It's the 70s hair revivalwe never saw coming. Big, voluminous and sultry in all the best ways, curtain bangs - also known as a curtain fringe - are the hair-centric gifts that keep on giving. Curtain bangs may have entered our social feeds during the height of lockdown 1.0 but two years on, the trend shows no signs of waning.
It didn't take me long to jump onto the bandwagon. In fact, it took approximately one look at influencer Matilda Djerf's feed to quickly send me over the edge and into the salon. Since, I've been toying with different lengths and thicknesses to reach the ultimate curtain bang look, one that works for my lifestyle and face shape. And I've finally cracked it, thanks to hairstylist Jordan Garrett, atHershesons and advice from Chris Long, Dyson's GB Styling Ambassador.
What Are Curtain Bangs?
It's what I'm calling the 'smart-casual curtain bang': subdued enough to offer a sultry look but sassy enough to pack some power.
'It can be dressed up or down,' says Jordan, 'It can create a soft look if you tie your hair back and bring a few pieces forward, and it can be dressed up if you blow dry your hair super sleek and shiny. It's such a universal look, smart enough for the office but casual enough for the beach, and that's why so many people are going for it right now.'
Jordan is right. The beauty of this hairstyle in particular is that it's universally flattering, it can also be customised any which way to suit you.
'There is an element for everyone. You can manipulate the angles, thickness and how the hair falls onto the face significantly. So, if someone has a narrow face you can widen the bangs to give the face more width, thereby creating an illusion of a wider face. Likewise, if someone has a wider face, you can keep the bangs narrow to create more facial definition.'
How Do I Style Curtain Bangs?
Always start by spritzing over your locks with sturdy heat protection, I love Sun Bum's Protecting Heat Protector, £15.99.
'If you style your hair with a centre parting, I'd start by rough drying with no nozzle, no brush. Dry in a downward direction from left-hand-side bang down to right-hand-side eyebrow and vice versa in a diagonal fashion,' says Jordan.
'Focus on the root area, keeping the ends damp which will help to create some nice natural kinks to the look. And don't over dry your hair as it's nice to maintain some natural character to your look, especially with this hairstyle.'
Finish off with a smidge of Hershesons Almost Everything Cream, £12, just through the ends.
'This look is all about enhancing your naturalness instead of masking it.'
www.feelunique.com
A heat protectant is a must when using heat styling tools, this our beauty writers favourite.
You guessed it, this cream can be used for just about anything. A primer, shine booster, frizz fighter, conditioner, a mask - you name it.
How Often Do I Need To Cut Curtain Bangs?
Curtain bangs are as low maintenance as a fringe gets (there is no 'in two weeks it'll look exactly how I want it', here). Ergo, they grow out quickly.
'Your fringe will go before your haircut goes and that's why we offer 15 minute fringe trims at Hershesons. So, come in on the fourth week after your first cut for a fringe refresh and this will help you have a little bit more time to enjoy your overall cut,' says Jordan.
How can I style curtain bangs with a straightener?
'Place the Dyson Corrale Straighteners, £299.99 at the base of the fringe, then pull straight up to give your hair maximum lift before arching over in a bend. Follow this by parting your bangs with your fingers and this will give you curtain/bottleneck bangs full of volume and height', says Chris Long.
www.johnlewis.com
Style where and when you want with up to 30 minutes cordless styling! The manganese copper alloy plates on these flex and shape to gather hair for enhanced styling with more control. Its made for less reliance on heat as well as reduced frizz and flyaways.
What 3 products would you recommend for styling curtain bangs?
Chris Long says:
-
'The Dyson Airwrap Multi-Styler using the round brush attachment. This is going to give you weightless volume quickly with no extreme heat. The new large Volumising Brush attachment, now available as a separate attachment for your Airwrap, gives even more body to the hair due to long, fine bristles which direct air deep into the hair to deliver volume. This brush creates tension to shape the hair as it dries giving more height. I would use this attachment to get more volume and a slight bend at the end.'
-
'The new large volumising brush attachment uses controlled airflow and has an equal distribution of air.'
-
'Apply a good holding spray whilst the hair is wet, this is key. Just like putting your makeup on, you need a primer for it to stay in place, it’s the same with hair, if you want volume all day, a pre-styling holding spray is necessary for maximum hold.'
-
'Finally, the Dyson Corrale Hair Straightener is my go-to when styling my clients with this for curtain to help control the side areas of the fringe. You can flick them out to give your hair a modern Farrah Fawcett look. The Dyson Corrale uses flexing plates to control the hair with less extreme heat.'
www.dyson.co.uk
The most awarded hair multi-styler goes to Dyson! This heat tool has a range of different attachments to work for different hair types and create different hairstyles. Powered by the Dyson digital motor V9, this styler is equipped with intelligent heat control - preventing extreme heat damage - achieving sleek and smooth results.
How can you take care of curtain bangs between trims?
'Between trims, I would make sure to always style the bangs. Typically, I would use the new Large Round Volumising Brush attachment for the Airwrap multi-styler which is perfect for longer hair and has no extreme heat. I would also make a more prominent parting, think of Emily Ratajkowsi for inspiration', says Long.