For some women, the thought of doing your own hair for a big occasion might seem scary, but it's really not as difficult as you may think. For this particular coif quandry, we consulted the amazing Justin Surh, hairstylist extraordinaire at theMichaeljohn salon in Beverly Hills. According to Surh, all you DIY-ers need to remember is to play with side parts, volume, layerable pieces and an infinite amount of bobby pins.
Let's start off simple.
Ashley Greene's straight hair at a New York City screening of
Breaking Dawn—Part 1 was made more polished with an ultra-sleek side part.
The long, asymmetric style works best with minimalist dresses and in instances when you don't need to highlight a necklace. Once you've created your part with a rat tail comb, tuck it behind your ear, secure it with bobby pins and bring the rest of your tresses forward to that side. The point of this look is simplicity and shine. For the latter, useMeros Hair Foundation Jell ($16.95) for a light formula that smooths hair and gives it luster.
Another approach to that swept-away 'do is to turn it into a ponytail, like
Taylor Swift did for the American Music Awards. But instead of using a regular ol' elastic band, take a piece of the pony, wrap it around the exposed cincher and bobby pin it for a pretty look. "This creates a 'pattern' with your hair and makes ponytails appear fancier and more dressed up than usual," said Surh.
Like Ashley, Taylor wore the hairstyle with a pair of gorgeous statement earrings and non-fussy neckline.
If you wanted to turn the look into an updo, simply take the ponytail and make a standard bun—with the help of bobby pins, of course! We like the idea of decorating the bun with asparkly pin or brooch. Just skip the earrings.
Now for the seemingly more complicated option: the voluminous updo, as seen on
Rachel McAdams below.
Kick of the process with volume. Take your rat tail comb and tease the top of your hair and the sides, and spritz with Sebastian Shaper Hairspray ($16 $14.39). Then, tie the top half of your hair into a pony tail. Use the rat tail end of the comb to add more volume by pushing hair up and forward. You can also comb your fingers through the top to create a messy wave, like Rachel's. After that, there are no rules, believe it or not, according to Surh.
It's just all about making the back bigger and better with layerable pieces. What do we mean by that exactly? Well, you can wrap the pony into a big bun then separate the bottom half into two pieces. Take one piece and turn into a knot and bobby pin it to the bigger bun and do the same with the other piece. Or, you can braid the upper ponytail and make that into a bun, and then do a cross-over effect with the remaining hair. It's all up to you. Let your imagination run wild! The crazier you are with the updo, the more festive your hair will turn out! Spritz Paul Mitchell's Super Clean Extra Hairspray ($15.99 $13.99) all over to hold your mad creation together all night long!
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