Carolyn Bessette Kennedy’s Butter Blonde Is the Best Fall Hair Color

Key Takeaways

• While everyone likes to darken their hair when fall comes around, Carolyn Bessette-Kennedy proved that chilly weather is actually the best time for a butter blonde.
• We break down what makes her hair color so good for autumn and how you can make the signature shade your own.

While this summer didn’t have an official “thing”—think Brat or hot girl or feral or even “the summer of love”—there are many things it’ll be remembered for, hence the popularity of “the summer I…” meme. For one, it’s the summer we all fell madly in love (again) with Carolyn Bessette-Kennedy’s style. And her hair color.

Now… how about we make it the fall we tried the shade for ourselves? I know, I know—everyone thinks about going darker when September rolls around. But CBK proves it’s actually the best time to lighten up.

That warm, buttery blonde, which we’ve also been calling “lemon platinum,” is a color you really can’t look away from. That’s an even greater compliment when you think about the vibrant fall shades you’re going to be surrounded by all season. Another great Bessette-Kennedy style lesson is that the color looks perfect with a dark, moody outfit, and there’s no better time to whip out your black turtlenecks and long dark-wash jeans than the fall and winter.

Getty Images

Walk with me in this brisk air, okay? I’ll explain why this shade actually makes the most sense for fall—and tell you how to get the look yourself.

About CBK’s Butter Blonde Hair

While chatting with Vogue earlier this year, the late socialite’s iconic colorist, Brad Johns, explained exactly how her ’90s hair came to be.

“We worked really hard to get [it] right,” explained the artist, who referred to the shade they ended up with (her natural hair color was light brown!) before going in with his signature “chunking” highlight technique as a “toffee.” “I went in and put the highlight chunks in three foils around the front of her face, and then two underneath for when she wore her hair up,” he explained.

Getty Images

Hairstylist Tom Smith was the first person to dub the hue lemon platinum. “There’s not really anything subtle about it and that’s exactly the point; it’s unapologetic, fresh, and a bit provocative, which makes it feel very now,” he previously told Byrdie.

Getty Images

 “It has a warmth to it, which adds a rejuvenating touch,” added hairstylist Jenna Perry. “It can also be slightly less damaging because it can be done with high-lift hair color rather than bleach.”

How to Get the Look

If you’re ready to hit the bleach bowl, Smith said to ask your colorist for a “very light clean blonde with a deliberate clean yellow tone.” You don’t want gold, caramel, beige, or ash.

@kendalljenner/Instagram

“It needs to be lifted lighter first and then toned on purpose, ideally using something bespoke or diluted that creates that soft lemon tint without tipping into clown territory,” he added.

Getty Images

Inspo pictures of Bessette-Kennedy will also be necessary to make sure your colorist fully understands your vision.

Carolyn Bessette Kennedy’s Fall Style

Once your hair is blonded, it’s oh so easy to replicate Bessette-Kennedy’s chilly weather style. (Or maybe I shouldn’t say it’s “easy,” I know how hard it was for those on set of American Love Story.)

Getty Images

The key word here is classic. Think blacks, navys, turtlenecks, dark denim jeans. You’ll want high-quality fabrics like wool, cashmere, or silk. You can even go for this year’s favorite jeans-and-flip flops-for-fall combo.

And don’t worry about accessorizing heavily. Your hair, which you can wear down or throw back in a headband, will do the work for you.