From Cha Time to Tiger Sugar, to Yi Fang to Gong Cha—milk tea is everywhere in Manila right now. Wherever you go, you'll always be able to spot a handful of people slurping the popular drink, trying to get every last piece of pearl or "boba." Unsurprisingly, Asia's obsession with milk tea has already spread to beauty trends; specifically, hair color trends. Enter ~*milk tea hair*~!
Milk tea hair is a combination of brown and blonde. These two hues are expertly mixed together to create a chic, creamy color that's neither too warm nor too cool. It's actually perfect for Filipinas because it can bring out the golden undertones of their complexions.
Excited to try this hair color out? Keep scrolling for a bunch of milk tea hair inspo (sans the pearls and calories)!
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Classic Milk Tea
This light brown hair color is just like a classic milk tea drink: It's for everyone. To get this exact type of hair color, your strands will have to be bleached first and dyed after with brown and blonde hues to achieve the perfect medley of shades. Hair colors like this can easily turn brassy, so to prevent that from happening, switch to sulfate-free hair products. They won't strip the dye off your strands and are super hydrating and nourishing.
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Earl Grey Milk Tea
Classic milk tea hair and Earl Grey milk tea hair may look the same at first glance. But, if you take a closer look, the latter has a warmer, richer undertone.
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Brown Sugar Milk Tea
When brown sugar milk tea is shaken to mix all the elements (tea, milk, brown sugar syrup, and pearls) together, this is the resulting hue. It's slightly darker than the classic milk tea, but it's still a versatile shade that can be worn by everyone. The cool undertone of brown sugar milk tea hair will even be able to soften your features.
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Cream Cheese Milk Tea
Have you ever tasted cream cheese milk tea? It's heaven! It's a rich, yet refreshing, drink that can satisfy sweet and savory cravings at the same time. This hair color is the perfect homage to the drink as the shades seamlessly lighten towards the ends, embodying the decadent, moussey consistency of the drink.
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Milk Tea Balayage
If you're iffy about the bleach stinging your scalp and you hate sitting in the salon chair for hours to get your hair dyed, then the milk tea balayage hair color is for you. This hair color will only call for the middle to the ends of your hair to be bleached and dyed to create a pretty, gradient effect.
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Milk Tea Latte
Milk tea lattes are drinks that are made with brewed tea and steamed milk. When combined together with ice, the frothy milk gives the tea an ultra-light hue—which is just like this hair color. Before you get this look done, make sure to purchase purple shampoos and conditioners and other color-safe hair products. They will tone down the brassy hue that may develop on your strands and help maintain the luscious latte shade.
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Milk Tea Smoothie
This hair color looks just like the blended iced drink! The subtle highlights and streaks of dark brown tresses remind us of pearls and milk being swirled together with a straw.
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Creamy Cocoa Milk Tea
One of the richer milk tea drinks, cocoa milk tea is famous for having a deep brown hue. When pudding or cream cheese is added, it develops gorgeous liquid ribbons, resulting in a look that's similar to this hair color. Since this is one of the darker styles here, it's perfect for those who aren't ready to completely change up their look.
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Honey Milk Tea
This hair color perfectly captures the essence of honey milk tea by adding soft warm highlights to the light brown base.
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Caramel Milk Tea Balayage
Warm, smoky, and sweet—this is how we would describe caramel milk tea, aka this hair color. It has a beautiful golden tone to it that can make anyone look like they just came back from the beach!
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Toffee Milk Tea
We love this hair color and here's why: The dark roots represent the pearls and the light brown base is the milk tea. All of these are complemented by the warm brown highlights, which represent the ~toffee syrup~. Yum-my.
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Cookies And Cream Milk Tea
If you want to try a milk tea hair color that's out of the box, try this cookies-and-cream-inspired shade. The hairstyle looks exactly like the tasty drink we buy whenever we're craving something sweet and chocolatey! Sadly, though, this doesn't come with cookie chunks like the actual thing.
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Milk Tea With Pudding
Raise your hand if you love milk tea with pudding! You can take your obsession with it to the next level by getting this hair color during your next salon visit. The end result is a gorgeous caramel hue with a tinge of a custard shade to symbolize the milky and velvety drink.
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Hazelnut Milk Tea
Like hair colors that shine and shimmer under the sun? Try this one. The buttery and hazelnut-inspired tones will add dimension and luster to your mane.
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Strawberry Milk Tea
Rose gold, but make it milk tea. The rose and pink tints in this hair color remind us of the vibrant strawberry milk teas we always see on Instagram. We hate to sound like a broken record, but in order to maintain this hair color, you will need a purple shampoo (here are some great options), plus other color-safe hair conditioners and masks, to tone down the brassiness and stop the color from fading.
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