Emmy Beauty Trend: Short Styles

Short hair swept the Emmys last night!  Anyone notice the trend? When speaking to my blogger friends last week, many of them predicted lobs on the red carpet, but what was interesting was the way they were styled.  January Jones and Christina Hendrix  sported old-Hollywood waves, while Elizabeth Moss, Lena Dunham and Michelle Dockery opted for straight, sleek strands. But it was Claire Danes, who had everyone talking thanks to her faux bob.  Have long hair, but want to rock the trend? Here's how: To elongate her neck and show off her Armani Prive gown, Claire's stylist, Peter Butler decided to go for a short faux bob.  First, he applied mousse to her damp hair to help add texture and blow dried.  Next, he gave her a low side part and used a large-barreled curling iron to curl her hair inward, which also helped to smooth out her hair’s texture. Then, created two small pin curls at the nape of her neck and combed the top of her hair down and under, pinning as needed into the base.   To finish her look, he tucked the hair on the left side of Claire's head behind her ear and spritzing Frizz-Ease Moisture Barrier Firm Hold Hairspray for hold. 

Here's a video I created about how to get the faux bob look, in case you're still a bit confused.  It's easier than you think!

Video: How to Create A Faux Bob

Often times on red carpets one of the most talked about hairstyles is the faux bob. Earlier this year we were all questioning whether or not Frieda Pinto, Sarah Hyland and Naomi Watts chopped their hair, but of course they were rocking faux bobs.  In this video, I partnered with Vidal Sassoon Pro Series to show you how to create the trendy style.  It's so easy!  This is the project that inspired me to really chop off my hair!  

Welcoming A New Decade with A Sassoon Bob, Plus Tips on Chopping it Off

Happy 30th Birthday to me.  Happy?  I think.  30.  Yes, I'm somewhat freaking out leaving my 20's behind, the best years of my life (so far anyway).  Yesterday I made the rash decision to chop 10 inches off of my hair.  10 inches!  Yes, the girl who always envied those with natural long waves and often took to extensions to achieve them now has a bob!  Hello 30! This isn't just any bob though, it's a Sassoon Bob!  Embracing 30 (kind of), here's what went down... One of the most valuable lessons I've learned over the past 30 years is to love yourself.  Seriously, in so many ways.  If you don't love who you are others aren't going to be able to love you back.  Now, take that into beauty.  Love (or at least accept) what you were born with and work with what your mama gave ya!  In my case, fine hair.  I can add all the extensions I want and it'll look gorgeous, but when I try to grow it out on my own, it has no style.  I actually skeeve it.  Therefore, the perfect style to make it look fuller: a bob.

About a month ago I filmed a video series with Sassoon Salon's Creative Director & Sassoon Expert, Michael Forrey where he created a faux bob with my long-ish hair and I felt beyond sassy!  Soon, I'll be able to show you the series, but on Wednesday I couldn't stop thinking about how I was almost 30 and felt the need to do something drastic.  The bob!  I ran to Michael before I could change my mind.

Deathly afraid of my face looking rounder, I sat in his chair at Sassoon Salon with my heart was pounding, body was overheating and I thought I was going to have a panic attack. Michael's the only person I would trust to make this move, so I kept telling myself I was in good hands.  Snip.  It was gone.  Before I knew it a pile of of my hair was on the floor, 10 inches cut off the length.  Again, I skeeved it.

An hour or so later, I ended up with the most precise bob with graduation - not a graduated bob.  Yes, there's a difference.  "The slight graduation in the back adds volume to the top and allows for movement and versatility, but the emphasis is on the longer front pieces to add length to your face," Michael explained.  "If it were a graduated bob it would have been more triangular."

Inspired?  Chop it off!  It's liberating!  I'm kind of obsessed with my new Sassoon Bob! There are three key things to take into consideration: your hair texture, face shape and body shape (since people hide behind their hair, they may not be comfortable going too short). I'm beyond thankful that Michael customized my bob the Sassoon way so I feel confident rocking it.  Make sure you talk to your stylist about the three elements I listed above before you face the scissors.  So, what do you think of my new look?

Spotted: Jessica Szohr's Bob Styles, Get the Look!

Yes, I spotted Gossip Girl's Jessica Szohr out and about during New York Fashion Week with a mid length bob.  Even though I caught glimpse of her before Herve Leger, she also attended several other shows like Marchesa and I got the 411 on her bob transformations from Pureology Colour Ambassador, Ruth Roche, who worked with Jessica throughout the week. "Since Jessica still has some length to her bob it leaves her with a lot of styling options," commented Roche.

To achieve smooth bob (as seen at Herve Leger), all Roche did was blow dry Jessica's hair with a round brush, but shine serum was the key to creating smoothness and adding a bit of separation.  She used Pureology Colour Stylist Cuticle Polisher.  I use this too and just place a small amount in my hands, rub them together to warm it up (so it distributes well) and then rub on my ends for added smoothness.

To get a more texturized look like the style Jessica rocked at the Marchesa show, Roche blow dried her hair and then used a 1 1/2 inch curling iron to randomly curl sections of her hair inwards and outwards.  The trick to this 'do was to leave the iron in longer on some sections than others and pulling other curls out a bit so the curls were all different.  In the end, the loose waves were texturized with a lot of movement.