Milk Tea Is the Flattering Hair Color Taking Over Instagram

Switching up your hair color [1] is one of the easiest ways to enter a new era in your life. Every season brings with it a new batch of trends so you'll always have inspiration for a new look when the time comes. Previous years have brought us "mocha melt [2], "base breaker [3]," and "touch of toffee [4]," but this winter's hottest look [5] is shaping up to be the "milk-tea" hair color trend.

Not to be confused with the equally popular "milk-bath" nail art trend, milk-tea hair is a new shade of light brown for anyone looking to update their look in a small but impactful way. Ahead, a hairstylist explains a bit more about the trend.

What Is Milk-Tea Hair?

"'Milk-tea' hair color has a creamy beige tone that falls between warm and cool," Guy Tang [6], celebrity colorist and owner of MyDentity [7], tells POPSUGAR. Picture a big steamy mug of tea with a splash of milk, and you've got the look. The hair color is usually paired with a slightly darker shadow root [8] "to create the two-tone feel of milk tea."

The shade is a bit bolder than your more traditional variations of bronde (like honey or caramel) while still falling in the category of neutral. "[The color is] best for clients that want a wearable, natural look," said Tang. And because of its neutral tone, it complements all skin tones. As a bonus, the milk-tea hair color trend is also extremely low maintenance thanks to the shadow root element of the style.

Milk-Tea Hair Inspiration

To get the look at the salon, Tang said to ask for light brown color with tones of creamy beige, and "always bring them an inspiration picture to show exactly what you are looking for." To find the perfect reference photo, keep scrolling for more examples of the milk-tea hair color trend.

Medium-Length Milk-Tea Hair

This hairstyle really shows how versatile milk-tea hair can be. This version is a lighter, more caramel shade of the trend that highlights the layers in this look perfectly.

Cool-Toned Milk-Tea Hair

Bordering on the line of being grey, this version of the trend is perfect if you want a more cool-toned iteration of the look.

Wavy Milk-Tea Hair

You can easily see the dimension of the milk-tea color on this hairstyle.

Milk-Tea Lob

Shorter, more straightforward bob haircuts [9] can also join in on the milk-tea fun. The gradient between your shadow roots and the lighter color will be beautiful.

Milk-Tea Hair on an Octopus Haircut

If you have a more disjointed haircut like the octopus [10], let this be proof that the milk-tea trend can also blend beautifully with your hairstyle.

Milk-Tea Hair With a Shadow Root

This style manages to capture the nuances of the milk-tea color perfectly.