Phrases › At the Hairdresser › Vorrei fare le meches.

Vorrei fare le meches.

I'd like to get highlights.

Pronunciation

'Meches' is borrowed from French, pronounced 'MESH' (rhymes with 'mesh'). Used widely in Italian salons.

When to use it

Use this when you want highlights — lighter stripes of colour applied to sections of hair. In Italy, 'meches' is the predominant term; 'colpi di sole' (sun-kissed highlights) is an alternative.

What it means

'Fare le meches' = to get highlights. The French loanword 'meches' is universally understood in Italian salons. 'Colpi di sole' (literally 'sun strikes') refers to natural-looking light highlights. 'Schiariture' is the more technical, Italian-only term.

Variations

Vorrei dei colpi di sole.

I'd like some sun-kissed highlights.

Natural-looking blonde highlights.

Vorrei le meches bionde.

I'd like blonde highlights.

Specifying blonde.

Vorrei fare il balayage.

I'd like a balayage.

For the French balayage technique, widely used in Italy.

Mini Dialogue

— Vorrei fare le meches. Non le ho mai fatte. — Ha già un colore in mente? — Qualcosa di naturale, vicino al mio colore. — Le consiglio dei colpi di sole su base castana. Molto naturali.

— I'd like to get highlights. I've never had them done. — Do you already have a colour in mind? — Something natural, close to my own colour. — I recommend sun-kissed highlights on a chestnut base. Very natural.

Cultural Note

Highlights ('meches') became enormously popular in Italy during the 1990s, influenced by the 'California look'. Today, Italian women lean toward more natural-looking techniques like balayage and 'shatush' (an Italian variation of ombre). Milan fashion weeks often set the tone for Italian hair colour trends.

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Non li tagli troppo corti, per favore.

Ho i capelli secchi. Che trattamento mi consiglia?

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