If you want to try a truly sexy hairstyle, there's no better time than New Year's Eve. Waves make the perfect addition to any glitzy outfit, and aside from being soft and gorgeous, they look great on just about everyone. Watch the video now to learn how to create textured, glamorous waves for tomorrow night. Talk about ringing in 2013 right. On Kirbie: Diane von Furstenberg top.
Anyone who has ever gotten a comb stuck in her hair while trying to wrestle out a knot knows: there is hair that can be a temporary nuisance, and then there's hair that never does what it's supposed to. So for hair like the latter, there's nothing that you can do aside from beating it into submission with a myriad of hot tools, correct? That's not actually the case, says stylist Vanessa Fernandez of the Butterfly Studio Salon in New York City. It's about what you put into your hair that counts. "I can't stress the need for good products enough," she says.
Quality products that enhance your hair instead of weighing it down will cut out the need for a blast of heat from your blow dryer. "You will need something ultramoisturizing, like Shu Uemura Moisture Velvet shampoo ($48) and mask ($68)," Fernandez says. This oil-based cleansing system is especially formulated for superdry hair, which tends to be the most unruly.
Follow up with a hair oil to inject more moisture and reduce frizz, such as Josie Maran Argan Oil Hair Serum ($30). And to enhance the waves you already have, Fernandez suggests finishing with a mousse, like Kaze Wave by Shu Uemura ($38). "Both products leave the hair shiny, moisturized, and with a good amount of hold without the stiffness," Fernandez says. See? You can have the hair you've always envied . . . without the strand-singeing end result.
If you're one of the many women who have thick, wavy hair, you know that it can be both a blessing and a curse. On the one hand, it holds style really well. But it can also be very difficult to wear in its natural state. So how do you reconcile? "Thick, wavy hair texture is all about finding the right hair products," says stylist Vanessa Fernandez of the Butterfly Studio Salon in New York City. While you may have to invest, the results will be amazingly healthy and lustrous hair people will envy. Find out where to put your money when you keep reading.
The beauty looks at the Veuve Clicquot Polo Classic were all about glamour, but there was one hairstyle that was the obvious favorite: the tousled wave. Whether they were paired with a turban like the one Rachel Zoe was donning, or styled in a vintage fashion à la Lauren Conrad, these wavy strands took center stage. The trick to this look is to hold your curling iron horizontally instead of vertically while you wrap the hair around it. A quick tug on the wave while it's still hot will further loosen it.
To get Lauren's style, brush the waves out lightly once they cool and part your hair to the side. Ashley Madekwe's strands can be achieved with a half-inch iron with the hair being curled away from the face, while Ashley Greene's can be teased up and pinned back for a cool-girl look. And for a trendsetting way to wave, pair beachy strands with an inky black turban like Rachel. These effortless curls look polished and cool, no matter how you decide to wear them.
From cropped tops to geometric patterns and shapes, the minimalist somewhat moody fashions from the '90s popped up all over the Fall 2012 runways. And it seems this decade of grunge is influencing beauty, too. Tousled, softly spiraled waves have been spotted on the likes of Tyra Banks, Jennifer Lawrence, and Haley Reinhart in the past week alone. But this isn't the teased, ratted-out coiffure of the late '80s, which was often topped off with poufed mall bangs. This trend is all about tousled yet unrefined waves. It's a natural, effortless texture that requires little time to create.
To get your grunge on, spritz damp hair with a fixative, like Alterna Bamboo Boho Waves Tousled Texture Spray ($22). Finish by scrunching your strands with your fingers when blow-drying to create free-flowing curls. For extra wave, run a curling iron through random sections as needed.
Ultrashiny flat-ironed hair looks luxuriously chic and expensive (and is easier to achieve than you might expect). But on the flip side, shiny, wavy hair can sometimes fall a little flat. "I love a matte wave," says celebrity stylist and beauty adviser for Slim Fast's Studio Wow! campaign, Joey Maalouf. "I feel like a shiny wave just looks like you have greasy, undone hair, but a matte wave looks like sexy volume." Your hair mantra? "I just got out of bed and am the sexiest person alive."
We've seen the matte, wavy hair trend all over red carpets as of late. And of course, Joey's friend and muse, Rachel Zoe, practically revived the après-beach look. The key to getting strands that are more fantastic than frazzled, however, is the timing of product application. "For a wave, I tend to like a dry pomade, and I put in most of my products after I use any heat on the hair," says Joey. And for a no-heat method for getting sexy waves, try a nighttime braid. "Do it the night before and sleep on it; when you wake up, your braid will be perfectly messy."
We're excited to present this story from our friends at Allure:
The tousled, sexy waves are always a favorite, and it's exciting to see the look revamped on the Spring runways. The new, relaxed version is a piece-y, beachy version that's completely Fall appropriate.
The trick is to make sure your waves are just rough enough to look cool (like the styles at Alberta Ferretti, above, and Burberry) and still sweater-appropriate—not too perfect or so extreme that they look like you might actually have come off a beach. "It's got a hippie vibe," said hairstylist Guido of the look backstage at Alberta Ferretti. "It's young and innocent." To create the effect, Guido avoided curling the entire head of hair. Instead, he wrapped random pieces around a 1.5-inch curling iron, working from about ear level down and holding the iron horizontally. Then, he doused the ends in Redken Shine Flash 02 Glistening Mist for "an oily, wet effect." But you can use a lighter hand to add just a touch of shine—without going full hippie.
More stories from Allure:
3 great under-the-radar beauty brands
Do beauty treatments make you bashful?
Photo courtesy of Greg Kessler
Whether your hair is straight, curly, short, or long, here's a quick and easy way to give your style extra volume and texture. All you need is some hair spray, a flat iron, and about nine minutes of your time. Check out my how-to now.
Rumer Willis has some truly perfect mermaid waves in her new ad campaign for Badgley Mischka, so we got the exclusive from her stylist, Riawna Capri, on how to re-create the style. The key, Riawna says, is "to utilize your natural hair texture then add a few curls over it." She has a bunch of other great, in-depth tricks for getting the wavy look right, so to see her advice, just keep reading.
