Just like the fashion trends, hair trends seem to be changing very often. We’ve all seen the era of highlights, ombre, and now it’s the balayage that’s like a hot selling cake in the market.
This coloring technique has garnered a lot of attention, and we see many women sporting balayage hair.
Balayage is a highlighting technique that aims to mimic the natural highlights from the sun. It creates a smooth and soft transition between your natural hair and the balayage pieces.
Since balayage uses the tones of the sun, there are high chances that your hair will turn orange.
But there is no reason to panic as toners are present to rescue you from the orange color. Toners work to correct your hair color, and you can always get the desired shade using them.
If your balayage loses its charm and shine after a few washes again, toners are here to get back the silky smooth finish of your hair.

Balayage Hair
Balayage Hair

How to tone balayage hair at home?

As against popular belief, balayage hair is easy to maintain. If you care for it appropriately, you can make it last longer.
It is a low-maintenance color technique, and you don’t need to keep visiting the salon for expensive touch-ups to keep your ash blonde color.
You can simply maintain your balayage by using toners at home. And there is no rocket science behind doing this. Let us tell you how to use different toners for your balayage at home.
There are 3 types of toners:

Toning Shampoo

Just like your regular shampoo, a toning shampoo is quite easy to use. Apply it to the hair and leave it on for 5-10 minutes and then rinse. This way, you not only shampoo your hair but also tone your hair ashy.
Toning shampoos are available for all shades, from red to golden blonde, and you need to select the right one for your hair carefully.

Using toning shampoo
Using toning shampoo to maintain your balayage (Source: assets.vogue)

Toner

Toners can be compared to the application of hair dye. So, if you have previously applied a hair dye, then this will be easy.
You can begin by choosing the right color for your hair. Assemble the essential items like a pair of gloves and 20-volume peroxide, and you are good to begin.

  • Start by mixing the toner with 20-volume peroxide in a plastic container.
  • Stir them till they turn into a smooth, creamy paste.
  • Now apply this to your damp hair and let it sit for 20-30 minutes, and then rinse.
  • Once you wash off, you will see that your balayage has come back to life beautifully.

See also: How to use hair toner after bleaching?
One important aspect of toners is choosing the right color.
According to your balayage color and needs, you should choose the appropriate toner to get the desired results. Following are some of the colors that you can opt for depending upon your balayage:

Platinum Balayage

  • Platinum blonde balayage tends to become fade/pale blonde over time. To fix this, you can opt for the following two options.
  • Use a pink/purple toning shampoo to get the shine and life of your blonde back
  • Using a silver-grey toner would also do the job pretty well

Related: How to Go from Platinum Blonde to Natural Blonde?

Blonde Balayage

As time passes, blonde balayage starts appearing yellow. To fix this type of balayage, you can use a toning shampoo that best matches your hair requirements.
You have the option to choose from copper blonde, honey blonde, caramel blonde, etc.

Ashy Balayage

For those with ash balayage, if your color turns into buttery blonde you can fix it using 2 methods:

  • Use a silver or grey toning shampoo
  • Get your hands on a grey toner from the store, and you can get back to your shiny ash balayage

Caramel Balayage

If your beautiful caramel balayage has turned orange, then you can opt for an orange toning shampoo. Apply it like your regular shampoo, and you will see your caramel balayage back in form.

Pure Pigments

The last type of toner you can use to tone your balayage is pure pigments. Unlike the other two methods, using pure pigments is tough. Pure pigments are available in pure colors like red, grey, yellow, purple, etc.
However, finding them is not easy, and you may have to visit a stylist or hair salon’s store:

  • You can begin by mixing the 20-volume peroxide with pure pigments
  • Apply the mixture to the hair like a keratin bath
  • You should leave this on for 10-20 minutes only
  • If you don’t get time correctly, your hair will look painted with watercolor, and nothing will fix it.

Thus, if you don’t have hair color experience or knowledge, it is best to stick with the first two options; toning shampoo or toner.

How often should you tone your balayage?

To be very precise, your balayage needs a complete touch-up every 3-4 months. Both the base and the bleached part of your hair should be toned to maintain your balayage in its full glory.
However, every hair is different, and so is the balayage.
Certain factors determine how often you need to tone your hair.

Hair growth

How fast your hair grows back plays a major role in determining how often you need to tone your hair. If your growth is faster, you will have to tone them more often.

White Hair

Another factor is white hair. If you have lots of them, then you will need to touch up the base color once a month or so without bleaching.

Quality of care

If you provide high-quality care to your balayage and use the right products to maintain it, then your balayage can go longer without touch up and toners.
On the contrary, if you have been using all kinds of shampoos on the balayage and exposing it to a lot of heat, touch-ups will be required more often.

Toners are multi-taskers

According to experts, toners are the most underrated products out there. There are confusions surrounding the use of toners which makes them less famous.
Toners are known to serve multiple purposes, and hence experts believe that they are multi-taskers.

Color enhancement

To begin with, toners are known to enhance and enrich the hair color that oxidizes over time. Your hair color can take a drastic shift from the beautiful color that you left the salon with.
For instance, you can see brassy, yellow tones appearing on your blondes.
One way to fix brassy hair is by using the right toner to neutralize the unwanted tones and restore the vibrant look of the color.

Boost shine and condition

Hair experts believe that toners do more than just enhance your hair color. They work to enhance the shine and also condition your hair to make them glossy.
Using acid-based toners can go a long way in adding shine to the hair without affecting the hair color.

Change color

If your balayage has started looking different than its original, then toners can come to your rescue. It helps to take your color in the right direction and restore its vibrancy.
For instance, if you use the blue-tones icy blonde, it will cut the yellow in the hair.
On the other hand, some toners help to add in colors. If you want to add a warmed-up tone to your blondes, then subtle shades like champagne blonde gloss add sun-kissed golden tones.

Make DIY Natural Toners at Home

Apple Cider Vinegar

Apple cider vinegar possesses mildly acidic properties, which can lower the pH in the hair. Research shows that hair that has high pH opens the hair cuticles, leading to loss of color and shine.
Using an apple cider vinegar wash, you can cut down orange and yellow tones and save the richer and darker pigments from fading.

Lemon Mask

Since lemon has a high content of vitamin C, it is a natural brightening agent. It is a wonderful way to bleach blonde hair and turn the grey tones into light hues.
Add ¾ lemon juice to ¼ conditioner and apply this from root to tip. You can leave it from 1.5 hours to overnight and get the desired results.

Hibiscus Tea Spray

The pink-red hue of the hibiscus flower is a wonderful natural toner for the redheads out there. You can steep 1/2 cup of herbs in2 cups of boiling water (45 mins-1 hour). Strain the water and let it cool thoroughly.
Once it is completely cooled, pour it into a spray bottle. You can spray it on clean hair and massage it completely into the hair. Leave this on for 2 hours, and then rinse with cold water.

Hibiscus Tea Spray
Hibiscus Tea Toner (Source: i.pinimg)

Conclusion

Sporting balayage hair can be a great thing. However, it is equally important to provide it with gentle care and generous love.
Indulge in leave-in conditioners and avoid hot tools as much as possible. It is also important to use the right products to nourish the hair and give them the right care.
Maintaining balayage at home can also be done by avoiding sun exposure, swimming, and providing good touch-up every 3-4 months.
Hope this article will help you tone your balayage and get them back to their beautiful, lustrous form.