Getting highlights can completely transform your look.
They add depth, brightness and a chic touch to your hairstyle.
When done properly, highlights can reflect light more than the rest of your hair, making it appear shinier and healthier.
Many people are very particular about where they get their highlights, with some spending hundreds of dollars at high-end salons.
But if you have a steady hand and a good eye for color, you can absolutely achieve stunning highlights at home – no salon visit required.
The idea of at-home highlighting may seem intimidating, especially with traditional methods like foiling.
Fortunately, there are easier ways to get gorgeous highlights without the hassle of using foil.
In this guide, we’ll walk you through everything you need to know about highlighting your hair at home without foil – whether you’re a first-timer or simply looking for a more convenient method.
After quite a number of requests, I’m glad to be finally walking you through how to highlight hair at home without foil.
Table of Contents
Why Do Stylists Use Foil For Highlights?
Highlighting your hair is the process of taking some locks and lightening up their shade to add depth and dimension to your locks.
This can transform your hair from flat and one-dimensional in shade to fashionable and elegant because of the lighter strands.
One of the most common ways to get highlights is with the foiling technique.
This is a process that involves sectioning your hair, dyeing it and then wrapping it in individual foil strips.
That makes it easier to organize your hair sections while you work on them.
The foil also helps your dye to process more effectively.
It traps heat in your hair, allowing the bleach and dye to work faster in your strands.
The strips of foil also help ensure that none of the chemicals touch the rest of your hair that you intend to keep as is.
Traditional foil highlights help to:
- Keep hair organized while processing
- Trap heat to speed up the chemical reaction
- Prevent the bleach from touching parts of your hair you don’t want to lighten
Foils are traditionally placed near the scalp to give you root-to-tip highlights.
Because the foil covers up your hair sections, you’re less likely to accidentally spread the bleach onto your hairline.
That’s a huge help if you’re a beginner in at-home highlighting.
However, using foil can be a hassle for some people.
So some try to do their highlights without foil.
Why Skip The Foil?
Foiling isn’t for everyone. Here’s why you might want to avoid it:
- Complexity: It’s a technique that takes practice to master.
- Time-consuming: You’ll spend a lot of time sectioning, wrapping and rechecking.
- High-maintenance: Because foil highlights usually start at the roots, regrowth is obvious and requires regular touch-ups.
For many people, the hassle isn’t worth it – especially when there are easier, equally effective alternatives.
How To Highlight Hair At Home Without Foil
One of the best foil-free techniques is using a highlighting cap.
This method is simple, beginner-friendly and much more forgiving than foils.
It’s a terrific option for people who need extra help dividing the hair into sections in an organized way.
A highlighting cap is a soft plastic cap perforated with small holes.
After placing it over your head, you use a small hook to pull strands of hair through the holes.
Then you apply bleach or dye to those isolated sections.
The great thing about using a highlighting cap is that you can customize how thick you want your hair sections to be.
You can either pull out tiny locks or bigger chunks, depending on how bright and dramatic you want your highlights to be.
Good For Beginners
While it can be challenging to check up on your hair color when it’s wrapped in foil, it’s much easier to see how well your dye is processing if you use a highlighting cap.
That makes it a terrific choice for those highlighting their hair for the first time.
Using a highlighting cap is very useful for those with short and medium-length hair because foiling those can be quite tricky, especially if you’re doing your own highlights (for the first time!).
Highlighting caps come as part of many highlighting kits from renowned brands – so they shouldn’t be too hard to find.
The best thing about highlighting caps is that they’re affordable.
If you end up buying a highlighting kit with no cap, you can just buy one from the beauty aisle of any drugstore.
That beats paying hundreds of dollars for an appointment at a fancy salon.
Watch out, though!
Using a highlighting cap isn’t perfect.
Those with thick, curly hair might not benefit from using it.
This is because it might be too hard to pull hair out of the cap.
Another con of using a cap instead of foils is that it can be difficult to highlight the hair on the back of your head, like the strands by your nape.
