Hair trends always bring old favorites back into the spotlight, and this season, the face-framing highlight is getting another major moment. The money piece has returned with fresh interpretations, giving hairstyles a striking focal point while making the trend far more versatile than its early-2020s reputation suggests. From icy blonde streaks against jet-black lengths to unexpected teal and pink accents, today’s versions are bolder, softer, and far more creative.
Instead of coloring the entire head, a money piece concentrates a brighter or contrasting color around the front of the hair, where it naturally draws attention to the eyes and cheekbones. That placement makes even a familiar cut look more distinctive, while the rest of the hair can remain relatively simple. Now, the technique is appearing across straight installs, curly textures, layered blowouts, bobs, and dramatic color combinations, proving that there is no single way to wear it.
From platinum streaks to pink peekaboo color, these 10 looks show how to wear the money piece trend now…
#1. Platinum Money Pieces on Bone-Straight Black Hair
A crisp middle part gives this long, bone-straight style its clean foundation, while bright platinum or ash-blonde panels run directly along the front hairline. Against a jet-black or deep brown base, the contrast is deliberately dramatic, making the face-framing color the unmistakable focal point. For anyone exploring money piece hair, this high-contrast combination captures the bold side of the trend without complicating the rest of the look.
#2. Curly Brown Hair With Blonde Face-Framing Highlights
Here, the color story becomes softer without losing its impact. A rich brown base carries medium-length curls, while warm blonde money pieces brighten the sections around the face. The contrast works especially well with the natural shape of curls because the lighter pieces catch attention as the texture expands around the cheeks. It is a more blended interpretation that lets the curl pattern remain just as important as the color.
#3. Mushroom-Blonde Money Pieces With Peekaboo Color
Deep black hair takes on a cooler edge with thick mushroom-blonde or ash-gray pieces framing the face. Long layers and curtain bangs help blend the lighter sections into the cut, while matching color appears underneath the darker top layer. The peekaboo detail gives the look another dimension whenever the hair moves or is tucked behind the ears.
This hairstyle direction shows why the money piece hair trend has become more flexible, with color now extending beyond the hairline instead of stopping at the front.
#4. 90s Supermodel Blowout With a Blonde Money Piece
The classic 90s blowout gets a contemporary color update with a rich espresso or dark-brown base and a bold blonde front section. Long feathered layers, lifted roots, curtain-like pieces, and large curls create that glamorous bombshell shape, while the lighter hair around the face keeps the look fresh. It is a polished take on face-framing color that works particularly well with the volume and movement of a blowout.
#5. Half-Up Hair With a Honey-Blonde Skunk Stripe
A half-up, half-down style takes the contrast in another direction by using a chunky honey-blonde panel along one side of dark brown or black hair. The sharp color block gives the long, straight extensions a graphic quality, making this a strong choice for anyone who prefers their color statement to be unmistakable. It also shows how face-framing highlights do not have to be symmetrical to make an impact.
#6. Chocolate Brown Blowout With Pink Peekaboo Highlights
Chocolate brown hair takes center stage in this voluminous 90s-inspired blowout, complete with a middle part, feathered curtain bangs, and large barrel curls. Hidden pink highlights appear underneath the darker layers and around the shoulders, adding an unexpected flash of color without overwhelming the rich brunette base.
The placement is what makes this interpretation particularly interesting. Rather than putting the brightest shade directly at the front, the pink emerges as the hair moves, creating a playful surprise within an otherwise classic blowout.
#7. Jet-Black Body Waves With Teal Face-Framing Pieces
Teal offers a more adventurous alternative to the usual blonde money piece. Set against jet-black body waves, vibrant teal sections around the face create a high-impact contrast while the soft curls keep the overall shape glamorous. This version is especially striking for anyone who wants their color to carry a stronger personality.
More broadly, the latest money piece edits prove that the hairstyle does not need to rely on blonde alone, with the wider trend now embracing richer brunette shades, vivid colors, cool tones, and hidden accents.
#8. Chocolate Brown Hair With Honey-Blonde Balayage
A deep chocolate base gets a softer treatment with honey-blonde pieces at the front and subtle balayage through the upper sections. The color gradually becomes lighter instead of creating a hard block everywhere, making this one of the more wearable interpretations for those who want noticeable brightness without an extreme contrast.
The result sits somewhere between a traditional highlight and a defined money piece, giving the face a brighter frame while maintaining a seamless transition through the rest of the hair.
#9. Navy-Black Layers With Silver-Blonde Money Pieces
Long body waves take on a cooler mood with a deep navy-black base and silver-blonde sections framing the face. The color also appears toward the ends, giving the layered cut a striking finish while keeping the darkest shade dominant through most of the hair. The icy contrast makes this a particularly dramatic example of money piece highlights without relying on a conventional blonde-and-brown combination.
#10. Blunt Black Bob With a Honey-Blonde Side Stripe
A jaw-length blunt bob brings the technique into shorter territory, with a deeply defined side part and a bold honey-blonde stripe framing one side of the face. The simplicity of the cut gives the color room to stand out, making this an excellent example of how a small color change can completely redefine a familiar silhouette.
The asymmetric placement also gives the classic bob a sharper, more graphic quality, proving that money pieces can work just as well on short hair as they do on long extensions and layered styles.
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Why the Money Piece Is Back
The renewed appeal comes down to placement. Face-framing color can brighten a hairstyle without requiring a full-head transformation, while the contrast can be adjusted to suit everything from natural brunette shades to vivid fashion colors. That flexibility makes the technique easy to reinterpret rather than simply repeat.
This comeback also feels timely because current hair color is leaning into personality, contrast, and customized placement. The money piece fits neatly into that mood, giving classic cuts and familiar textures a fresh focal point without requiring an entirely new hairstyle.
The strongest versions, however, are the ones that consider the base color, haircut, texture, and placement together. A dramatic platinum stripe can transform straight black hair, while a softer honey tone can complement a chocolate blowout, and an unexpected teal or pink accent can take the same idea somewhere entirely different.
Whether you prefer subtle brightness or a high-contrast color statement, the modern money piece leaves plenty of room to experiment. The key is choosing a placement and shade that work with the existing hair rather than treating the face-framing section as an isolated trend.
Featured image: @hakimjhill/Instagram
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