Ombre isn’t just for your hair anymore–you can do it on your nails, eyebrows, lips, beard, skin, and more!
Ever since we noticed that Maroon 5 frontman and professional model prom date Adam Levine pioneered the first ombre face upon bleaching his hair, we’ve been more than a little curious about everything else a human being can get ombre. While the traditional ombre style (well, traditional as of a few years ago) is hair, the trend has given way to a variety of other gradient-focused fashions, from ombre lips to ombre nails, and now, ombre faces.
Of course, just as with all trends, ombre did not stop where you would expect and/or hope it would–instead, it was taken to the next level, then thrown off a cliff. Here you’ll find all of the ombre styles you can choose to use, from the very logical and lovely to the oh-so-odd.
1. Hair
Let’s start with the fairly normal ones, shall we? Our most popular tutorial of all time is our ombre hair DIY, and it’s, therefore, safe to say this one is near and dear to our hearts. Celebrities have executed this look excellently in both natural and unnatural shades. Plus, I am, in all likelihood going to do some form of ombre blue in the next couple months after going blonde next week, so I’m obviously a big fan.
2. Nails
Who doesn’t love a fancy manicure that involves tons of your favorite shades all built into one beautiful sunset? The one above, done by @catherina_kety, is just plain gorgeous and would look great on any vacation, for a party, or at a summertime event.
Oh man, it was a complicated but absolutely stunning process that involved painting, stamping, and tidying up…it was lovely to observe, though I am pretty sure if I tried it, it would look more like an ombre paintball splatter.
3. Dress
This is pretty, delicate, and a nice sort of look for summer, provided it features a subtle transition rather than a dramatic light-to-dark jump.
4. Eyeliner
I’m still a big fan of this look–it’s a gorgeous eyeliner style with just a little dose of weird. I did this for June’s Governors Ball, and it was a big hit among the few people who were paying attention to makeup (my brain is hardwired to do as such, so I always am excited to meet others like that). If you’re going to do this, you can try a ton of different color combinations–brights, neons, light to dark shades in the same color family, and opposing colors. The possibilities are endless! I prefer to stick with going light to dark, like this style by @GlamByValerie, as I think it gives the eye a prettier shape.
5. Lips
I am still a little torn on whether ombre lips are weird or wonderful. It looks really cool in closeup photos on Pinterest, but does it stack up well in person? I have accidentally achieved ombre lips numerous times by eating popsicles while wearing lipstick or drinking from beer bottles while wearing lipstick, or eating cake while–well, you get the point. All of those times, it looked like an accident. But I suppose if you’re doing two vivid, intense shades like the above gorgeous look by the amazing @kikikusni, then it’ll look like it was intentional.
6. Shoes
They’ll get dirty, just as all light shoes do, but hey–why not try them out if they’re relatively inexpensive?
7. Pants
Okay, this is where stuff gets a little ridiculous, in my opinion. Why are you wearing pants that look like you waded in a bleach swamp?
8. Hands
Okay, because it was Lorde who did this, it is hard to be annoyed about it. But honestly, what was up with this look at the Grammy Awards back in January? They were ink-dipped, which sounds cool but looks like a ruined blouse waiting to happen.
9. Eyebrows
As somebody who has certainly filled in her eyebrows with an unnatural color before, I realize that there is an odd and fascinating appeal to taking your favorite bright shades to the next level (literally, since it’s the level on your face right above your eyes). And yet, this is not a look I think can work, not because of the unnatural shades or anything, but because you will always look sort of surprised if the center of your brows are paler than the rest. I know this because my eyebrows were naturally a bit ombre as a kid; lo and behold, I looked like I was making a shocked emoji face literally all the time.
10. Beard
We love a good beard around these parts–we even recommend using men’s shaving products to our female readers (and vice versa)–but guys, unless you have a literal world champion beard like David Traver, don’t ombre your facial hair. He’s a professional, but chances are if you do this yourself, you will burn yourself, and it will be very awful.
11. Legs
For anybody who’s done the sunless tanner thing and not done it particularly well, this is for you. That includes me, who once had dark tan thighs where I started applying the lotion, medium-colored knees, and white ankles because I stupidly assumed I wouldn’t need to do my feet…then accidentally wore sandals.
12. Face
This is probably the most definitive proof out there that Adam Levine doesn’t have real friends. If you have brown eyebrows, you can likely get away with having platinum blonde hair. In fact, some of the most famous female actors, singers, and other entertainers in the world have done it and done it wonderfully. But…but. But, but, but. You do not make your face ombre. You just don’t.
Bonus: Ombre Cake
You’re not really doing this to your body, but you are doing it for your body. Check out the recipe over at BS In The Kitchen.