I feel like many people have a love/hate relationship with bangs, myself included. On one hand, they can be incredibly striking. Classic beauties like Audrey Hepburn and Jane Birkin styled their hair with bangs, and modern gals like Zooey Deschanel and Alexa Chung make it look current and fresh. Bangs are feminine and vintage-inspired, and they totally change the way you look. Even though I can be a little nervous before taking the bang plunge, they’re usually always worth it. I’ve picked up some styling tips over the years, that make bangs an easier choice. I’ve gotten a lot of questions about how I style them so I thought I’d share them with you below.
BLOW-DRY! Applying heat from a hair dryer {I use this one}, determines the style of the bangs. Make sure you blow-dry your bangs right after you get out of the shower. Bangs dry incredibly fast, so even within 15 minutes they’ll start to set into their natural, and often undesired, shape.
Also, be careful not to apply too much product to your bangs. I’d suggest applying product to the rest of your hair first, and then use the remaining bit on your palms to quickly swipe over your bangs. You don’t want your bangs to hold onto too much product or they will become stiff and difficult to work with. It could turn into a greasy nightmare!
The direction you blow-dry your hair is so important! I picked up this gem from my hairstylist the last time I had bangs. I was telling her about how I had this cowlick and even when I blow-dried my bangs to the right, they would end up to the left. She said to make sure you use a small, round boar-bristle brush because the closely-knit bristles will grab every stand, giving you a perfect amount of control. With that brush, you want to blow-dry your bangs from the left to the right, until they’re dry. The heat of the blow-dryer will soften the cowlicks and allows your bangs to fall straight. I always finish by rolling my bangs under with the round brush.
Also, when your bangs are getting in your eyes and you’re about ready for a trim, use the round brush to create a little lift with the heat of the blowdryer. The tension you create will allow you to lift the bangs up a tad, helping you out until you can get back to the salon. Many stylists offer free bang trims so make sure to ask about that, too! I’m not one for cutting my own bangs. I’ll leave that to the professionals!
OTHER TIPS FOR STYLING BANGS:
– A tiny flat iron can be helpful in taming any undesirable frizz. Make sure your straighten your bangs in sections so that you’ll still have a little movement. Also, I just use the flat iron from the top of the bangs to about an inch from the bottom. I don’t flat-iron the tips because I don’t want them to look too stiff.
– A styling cream product, like this one, will help keep your cowlicks in place.
– Carry a comb, or tiny round-brush, with you for on-the-go touch ups!
– The biggest tip I ever learned was the beauty of birdie bath! You probably don’t want to wash your hair every single day on account of your bangs, so just give them a little rinse in the morning. It only takes about 5 minutes to wash and blow-dry them, leaving your bangs looking first day clean!
Have you had bangs before? I’d love to hear your tips and tricks too! Please leave them in the comment section below!
xox