Pros of using a highlighting cap:
- Great for beginners
- Easy to monitor how the color is processing
- More control over section size and placement
- Ideal for short to medium-length hair
Cons:
- Not suitable for very thick or curly hair
- May be difficult to highlight hair near the nape of your neck
How To Highlight Your Own Hair With A Cap
Using a highlighting cap might sound simple, right?
Give it a try and see for yourself!
If you regularly color your hair, you probably already have your go-to bleach, developer and toner.
But if you’re a beginner, it’s much easier – and more convenient – to use a highlighting kit that includes everything you need.
Your first step is choosing a kit that comes with a highlighting cap.
Technically, you can buy the dye and cap separately, but you’ll save time and money by purchasing them as a set.
One kit that I highly recommend is the L’Oreal Paris Frost and Design Cap Hair Highlights Kit.
It includes a high-precision cap designed to let you pull hair through with ease, resulting in even, salon-worthy highlights.
The kit comes in two shades: Champagne, ideal for blondes, and Caramel, perfect for brunettes wanting to lighten their hair color.
The dye features L’Oreal’s non-drip cream formula, making it much less messy to apply.
You’ll also receive gloves, a cap and a mixing tray for preparing your color.
In addition, the kit includes toner to neutralize brassiness and add extra shine, giving your hair a glossy, healthy finish.
Recommended Post: What Does Hair Toner Do To Highlights?
Step-By-Step Guide
Already picked out your highlighting kit?
Great – let’s get started!
Here’s your step-by-step guide to giving yourself highlights at home using a cap:
Detangle your hair
Start by brushing out your hair to remove all knots and tangles.
This step is crucial – if your hair is tangled when you apply the dye, it can result in uneven, streaky highlights.
Part your hair
Part your hair as you normally would, then place the highlighting cap over your head.
If your cap comes with ties or a ribbon, secure it under your chin to keep it in place during the process.
Pull through strands
Using the hook provided in your kit, gently pull small sections of hair through the holes in the cap.
Be careful to avoid tugging too hard – you don’t want to break or damage your strands.
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Want bold, dimensional highlights? Pull hair through every hole.
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Prefer subtle babylights? Only pull through a few thin sections.
Mix bleach and developer
Combine the bleach and developer in your mixing tray or bowl.
Using the applicator brush, apply the mixture to the hair strands that are pulled through the cap.
Related Post: How to Mix Bleach Powder and Developer
Let it process
Leave the bleach on for the recommended time listed in your kit’s instructions.
Periodically check the color to ensure it reaches your desired shade as it lightens.
Rinse and condition
Hop into the shower and rinse your hair thoroughly.
Use a gentle shampoo and follow up with a hydrating conditioner.
Once done, style your hair as desired and enjoy your beautiful new highlights!
Don’t Like Foils or Caps? Try Balayage Instead
If the defined look of cap highlights doesn’t appeal to you, consider trying balayage – a trendy and more natural-looking alternative.
Derived from the French word for “sweep,” balayage involves freehand painting of bleach or dye onto your hair. No foils necessary!
Balayage is typically focused on the mid-lengths to ends of the hair, so regrowth isn’t as noticeable.
The results are subtle, sun-kissed and much more natural than traditional foil highlights or even ombré.
Recommended Post: How To Do Ombre Hair Color Technique
Because it’s hand-painted, balayage doesn’t leave behind streaks and stripes – making your hair look effortlessly dimensional.
This method is perfect for those who want to get highlights but hate that intense and bright look you might get from foil and cap highlights.
This technique is also ideal if you want a low-maintenance look that still enhances your hair’s natural beauty.
Why Choose Balayage Over Traditional Highlights?
One of the biggest advantages of going for a balayage instead of foil highlights is that maintenance won’t be a big problem.
Balayage highlights are known to be super low-maintenance because you seldom have to get any touch-ups.
Unlike traditional highlights that start at the roots and require frequent touch-ups, balayage begins mid-shaft and grows out more naturally.
That means no harsh demarcation lines as you would usually get with traditional highlights – so no rushing to the salon every few weeks.
Your hair will still look good after many inches of regrowth.
Instead of touching up every few weeks as with foil highlights, you can go up to half a year without any touch-ups!
You’re not even technically required to get any touch-ups unless you want to refresh your color.
