12 Formulas for Black Hair with Blonde Highlights

Back of model’s head with long, black, tousled hair and silver blonde highlights.

Image Credit: @mgray153

Model with black bob haircut and ash blonde highlights faces the camera.

But, First – Should You Color Black Hair with Blonde Highlights?

We say: do it. If your client has ultra dark hair, there’s no reason they can’t work blonde highlights – and as the No. 1 Salon Color Brand in the World¹, we’ve got all the color essentials you need. The key is to simply find shades that work with their unique hair goals and skin tone. But before you pick up the tint brush, keep these tips in mind…

1. Check How Dark Your Client Wants Their Hair

If you’re already working with a black mane, you may not need to color your client’s base. However, if they have a base they want to take deeper, check how dark they want to go. Black and deepest brown are often mistaken for one another, so make sure they’re aware of which tone they prefer. An ultra dark brown or ebony hue can still give plenty of depth and contrast, but may be softer and easier to tailor to skin tones than a pure, jet black.

2. Discuss How Many Sessions are Required

For clients who want to team black or very dark brown hair with a high contrast blonde, a number of lightening and coloring sessions may be needed. Talk this through during consultation, so you can set realistic expectations for your client. As always, patience is crucial for transformative lightening, but it’s always worth the time and effort for that masterpiece in the end.

3. Use a Bond-Strengthening Hair Lightener to Lift Locks

When it comes to creating black hair with blonde highlights, the lightener you choose makes all the difference. BlondorPlex is our product of choice for intense lightening, as it gives you up to nine levels of lift. It’s also infused with our bond-strengthening WellaPlex ingredient, so your client’s tresses are supported through the lifting process, with up to 97% less hair breakage².

Will Blonde Highlights Work on Black Hair?

Absolutely. Black hair with blonde highlights is certainly a statement look, but just because the colors are near opposites doesn’t mean they can’t work together flawlessly. Simply talk to your client about the type of finish they want. If soft and seamless is their goal, you may want to go for deeper shades of blonde, such as a caramel, golden or bronde (brown blonde) tone. Applying their highlights with a balayage technique is another great way to get a beautifully blended result – plus the off-root application allows for subtler regrowth than root-to-tip ribbons.

But if contrast is key, try the Wella Color Blocking hair service, choosing brighter shades of blonde (think platinum, ash or silver) to apply to a deepest brown or jet black base. Combine with statement-making placement; a chunky face frame, root-to-tip ribbons or a dip-dye effect are all guaranteed to turn heads.

Try These Black Hair with Blonde Highlights Formulas

Model with long, black curly hair and golden blonde highlights.

1

Black Hair with Golden Blonde Highlights

Image Credit: @bormannjr

If richness and warmth are on the agenda, team black hair with sweeps of golden blonde and brown, putting extra focus through the face frame. Chunky highlights are perfect for curly hair, as they shine the spotlight on the shape and texture of those beautiful ringlets. To get the look, lift locks with BlondorPlex first, then tone with Color Touch 9/03 + 1.9%.

Back of model’s head with long, straight, black hair and caramel blonde highlights.

2

Black Hair with Caramel Blonde Highlights

Image Credit: @jem.hair

Like golden blonde, caramel blonde highlights will also add softness and richness to a black mane, as demonstrated in this delectable masterpiece. Here, you’re seeing BlondorPlex for the highlights, demi-permanent Color Touch 4/0 applied as a root touch-up, and 7/97 + 8/73 used to whip up a caramel glow that shimmers through the lengths and ends.

3

Black Hair with Blonde Face-Framing Highlights

Image Credit: @paintedhair

Now this is a face frame. Adding a dazzling halo of luminosity, it’s warm without being too warm, striking the perfect balance of gold and neutral tones. If your client has a short, black bob, and wants blonde highlights that won’t take over their full head of hair, isolating the brightness through the front is a great way to dip a toe into sun-kissed locks. So what’s the formula? Create the look with BlondorPlex + 6% through the front section, and paint BlondorPlex + 3% in small balayage sections at the back. Then, tone with Koleston Perfect 9/73; a light golden blonde that serves up all the shine and intensity your client craves.

