Any Richland County high school girl heading into homecoming weekend knows there is one crucial element to pulling her entire look together: the hair style. While some may choose to wear their hair down and loose, many will decide to wear their hair in a sleek, stylish updo. So how can you replicate a salon-style updo at home?
Kersten Goff, a stylist at Studio 19 Salon & Spa in Mansfield with eight years of experience, shared her tips and tricks for styling an updo at home. When choosing a style for an updo, Goff recommends picking a style that is slightly fancier than your normal hairstyle.
“You don’t want to go too off-the-wall with it because you don’t want to look back at pictures and say ‘oh my gosh, what was I thinking,’” she said. “I would say if people are going to do their hair at home, style it like you normally would and then pin it up and try to keep it more natural-looking.”
Goff said generally her clients at Studio 19 have been thinking of the style they want for an updo for a long time, and bring in pictures to replicate. She noted when styling an updo it’s best to go with the shape of the updo and the general look instead of trying to attempt to completely replicate someone else’s hair.
“People get too particular about it, and you really can’t be like that because if you get too particular about it you’re not going to like it,” said Goff. “Don’t try to be too specific. If you can just grab the hair and start pinning it, that usually looks the best. People tend to pick and piece too much when they put pins in their hair, so if you can go through and just stick them in it usually works out better like that.”
Prep work for an updo usually begins the night before with shampooing hair but no conditioner, putting gel in the hair and letting the hair air-dry naturally. This way, the hair retains some texture and is easier to work with. Goff said the most important part of an updo is texture in the hair.
“You definitely don’t want to shampoo your hair the day of,” said Goff. “If you’re trying to pin your hair up generally the hair is too soft if you just shampoo it. The prep work that is best for an updo is having a little bit of grit in your hair, like a second-day product kind of feel to it. You want to have some sort or gel, mousse or hairspray, something that is going to keep it from slipping quite as much with the bobby pins.”
The next step is styling depending on the type of look as the end result. Goff said straight hair works better for an updo with “crazy little pieces” sticking up, but for a softer “red carpet” look, she recommends curling.
“Generally that consists of going through with a curling iron, giving it some softness, then smoothing it out so you don’t get so many frizzes in your hair,” she said. “And if you want some hair coming around your face, generally brides want hair coming around their face so they don’t look bald in their pictures.”
For products, Goff said while working with the hair it’s best to use a “working” hairspray that isn’t too terribly stiff. She also recommends using a serum for women who have curly or textured hair.
“I would keep it easy for stuff at home,” she said. “I would stick with the smoother to help give more shine and then the hairspray for the hold. Super-firm hairsprays are not great for updos unless you’re using it for a completely finished look, when you’re completely done with it then you would want to use a super-firm hairspray to finish it off. While you’re working with it, you want to use something softer.”
Along with softer curls, Goff noted braids are becoming more popular among updos. When adding a braid to an updo, Goff recommends visiting YouTube and searching for a braid tutorial for styles such as regular braids, fishtail braids, a French braid, or waterfall braids.
“Braids are so in right now, they’re so fun,” she said. “People are looking forward to the different dimensions you can get with those.”
To finish the updo, Goff recommends a “blingy” clip and other fun accessories – these often end up being the only clips in the entire updo. Goff said aside from the occasional hair tie to hold the end of a braid, an updo is secured entirely by bobby pins, sometimes as many as 80 or 90 per style.
“A lot of the times you don’t necessarily want to see the hair tie or the clip so you want to use bobby pins,” she said. “Bridal hair requires more pins because you want to be absolutely sure it stays so I usually double and triple cross those. Crisscrossing your bobby pins is the best trick ever, if you’re not sure it’s going to stay if it feels like it’s a little wobbly just put another one in there to crisscross and hold it in there.”
Goff noted a three-way mirror is a great tool to use when overcoming the challenge of seeing the back of the head and being able to work with the hair, but she added an updo is all about individual style and the overall look.
“They’re so artistic and you can do anything you want with them,” she said. “There’s really no rhyme or reason to updos, you just have to get your fingers in there and see what you come up with.”
Ask the Expert is a series, in which, we will look to local businesses for things they do well and can share with our readers. The series highlights practical tips, behind-the-scenes-insight and a greater appreciation for the talented professionals right here in our community. And of course, some helpful hints for our readers.
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