What hair trends do you think we'll be seeing on the red carpet?
When you're working with celebrities, they have an image to uphold and they have a say in what's going on. So red carpet hair is a little safer than what you'd see at a fashion show. But I think there will be variations of the strong, clean parts and slick hair that appeared on the spring 2010 runways.
Any celebrities that have mastered the clean, slick look?
Kate Winslet pops into my head—I thought her hair at the Academy Awards last year (see photo at right) was the best. It was absolutely stunning and beautiful; soft yet with a distinct shape. The trick is getting the right texture and shine. In the past, to achieve a hairstyle like hers you'd use gel, which would leave hair hard and crunchy. But now you can apply a smoothing gloss that gives sleek shine without the plastic look and feel. The great thing about red carpet hair is that you're always going to see a modern version of something you've seen before.
What about waves? Will we still see loose curls on the red carpet?
Waves will always be around. Traditionally, people would run the curling iron through to the ends, then wrap it up to the scalp. Now you can wrap the hair around the barrel without even opening it, which gives a nice wave. For a tighter curl, use a smaller barrel. If you just want body and fullness, Velcro rollers or hot rollers are best.
How do you decide which hairstyle to do for a celebrity client?
The dress and the person's face shape are the biggest factors. If the neckline is really high and the person has a low hairline, hair should be worn up. If someone has an extremely round face I might pull the sides tighter and leave the top a little higher to elongate their face and make it appear less round. Or, if someone has a really square jaw, I might cover the forehead with some hair to give more width at the sides; you don't want to expose too much of the face or else it will look more square. Lastly, if someone has a heavy eyelid, I'll do a tight updo or ponytail to give a mini facelift.
What's your must-have hair product?
A staple in my kit and almost every hairdresser's I know is L'Oréal Elnett Strong Hold Hairspray. I was first introduced to it backstage at Fashion Week and now it's finally available in the U.S. It's great because it's soft, versatile, and imparts shine—it holds the hair but you can work with it. I send all my clients out with a few pins and a mini can of Elnett in their purse for quick red carpet fixes.
