Chocolate Cherry, Blueberry Red, Mulled Wine: The Berry Hair Colours Taking Over London

If you've scrolled Instagram in the last fortnight, you'll have noticed something quietly taking over. Berry-stained lips. Berry-flushed cheeks. A whole London-girl beauty look built on shades that sit somewhere between a glass of mulled wine and a punnet of cherries. And — predictably — it has spilled out of make-up bags and straight onto our colouring shelves.

Searches for "chocolate cherry brown" are up 53% year-on-year. Blue-toned reds, deep velvety burgundies and rich plum-browns are landing in our consultation books in a way we haven't seen since the high-shine brunette boom of 2024. So if you've been wondering whether to commit, this is your friendly nudge: yes, it's happening, and it suits more people than you'd think.

Chocolate Cherry Brown: The Gateway Berry

If berry tones feel like a leap, chocolate cherry is your safety net. It reads as a deep, glossy brunette in most light — then catches the sun and reveals these gorgeous red-violet undertones underneath. It's the colour equivalent of a really good red wine: rich, layered, and impossible to look at without wanting more.

This one flatters almost every skin tone because the brown base does the heavy lifting. We tend to build it with a permanent base colour, then layer in a semi-permanent cherry gloss to give it that wet-look shine. Maintenance-wise, it's relatively kind: expect a refresh every six to eight weeks to keep the cherry from fading to a muddy brown.

Blueberry Red: The Statement Sister

Blueberry red is what you ask for when you want people to actually stop you in the street. It's a true red with a blue undertone — the opposite of the orangey, copper-leaning reds we saw last summer — and that blue base is what gives it that almost-purple shimmer in low light.

It's brilliant on cool skin tones with pink or neutral undertones, and it looks particularly cinematic on shorter cuts and bobs where the light can bounce off the ends. Fair warning: red molecules are the smallest in the colour spectrum, which means they fade fastest. A colour-safe sulphate-free shampoo and cool-water rinses are non-negotiable if you want the shine to last past week three.

Mulled Wine: The Grown-Up Burgundy

Mulled wine is what burgundy grew up to be. Where burgundy used to sit flat and matte, mulled wine has dimension — think deep wine red layered over a darker, almost espresso base, with the lightest ribbons of plum running through the mid-lengths.

This is the one to ask for if you've been a brunette forever and want to do something properly different without committing to a full red transformation. It's also our go-to recommendation for clients heading into autumn weddings or party season — it photographs beautifully under warm lighting and looks incredible against jewel-toned outfits.

Why Berry Tones Work in Summer (Yes, Really)

The instinct is to go lighter in summer. We're going to push back on that. Deep berry shades have a quiet luxury to them that pairs surprisingly well with sun-tinted skin and the kind of crisp linen outfits people are actually wearing this year. They're also far lower maintenance than the icy blondes that need toning every four weeks — a quick gloss top-up every couple of months and you're sorted.

There's also the cool factor. While everyone else is doing soft babylights and beachy balayage, a chocolate cherry or a mulled-wine sits on you like a signature scent. It's interesting. It's a choice. It's the kind of colour that makes strangers ask where you get your hair done.

How to Get the Look at Gusto

The honest truth about berry tones is that they're not a walk-in service. Every shade we've described above needs a proper colour consultation, because the starting point of your hair — natural depth, previous colour, condition — completely changes the recipe.

If you're naturally dark, we can often get you to chocolate cherry or mulled wine in a single sitting with a permanent base and a gloss. If you're naturally lighter or coming from a blonde, we'll usually need a two-step process to build the depth and saturation properly. Either way, it starts with a conversation, a tone mock-up, and a strand test if you're nervous.

We're offering complimentary colour consultations across both salons, and every berry-tone client gets a free toner top-up at the four-week mark to keep things looking expensive. Book a slot at Gusto Oxford Street or Gusto Covent Garden — and bring the Pinterest board. We love a Pinterest board.