Another reason to go for a balayage is that it’s highly customizable.
You get to decide where the color starts, as opposed to root-to-tip foil highlights.
You’re also at liberty to decide how much dimension you want, and can even choose to use your balayage to frame your face in a way that brings out your best facial features.
Prepping For An At-Home Balayage Session
The balayage is kind of a difficult technique to master, which is why women all around the world pay big bucks to have an expert stylist do it for them.
But that doesn’t mean you can’t do it yourself!
There are tons of highlighting kits that have made balayage more accessible than ever.
You can save hundreds of dollars when you choose to do your balayage at home.
Plus, you’ll have more freedom to customize your balayage however you want.
However, opting for an at-home balayage isn’t that simple.
You still have to prep your hair properly before doing it.
Get A Trim
The first thing you have to do is get a trim a week or so before you plan on doing your balayage.
Snipping off split or dry ends will help the color appear fresher and more even.
Avoid cutting your hair after highlighting – it can alter how the color sits and mess up all your hard work.
Deep Condition Your Hair
You’ll likely be using a good amount of bleach or dye in your hair, even if a balayage is meant just for highlights.
And as we all know, these chemicals can damage the hair and make it dry and brittle.
It would be a wise idea to fortify your hair before you highlight it, just to lessen the damage.
A few days before you plan on giving yourself a balayage, try to do a deep conditioning mask.
This can be as simple as doing a coconut oil pre-poo on wash day.
But if you don’t have time to prepare a DIY pre-poo, you can also nourish your hair with a protein treatment.
The Mielle Organics Babassu & Mint Deep Conditioner is an excellent, protein-rich hair mask for moisturizing and strengthening the hair simultaneously (and you definitely need both before bleaching it!).
It’s formulated with babassu oil and palm fruit extracts to hydrate the hair and scalp.
There’s also a blend of wheat and soy amino acids in the mask, which helps to strengthen your strands before being exposed to bleach and other harsh chemicals.
This 15-minute protein treatment helps reduce the amount of breakage even in damaged hair, so it’s perfect for building up your hair bonds before getting a balayage.
Don’t Wash Your Hair
On the day of your balayage, avoid washing your hair.
The natural oils from your scalp will act as a protective barrier against the harshness of bleach and dye.
How To Give Yourself A Balayage At Home
Balayage may seem intimidating, but the good news is that it’s less precise than foil highlights – making it easier to try at home.
The key is to find a highlighting kit designed specifically for balayage.
Look for a non-drip formula and a specialized applicator brush.
The Clairol Nice’n Easy Balayage Permanent Hair Dye is the perfect kit to use when doing an at-home balayage session.
Because everything you need is included in the set, you don’t have to stress about purchasing separate developers or toners.
The kit includes Clairol’s signature crème dye, known for its smooth application, and a soft-bristled brush that makes painting a breeze.
Recommended Post: Does Balayage Damage Hair?
Step-By-Step Guide
Doing your own balayage can be very intimidating, especially since many stylists spend so long perfecting the art of painting highlights on hair.
But don’t worry – we’ve got you!
Here’s how to give yourself a balayage at home, step-by-step:
Mix the dye
Follow the instructions in your kit to mix the dye and developer.
If you prefer to use your own bleach and toner, that works too – just make sure to tone your hair afterward to achieve the look you want.
Section your hair
Divide your hair into two parts: top and bottom.
Clip the top section out of the way and begin with the bottom half.
‘Paint’ the hair
Dip your brush into the dye mixture and run it through your hair, starting from the mid-lengths and working your way down.
You can start wherever you want, whether it’s a few inches from your roots or way down to half of your hair length.
Just make sure your ends are more saturated with the dye.
Make sure you start your applications with thin strands first, working your way to make larger chunks if you feel you need to coat more sections of hair.
Be mindful to paint some of the hair underneath for an even distribution of highlights.
Blend strategically
For a natural look, vary where you start applying the dye – go higher in some areas and lower in others.
This creates a beautiful gradient from your natural color to the highlights.
Once the bottom half is done, unclip the top section and repeat the process.
Pay close attention to how you place the highlights around the area near your face since these will be most visible.
