First, there was ombré—and yes, we were in love (well, still are). This latest iteration of gradated hair color, however, has us just as excited. The look has been popping up all over the place—from that girl you spotted in the crowd at Lollapalooza to Lauren Conrad's snapshot-heard-round-the-internet. 

So, here's the deal: While ombré evolved from grown out roots, moving from the top/crown of the hair down the shaft, dip dye begins at the bottom. "Imagine dipping the tips of your hair into color," explains colorist Stacie Dybala. Hence, dip dye. 

The other main difference between ombré and dip dye is in the color transition: instead of the smooth gradient from color to color you see with ombré, taking a dip means a more intentional, daring shift from one shade to the next. While the jump from one color to the next can sound a bit more intense than the soft waves of ombré, it's all about color choice. The effect can be as subtle or dramatic as you'd like to go, and the variations are truly endless.

How We Dip Dye

Like we said before, instead of balayaging the hair from the top down, colorists Leslie Shores and Stacie Dybala begin at the bottom of the hair, creating sections of hair that are to be colored. 

For the model seen on the left (top), Stacie created a soft dividing line between the untouched and colored hair, and chose a shade that worked well with the client's natural hair color. The effect is still incredibly natural looking, but different enough to warrant strangers stopping her in the streets.

For the second model (left, bottom), Leslie created sections of hair using small rubber bands, a technique not all that different from the tie dying. As seen in the photos below, the effect is a bit more fluid and natural as far as placement goes.  The color you choose, the level of saturation, the method of separating the hair—all of it goes into the final look (and with all those options, we can create just about any sort of finished product).

THREE MORE DIP DYE FACTS...

(1) The effect can be adapted to pretty much any length/texture of hair. Long, wavy styles are an especially easy fit, while shorter styles call for a shorter dip (as with Drew Barrymore's punk-chic coiff). (2) It's the definition of low maintenance—as it grows out, the effect becomes more pronounced and even more gorgeous. (3) We love the look of the natural tones we did above, but we can't help but oggle the tie-dyed tips as well. "It's a more extreme extension of dip dye color," says Stacie, "Pink, teal, blue, purple... peacock colors work especially well." (See more here!)