Braid Parade

A lot of your clients are probably asking for braids, which you see worn in various sizes and levels of thickness. I’d say the rounded shapes are the most popular, but you can use braiding to do a lot of different looks. Make a side part and braid just one side, or design an ear-to-ear braid for a headband effect. When I braid, I use Redken’s Outshine 01.

When I pull back ponytails and want them to look shiny and sleek, I use Glass 01 or Vinyl Glam 02. Sleek ponytails follow the shiny metallic fabrics we’re seeing now. But we also see colliding fabrics—an iridescent metallic skirt paired with something completely different like a bulky sweater. To create this trend in hair, we use multi-textured finishing. For example, we’ll let the sleek ponytail end in an explosion of frizz or curl.

We’re always learning how to use tools in new ways, such as using a flat iron like our Sleekr more like a round brush, or working with both a brush and the Sleekr to create movement, texture and volume. When I talk about creating texture, I always recommend the “Artificial Texture” video I did with my special guest Chris Baran. We share more than 20 techniques with thermal tools that create all of today’s finishing textures. I know you’ll learn a lot from it!