Thanks to the color of a single process, ombré grows faster than a balayage. Balayage is perfect if you want to spend more time between touch-ups, as it becomes much less raw than ombré. Longevity is a big advantage when it comes to balayage. As Toves-Vincilione explains, the hand-painted application and mix create a dimension that lasts months with little or no maintenance.
Since the color isn't directly on the scalp, any new hair growth blends in perfectly. As the hair grows, the strands remain on the first layer of hair and grow evenly and smoothly without any abrupt color separation. As a result, it requires quite little maintenance and is less harmful to the hair. Both translate into a fairly low maintenance routine, since the placement of the hair color is not strict, but is done gradually (for Ombre) or sweeping (for Balayage).
Like balayage, ombré lasts much longer than standard wicks and is undoubtedly still an aspect that requires minimal maintenance. However, you might find that balayage allows you to have a little more time between visits to the beauty salon. As the ombré is a more dramatic look, it may need more attention to maintain its best look and balance. It is generally recommended to increase the color every 2 to 4 months, but this depends largely on the speed at which your hair grows, the colors you use and how comfortable you feel with a more “alive” look. Balayage leaves an “exposed root”, so you're not tied to it growing back for maintenance appointments.
Balayage treatments usually last 8 to 12 weeks, instead of the 6 to 8 weeks you're used to with services such as wicks or a global application of blond dye. As balayage is a hand-painting technique, the stylist's art comes into play and allows for many variations and beautiful color compositions. Artists who paint hair can combine several shades, for example, to achieve a dimensional and shimmering result. A more intense balayage can produce a more solid hair color effect, while a smaller number of balayage highlights keeps the hair darker with more contrast.
If your hair is dark, your stylist may opt for a foilayage technique. In the case of foilayage, instead of letting the wicks process in the air after applying them, they are wrapped in aluminum foil, which provides more heat and, therefore, amplifies the rinsing process. Balayage can also be combined with conventional highlights placed closer to the face, or with thin baby-colored flashlights placed around the face and hairline to achieve a shine that enhances the complexion. As balayage involves lightening certain sections of the hair, the effect is permanent, although the color may fade a little after a few months if not properly cared for (see below how to achieve a bright and long-lasting color).
If you have naturally light hair and the balayage consists of darker shades, you can opt for a semi-permanent color. Both Ombre and Balayage are modern hair coloring trends that involve mixing two (or a few) colors in the hair. The techniques focus on saturating the ends of the hair with a color (often lighter) and blending them to the root. Therefore, often in a balayage or ombre, the hair is darker near the roots.
This means that both services require little maintenance and don't require frequent trips to the salon for touch-ups. In the world of hair color, ombré is a spectacular two-tone hair color effect that is usually darker on the top and lighter on the bottom. Keeping your hair protected during the Ombre or Balayage effect is vital for achieve and maintain color. Ombré also tends to initiate the transition from dark to light lower down the hair than balayage, for example; hair color is lighter from the cheekbone or jawline to the tip.
As a result, an ombré style requires more color (and, therefore, damages the hair more) than balayage. Like ombré, balayage highlights are cost-effective because they don't require frequent retouching, as the hair on the top stays darker. However, maintaining hair color can be an expensive and time-consuming routine, which is why many people opt for balayage and the Ombré. In the world of hair color, balayage highlights are painted by hand or spread across the surface of the hair.
Artistic stylists can complement balayage with fine highlights in the hairline and around the face. It's usually a slightly more obvious look compared to balayage and can be the perfect option for brunettes who want to make the transition to a blonde life or introduce a crazy, fresh color like purple or silver to their hair in a softer and more subtle way. In addition to making a style statement, the ombré color is economical because you don't have to retouch this color too often. According to Renegar, balayage is “a hair coloring technique in which the stylist strategically paints the color directly onto the hair by hand, creating a more natural, blended and vivid result.
While both ombré and balayage offer an opportunity to add some luminosity to the hair, ombré completely changes the color of the hair toward the ends in a more uniform way, explains Josh. Ombré is a spectacular two-tone color effect that can be achieved with a natural hair color or with modern hair color tones like this one. As ombré and balayage are tailor-made coloring services and are therefore different for each client, the price of the service depends on their current hair style, length and color and the finish that you want. The effect that most people attribute to “balayage” occurs in smaller sections, where the color is painted onto the surface of the hair.
