Kaia Gerber, whose natural hair color is actually quite dark, has opted for summery highlights. But if you’ve been paying attention, then you’ll know this lighter shade didn’t happen overnight: In March, the model took the first step toward her current color by adding soft golden hour highlights to her natural brunette hair. And now—three months later—she has achieved a totally blonde shade we’re calling “ultra sunny blonde.”
As Gerber must know, the transition from brown to blonde is not an easy one. After all, the first step is accepting that such a drastic change will put a lot of strain on your hair. Fortunately, there are more and more products than ever that can lighten hair more gently than bleaching. And if you make the change over the course of several steps, while also taking good care of your hair, there’s nothing standing in the way of a healthy blonde.
Kaia Gerber gave us a glimpse of her new hair color in her Instagram stories recently, and the blonde really suits her. It’s a warm, golden tone that perfect reflects the sun—hence the name, ultra sunny blonde.
@kaiagerber; @colorbymattrez
What makes the shade really special? The warm tone is actually perfect for brunettes, as it’s light but not cool. In other words, this blonde shade harmonizes well with dark eyebrows and eye colors. Colorist Matt Rez is responsible for the look.
But as we said before, avoid directly and drastically lightening dark hair if you can do it in several steps instead. Like Gerber, going from highlights to a whole-head lightening makes for a healthier hair transition. Matt Rez uses gentle lightening products from Blonde Voyage by Moroccanoil, which help strengthen the hair bonds to reduce damage and breakage. The products also contain antioxidant-rich argan oil in the form of micro-small beads. Translation: They penetrate deep into the hair cortex to allow for extra shine during the coloring process.
