Celebrities are wearing the heck out of the copper hair trend

Embrace the heat

BEAUTYcrew Beauty Editor / February 05 2024

Red hair has a resurgence almost every year. But each time around the trend-mill, the colour changes slightly to match the times. 

Last year we had a massive heart on for mermaid red hair (AKA the kind of hues that could rival Ariel’s fiery mane) and the years before were all about copper blonde

Fast forward to 2022 and we’re watching celebrities make the shift to earthier, more natural tones like true copper, auburn and strawberry blonde with a metallic shine that really catches the eye. 

Case in point? Famous blondie Sydney Sweeney’s red hair transformation sent shockwaves through the Euphoria star’s fanbase. When the actress was initially papped her strands were a distinct shade of strawberry red, but now Sweeney’s found a happy medium as a strawberry blonde.

Meanwhile on-again, off-again redhead Sophie Turner has turned up the heat with a deep red shade of copper that almost glows in the right lighting.

And then there’s iconic brunette Kendall Jenner, who gave up the gun and delved into an auburn hue that looks shockingly natural.

@florido

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@nikki_makeup

Thought we were done? Not quite. Model and Euphoria star Barbie Ferreira ditched her dark brown strands too, opting for a rusty brown instead. Though her signature fluffy dark eyebrows remained intact – phew. 

Doja Cat also briefly tangoed with a gingered copper wig but as is to be expected, she’s tried several other colours since then. 

And let’s not forget about a pioneer in the copper hair category; SZA spent most of 2021 donning a vibrant orange variation of the shade, and reminded us all of the power that a ‘00s-era blowout holds.

@barbieferreira

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Kaia Gerber just joined the throng of celebrities clamouring for red-hued hair too. The model debuted a glistening auburn shade that in all honesty looks completely natural on the 20-year-old. Another celeb-daughter-turned-celeb trialling the hair hue? Olivia Jade, whose copper shade left her resemblance to mum Lori Loughlin's Full House character Aunt Becky (who also rocked red) appearing more obvious than ever. 

Unlike the slew of celebrity nepotism babies dying their hair copper to emulate their mothers, Tessa Thompson used herself as inspiration. “We took a photo of Tessa as a little girl as our colour reference,” celebrity hairstylist Lacy Redway explained. “Then I gave Tessa a baby bang.”

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@lacyredway

Megan Fox embraced the spirit of the spooky season and delved into her wig wardrobe for a copper-hued number. Fox’s short-lived russet waves weren’t the only look she tried on Halloween weekend; she and Machine Gun Kelly transformed into Pam and Tommy too. 

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More recently, Lucy Boynton ditched her signature platinum blonde hair for a glimmering hue of strawberry blonde, courtesy of celebrity hair stylist Halley Brisker and colour specialist Mark William Selley.

The copper-hued flame of 2023 is still burning in 2024; Chloe Bailey debuted copper locks to match the bronze gown she wore to The 66th Annual Grammy Awards in early February.

These celebrities aren’t the only ones who’ve taken the plunge and dyed their strands red (or vice versa for that matter). These are some of our favourite red hair to blonde transformations.

Main image credit: @nikki_makeup / Getty / @florido

Briar Clark got her start in the media industry in 2017, as an intern for Marie Claire and InStyle. Since then, her keen interest in fashion and beauty has landed her gigs as a Digital Content Producer and Beauty Editor with titles like Girlfriend, Refinery29, BEAUTYcrew and beautyheaven. She loves the way seemingly innocuous topics like skin care and style have the ability to put a smile on people’s faces or make them think about themselves a little differently. A big believer in self love and experimentation, Briar has made a point of becoming the Australian beauty industry’s unofficial guinea pig for unusual treatments and daring hair trends. When she’s not testing out the latest beauty launches, Briar is big on broadening her horizons, mostly in the form of food but she’s also partial to travelling to new destinations both near and far (and of course, allocating an extra bag to bring their best beauty offerings home with her).