18 TRENDY SHORT HAIRSTYLES WITH HIGHLIGHTS TO TRY IN 2025

Welcome to a world of stunning transformations and elevated style! Our guide invites you to explore the enchanting realm of short hair highlights, where elegance meets vibrancy. Short hair with highlights isn’t just a haircut—it’s a bold statement that captures your unique essence and radiates charm. We’re here to help you master the art of blending chic short cuts with perfectly matched highlights, creating a style that mirrors your personality and spirit. Join us on this transformative journey, unlocking the full potential of your short hair and empowering you to shine brighter than ever before.

Radiant Highlighted Bob Short Hair

Prepare to make a statement with a radiant highlighted bob that exudes confidence and flair. Short hairstyles with highlights are the perfect way to express your personality while adding a dash of glamour to your look. The bob’s sharp lines and sleek silhouette create an ideal backdrop for vibrant highlights to truly stand out. Whether you choose a soft balayage blend or eye-catching streaks, this hairstyle will have you feeling like a true trendsetter.

Modern Contrast Pixie short brown hair with highlights

For the modern fashionista, a contrasting pixie with highlights is a must-try. This bold hairstyle blends short hair with striking color variations, delivering an eye-catching look that commands attention. With a contemporary contrast pixie, you’re not just embracing trends—you’re defining them.

Subtle Balayage Crop highlights for short hair

Sometimes, less truly is more, and a subtle balayage crop perfectly embodies this classic principle. Soft highlights on short hair create a delicate, natural enhancement that adds just the right amount of dimension. With a subtle balayage crop, you’ll exude effortless style, accentuating your features without overshadowing them.

Sleek Short Hair with highlights and lowlights

Sleekness meets vibrancy in the realm of short hair highlights. The smooth texture of your short hair, enhanced with strategically placed highlights, exudes polished glamour. Whether you’re in the office or out for the evening, your hair will radiate a sophisticated charm that’s truly unparalleled.

Urban Short highlighted Hair Streaks

Infuse your short hair with an urban edge using captivating streaks of highlights. This look embodies the dynamic energy of the city while celebrating your unique style. Urban short hair streaks are all about making a bold, fierce, and fashion-forward statement.

Refined Balayage Bob short haircut with highlights

For a touch of refined elegance, the balayage bob with highlights is the ultimate in sophistication. The expertly placed highlights create a seamless blend of colors that radiates class and grace. This hairstyle is ideal for those who value timeless beauty and effortless style.

Vibrant Contrast Crop highlighted short hair style

Make a bold statement with a vibrant contrast crop that demands attention. Short hair paired with striking color contrasts creates a stunning visual impact that’s impossible to overlook. If you’re ready to stand out and embrace your fearless side, this is the perfect hairstyle for you.

Soft Highlighted Pixie short hair

Embrace softness and charm with a highlighted pixie that brims with character. The highlights beautifully enhance the natural beauty of the pixie cut, resulting in a look that’s both delicate and captivating. A soft highlighted pixie embodies timeless allure, making it a perfect choice for those seeking elegance with a touch of playfulness.

Chic Balayage Pixie blonde highlights short hair

Take your style to the next level with a chic balayage pixie that merges boldness and elegance. The daring pixie cut, enhanced by expertly placed balayage highlights, creates a captivating and versatile look. Perfect for both formal events and casual outings, this hairstyle ensures you’ll always stand out with confidence.

Subtle Waves dark hair short hair highlights

Enhance the natural beauty of your waves with subtle highlights that create a harmonious blend of colors. This hairstyle beautifully showcases the texture and movement of your short hair, while the understated highlights introduce an element of intrigue to your overall look.

Sleek Highlighted Undercut short straight hair with highlights

Unleash your inner rebel with a sleek undercut highlighted with vibrant colors. The striking contrast between the smooth undercut and bold highlights infuses your look with an edgy flair. This hairstyle is a true reflection of your fearless and unconventional spirit.

Dynamic Balayage Charm highlights for short brown hair

Dynamic and charming—that’s the essence of the balayage charm in short hair. The thoughtfully placed balayage highlights enhance your hair’s movement and texture, resulting in a captivating and alluring look. This style beautifully reflects your confidence and magnetic personality.

Boho Short Hair Gleam with highlights

Capture the essence of boho chic with short hair that radiates with highlights. The organic placement of these highlights evokes a sense of carefree beauty that is both enchanting and alluring. Boho short hair gleam embodies relaxed elegance, allowing you to express your free spirit while looking effortlessly stylish.