Shampoo and condition
After processing for the recommended time, rinse your hair thoroughly.
Use a shampoo followed by a nourishing conditioner to lock in moisture.
If using bleach, follow up with toner
If you’re using bleach, follow up with a toner to remove brassiness and give you the color you want for your balayage.
You can do so with a professional gloss or toner, or simply use a purple shampoo for an ashy tone.
Hop out of the shower and style your hair as desired.
Look in the mirror and admire your gorgeous new balayage!
How Often Should You Highlight Hair To Avoid Damage?
When it comes to highlighting your hair, the frequency really depends on where your highlights start and how healthy your hair is.
If your balayage begins at the mid-lengths of your hair, you technically don’t need to touch up your roots – unless you want to bring the highlights up higher.
This type of placement allows for a softer, more forgiving grow-out.
But if your highlights start at the roots, it’s a different story.
Some people wait until they see about an inch of regrowth before scheduling a touch-up.
Others are more regimented and book their highlight appointments every month without fail.
What’s The Right Timeline?
It all comes down to your hair’s strength and resilience.
Bleach and dye – especially when applied repeatedly – can take a toll on your strands.
Even a single highlighting session can cause damage, and repeated treatments can leave hair feeling fragile, dry, or prone to breakage.
Before booking another balayage or highlight session, always assess the current condition of your hair:
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Is it feeling brittle or straw-like?
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Do the ends break easily?
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Does it look overly dry, even with moisturizing treatments?
If your hair feels severely dry or weak, give it a break.
Wait a few extra weeks, and focus on restorative treatments like deep conditioning and protein masks to rebuild strength.
Suggested Read: DIY Protein Treatment For High Porosity Hair
Recommended Timing: Every 6–8 Weeks
As a general rule, touching up highlights every 6 to 8 weeks is a safe window.
This gives your hair time to recover, rehydrate and rebuild after the stress of chemical processing.
That said, the less often you bleach, the better – especially if you’re maintaining highlights over the long term.
Related Post: How To Keep Highlighted Hair Healthy
How Long Should I Wait To Wash My Hair After Highlights?
After completing your balayage, it’s best to wait two to three days before shampooing your hair.
This helps extend the life of your new tone and color.
When you bleach or color your hair, the process opens up your hair cuticles to allow your natural pigment to lift.
For the next few days, those cuticles remain open and vulnerable, which means your toner and dye can easily rinse out if you shampoo too soon.
By waiting 72 hours, you give your hair cuticles enough time to close.
Once they’re sealed, the color becomes better locked into your strands, helping your highlights stay vibrant for longer.
When you’re finally ready to wash your hair, it’s crucial to use a shampoo and conditioner made specifically for color-treated hair.
Choose formulas that are sulfate-free, as sulfates can strip away color and toner, causing your highlights to fade prematurely.
A great option is the Love Beauty and Planet Murumuru Butter & Rose Shampoo and Conditioner.
This shower duo is ideal for bleached and color-treated hair.
Both products are vegan and free from sulfates and parabens – harsh ingredients that can dull your fresh highlights.
Formulated with coconut oil and murumuru butter, this set deeply moisturizes while enhancing your hair color, making your highlights look brighter and fresher.
As an added bonus, the formulas provide a luminous shine that keeps your hair looking healthy and radiant.
Related Post: Best Sulfate-Free Shampoo For Permed Hair
Conclusion
If you’ve been wondering how to highlight hair at home without foil, you now know that you have options.
Whether you go for the super convenient cap highlighting or try your hand at the more challenging balayage style, you can do your highlights at home without stressing out about foil.
With a little prep and the right kit, you can create professional-looking highlights right from home.
As long as you follow the steps and precautionary measures above, you’ll still end up with beautiful highlights.
It’s also important to remember our tips on when and how to wash your hair to ensure that you can keep your highlights for as long as possible.
So gather up your bowls and brushes and get cracking!
Soon, you’ll have pretty highlights that look like they’re fresh out of the salon even if you just did them at home.
And the best part is that you didn’t need to use complicated foiling techniques!
Related Post: How To Highlight Hair At Home Yourself