Style Hair Cool Brunette Hair Colors for Your Best Look Yet By Mary Shannon Wells Mary Shannon Wells Mary Shannon is a Digital Associate Editor and has been on the Southern Living team since 2017. She helps run the brand's social media accounts on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Snapchat, and TikTok, where she's happily behind the scenes. When she's not ruffling feathers with an etiquette poll via Instagram Stories, she's writing content for the website and assisting in various print projects like gift guides and home stories.She grew up in Mobile, Alabama, which she insists is home to the country's first Mardi Gras (not New Orleans) and now lives in Birmingham with her husband and rescue pup Rocky, whose name is unrelated to The University of Tennessee (Roll Tide). Southern Living's editorial guidelines Updated on May 19, 2022 Share Tweet Pin Email Trending Videos Photo: Pinterest Blonde hair is a naturally light color. And since a lighter base is needed to achieve the most vibrant dye jobs, it once seemed as though blondes had a lot more options than anyone else when it came to hair color. But with techniques like balayage becoming more and more popular in hair color trends, brunettes are now able to have just as much fun with color. Brunettes stand front and center in hair trends, without having to completely lift their hair to a pale blonde first. These cool brunette hair colors are edgier than your everyday warm honey highlights, and they look amazing. With smoky hues like chocolate mauve and ash brown in the lead, the best brunette shades of today aren't traditional by any means. If you're not interested in going grey, try out cool-tone babylights for a hint of ice. Who's ready to head to the salon? 01 of 12 Cool Espresso Instagram/@che.r.mariano This dark brunette is absolutely gorgeous, especially when blended with cool, slightly lighter tones for a sombré effect. Sombré is an amalgamation of "soft" and "ombré." What makes it softer than the typical ombré is the more natural blend and more subtle transition in shades. Think of it as a happy medium between highlights and the standard dimensional balayage. 02 of 12 Icy Babylights Instagram/@saripaints This brunette is iced up with wintery babylights in cool blondes and beiges. In contrast to highlights, which create more, well, contrast, babylights create a more natural blend. And this natural blend serves to help the color last longer as your hair grows, meaning fewer visits to the salon for color touch-ups. 03 of 12 Chocolate Mauve Instagram/@lo.rean Chocolate mauve is the moodier version of rose brown hair color—the brunette counterpart to the rose gold hue popular among blondes—and we are here for it. This combo of smoky, brunette, and purple hues is so cool. 04 of 12 Smoky Sombré Instagram/@habitsalon This subtle ombré fades from a cool, dark brunette to icy, beige ends. Sombré is a great color job if you want to grow out your natural color, while keeping a pop of interesting color at the ends. 05 of 12 Beige Brown and Ice Gold Instagram/@kimwasabi You may have believed that something like ice gold would only work for blonde hair, but that could not be further from the truth. And we are very thankful. This gorgeous blend of muted brunette and a cool-toned gold makes for a striking combination. 06 of 12 Ash Brown Instagram/@takuya648 If you can't tell from some of the colors we have already listed, we really love ashen tones, and they continue to be on trend. Ashen looks are more understated, and the perfect choice for anyone looking to make a more subtle change to their hair color. This brunette is snowy and cool. 07 of 12 Mushroom Brown Hair Pinterest Mushroom brown hair has taken the Internet by a storm, and we hope it never loses its momentum. The muted, ashy, almost-grey, almost-brown shade may seem low key—and it is—but it still has a big impact. 08 of 12 Cool-Tone Ombré Instagram/@scixxorhands From the almost purple brunette top to the sandy bronde bottom, this ombré is cool and collected. A bronde color—not quite brunette, but not quite blonde either—is the complement to a natural brunette looking to add interest and dimension to their brown hair. Not to mention the bangs are perfectly on trend. 09 of 12 Charcoal Brunette with Silver Babylights Instagram/@xo.farhana.balayage Charcoal is one of the darkest brunette hues, which means it can be the most challenging when it comes to adding color. With this look, the charcoal brunette is not drastically changed, but is merely softened around the edges with delicate, ashy babylights. 10 of 12 Dusty Lavender Instagram/@kimwasabi Lavender, also known these days as "melodramatic purple," is the new millennial pink. You are likely to see the shade everywhere from your nail polish to your home décor, so why not make it your hair color as well? Instead of lifting your brunette hair to pastel lavender, go for this darker, equally as bold dusty lavender. 11 of 12 Pearly Cocoa Instagram/@takuya648 This muted, light brunette has a pearly sheen that's hauntingly pretty. It has the deep brown color of cocoa and the shimmering glint of a pearl necklace. What a stunning combo. 12 of 12 Denim Balayage on Deep Brunette Instagram/hoang.n.pham Icy tones make another appearance on this list with this denim balayage. This icy, silvery blue looks truly mesmerizing against a deep brunette base. Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! Tell us why! Other Submit