Fall is coming and chocolate hair is trending for those clients tired of their summer blonde. The palette of chocolate varies from warm milk chocolate to the cool bittersweet. We tend to think of the sweet and delicious browns, such as mocha, hot cocoa, truffle brown, chocolate cherry, brown sugar, espresso, sweet cola, etc. Everyone agrees – chocolate hair looks rich, classy and dramatic.

We love this look from Eric Fisher Salons senior stylist, Christine Doerge (@christinedoerge). Christine used L’Oreal Professionnel Platinium Plus with 40 vol. developer and glossed with DiaRichesse equal parts 7.14 and 7.01 with 6 vol. developer.

This seamless chocolate blend from Liz Haven(@lizhaven)looks natural but is the result of careful color placement.

• Formula A:0.5 oz.

Schwarzkopf Professional

BLONDME Bond Enforcing Premium Lightener 9+ + 0.6 oz. 7-volume developer + 0.6 oz. 20-volume developerFormula B:0.5 oz. BLONDME Bond Enforcing Premium Lightener 9+ + 1.2 oz. 20-volume developerFormula C:Schwarzkopf Professional IGORA VIBRANCE® 6-0 + IGORA VIBRANCE® 7-1 + 6-volume developerFormula D:1 oz. IGORA VIBRANCE® 7-4 + 6-volume developerFormula E:1 oz. IGORA VIBRANCE® 8-46 + 6-volume developerFormula F:1 oz. IGORA VIBRANCE® 9,5-4 + 6-volume

Starting Level: Natural Level 4

Section the hair with Liz’s technique. First, find the natural part—“customizing to each guest’s natural part is very important,” Liz says—and where the natural part meets the apex of the head, part to the tip of the ear on both sides. This creates two front sections.

Next, where the curvature of the head meets the front section, part a diagonal-back section just below the occipital bone, creating a triangle. Section the triangle off neatly. “This will create a natural diffused veil over the crown,” Liz says.

Part from the point of the triangle to the nape. This leaves two remaining sections at the mastoids and nape.

Begin with ¾-inch diagonal back subsections in the bottom-right section. “I always begin in the back and adjust my developer as I work my way to the top,” Liz shares. Tease the subsection, clip and secure the tease, then weave the subsection. Place it on a foil on a balayage board and paint with Formula A.

Pro Tip: “I paint the lightener where I want to see brightness and leave the natural pigment where I want to see depth,” Liz says. “I utilize full saturation—this is why the balayage board is important. It allows me to use pressure to get even saturation.”

Repeat for each section, working first in the back right, then back left. Then move onto the triangle section (using horizontal subsections). When you reach the front, use Formula B.

The woven sections left out of foils are lowlights. Fully saturate these sections with Formula C.

Process for about 45 minutes or until desired highlight level is achieved. “I wanted a very clean end result, so I lifted her to a very clean Level 9/10 so I didn’t have any orange pigment to battle,” Liz explains. “This also ensures a clean fade.”

ShampooTowel-dry the hair. Apply Formula D to the roots, Formula E to the mids and Formula F to the ends. Process for 20 minutes.

Joanna M. Haro(@beautybyshorty)serves up her chocolate hair with some honey caramel drizzle. Her toner of choice for this look? Rusk 7.003 and 8.13