Pastel hair is everywhere – from the runway to red carpets, to the ‘it’ style on the street. With no sign of a pastel end in sight, we spoke to Josh about the new dawn of pastels, and the best ways to experiment with this soft rainbow palette.
This season's pastel hair seems to have a more princessy vibe, rather than the grungier pastels we've seen before. Where do you think this mood has come from?
Pastels had a moment at the Marc Jacobs SS/18 show in NY and carried through Helen Mirren in Cannes, to the periwinkle blue on Gaga at the Golden Globes and Cardi B at any given moment! At the moment rainbow hair is everywhere, including our work in the latest ES magazine. Pastels are here to stay in the fashion and editorial world, and I think we will see the sophisticated pastels we created for Marc Jacobs being more widely adopted. Such as antique peaches and pale denim blues, over the more expected pinks and mauves. A natural progression of the trend.
Is there an age limit with pastel hair tones?
Pastels can be worn by any age group - as long as the pastel suits your skin tone. Hopefully we will see them being worn by a real mix of age groups, with a lot more coming through the street style scene. I love a pastel grey, and I often add a violet or charcoal. With the right haircut this style can look stunning and modern.
And do certain hues better suit specific skin tones?
It’s really hard to simplify what pastel suits what skin tone but to generalise the more unnatural colours like blue green, purple generally suit a darker skin tone, with the violets coral and pinks suiting a pale complexion
What kind of maintenance are you looking at if you go for it?
The darker the shade, the more maintenance will be needed. Pastels only really work on a very light base. For example, pale denim blue needs to start with a very pale bleach with almost no yellow overtone. A yellow undertone with a pale blue pastel over the top can look green.
Also condition its super important, so using a mask at least once a week and shampoo and conditioner that have ingredients that can look after highly processed hair is essential. Pure pastel hair is not for everyone, but if you have the commitment, it looks incredible!
