On New Year’s Eve, I experienced what I can only describe as a quarter-life crisis. After 11 years of being a (fake) blonde, full of trips to the salon where I walked out looking highlighted and feeling on top of the world, I gave it all up. It was a cold, snowy day in the Chicago suburb where I grew up, and after weeks spent convincing myself that staying blonde was 1) too much of a hassle and 2) no longer financially justifiable, I told my colorist—the person who took me from brunette to blonde in the first place—to just do it, Nike style. She obliged, of course, and I know without a shadow of a doubt how perfect of a job she did with the color, and it’s still taken me a while to adjust to the change.
The real issue I’m running into with this very sudden shift in appearance doesn’t have anything to do with my new hair. It looks and feels great. (Giving up bleach will do that to hair.) My problem is this: When I look in the mirror sometimes, even a month later, I don’t recognize myself, and a lot of that has to do with the way my clothes look. After more than a decade of getting dressed with blonde hair—my style’s most transformative decade to date—I knew how to do it with little to no effort. My personal style and hair color went hand in hand, so putting together outfits that clicked in every way was second nature. Now, nothing feels natural anymore, an ironic phenomenon considering that nothing about my blonde hair was remotely real.
Meet the Expert: Jill Kirsch
Though I like to figure out a lot of my fashion conundrums on my own, I also know when it’s time to let an expert step in. Jill Kirsch, a 30-year veteran in the color space, has been referred to as Hollywood’s Guru of Hue, making her the perfect person to help get me acquainted with my new look. Kirsch grew up in New York City’s Garment District with two fashion-industry parents, so she learned early on how powerful color can be. She also worked on the wholesale and retail side of the business and took notice of the pieces that would sit on sale racks untouched. “But when put on someone whose hair color was in harmony with [a specific] piece, the item would fly out the door,” she explains.
Over time, Kirsch developed an innovative color system centered on her clients’ hair colors that helped steer them toward fashion and beauty choices that best complemented their hair. So often, she’d see people whose colors were completely out of sync, wearing clothes that fought with the warmth or coolness, as well as the intensity, of their hair color. With a few easy tweaks to their wardrobe and beauty routines, formerly fragmented pieces fit together.
Discover Kirsch’s Color System
Kirsch’s color system uses a number of different swatch books that are designed to be used for hair-color groups. For example, she says that my old honey-blonde hair worked best with shades like teal, cinnamon, champagne, avocado, and eggplant, naming celebrities like Jennifer Aniston and Jennifer Lopez as references. My new hair, however, calls for darker neutrals, like charcoal gray, navy, white, black, and deep emerald, with someone like Courteney Cox being a good example to follow.
Per Kirsch’s color system, much lighter blondes like Elle Fanning or Michelle Williams would benefit from wearing shades like ivory, camel, aqua, and red, whereas gray or white-blonde people like Glenn Close or Helen Mirren would want to steer toward wine, dove gray, pearl white, taupe, and periwinkle.
The Gist: “Basically wear the shades in your swatch book and avoid tans, camouflage, mustards, and all the shades for other hair color groups, because when you make a major hair color change, you need to change up all the shades in your fashion and makeup (eyes, cheeks, and lips). A darker gray is definitely your new friend—re: a great neutral—in addition to black and navy. You can even do an espresso brown. Also, all the swatches in the booklets are solids, but most definitely can be interpreted in prints and tweeds, and in all the fabulous textures (leather, suede, velvet, and satin).”
Out: Red
In: Navy Blue
Thankfully, I waited until 2025 (or rather, the last day of 2024) to dye my hair dark, because apparently, I’m not supposed to lean on red anymore, one of the biggest color trends of the last few years. Though I think of red as neutral at this point, I will try holding off on it for a few months and relying heavily on navy blue instead. It’s a classic, and after I splurged on a navy blue Alaïa Le Teckel shoulder bag during my last trip to Paris, I have a good excuse to wear the shade again and again alongside my new ‘do.
j.crew
Cashmere Shrunken Crewneck Sweater
Alaïa
Le Teckel Suede Shoulder Bag
Out: Champagne
In: Espresso Brown
Kirsch’s system implied that darker colors are really going to be my friend now, so I want to try to swap out any of my champagne-colored pieces that were quite similar to the shade of my old hair in favor of more espresso-brown hues. I got a great vintage fur coat over the holiday break that’s perfect for this transition, as well as a few handbags, jackets, and skirts.
Massimo Dutti
Suede Nubuck Leather Jacket
ZARA
Heeled Strappy Pumps
Reformation
Oversized Patrizia Bag
Out: Dove Gray
In: Charcoal Gray
I’ve always been more of a charcoal-gray person than any other shade of the color, so I feel good about prioritizing the neutral more in 2025, starting with wool pants and skirts as well as cashmere sweaters.
j.crew
Cashmere Relaxed Crewneck Sweater
rue sophie
Léna Zip Slit Midi Skirt
Out: Ivory
In: White
Since, according to Kirsch, ivory is better for lighter blondes, and white complements my new darker hair, I’m excited to test out the latter in a more consistent basis. Ivory is definitely a color I relied heavily on in my former hair life as a way of breaking up all the black and other dark colors I wore. Fortunately, I’m not someone who believes in the “no white after Labor Day” rule, so I shouldn’t have too much of a problem introducing the color into my year-round wardrobe.
ZARA
Scarf Blouse Zw Collection
TOTEME
The Sharp Cutout Glossed-Leather Slingback Pumps
Out: Solid Colors Only
In: Multicolored Patterns
One thing that Kirsch pointed out was that patterns with the colors that click with your hair color are just as effective as solids, and because I no longer have my blonde hair to break up darker outfits, I’m leaning into multicolored patterns with some white or cream in them to balance out ensembles.
Massimo Dutti
Striped Knit Sweater With Polo Collar
ZARA
Z1975 High Rise Flocked Animal Print Belted Jeans
Helsa
Pinstripe Pinstripe Poplin Fitted Shirt