4

Black Hair with Ash Blonde Highlights

Image Credit: @camouflageandbalayage

Ash blonde lovers are bound to fall for this black and blonde creation, which appears both flawlessly blended and head-turningly bold, thanks to the fusion of balayage with bright blonde hues. To recreate the look, first paint the root with Color Touch 3/68 + 4/0 + 1.9%, while using Blondor Freelights to lift the mid-lengths and ends. Then, when the lightener has developed and been rinsed out, tone with 7/89 + 8/81 through the top of the mid-lengths, and 7/03 + 7/7 + 8/71 through the bottom of the mid-lengths to the very ends of hair. Flawless.

5

Black Hair with Ginger Blonde Highlights

Image Credit: @nicolerevish

We are obsessed – truly obsessed – with these ginger blonde highlights, which have been scattered throughout a level 3 human hair wig in a mix of chunkier and finer sections. First up, Koleston Perfect Special Blonde 12/22 was applied for those highlights, which is a high lift hair color that reliably lightens and tones the hair in a single step. Then, after that formula had been rinsed and neutralized, locks were treated to a Shinefinity Color Glaze with the shades 07/34 + 08/34 – two warm, spicy blondes with a hint of red.

6

Black Hair with Brown Blonde Highlights

Image Credit: @danielmbeauty

You can see why bronde is such a popular choice for highlighting black hair. It’s not as contrasting as blonde, but it still boasts a boost of brightness you don’t get with brown highlights. In the case of this bronde creation, we recommend foilyage to recreate the look. This means you’ll get the painterly effect of balayage, but the accelerated lift that comes from wrapping BlondorPlex lightener in foils. Then, tone hair with Shinefinity Color Glaze 09/13, which will add richness and vibrancy to those perfectly lifted pieces.

Model with black hair and a chunky, platinum blonde face frame on one side of their head.

7

Black Hair with Blonde Color Blocking

Image Credit: @danielleemilie

Have you tried Wella Color Blocking yet? The trend is surprisingly versatile, and the look you’re seeing here is just one of the ways you can work it, featuring black hair with icy blonde highlights. If your client loves this monochromatic blocking service as much as we do, statement placement in tones of cool charcoal and crisp alpine blonde are key. Try it by first deepening the base with Color Touch 3/0, before reaching for the Blondor Toners in the shades Pale Platinum and Pale Silver + 1.9%. Wella Passionista Danielle Warren, who created the look, shared this crucial tip for a stand-out face frame: “Make sure to use fine subsections and good saturation for even lift… Using a lower developer with your lightener not only helps maintain the integrity of your hair, but also allows plenty of time to apply base color while foils are processing.”

8

Black Hair with Dark Blonde Balayage Highlights

Image Credit: @laila.wella

This formula is for clients who already have bright blonde highlights through black hair, but are ready to take them richer and deeper with a dark blonde-meets-bronde finish. Whether your client’s highlights have lifted too bright in the sun, or they were always meant to be on the lighter side, a color-depositing treatment like the Color Fresh Mask will tone any brassiness down. Try the shade Chocolate Touch if the existing highlights are super blonde and you want locks to be bronde (as seen here), or Golden Gloss if a golden blonde is the goal. All you have to do is apply it to clean, damp hair, let it absorb for 10 minutes, then rinse thoroughly to reveal revived color.

Model with long, black, tousled hair and chunky platinum blonde highlights.

9

Black Hair with Platinum Blonde Highlights

Image Credit: @jhair_stylist

What a show-stopper. Combining black hair with platinum blonde highlights, this look is all about chunky ribbons, high contrast and major lift. If you love it as much as we do, recreate it by applying Koleston Perfect 5/2 + 7/18 + 1.9% for the base, alongside weighty sweeps of BlondorPlex + 6% to lighten. Then, when both formulas have developed and been rinsed, carry out a Koleston Perfect Pure Glossing Service to give those blonde pieces a touch of radiance. Mix 10/96 + 9/81 at a 1:1:1 ratio with the Post Color Treatment and 1.9% for a glowing gloss like no other.

