Every season, as fashion month rolls around, we're tempted to try a hair trend that previously we would have scoffed at (now we just nod in appreciation and run to our laptops to google at-home hacks). Razor sharp space buns with pointed edges? Yes please. Match your hair colour to the exact shade of your outfit? Sure. In fact, why on earth didn’t we think of it before?
No more 'I just woke up like this' undone hair, for SS22 it's all about showing off that we've spent hours straightening our hair to poker straight noughties extremes. In fact, whether it's straightened, styled, coloured or slicked back, the future is totally intentional. A little bit Y2K, a little bit 'Year 3000', a lot high fashion futurism. Whatever you go for make it extreme and most definitely not landing in the middle.
Maybe it’s the beginning of a new cultural mood as the next Matrix movie gears up to hit cinema screens, or maybe it's because literally everyone we speak to is watching the dystopian world of Squid Game and we've got change on the mind, but the hair at SS22 saw the future for hair and it was a bold new era.
From the nose-grazing pastel wigs at Loewe, to the searing purple and green hues seen at Valentino, both conjured up by hair stylist Guido Palau, multi-coloured hair was back in a big way. Even the throwback references had futurism at their core, with nods to Leeloo in Fifth Element’s hyper copper bob, Scarlett Johansen’s iconic bubblegum pink wig in Lost In Translation, Natalie Portman’s flamingo fringe in Closer – and dare we say it, even a touch of Miley Cyrus’s lilac bob as Ashley O in Black Mirror all hitting the runway.
Over at Rick Owens, hair stylist Duffy stuck strands of hair onto models' faces using gel for an otherworldly high shine finish. In London, Richard Quinn employed the legendary skills of Sam McKnight to create a chunky subdivided slicked back updo in a new twist on the go-to fashion week wet look that wouldn't look out of place in Star Trek. Think the opposite of low-key mid-pandemic hair. Now, hyper polished, high maintenance and high concept hair has landed.
Even space buns got a less literal update at fashion set favourite Nensi Dojaka courtesy of hair stylist Syd Hayes. ‘We added this sort of futuristic element with razor edges,’ Hayes told ELLE. 'It gives the face a sharp look, pulling it back at the edges like fake Botox, referencing an almost alien-esque glam sophistication.’ We’re getting big Sex Education’s Lily and her space buns but make it high fashion energy.
To achieve the look, Hayes ‘used a gel through the whole of the ponytail, then we put the ponytail really high at the top of the head at the point where your skull goes flat. Next, I split it into two and twisted it in different directions, so that when you wrap the two strands around each other it looks a bit like a chain. Finally, I left the ends out of the fastened bun and sprayed them with hairspray before straightening to achieve the razor-sharp edges.’
L'Oréal Paris Studio Line Invisi'Hold Gel Normal
Maria Nila True Soft Argan Hair Oil
BaByliss 9000 Cordless Straightener
Larry King Hair Care Flyaway With Me Kit
Can we pull it off? Unclear. But will we try? Almost certainly.
The Best Backstage Hair Looks From Fashion Week SS22
