Anyone Can Go Gold

Beyoncé

TECHNIQUE:

"With her bronze skin, Beyoncae looks great as a beachy, golden blond," says Kimberly Kimble, who works with the star. To neutralize Beyoncae's natural red tones and create a sun-kissed effect, she lightens her locks with a blend of neutral blond, beige and ash tones.
PRO TIP: In order to keep her color rich and shiny between treatments, Kimble advises Beyoncae to use color-enhancing shampoos and conditioners. Try L'Oraeal Vive Hi-Light Boosting shampoo ($3.69; at drugstores) with Redken Blonde Glam conditioner ($11.95; redken.com for stores) or Pantene Blonde Expressions Daily Color Enhancing conditioner for lighter blond shades ($4; at drugstores).

Nicole Kidman

TECHNIQUE:

When brightening Kidman's strawberry-blond locks, colorist Jonathan Gale, who also works at the Sally Hershberger at John Frieda Salon, adds highlights first, then paints bleach on the lower six inches of the hair, focusing on the ends. "By lightening the ends, you eliminate the hair's natural red undertones," Gale says. "This technique creates a more golden blond result."
PRO TIP: Red hair lightens easily but is especially damage-prone. "Keep it in good condition and bring out shine with gloss," Gale advises. He recommends Phytocitrus mask ($36; beauty.com) and Paul Mitchell Shine hair gloss ($12.95, paulmitchell.com for stores).

Jennifer Aniston

TECHNIQUE:

Beverly Hills salon owner Michael Canale creates Aniston's trademark mane by painting medium-tone golden highlights from roots to ends along her part and hairline every six to eight weeks. Three weeks later, he adds pale blond pieces around her face and brightens the ends, leaving the roots a bit darker. The reason for the subtle contrast: "It looks like the sun did it," Canale says.
PRO TIP: "Jennifer wants her color to look very natural," Canale says, so he never lightens the overall tone of her naturally brown hair and keeps highlights paper-thin, "not chunky." To seal in the results, Canale also uses a hue-enhancing shine treatment.

Lindsay Lohan

TECHNIQUE:

If you want to transform yourself from a true redhead to a believable light blonde, Los Angeles hairstylist Richard Marin, who has worked with Lohan, recommends adding pale golden highlights around the face and along the part, and darker blond pieces underneath to create more depth.
PRO TIP: "Lindsay really goes for it," Marin says of the actress, who went directly from auburn to icy blond. For a gradual evolution, he suggests adding more and more blond pieces during a six-month period. But don't be skimpy with the first set of highlights, he adds: "If you don't put in enough, it can look more like a drab red color than blond."

Jessica Alba

TECHNIQUE:

To create Alba's tawny tresses Roberto Ramos, co-owner of Estilo salon in L.A., lightened the overall tone of her medium-brown hair, then painted in honey, caramel and beige streaks at the crown and hairline. For a natural look, Ramos recommends lifting dark hues to medium or light brown before highlighting (the paler your highlights, the lighter the base should be).
PRO TIP: "Jessica's skin is very golden, so we made her a cool blonde," Ramos says. Before highlighting he put on a violet semipermanent tint to neutralize excess red hues and prevent brassiness. "Highlights can turn gray if you apply the gloss afterward," he cautions.

Angelina Jolie

TECHNIQUE:

To brighten Jolie's naturally raven locks, colorist Jo Hansford of London, who has worked with the actress, lightened Jolie's hair three shades with a permanent tint. Then Hansford used bleach to add face-framing highlights along Jolie's hairline and on the crown and back of her head.
PRO TIP: "Blond hair reflects less light, so it looks less shiny," Hansford says. To add gloss and moisture to dyed hair, she recommends using an intensive conditioning mask after a color treatment to rehydrate hair. To prolong a glassy finish, touch up with a weekly at-home shine treatment, such as Halo High Gloss rinse ($20; halohaircare.com for stores).

Mary J. Blige

TECHNIQUE:

According to Blige's colorist, Kimberly Kimble, "Mary's natural hair color is a dark, sandy brown." To brighten the singer's locks to a bold platinum hue, Kimble used bleach, then a semipermanent tint to lighten the tone of Blige's base color. Then she adds pale gold highlights and warmbrown lowlights for dimension.
PRO TIP: If you also permanently straighten your hair, Kimble advises waiting at least a week after a relaxing treatment before coloring. "Always relax hair first," she says. "Reversing the process causes more damage." Keep hair healthy with frequent trims and moisture treatments. Kimble likes Nexxus Humectress Ultimate moisturizing conditioner ($8.50; drugstore.com).

Kate Hudson

TECHNIQUE:

Negin Zand, a colorist at the Sally Hershberger at John Frieda Salon in L.A., brightens Hudson's naturally light ash-brown hue to a golden tone, then paints pale, baby-blond highlights around her face and crown. For authentic-looking results, Zand recommends this blond-and-blonder color combination for fair to medium skin tones.
PRO TIP: "Hair should be lighter at the ends and darker at the roots to be believable," Zand says. To hydrate strands and prevent split ends, she suggests deep conditioning with Dr. Hauschka Neem hair oil ($30; drhauschka.com) a few times a week. She also uses the treatment before coloring Hudson's hair.

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