Model with long, black, loosely waved hair and dark blonde face-framing highlights.

10

Black Hair with a Dark Blonde Face Frame

Image Credit: @hairbymaehunt

This is a ‘blink and you’ll miss it’ blonde; a tone so perfectly blended that it peek-a-boos through the face frame for the most natural-looking effect. If you want to try it on your client, create chunky face-framing highlights through the very front of the hair, using BlondorPlex + 6% to lift. Then, when that face frame has developed, reach for a cool blonde toner, such as Shinefinity Color Glaze 09/13 or 07/13.

Model with black, tightly curled hair and cinnamon blonde highlights.

11

Black Hair with Cinnamon Blonde Highlights

Image Credit: @romeufelipe

Illumina Color is delivering all the warmth in this cinnamon blonde look, which was first highlighted using Blondor Freelights + 9% and alternating strokes of 10/69 + 6%. Then, to get that positively luminous tone throughout, the natural black base was enhanced with 5/ + 5/7 + 1.9%, while those sparkling ribbons were treated to a final toning session with 9/43 + 8/37 + 1.9%. Hello, glow.

Model with long, straight, black hair and silver blonde highlights.

12

Black Hair with Gray Blonde Highlights

Credit: @jhair_stylist

Here’s another captivating color blocking masterpiece, this time created by Wella Global Ambassador James Earnshaw. Combining black with silver blonde highlights, he’s revealed a new take on monochrome hair that feels fun, fresh and modern. First up, he used BlondorPlex + 1.9% to paint a high volume of highlights through the full top layer of hair, while toning the base color with Koleston Perfect 5/2 + 2/0 + 1.9% Welloxon Perfect. Then, to achieve that silvery glow, lightened sections were treated to a blend of 10/16 + 1.9%.

3 Care Essentials for Black Hair with Blonde Highlights

1. Ultimate Repair Shampoo

Colored hair deserves a little extra care to keep it strong and healthy, so look for a shampoo formula that’s both color-safe and deeply nourishing. Ultimate Repair Shampoo is the perfect pick, infused with Metal Purifier to rinse away damaging pollutants, plus a rich, luxurious lather that leaves locks beautifully soft. It also treats strands to a skincare-inspired blend of AHA (which rebuilds internal bonds) and Omega-9 (to replenish the outer layer), so hair is repaired from the inside out.

2. Ultimate Repair Conditioner

The shampoo’s partner in shine; the Ultimate Repair Conditioner features many of the same deeply replenishing ingredients to give your client’s repair routine a boost. It’s rich and creamy, yet rinses effortlessly to leave locks feeling fresh and clean – never weighed down. That means all hair types can reap the rewards of this color-safe conditioner, from thin and fine to coarse and textured.

3. Ultimate Repair Miracle Hair Rescue

Show your client how to complete their color maintenance routine with Miracle Hair Rescue; a weightless treatment spray that repairs hair damage in just 90 seconds3. All they have to do is mist it through clean, damp hair, allow it to absorb, then style locks as they usually would. Hair will be 12x smoother4, with up to 99% less breakage5.

Ready to share your own black hair and blonde highlights masterpieces? Post them on Instagram and tag us @WellaHairUSA and @WellaEducation – you might even appear in one of our future round-ups!

^{1 Based on Wella Master Brand USD sales on the 2022 Salon Hair Care Study for the hair coloring products category published by Kline.}

^{2 When using Wellaplex N°2 with BlondorPlex, versus BlondorPlex alone.}

^{3 When using ULTIMATE REPAIR Miracle Hair Rescue.}

^{4 Vs. non-conditioning shampoo.}

^{5 When using ULTIMATE REPAIR Miracle Hair Rescue. Instrumental test versus non-conditioning shampoo.}