If you're like me, you haven't had your hair professionally coloured in a while. To give you a visual, I'm sitting here, writing this story, with three-inch-long roots and faded orangey-coloured ends that are a far cry from the fiery copper hue [1] that's become my signature over the years. With salons in England officially given the green light to reopen on 12 April [2], it means we can all breathe a sigh of relief and get back to our favourite colourist, but that begs the question: after all this time, what colour are you going to dye your hair next? If you're itching for a hair-colour change or wanting to try something outside of the box, don't worry, we're here to help.

Over the past few months, whilst salons sadly had to keep their doors closed [3], colourists have still been sharing (and we've been frantically saving) some of the coolest and most creative hair colours on Instagram. We're talking rainbow money pieces, optical-illusion buzz cuts, and diffused roots, to name a few — some more high-maintenance and daring than others, but all equally stunning.

So whether you're bored of your natural hue or looking for some colour correction thanks to lockdown boredom and a box dye kit (no judgement; that's what the professionals are here for, after all), you've come to the right place. To make your first post-lockdown trip to the salon that bit more exciting, we've rounded up 31 of the most creative, colourful, and trendy hair colours out there, because there's never been a better time than now to try something new.