Barbara Stanwyck , The Queen, a versatile actress whose acting career has spanned for over 59 years beginning as a chorus girl on Broadway in 1934.  Her attitude is as famous as her hair, easy going and elegant.  And her infamous faux bangs can be emulated easily, especially for you long haired ladies out there looking for a little change in your life without the sacrifice of cutting your hair.

We all know our own hair best.  We just need to learn to work with it to make our styles true to life.  If you’ve found yourself in a position where you may be indecisive about cutting your locks for the sake of bangs please don’t fret. You can create the look without the scissors.  Just follow these tips to create faux bangs as glamorous as Barbara Stanwyck’s.

Create this look:

Tools:

comb

Hair tie(s) and Bobby pins

Hair Spray

gel or molding paste

Hair Rollers or a curling iron

To create Barbara’s faux bangs begin by sectioning off an even amount of hair near the crown of your head with a comb.  You can use a roller by setting the hair in a roller by extending the section of the hair outward and placing the roller underneath the hair followed by rolling the roller toward your forehead.  Apply heat from your hair dryer and spritz lightly with some hairspray.  Or you can use a curling iron by following the same method as the roller, minus the dryer.  Remember to curl the hair underneath and toward your forehead.

Next apply a very small amount of molding paste or light gel to the sectioned off hair.  Pull the hair strand away from your forehead, and begin curling inward using your fingertips.  Secure one side of the curl with a bobby pin.  Carefully spread the curl across your forehead with your fingertips horizontally.  Secure the other side with a bobby pin, and finish with a spritz of hairspray.  

To finish the complete look above.  Use a comb to section off one side of you hair.  Comb or brush the hair toward the far top of your head and secure with a bobby pin.  Repeat on the other side.

Tools:

comb

Hair tie(s) and Bobby pins

Hair Spray

Small barrel curling iron

To create Barbara’s faux curly bangs start by sectioning off a large square of your hair from the crown to the middle of your head.  Use the edge of your eyes as a starting point for where to begin the sectioning.  Once you have your hair secured with a tie or pin, follow by pulling the unused hair into a low pony tail to keep it out of the way while you set your curls.  Next, you need to begin to section out the pieces inside the square. Think of it as a grid.  If you feel it is necessary you can pin each small section before you begin curling the faux bangs.

To curl the bangs take the small sections of hair and use a small barrel curling iron to curl the hair under. Hold the strand of hair outward and curl the hair under toward the scalp.  Spray lightly with hairspary while the hair is being heated by the iron, then carefully undo the the curling iron from the hair.  Secure with a bobby pin, and repeat until all the hair has been curled inside the square.  Next carefully separate the curls to your liking and finish with a spritz of light hair spray.

To finish the complete look above.  Use a comb to section off one side of you hair.  Comb or brush the hair toward the far top of your head and secure with a bobby pin.  Repeat on the other side.  Or secure all the hair with a hair tie.

Remember Practice makes Perfect ladies.  

A faux hawk is simply the  subdued version of the 80’s Mohawk. It blends rock & roll with a little bit of punk. The most appeal to choosing a faux hawk over a mohawk, is the cut is much more diverse.  Unlike the mohawk, the faux has has many more variations of the look, and it does not require  the sacrifice of shaving your hair off.

The faux hawk is much less drastic regarding the cut, but is much more diverse then its parent, the Mohawk.  Notice the layers in the picture above.  The ears are cut out.  The bangs are layered in a way that the crown has a shorter bang, as opposed to the center of the head where the bangs are left cut longer. Why this is?  It creates a more wearable texture for your cut.  The hair can be worn spiked up, while you can style the bangs along the crown of your head straight down and across your forehead.   Here are some extra styling tips for short cropped faux hawks.   Wear the hair spiked straight up with the bangs across the forehead.  Spike the hair to the sides.  Be diverse with your bangs by styling, or pinning them to the side, spiking them straight up.  Tease your hair!

How to style your faux hawk.  While your hair is somewhat wet apply a gel or molding paste to the roots of the hair on around the top and sides.   Use a hairdryer and your fingertips, create a texturized look by using the right amount of gel or molding paste on the tips of your hair after you have dried it and shape the direction you’d like the hair so go.  Remember that your molding your hair into a new look.  So add some hairspray if needed or for ultra fine hair to add some volume and grundgyness.  Texturized cuts like this are great on thick, porous, hair.

How to style a faux hawk with long hair.  If  you decided that the short crop is too drastic of a change for you it’s not problem.  You can still style the faux hawk with a long or medium length hair.  The first step is to section off the hair around your crown and pin it away from the rest of your hair.  Next, you split your hair into two ponytails, one directly under the other.  Grab the pinned section at the crown of your head and add some hairspray and tease the hair.  Remember to apple the spray to the roots and comb through the ends.  This will add needed volume.  Then use bobby pins to secure the hair near the ponytails.  If your have trouble teasing your hair click here for instructions.

Every hour, on the hour another designer will be showing off their Spring 2010 looks at Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week in NYC at Bryant Park.  Have you ever wondered what when on behind the runways and how two great design arts meet to create the most fabulous runway shows across the world?  Documentaries and clips are broadcast all over the local cable networks, and on the web this week covering NYC fashion week.  But here is a synopsis of what it really takes for a  Hairstylist team to take on the challenge of Fashion Week New York.

