Mushroom Blonde Is Primed To Be Fall’s Hottest Hair Color Trend

September is right around the corner, which means it’s the perfect time to transition your hair into a fresh new shade for fall. Over the summer, bold haircuts and shades of ginger and pastels were at the forefront, but this fall, Michael Duenas, Aloxxi celebrity hairstylist to Hilary Duff, Kayla Pratt, and more, predicts the trends will require far less maintenance than seasons past. But low-maintenance doesn’t mean boring — in fact, the blonde color trends experts have predicted are anything but.

“This year, you’ll see more layered and textured cuts for fall,” says celebrity hairstylist Kathleen Riley, who’s clientele include Jenna Dewan, Shanina Shaik, Maddie Ziegler, and Sofia Richie. Experts are predicting lots of variations on the classic warm and cool blonde tones, like mushroom blondes, golden blondes, and undertones of browns — creating elevated, darker shades that are perfect for the cooler season ahead.

Unfortunately, processing the hair to achieve a lighter shade can lead to hair damage and breakage. Going blonde with bleach is harsh on the hair and more readily shows dry, damaged ends than other hair colors. The key to slaying this color is to make sure your hair is at it’s healthiest. Opt for a color-depositing shampoo, hydrating conditioner, and a gloss or shine in your hair routine to retain the vibrant shade of blonde while moisturizing your locks and keeping damage to a minimum.

Whether you are currently blonde or interested in experimenting with going lighter for the fall, read on for what the experts predict will be fall’s nine most popular shades of blonde.

Pearl Blonde

“Pearl blonde is a platinum blonde color with a mix of natural and cool tones to cancel out any warm tones,” says celebrity stylist Andrew Fitzsimons. “It works best with light to medium complexions, especially if you have brown or green eyes as the cooler tones suit each other.” To maintain this color, Fitzsimons suggests using a purple shampoo with each wash to protect against dullness and unwanted warm tones.

Buttery Champagne Blonde

A rather bold blonde, blonding specialist Cyd Charisse believes this trend was born during lockdown through home bleach applications and viral TikToks. “These are our blonde rebels who are shunning the last decade of the icy blonde trends,” Charisse tells TZR. “They are embracing the warm glow it brings that will brighten up fall this year.” She notes that warm undertones are key for making this striking color look natural.

Sunglow Blonde

“We are starting to ditch very ashy tones, and coming in hot with sunglow blonde,” says Duenas. Sunglow blonde is a very warm shade with heavy gold (not too orange) warm accents. Duenas recommends this color for pink and neutral skin tones. “Since the color is very warm, it also can be very complimentary on cooler skin tones to warm up the complexion without a lot of makeup.”

Golden Blonde

Golden blonde, a mixture of warmer honey and buttery tones of blonde, is great for those with olive and darker skin tones. Riley suggests achieving this look through the money piece look, which highlights around the face via a light balayage in the front strands. This look will add dimension and brightness to your complexion and can be a great starting place if you’re new to blonde.

Beige Blonde

“This is for those blondes that need to fit in to fall [darker color] trend but are not ready to give up their sun-kissed bright blonde yet,” says Larisa Love, Joico brand ambassador and owner of Larisa Love Salon. “A beige blonde is a great way to tone down the brightness and add a little more neutral for your transition into fall.” To achieve the look, add in cool medium brown lowlights to give dimension.

Strawberry Blonde

A hybrid between red and blonde hair, “strawberry blonde is best for fair, cool, or neutral skin tones as the light, warm red counteracts the cool tones in pale skin,” Fitzsimons tells TZR. To maintain, use a color-depositing shampoo to make the color last longer (as red tones are notorious for fading faster than any other color).

Mushroom Blonde

According to Charisse, mushroom blonde is the new ‘bronde,’ meaning a blonde-brunette hybrid. “[This color] blurs the lines between bronde and silver. Subtle enough to still be invited to family dinners but teetering on the fine line of daring gray.” Recommended as a great transitional color to ease into the softness of a brown blonde, this one is a great fall pick.

Buttermilk Blonde

Duenas recommends buttermilk blonde as a good compromise between ashy and golden blonde. “The soft beige hues in this color reflect a lot of light without looking brassy,” she says, which helps the tone to match with any complexion or texture. Duenas suggests using Aloxxi Bombshell Shine Mist before and after styling to make hair pop. “[The mist] helps with frizz and flyaway control, as well as protects from blue light damage to preserve hair color vibrancy without weighing it down.”

Metallic Blonde

Metallic blonde has a cool-toned metallic color added to it for a soft intensity. “A metallic lilac, metallic mauve, or even a metallic peach is great here,” says Love, “The key is to have the underlying pigment silver so the color feels bright and light for someone that wants to stay in the blonde range.”

If you’re going blonde this fall, don’t forget to stock up on plenty of products to maintain your shade and keep your color as vibrant as possible.

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