Wacky hair colour on your mind? Think twice

Credit it to celebrity influence or the need for an image makeover, sporting wacky hair colours like blue, yellow and burgundy has become a style statement for youth. But before you take a final call, think of your face structure, profession and personality.

From dark chocolate, umber, burgundy, smokey metallic to indigo, blue and even yellow, hair colours seem to be getting funkier every day. Celebrities - in Bollywood and Hollywood - have given the trend a fillip.

When Bipasha Basu got her tresses coloured burgundy or Esha Deol went for red and gold streaks and Kareena Kapoor chose to go blonde, they received their share of criticism. But when Hollywood star Jennifer Aniston chose to go with a light brown base with golden-blond highlights, her look received a thumbs up from fashion critics.

The Indian hair texture and skin tone requires careful selection of hair colour, says Santosh Gahatraj, style director of hair at Lakme Absolute Salon.

"For Indians' hair texture, permanent colour is not advisable. Once the colour starts fading, it makes your hair texture dry and frizzy and the hair colour changes to brown or blonde. I would suggest try temporary colours or highlights for a soft trendy look," Gahatraj told IANS.

Makeover expert Aashmeen Munjaal warns against aping celebrities blindly.

"It's obvious that you can't opt for bold colours if you're a professional. Texture of hair is another important factor as coloured hair highlights the texture even more.

"If you have frizzy hair, colouring will highlight that frizzy texture to a larger extent," Munjaal told IANS.

There's another factor - the hair length.

"Streaks of bold colours will suit your long tresses but a full head will destroy your entire look," Munjaal added.

At the same time, it is best not to ignore your skin tone as choosing a wrong hair colour can either make or break your look.

"One should be comfortable with the colours one is selecting and most importantly select colours as per one's skin tone and face structure. If your skin tone is dark, do not opt for dark, bold hues and go for highlights towards the bottom for your hair," advised Gahatraj.

For Indian skin tone, red and purple are the best shades to try apart from shades of brown. Colours like blue, green and olive are not meant for Indian skin tone and hence these should be avoided.

"Those who have fair complexion can try spicy red, bluish fuchsia, sun-gold streaks or brownish blonde highlights. Those with wheatish complexion can go for shades of chocolate, copper brown, khaki brown and honey blonde.

"Those with dusky complexion can try for coffee, caramel, charcoal grey or mahagony," said Munjaal.

Also you should be mentally prepared to see yourself in a new look. So first be confident about your choice before you visit your salon.

"Opting for bold colours is completely fine unless you can carry them well and ready to experiment with your looks. The bold colours can change your entire look in a few hours. If you are not confident about getting your hair coloured, try using hair extensions for a week or two so that you can get clarity for your desired look," said Munjaal.

Also, the process of colouring might make your hair hard and reduce the quality of your original colour. To avoid this, use colour protecting shampoo with conditioner.

And, yes, don't forget a hair spa regime every 20 days.

(Nivedita can be contacted at nivedita.s@ians.in)