Girls with auburn hair color exist in one of the most blessed of spaces. They get the best of both the brown and red worlds — their warm strands tout the grounding nature of the former and the fiery, attention-grabbing gifts of the latter. For those craving copper strands, now’s the time to take the leap: Natural shades are the new grays and platinums — or so the experts say.
Roxie Darling, head colorist at Hairstory (the hair experts behind New Wash, a detergent-free shampoo), says, “I think the same generation of girls who were playing around with their hair five years ago are growing up and wanting to take their hair in a more natural direction. The cool girls that made ombre hair color popular, are now rocking more natural, subtler colors.” Darling chalks the shift up to hair fatigue rather than a desire to be en vogue, but whatever the reason, natural hair color is the way of the day.
One caveat: Hair color that’s neither here nor there can be a pain to maintain, especially in the summer months when blazing rays turn your temperamental shade brassy and dry. The payoff of auburn hair color is that, with proper maintenance, you get locks the color of Julia Roberts’ circa Pretty Woman, which we’d say more than makes up for slicking some argan oil and SPF-infused products on your tresses each morning.
Click through the slideshow above for 35 gorgeous examples of auburn hair color spotted on the runways, celebrities’ heads and the annals of Instagram. And remember, no matter where these hair models fall on the curly-straight spectrum, the beauty of auburn color is that it works on everyone.
[ Next: 40 Hot Hair Color Trends ]
Auburn Hair
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Auburn Hair #1
A simple mousy sidesweep on the Allude Fall 2013 runway.
Image: Imaxtree
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Auburn Hair #2
Rich brown-red strands at the Arthur Arbesser Spring 2016 showing.
Image: Imaxtree
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Auburn Hair #3
A fringed auburn bob walks the Chanel Spring 2014 catwalk.
Image: Imaxtree
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Auburn Hair #4
A subtle russet look at the Cédric Charlier Fall 2015 showing.
Image: Imaxtree
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Auburn Hair #5
A retro red-tinted coif on the Tsumori Chisato Fall 2014 runway.
Image: Imaxtree
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Auburn Hair #6
Bobby pins complement coppery tresses on the Tsumori Chisato Spring 2015 runway.
Image: Imaxtree
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Auburn Hair #7
Deep sepia waves at Jasper Conran Fall 2015.
Image: Imaxtree
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Auburn Hair #8
Flowing auburn color lengths on the Jasper Conran Spring 2015 catwalk.
Image: Imaxtree
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Auburn Hair #9
Chili-infused chocolate spotted at Derek Lam's Spring 2015 showing.
Image: Imaxtree
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Auburn Hair #10
Middle-parted perfection at Desigual Fall 2016.
Image: Imaxtree
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Auburn Hair #11
A striking red-tinted fringe on Acne Studios' Spring 2014 runway.
Image: Imaxtree
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Auburn Hair #12
A romantic braided auburn crown at Alice + Olivia's Fall 2013 presentation.
Image: Imaxtree
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Auburn Hair #13
An auburn color bob with built-in texture by Colleen of Fox & Jane Salon.
Image: @foxandjane
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Auburn Hair #14
Auburn box braids FTW.
Image: @braidupp
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Auburn Hair #15
Deep auburn hair color at Jean Paul Gaultier's Fall 2014 showing.
Image: Imaxtree
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Auburn Hair #16
Auburn color cornrows at Jean Paul Gaultier's Spring 2015 showing.
Image: Imaxtree
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Auburn Hair #17
A red-haired beauty on Tess Giberson's Spring 2015 runway.
Image: Imaxtree
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Auburn Hair #18
Auburn color alert at Jill Stuart's Spring 2015 showing.
Image: Imaxtree
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Auburn Hair #19
Tucked in auburn tresses at Jitrois Fall 2013.
Image: Imaxtree
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Auburn Hair #20
A russet bun at Marchesa Fall 2014.
Image: Imaxtree
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Auburn Hair #21
Braided mahogany at Marissa Webb Spring 2015.
Image: Imaxtree
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Auburn Hair #22
Coppery brown locks at Jenny Packham Fall 2015.
Image: Imaxtree
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Auburn Hair #23
A voluminous brown-red 'do at PPQ Spring 2016.
Image: Imaxtree
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Auburn Hair #24
Copper bangs posing as baby hairs at Prada Spring 2016.
Image: Imaxtree
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Auburn Hair #25
A reddish-brown renaissance at Richard Chai Fall 2015.
Image: Imaxtree
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Auburn Hair #26
Emma Stone's coppery brown tresses walk the red carpet at the 84th Annual Academy Awards, complemented by her stunning red dress.
Image: Getty
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Auburn Hair #27
Amy Adams' delicate auburn sidesweep attends the Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice New York premiere at Radio City Music Hall.
Image: Getty
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Auburn Hair #28
Both Lana Del Rey and her rich auburn hair color spout siren songs.
Image: @lanadelrey
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Auburn Hair #29
Isla Fisher's dark coppery brown look is no joke.
Image: @islafisher
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Auburn Hair #30
Julianne Moore's notable auburn hair attends the Alzheimer's Association New York City Chapter's 2015 Forget-Me-Not Gala at The Pierre Hotel.
Image: Getty
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Auburn Hair #31
No auburn hair color roundup would be complete without vintage Julia Roberts.
Image: @juliarobertsoriginal
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Auburn Hair #32
Kate Mara's reddish tint is as stealth as her House of Cards alter ego (circa season one, anyway).
Image: @katemaraa
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Auburn Hair #33
Rihanna masters auburn color hair as deftly as she does all sartorial endeavors.
Image: @badgalriri
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Auburn Hair #34
Striking red undertones on Christian Dior's Spring 2016 Haute Couture runway.
Image: Imaxtree
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Auburn Hair #35
Makeshift asymmetrical chestnut bangs at Nanette Lepore's Fall 2014 showing.
Image: Imaxtree
