Root Touch-Up on Blonde Hair - How to Do It?

Maintaining gorgeous blonde hair requires regular touch-ups, especially when it comes to your roots. The good news is that a root touch-up on blonde hair is easier than you might think, and there are various techniques to ensure your color stays vibrant and natural-looking.

In this article, we’ll cover everything you need to know, from the best way to touch up dark roots on blonde hair to tackling tricky gray hairs. Let’s dive in and explore the different methods to keep your blonde hair looking stunning.

The Basics of Root Touch-Ups

Before getting started, it’s important to understand what type of blonde hair you have. Do you have highlighted blonde hair, which is achieved by applying bleach in foils or using a balayage technique? Or is your blonde color done as a single process, where permanent color is applied to all of your roots? Knowing this will help you choose the best way to do a root touch-up on blonde hair that helps maintain and refresh your color.

Single Process Root Touch-Up

If you use permanent color to create your blonde look, it’s one of the easiest types of blonde to keep up at home since there is no highlighting involved. Here, the process of doing a root touch-up on blonde hair is simple: first, select the best product and shade to match your existing blonde. This is the most important step in creating a seamless salon blonde result. When selecting your best match, there is one major factor you want to consider – your natural root color. Permanent color can typically lighten your natural root color by about two levels, so you will want to stay within this range. For example, if you are a level 7 light brown naturally, the lightest you may be able to go is a level 9 medium blonde. 

Once you’ve identified how light you can go, you then need to choose the tone. Do you want to enhance warmth or minimize it? If you prefer warm golden tones, then you can look for a shade that has G (for Gold) in the shade name. If you prefer neutral or cool tones, you will want to select a shade that has (A) Ash or (V) Violet in the formula as these will help to control unwanted warmth that is naturally exposed during the lightening process. This helps to keep your roots from going too bright and/or orange – or what some might refer to as the dreaded “hot roots.” 

Lastly, we’d suggest using an ammonia-free color that is enriched with hair-loving ingredients to fortify and treat your hair while you are coloring. 

Dealing with Gray Roots

Very often, one might need to lighten their dark roots while also covering gray at the same time. In this case, the result can look even more beautiful because of the reflection the natural gray hair will give mixed with the blonde tones. In order to cover the gray, you will want to choose a shade that has N (or Neutral) tones in the formula. There are even some shades available that are formulated with a double dose of N to help cover a high percentage of gray or resistant grays.

5 Steps to a Flawless Root Touch-Up for Blonde Hair

1. Select a shade considering what your natural color is and what your existing blonde color looks like. Need a little help? Get a free color consultation with a licensed colorist to find your best match.

2. Start with dry, unwashed hair for better color adherence. Section your hair into four quadrants (two in front and two in back). This will keep your application neat and tidy.

3. Using a brush or applicator, apply the product to your roots. Work in small sections for even coverage. Apply color to your regrowth only. The key is to apply the color only to the root area and avoid overlapping onto the rest of your hair. This prevents over-processing or distorting the color of your existing blonde lengths.

4. Allow the product to process as per the instructions, then style as usual for a seamless look.

5. Depending on how fast your hair grows, you’ll need to touch up your roots every 4-6 weeks. Keeping a regular schedule helps maintain your blonde hair and keeps the color looking balanced and consistent. 

Lastly, Touching Up Highlighted Blonde Hair

Although it may not be the best idea to touch up your own highlights at home, there are still a few great DIY options to keep your blonde looking fresh. 

Try a temporary root touch-up powder to brush on your very own salon-worthy highlights. This is a great way to lighten and brighten your roots without altering your natural color or pre-lightened ends. It’ll also make you feel like an artist painting on the perfect amount of highlights you want to see for the day. Another option if your hair is just feeling overall blah or brassy is to use a gloss or toner. This will help minimize any dull or brassy tones in the hair, giving it a fresh boost to hold you over until your next highlighting appointment. Try Prosecco for champagne golden tones or Crema for cool beige tones.

If you need to touch up your highlights by lightening your roots, visit one of our Hair Color Bars to have a licensed colorist work their magic for you.

A root touch-up on blonde hair doesn’t have to be difficult.With the right products and tools, keeping your blonde color looking fresh and vibrant can be fairly simple! What to learn even more? Check out our tips for touching up your roots between salon visits.