Let’s face it, any chance we can get to rock any variation of a messy hairstyle, we are going to take it! So when we saw Jordin Sparks with her effortlessly gorgeous high ponytail at the Teen Choice Awards this past weekend, we just had to DIY the look. This red carpet hairdo works for any type of hair, but looks especially stunning on natural curls with bounce and body, to give the look an instantly playful twist. Whether you keep it super casual with a tee and jeans or dress it up with a bodycon dress for your next date or gals’ night out, this messy five-minute hairstyle is a must-try.
Prep for Curly Hair: Anti-Frizz
You want to start off by applying a thick protection anti-frizz serum throughout your curls and be sure to give your ends some extra love. Mariaclara is using Suave Professionals Luxe Style Infusion Soft & Defined Curls Gel ($7). Apply a few pumps of serum to your palm, then rub together to disperse throughout your hair. If you have straight or wavy hair, you want to make sure you have a little texture to really sell this bouncy, playful look. Use a dry shampoo paired with a sea salt spray to make your hair a little more textured.
Pull your hair up into a high ponytail and secure with an elastic. Be sure to leave out a few tendrils and separate them around your face to create a heavy side part.
Step 1: High Pony + Pieces
On the last twist of the elastic, only pull your hair through halfway to create a poofy bun. This is partially temporary, although this is a super cute look as well, and you could stop here if you’re feeling it!
Step 2: Poufy Bun
On the heavy side of your part, pull half of the hair in the poofy bun all the way through, to create a traditional ponytail that falls to the side of your face. Leave the other side of your hair in the pouf-like bun.
Step 3: Half Pull-Through
To help soften and loosen the curls at the ends of your hair, it’s best to use either a little water or Bumble and Bumble Tonic Lotion ($22 — an amazing product that is formulated with vitamins and herbs) to refresh your hair. Once you have slightly dampened the ends of your hair, use your fingers to pull out the curls, then twist strands of your hair around your finger to create a slightly looser curl. If you have straight or wavy hair, give your ends a little piecey finish by using either hairspray sprayed on your fingertips, or a sticky hair wax on the tips of your fingers.
Step 4: Loosen Ends
You can either rock your curls in their natural state if you are concerned with adding heat to your hair, or you can use a narrow flat iron on a low heat setting to gently loosen the curls around your face. Jordin has a more soft-textured curl that you can replicate with this method. If you have straight or wavy hair, you can either keep the texture of your tendrils the same as the rest of your hair or add a little more bend to them using a flat iron as well.
Step 5: Loosen Tendrils
Look how chic our new Senior Designer Mariaclara looks!
Just enough variation in texture throughout this style to make a simple messy pony more refined with a wow factor!
