Hair Colour
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12.01.2026
10 Burnt Sienna Hair Colour Ideas & Formulas
By: Zara Kenyon
Bringing the heat this season, burnt sienna hair is the red of the moment; a radiant-yet-rustic shade that takes dimensional colour to new heights. Brunette clients will love its fiery warmth and redheads will adore its earthy depth. So, let's take a closer look at the trend, and explore 10 formulas to help you recreate burnt sienna for your clients...
What Colour is Burnt Sienna Hair?
Burnt sienna hair is a red-brown shade that radiates warmth and depth, inspired by the earthy pigment created when raw sienna clay is heated. Brighter than auburn yet more rustic than copper, this burnished tone invites your clients to experiment with a range of techniques – including balayage, highlights and lowlights – to create that multidimensional, sun-warmed finish.
Is Burnt Sienna the Same As Brown?
No – burnt sienna isn’t the same as brown. While it reflects lustrous hints of brunette, its glowing, burnished undertones will have you reaching for the most coveted reds on your salon shelves. However, if your client prefers reddish-brown hues that lean more mocha than copper, try adding sienna highlights to a deep base or working in a few lowlights to ground and refine their colour.
Is Burnt Sienna Warm or Cool?
Burnt sienna hair is unmistakably warm. It's deep, rich, and rustic, just like the earthy pigment that inspired the look. Artists often use the pigment to bring a cozy feel to their work, thanks to its sun-baked intensity, which makes you feel warmer just by looking at it.
10 Burnt Sienna Hair Formulas to Try
1. Burnt Sienna Colour Melt
Image Credit: @byalexmk
A Color Touch Melt flawlessly captures the sun-drenched nature of burnt sienna, combining low-contrast tones that seamlessly melt together for shimmering highs and lows. To achieve the look, mix 2-5 colours all within the same family of tones, then paint them in alternating ribbons, before using a wide-tooth comb to blur the lines between them.
Formula:
Depth: Color Touch 5/4 + 6/47 + 1.9% Color Touch Emulsion
Colour melt formula A: Color Touch 7/47 + 4% Color Touch Emulsion
Colour melt formula B: Color Touch 7/43 + 4% Color Touch Emulsion
2. Burnt Sienna Brown Hair
Image Credit: @jessperks_hair
This auburn take on burnt sienna hits that middle ground between brown and red, with the intensity of Koleston Perfect giving earthy tones a vibrant finish. The permanent colour is a Wella Professionals icon – and when you try it, you'll soon see why. With Pure Precision Colour Technology and Metal Purifier, it provides pure, balanced color results with natural depth and shine. Plus, it offers up to 100% grey coverage.
Formula:
Toner: Koleston Perfect 6/34 + 6/43 + Welloxon Perfect
3. Light Burnt Sienna Hair
Image Credit: @peachstockholm
Light sienna hair is possible, as seen in this coppery masterpiece, which features a scattering of chunky highlights for major body and movement. It's another Koleston Perfect creation, with the world's number one hair lightener, BlondorPlex, helping the red tones pop. The breakthrough formula gives you (and your client) up to nine levels of lift with up to 97% less breakage¹ – ideal for those who are nervous about damage.
Formula:
Base: Koleston Perfect 6/34 + 7/34 + 7/0 + 4% Welloxon Perfect
Highlights: BlondorPlex + 6% Welloxon Perfect
Roots: Koleston Perfect 6/34 + 7/34 + a drop of 0/43 + 1.9% Welloxon Perfect
Lengths and ends: 7/34 + 8/34 + a drop of 0/43 with 0/33 + 1.9% Welloxon Perfect
4. Burnt Sienna Air Touch Balayage
Image Credit: @friseur_brian
This isn't just any balayage; it's an air touch balayage, which means the shorter, weaker hairs have been gently blown away by a hair dryer, so only the long, healthy hair is painted. The result is an otherworldly blend of colours with the softest regrowth. Using SHINEFINITY as the toner seals the deal. The zero-damage glaze creates a translucent veil of colour that leaves hair up to 250% shinier².
Formula:
Highlights: BlondorPlex
Toner: SHINEFINITY 08/35 + 07/59 + Shinefinity Activator
5. Burnt Sienna Face-Framing Highlights
Image Credit: @danielmbeauty
For brunette clients looking to adorn their hair in just a hint of red, try adding a burnt sienna face frame and some subtle balayage. The rich tones create a halo of radiance that helps complexions glow; an effect made extra luminous when Illumina Color is used to tone. This permanent formula is packed with Microtones to mimic natural hair's highs and lows, plus MicroLight Technology to protect the clarity of the cuticle. This cutting-edge tech allows light to actually enter the hair shaft, and illuminate the colour from the inside out. Dull hair doesn't stand a chance.