Urban Very Short Hair Bling Highlights

Add a splash of urban flair to your short hair with highlights that sparkle and shine. Strategically placed highlights catch the light perfectly, crafting an urban-inspired look that’s both bold and glamorous. Urban short hair bling is the ultimate expression of city chic.

Refined Highlighted Shag Short hair

Elevate the classic shag haircut with a touch of refinement by incorporating highlights. The shag’s signature layers, enhanced with thoughtfully placed highlights, create a look that’s both trendy and elegant. With this hairstyle, you’ll effortlessly embody modern sophistication.

Chic Pixie short hair blonde highlights

Chic meets bold with a highlighted pixie that’s as stylish as it is daring. The pixie cut’s clean lines, enhanced by strategically placed highlights, create a look that perfectly balances sophistication and confidence. With this hairstyle, you’ll redefine what it means to be fashion-forward.

Subtle Contrast Crop highlighted short hair style

Make a statement through subtlety by choosing a contrast crop with highlights. The delicate interplay of colors adds depth and intrigue to your short hair, resulting in a look that’s both unique and captivating. This hairstyle showcases your talent for commanding attention through understated elegance.

Sleek Balayage Elegance short straight hair with highlights

Embrace the sleek and elegant side of short hair with balayage highlights that beautifully enhance your natural beauty. These highlights infuse your hair with a luminous touch, creating a sophisticated and refined look. This hairstyle embodies the essence of effortless glamour.

conclusion

In conclusion, exploring 18 Trendy Short Hairstyles with Highlights to Try in 2025 offers a vibrant and versatile way to express your individuality. Whether you prefer bold colors or subtle balayage, these highlighted styles enhance the beauty of short hair while adding dimension and flair. From chic bobs to edgy pixies, each look captures the essence of modern fashion and allows you to showcase your unique personality. With the right combination of haircut and highlights, you can elevate your style and embrace a fresh, confident appearance that turns heads and reflects your inner beauty. So, take the plunge and transform your look with one of these captivating hairstyles!

EVERYTHING YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT SOFT SUMMER

The “Soft Summer” is one of the twelve color seasons within the seasonal color analysis system, a tool used to determine which colors best harmonize with an individual’s natural coloring. It’s a palette of subtle, muted, and cool tones, designed to enhance the delicate beauty of those who fall within this category.  Unlike the vibrant hues of spring or the deep richness of winter, Soft Summer embraces a gentle, blended look.  If you’ve ever felt overwhelmed by bright colors and found yourself drawn to dusty, diffused shades, you might just be a Soft Summer. This guide will delve into every aspect of this captivating season, from its defining characteristics and ideal color palette to makeup, hair, and wardrobe recommendations, helping you understand and embrace your natural Soft Summer beauty.  

CHARACTERISTICS

When determining if you are a Soft Summer, focus on your overall appearance rather than individual features. The key traits of this season are muted, cool-toned coloring with a soft, blended look.

HOW TO IDENTIFY A SOFT SUMMER

  • Primary Aspect: Muted – your coloring appears soft and toned down rather than bright or vibrant.
  • Secondary Aspect: Cool – cooler shades complement your complexion better than warm ones.
  • Overall Look: Your skin, eyes, and hair blend harmoniously, creating a low to medium contrast appearance.
  • Jewelry Preference: Silver flatters your skin more than gold.

SOFT SUMMER FEATURES

Eyes

Soft Summer eyes are always softly greyed, regardless of their color. They can be:

  • Grey, grey-blue, grey-green, or grey-hazel
  • Muted brown in deeper complexions
  • Often feature a crackled glass pattern typical of Summer eyes

Skin

Soft Summer skin has cool undertones with a soft, muted appearance. It may be:

  • Neutral, olive, or neutral-cool with ashy undertones
  • Fair to tan, always toned down rather than vibrant
  • Occasionally freckled

Hair

Soft Summer hair is muted and ashy, never bright or golden. It ranges from:

  • Medium ash blonde to light/medium ash brown
  • Often develops ash-blonde highlights in sunlight

CONTRAST LEVEL

Soft Summers have a low to medium contrast between their skin, eyes, and hair. The overall effect is blended and harmonious, without stark light or dark elements.

