Colour Change: A bride-to-be gets rid of her balayage.

Images: Supplied

The Glow’s editor-in-chief Jamila Rizvi has the kind of hair that turns heads.

It’s long, thick and glossy, and for the past year Jam’s been rocking the balayage trend like she was doing it a favour. But with her wedding just around the corner, Jam wanted something a little more classic.

Read on to find out how she decided on her bridal colour – and how her stylist, Edwards and Co.’s Lauren Mackellar, made it happen.

Jamila

What made you decide to make a big change?

“My wedding is next month and I wanted a more timeless look. I’ve had balayage in my hair, varying colours of lighter brown, caramel and dark blonde, for about a year now. I was ready for a change back to something classic and closer to my natural colour.”

What sorts of things were you looking at to get inspiration for your hair transformation?

“The best thing about working with Lauren is that I don’t need to do much research. I absolutely trust her to tell me what will look good. I usually just describe my gut feeling about what I want to do with my hair and then let her do the rest. She’s the expert and she never gets it wrong.”

Who is your hair muse?

“This time around I was thinking dark and shiny. Lea Michele and Mila Kunis were top of mind.”

How did you describe what you wanted to the hair dresser?

“I said I wanted a more all over colour look and Lauren agreed but suggested some subtle variations to keep it interesting. I take terrible, terrible care of my hair and so also wanted to get that shiny, glossy look back instead of the rats-nest-esque look I was rocking. (Poor Lauren).”

Check out the before and after shots of Jam’s colour change and chop here:

Lauren

How long did this transformation take – and how much did you chop off?

“Around 2 and a half hours, and 1-3 inches (don’t freak out when you read that, Jamila!)”

What is it about this new style that’s exciting for you?

“It’s exciting to have a goal in mind (ie ‘the wedding’!) We both agreed that the aim was to have shiny, healthy and timeless looking hair. Even though Jamila’s current balayage was natural looking, there was a fair bit of contrast in the tones throughout the hair, and we wanted to soften it down so that it didn’t compete with the dress, and also to boost the shine and condition in her hair. We both agreed that the hair she came in with was not going to cut the mustard! It needed a little TLC.”

What sort of inspiration did you have in mind while you were doing this client’s hair?

“I was thinking about how I imagined i will be styling jamila’s hair on her wedding day, (which will probably be an ‘out’ style) and that it would therefore look best to still have a very subtle variation of colour in it. That’s because you still want the hair to have dimension, being that it is such naturally thick hair if it were a solid colour it could end up looking heavy around the face. I was thinking along the lines of other brunettes like Penelope Cruz, or Lea Michele, who are so well known for their glossy, healthy looking hair.”

What did the transformation involve?

“I applied a semi permanent colour to fill and then a gloss, then it was a long blunt haircut with some layering around the face and thinning out.”

Did you do anything else special we need to know about?

“Just that I am beyond excited to be involved with Jamila’s wedding day – cannot wait! It’s going to be so much fun.”

Anyone looking to make an enquiry with Lauren, please call 03 9639 5188, contact her via Instagram @hairbylaurenm or email info@edwardsandco.com.au

Check out our other Colour Change posts:

Diary of a colour change: “I wanted to feel like a rainbow Paddle Pop”

Colour Change: from brunette to pink ombre.

If you’re looking for even more brunette colour inspiration – bridal or not – check out these 23 gorgeous shades as modelled by some of our favourite celebrities:

Did you change your hair for your wedding?