The old Hollywood-inspired hairstyles that are trending again

This red carpet season, hairstylists are going back in time. Be it retro curls with a deep side part, or the pixie dos of female actors from the silent movie era, old Hollywood offers a lot of inspiration for hair styling, irrespective of your hair length.

We asked Florian Hurel, celebrity hairstylist and founder of Florian Hurel Hair Couture and Spa; and Vaishakhi Haria, hairstylist and founder of Splash Salons and co-founder at Very V Salon, to decode three recent celebrity sightings that are an ode to old-world glam.

Retro curls

Actor Kiara Advani has recently been sporting neat retro curls with a deep side part. “You will need a tong and a vent brush to get that perfectly neat and uniform curls. Vent brushes are good for maintaining the texture while refraining from opening the curls for this look,” says Haria.

How to get it

Apply mousse on the hair and blow dry it neatly.

Divide the hair as per your desired side for a parting. Make the part at the beginning makes it easier to curl.

Make one-inch sections, box style is ideal for this look and you can use clips to hold sections in place. Start tonging the hair from the back, and make sure the hair gets enough heat and hold. Apply hairspray after tonging every section so the curls get a good hold.

Gently open the curls a bit with a vent brush, gently, and apply spray on every section. Place them in such a manner that they don’t disturb each other. Finish with shine spray.

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Gel pixie fairy

Actor Emma Corrin, who played the role of Princess Diana in The Crown, presented several edgy looks during the recent promotions of her film, Deadpool vs Wolverine. 

“This is a cool look for short hair. Anything retro-adjusted with a short cut would look edgy. The look relies on having gelled hair with an S wave, like from the 1930s. It’s difficult to achieve by oneself, but a little practice helps. The game is to keep it defined and give it a neat finish,” says Hurel.

How to do it

You have got to have a steady hand to get the gel evenly in your hair to give an even sleek look that also stays.

Part your hair to your desired side. Start with wet hair. Pick up a thin comb and apply a lot of gel on wet hair. Once the hair is manageable with the water and gel mix, sleek it down on the head, and use the thin comb to define the wave. Pin the wave and let it dry, and voila! you have a pixie silent movie star look.

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The 70s upturned ends bob

“All you need is a good mousse and a small to medium size round brush to create this breezy 70s look on Elle Fanning,” says Haria.

How to do it

To create Fanning’s 70s look, first blow dry the hair and apply a mousse with a good grip for full styling control and hold.

After you blow dry, use a round brush, small to medium size, and turn all the hair ends outwards around the base of the hair. Work section-by-section for a seamless finish and start at the back. Hold the brush and give enough heat to set the outwards curl, and allow it to cool down with cold air with the hairdryer.

Once done, it is important to merge every section into each other, so the ends are uniformly outwards.

Finish with a strong hold hairspray that will hold the hair for six to eight hours. It is important to use a hairspray that does not give a glued effect or a glossy look, as the hair has to look natural. Hard-hold sprays with a glossy look can make the hair look unnatural, so use dry-hold powder sprays so the hair looks most natural despite the styling.

Dhara Vora Sabhnani is a Mumbai-based writer.