few shades lighter than your natural color.

Pros of partial highlights:

• Less potential damage because it bleaches fewer strands of hair.
• They are more affordable than getting full highlights done.
• They can be placed where you want to make it look like the sun naturally lightened the front sections of your hair.

Cons of partial highlights:

• You cannot see most of the color when you wear your hair up (such as in a ponytail).
• You cannot go “full blonde” or change color dramatically with only partial highlights because you will always have natural color on at least half of your head of hair.

Let’s take a look at how partial highlights can add a touch of natural-looking color to your hair using different techniques and a range of colors .

1: Front-Framing Pieces

Dimensional partial highlights can be as playful as you want them to be. Adding face-framing pieces brighten the complexion and add intrigue without really changing your overall hair color.
[next]

2: Soft and Subtle Browns

Sometimes just a few touches of color one shade lighter than your natural tone can spice things up. This sleek and soft hairstyle has partial highlights that peek through at the ends.

[next]

3: Classic and Refined

Adding bronze and warm blonde colors to brown hair really brightens it up. Get the look with foiled highlights from top to bottom with lots of color added throughout. Leave the bottom half brunette for a natural look and easy maintenance.

[next]

4: Cool-Toned Balayage

Have your hair colorist use a balayage technique to give you partial color that gradually becomes heavier toward the ends. This give a “lived-in” look that is super easy to maintain. With a bit of toner and playful layers, you have a cool-toned layered lob perfect anytime of the year.

[next]

5: Natural Tones with Curls

This hairstyle has partial highlights that hit around the mid-shaft of the hair, right where the majority of the curls are. This gives the overall look a ton of shine and light-reflection. We love it for the natural sun-kissed summer vibes.