Formula:
Base break: Illumina Color 9/43 + 9% Welloxon Perfect
Highlights: BlondorPlex + 4% Welloxon Perfect
Toner: SHINEFINITY 07/34 + 08/0 + Shinefinity Activator
6. Burnt Sienna Coral Hair Colour
Image Credit: @dudugimenez
Add a little ginger spice to burnt sienna, and you've got this gleaming, glowy hue – a shade that combines two of our favorite permanent colours in one look. First, there's Koleston Perfect, creating depth at the roots with decadent auburn shading. Then there's Illumina Color, bestowing lengths and ends with inside-out luminosity. When it comes to colouring curly hair, a subtle root shadow is always a good idea, as it helps the shape of the ringlets through the lengths stand out beautifully.
Formula:
Roots: Koleston Perfect 7/73 + 8/41 + 6% Welloxon Perfect
Lengths and ends: Illumina Color 9/43 + 8/05 + 6% Welloxon Perfect
8. Burnt Sienna Balayage
Image Credit: @danielmbeauty
This classic burnt sienna balayage is the perfect balance of subtlety and radiance. Soft, hand-painted ribbons of light melt seamlessly into the warm, red-brown base, creating a sunlit shimmer. To recreate the look, deliver freehand flawlessness with Wella Professionals Blondor Freelights, then tone with Color Touch for rust-toned richness that your brunette clients will love.
Formula:
Lightener: Blondor Freelights,
Toner: Color Touch 8/3 + 9/43 + Color Touch Emulsion
9. Burnt Sienna Red Highlights
Image Credit: @effortlysshair
In the light, these sienna red highlights glow like embers, adding instant dimension and movement without overpowering the depth of the auburn base. The placement is soft and painterly, creating natural ribbons of warmth that illuminate the hair from every angle – made all the glossier with the natural-looking shine of Color Touch.
Formula:
Roots: Color Touch 6/4 + 6/3
Balayage: Color Touch 7/43 + 6/3
Ends: Color Touch 10/34
10. Burnt Sienna Copper Hair
Image Credit: @jhair_stylist
Turn up the heat with burnt sienna copper hair – a molten fusion of red-brown and copper that gleams with head-turning shine. This look celebrates warmth in its purest form, radiating depth and vibrancy while remaining beautifully wearable. Take the look to the next level by dialling up the gloss with a few drops of ULTIMATE SMOOTH Miracle Oil Serum.
How to Maintain Burnt Sienna Hair
1. Make the Colour Shine
Reds glow best when hair is healthy and nourished, so remind your clients to use a colour-safe shampoo – preferably one that's focused on shine and smoothness. ULTIMATE SMOOTH Shampoo is ideal, as the luxurious cleanser leaves hair feeling beautifully clean and cared-for, with a blend of Squalane and Omega-9 to nourish from the inside out. They can follow it with the ULTIMATE SMOOTH Conditioner to enhance their at-home regimen, then lock in the gloss with ULTIMATE SMOOTH Miracle Oil Serum. The hybrid hydrator protects against heat, tames frizz and flyaways, and gives them smoothness that lasts up to 3 days³.
2. Top Up the Red Tones
If your client wants a damage-free solution that boosts their burnt sienna hues in between salon visits, recommend the Color Fresh Mask in Copper Glow. It bridges the gap from one appointment to the next, reviving their colour in just 10 minutes. All they have to do is smooth it through clean, damp hair, let it absorb, then rinse and style as usual.
3. Keep Damage at Bay
Damage can make red tones appear brassy, so if your client's hair is stressed, suggest they use ULTIMATE REPAIR Miracle Hair Rescue to get the condition back on track. The breakthrough leave-in treatment repairs hair damage in 90 seconds⁴ and gives them up to 99% less breakage⁵. No wonder it's called a miracle; one use, and you'll see why this potent spray has gone viral.
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¹ When using Wellaplex N°2 with Blondorplex versus Blondorplex alone.
² Versus untreated bleached hair.
³ If unwashed for 3 days, vs. untreated.
⁴ When using ULTIMATE REPAIR Miracle Hair Rescue.
⁵ When using ULTIMATE REPAIR Miracle Hair Rescue. Instrumental test vs. non-conditioning Shampoo.