SOFT SUMMER VS. SOFT AUTUMN

Both Soft Summer and Soft Autumn are muted seasons, but the key difference lies in their undertones:

  • Soft Summer leans cool, with grey and olive tones.
  • Soft Autumn leans warm, with walnut and honey tones.

SIMPLE TEST

To determine whether you are a Soft Summer or Soft Autumn, hold a grey fabric near your face in natural light:

  • If your eyes appear more greyish (even if they contain hints of green or brown), you are likely a Soft Summer.
  • If your eyes remain green, hazel, or olive, you likely lean towards Soft Autumn.

This high concentration of grey pigments is what gives Soft Summers their signature cool and muted look.

The Colour Palette

Soft Summer is a season of soft, misty hues, reminiscent of cool summer rains and the gentle transition into autumn. Its colours are delicate and layered, blending both cool and warm tones into a harmonious, almost chameleon-like effect.

SOFT SUMMER COLOURS

True to its muted and cool nature, Soft Summer’s palette consists of desaturated, low-contrast shades that align with the season’s natural softness. The dominant colours are greys, pinks, purples, blues, and greens—each subtle and complex rather than bright or clear. Sitting on the border between Summer and Autumn, this palette is the deepest of the Summer family, with a slight brownish depth from Autumn’s influence.

COLOUR DIMENSIONS

  • Hue: Slightly cool—while not as icy as True Summer, Soft Summer’s colours contain more blue than yellow undertones, resulting in cooler pinks, blues, and greys with minimal yellow shades.
  • Value: Medium—neither overly light nor dark, the palette consists mostly of mid-range tones.
  • Chroma: Low—the colours are highly desaturated and muted, with a distinctive greyed-out softness.

SISTER PALETTES

Soft Summer is positioned between True Summer and Soft Autumn on the seasonal spectrum. While all three share a muted quality, the differences lie in temperature and depth:

  • Compared to True Summer, Soft Summer’s colours are warmer, slightly darker, and more subdued.
  • Compared to Soft Autumn, Soft Summer’s colours are cooler and more grey-toned, while both remain medium in value and muted.
  • Compared to Light Summer, the colours are deeper and more toned down, though both share a cool-neutral balance.

If you lean towards True Summer, you may borrow its softer shades, like Moonlite Mauve or Lichen Blue. If you have hints of Soft Autumn, you can incorporate its cooler hues, such as English Manor or Dusk Blue.

Styling for Soft Summer

NEUTRALS

Soft Summer’s muted and desaturated nature makes traditional black and white too harsh. Instead, opt for dark greyish browns as your dark neutrals and soft greys, muted sand tones, and gentle browns as light neutrals. These shades complement your natural softness without overpowering your features.

COLOURS TO AVOID

Since Soft Summer thrives on cool, muted tones, avoid bright and overly warm colours. Vibrant pinks, blues, and rich earthy hues, such as orange-based reds and warm browns, will clash with your soft colouring. Highly saturated shades can overwhelm your delicate balance.

COLOUR COMBINATIONS

Soft Summer is best suited to low-contrast, blended colour pairings that mirror its naturally soft appearance. The most flattering combinations include:

  • Monochromatic looks – Pairing different shades of the same hue, such as light and dark green, creates a cohesive and seamless effect.
  • Analogous hues – Colours close to each other on the spectrum, like lavender and soft blue, maintain a harmonious and balanced look.
  • Soft neutrals with accents – Combining a muted beige with a similarly toned soft yellow ensures a gentle, natural flow.

Avoid high-contrast combinations, especially complementary colours like blue and orange, as they create too much visual tension.

PATTERNS & PRINTS

Soft, delicate patterns best suit this season’s understated elegance. Consider:

✔ Watercolour textures, delicate floral prints, and natural elements like feathers and birds.
✔ Small, loosely arranged designs that blend rather than stand out.

✖ Avoid large, bold patterns, geometric shapes, and high-contrast prints, as they will feel too harsh and structured.

METALS & ACCESSORIES

Soft Summer can wear both warm and cool metals, but silver is the most flattering. If choosing gold, opt for soft, muted versions like light rose gold or brushed gold rather than deep, rich yellows.

The best finishes are matte, brushed, satin, or lightly hammered to complement Soft Summer’s subtlety. Bright and shiny metals can appear too stark. Pearls are a great choice, especially those with layered, soft colouring rather than stark white.