Some of us choose our hairstyle, and we wear it proud as our statement and the entire focus of our look and personality.  While some of us wear our hair and treat it as an accessory, something that is there to compliment our clothing and style.  Top stylist teams, like Redkin, Bumble & Bumble, and Aveda, are carefully chosen to style the hair for fashion week’s models by designers like Ralph Lauren, Prada, and one of my favorites, Anna Sui.  I think there has to be a concise understanding of the what the Fashion Designer wants the hair to represent, or compliment, regarding the clothing and the communication to be clear to the hairstylist by the designer.  Most fashion designers will already have direction and idea for how the hair should be styled, so it is important as a stylist to be able to turn idea into reality.  Being an attentive listening is the key here.  Therefore, we see a collaboration of two great arts, fashion design and hair styling.  One cannot live without the other.  Above I chose to represent this idea with some of Anna Sui’s runway looks.  I think this is a perfect example of how intense the hairstyling can be for the clothing design, but together these teams pulled off a rockin’ kickass look!

Sometimes when you hear the words ‘Bowl Haircut’ you think of Jim Carey in Dumb and Dumber, or some geeky twelve year old boy, or an asian dude smiling in a school photo.  Well, gosh darnit those fashionistas have done it again!  I’ve spotted two bowl cuts in the last few days in NYC, and one on as Astoria bound ‘N’ train.  And I know it’s been a while since Chloe Sevigny has rocked hers.

Oh, this gal has been lucky to have been beautysmacked.   A candid shot, but take it from me, she walked right off Fashion Ave.  A girl with a cut like this strikes confidence in her appearance.  This isn’t a cut that everyone can wear.  The bangs style are usually as far as most women will go to emulating a bowl haircut.  As mentioned before the cut is usually something associated with young boys and, well,  bowls.   Her hair is a little wavy, but it’s cut in a blunt style and covers the earlobes, which is the traditional bowl cut style.   She was rocking everything she wore, the patterned dress, the trendy granny boots, the curves, the bag, Everything!  I wouldn’t wear the heart glasses myself, but I think she could pull them off with her short bowl cut.  What do you think?

AnnaLynne McCord may not be a ‘A’ list actress, but she has an ‘A’ list style.  Here we see another celebrity absorbing 80’s big, curly hair.  All those curly headed ladies out there… are these trends making you jump out of your seat like me?I have spent years fighting my curls, and finally I am embracing them.  Acceptance of what you have is more empowering and transmits confidence abroad.  ALTHOUGH, I have to be a little bit smug when people are telling me they are jealous of my curls

Regardless, get out those old pictures of your cousins, mothers, brothers, or sisters from the 80’s, and indulge yourself in their big curly hair.  Next up PERMS!!

People.com has a great pic of AnnaLynne McCord rocking her 80’s style hair:

Link here

I love Rock & Roll and I love Kristen Stewart’s new hair cut!  Joan Jett, the Pennsylvania native, and her infamous 80’s shag hair cut is now back!   It’s hot, it’s versatile, it’s edgy, but not trendy.  East coast and West coast salon’s are hearing the same request… We want Joan Jett Hair!  Why Not? Right?

The cut is versatile for any occasion.  With a small amount of pomade added to straight hair you can rock the messy look like Kristen Steward.  Apply a small amount to the roots to add texture, and finish with a light hairspray.  If your hair is wavy, the cut is perfect to accentuate the natural waves and curls.  Because the cut is longer in the back you are still able to wear pig tails, up-do’s, and braids.  The fringe can be styled to the side, pushed forward, or with a little hairspray brushed over in a nice wave.  For a sexy date try a low side pony tail and use a pomade to style the shorter pieces on the top of the head.  Be creative and daring!  This look is rock & roll and there are no rules for that!

Are you a thrift store junkie?  Seek pleasure in rummaging through racks of clothing for your next unique piece?  Living or visiting in New York City?  Despising the capitalism of vintage clothing?  Well you will be happy to know that I have found a great boutique in Nolita that you must visit.

I discovered this cute little boutique in Nolita over 4th of July weekend.  I just had to share with you all.  They have a great commitment to the fashion and art industry, which you know coincides with our hair fashion here.  Their mission is inspiring and enlightening, brining the art community together and continue to thrive during this time of lay-off, company closures, and pay cuts.  I reccomend you stop by if you have a chance for some real treasures at real prices!  They specialize in 1929 fashions mixed with some of their own collections and others.  Visit their website to read more about The 1929 boutique:

174 Mott St.

Ny, Ny 10013

Here for more info…

I’m very excited about the Hair Trend of Hair Nets!  I purchased this wrap in a thrift store in the east village.  I loved the textured and color of the wrap.  It has a Cleopatra aspect to it, don’t cha think?  They length of the wrap adds diversity for your style.  After playing around with it I discovered a bunch of different ways to wear it.

The fall colors reflects the changing environment. The colors of the leaves and all the warm tones of the season’s vegetation. Red apples, orange pumpkins, dusk’s sunlight. A good way to warm up you color is follow less-is-more and add a few subtle highlights or lowlights around the frame of the face and blending around the crown of the head, if needed. Go for a vibrant shade of Autumn.