Dear ITG,
I met Bella Hadid through friends last year when she needed a colorist for a big Saint Laurent campaign. From that point on, I’d see her every six to eight weeks to touch up her color. When the opportunity came for her to walk the Cannes Film Festival red carpet with Chopard on opening night this year, she wanted to make it a full moment—and decided to go blonde.
Bella’s super creative and inspiring to work with. She loves a good moodboard, so that’s where we started. We looked at a bunch of photos of Brigitte Bardot with darker blonde hair and Gisele Bündchen in the ’90s and early 2000s. I also looked at Bella’s baby photos because she’s a natural dark blonde—if you’re thinking of going back to your natural hair color, you have to do that. After years of highlights and dye, your original shade can get lost, so it’s important to ground your vision in something real.
Taking the dark out of her hair was the heavy lifting, and we did all of that in Texas. It took around 14 hours because I really wanted to baby her hair. Sometimes people rush these things, slap on the bleach, and seriously damage the strands. I even tested a piece of her hair beforehand to make sure it could handle the process. It’s one thing to be blonde, but if it’s fried and blonde, is it really worth it? Luckily, Schwarzkopf Professional’s Igora Vario Blond Super Plus got the job done without compromising the integrity of her hair [Jacob is an ambassador for the brand]. When I brushed it through, there wasn’t a single strand on the brush. [Note: Scroll to the end for Jacob’s detailed coloring process.]
We finished the color in Cannes, and I styled her hair for the carpet, too. We went with a simple side part to complement her stunning black Saint Laurent dress, 118.68-carat emerald Chopard earrings, and 12.15-carat heart-shaped diamond Chopard ring. Nadia Tayeh did her makeup, and she just looked so beautiful.
We were only in Cannes for about two and a half days, so it was a bit of a blur, but it was amazing. I got to go with Bella to pick out her jewelry in the Chopard suite, and you can imagine how fabulous that was. I’ll never forget it. One of my favorite memories was breakfast at Hôtel du Cap-Eden-Roc. It’s farther away from the action of Cannes, but the setting was unreal: beautiful light, amazing food, a glittering sea view—it was perfect, like something out of a movie. Then we were off to London for a couple of days for Ôrəbella’s launch in Selfridges.
Now that I’m back and seeing people recreate Bella’s color, I have two tips. First, make sure your colorist is incorporating a demi-permanent color to tone and on the roots. I love Igora Vibrance for this. It helps avoid harsh grow-out lines and stretches the time between appointments. Permanent color, by contrast, tends to require more upkeep. Second, you have to maintain it with the right shampoo and conditioner. That’s your foundation. I love Olaplex’s Nº.4 shampoo and Nº.5 conditioner.
This truly was a dream job. I’m always excited and honored to work with dear friends and people who inspire me, but you could not have put it on my bingo card that I’d get to go to Cannes and London with Bella in 2025 to color and style her hair. I was over the moon when I got the call. I still am.
Love,
Jacob Schwartz
Jacob’s Formula for Bella (take a screenshot for your colorist to copy!):
- Jacob began by highlighting ultra-thin sections across Bella’s entire head using Schwarzkopf Professional’s Igora Vario Blond Super Plus (20 volume)
- After section-by-section rinsing, he dried the hair and moved into the lowlighting phase using demi-permanent Igora Vibrance
- Top section: 7-55 + 7-0 (6 volume)
- Ends: 9-55 + 8-0 (6 volume)
- Let sit for 20 minutes
- To enhance dimension, Jacob reapplied the lowlights a second time to lock in Bella’s rich dark blonde tones
- Next came root and hairline detailing with Igora Vibrance:
- Hairline: 9-55 for the final 10 minutes with a touch of 8-0 on the front face-framing pieces
- Roots: A custom blend of 1/4 7-55, 1/2 7-0, and 1/4 6-0, processed for 20 minutes
- As a finishing touch, Jacob hand-painted a few select strands with Igora Vario Blond Super Plus (20 volume) to boost brightness and add his signature editorial sparkle
—as told to Daise Bedolla
Photos courtesy of Jacob Schwartz