It’s Christmas time! The trees are going up, the decorations are emerging, the jingles are blaring aloud and the Christmas parties are nigh, so what better time to learn of the top hairstyles to steal the show?
Hair stylist to the A-list stars, Asgar Saboo, gives his take on the perfect Christmas hairstyles with in-depth tips to achieving them with exquisite style.
Asgar Saboo, a renowned figure among celebrities and a regular on red carpets, is synonymous with headline grabbing, style-worthy hair. He is trusted by supermodels Cindy Crawford and Twiggy, Hollywood actress Eva Longoria, as well as A-list stars including Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Katrina Kaif, Deepika Padukone and legend Rekha.
His name is tantamount with cutting-edge and sophisticated hairstyles and his hair creations have been showcased at glittering premieres, showbiz events and multiple awards ceremonies.
Asgar is famed for the headline grabbing hairstyle he created for Bollywood heartthrob Hrithik Roshan, which has been the inspiration for Hrithik Roshan’s wax work figure at London’s prestigious Madame Tussauds. The UK based hair maestro has worked his magic on scores of celebrities and dignitaries the world over, making the front covers of several leading fashion magazines and item publications.
Half up, Half down
The half up, half down hairstyle is a favourite of the celebrities and goes perfectly with a white dress. It’s important to find the right balance between the up and down divide at the back of the hair, keeping the correct ratio at all times. Traditionally, a higher divide is associated with a slightly more casual look, whereas a lower divide is considered to be smarter.
Top Tips: Firstly, separate the top half of your hair from the bottom half, securing it with a hair tie. It’s imperative to keep the ponytail tight as you go back and gently tug on the top of the hair to give it some volume. You can then tease the tail, slightly near the base of the elastic and twist it around the base before securing the bun with a few bobby pins. To finish, adjust the divide to the shape that you want.
Christmas Updo With Curls
As elegant as they come, the Christmas updo with curls is extremely classy and oozes sophistication.
Despite the fact it is one of the more time consuming hairstyles, the rewards will pay dividends as you take centre stage, not just as the talk of the party, but as the talk of the town.
Top Tips: Curl the hair either using an iron or hot rollers. You can then take out your face framing bangs and pin the rest of the curls to the back of the head. To give your look leverage, back-comb the top of the hair so that is adds volume. You can then finish the look by adding any pretty hair accessories such as a braided headband. Remember, pin the curls wherever you see fit – there is no exact science to this.
Red-Carpet waves
Straight from the red carpet, waves are compatible with both casual and smart clothes.
Top Tips (Natural Waves): Prepare your hair for styling by applying a product that is designed to bring out natural waves to wet hair. There are a variety of mousses and other products that will give you hold, but not leave the hair feeling crunchy. To help give your waves some extra bounce, it helps to hold your head upside down or to the side as you blow dry. This helps prevent your hair from getting weighed down as it dries.
If you want added volume, you can try lifting your roots with duckbill hair clips before you begin blow drying. Simply divide the top layer of your hair into sections and put a clip under each section, angling it into the roots. This will help create some extra lift as your hair dries.
Top Tips (Straight Hair): If you have naturally straight hair but you want to use your blow dryer to add some waves, you will need to add product, such as sea salt spray, to give it some texture and allow it to hold the waves. Try experimenting with different products to find one that works for your hair. While your hair is still very wet, use your blow dryer to dry the roots. Positioning it so that the air pushes your hair up will create some volume.
Try using the flat nozzle attachment on your blow dryer for this step, as it will focus more air on your roots.
You can also use duckbill clips to add some lift to your roots. Use them to clip up small sections of your hair, angling the clips towards the roots from underneath. This will give you added volume when your hair dries.
Using the diffuser attachment for your blow dryer on a cool, low speed setting, gently scrunch your hair. Depending on the texture of your hair, you may want to apply more texturising spray and/or a finishing product to ward off frizz.
Ponytail
Perhaps the most simple yet effective of the party looks, the ponytail is the quickest look to perfect and will also stay intact throughout the night.
Top Tips: Firstly, give your hair some texture by adding some dry shampoo or hairspray in order to sustain your look throughout the night. Then pull your hair up towards the crown of your head and pull your hair up (not back!). Holding the ponytail in place with one hand, brush out any bumps with the other hand to ensure a smooth ponytail. Once you have found the perfect placement, it’s time to take your elastic and secure the hair in place. To keep it in place, take one inch of hair from the underside and wrap it around the hair elastic. You can then secure the hair with a bobby pin to hide the elastic. For some added volume and texture, tease the ponytail with a fine-tooth comb, gently combing hair upwards and towards the front.
Classic Updo
A voluminous deconstructed chignon will forever be the peak of relaxed romantic elegance and one of the most timeless updo styles.
Top Tips: Start with clean, damp hair and blow dry with a diffuser. Once the hair is completely dry, backcomb at the root and sweep it all back into a low loose ponytail either behind the neck or to the side. Grab pieces of the pony at random; twisting and pinning them upwards to the head; until all of the loose hair has been gathered up to form a chignon. Slide fingers under the hair and gently lift to loosen the hold and add volume to the styling. Pull out some strands to frame the face and finish with a sweeping of medium hold hairspray.
