The Princess of Wales always gives us hair inspiration, from trying out different colours to her beautiful, shiny finish. Kate has added a smart new touch to her hair that experts say looks “beautiful” on women of all ages, but is especially flattering on women in their 40s.
At this year’s BAFTAs, the glamorous royal showed off her new look by wearing her long, wavy, and loose brown hair. So far, so far, so Kate, but last night there was something new to admire—literally.
Kate usually starts her signature waves much lower down, which makes a thick cloud of curls that flows down from her shoulders. This time, her hairdresser started the hot tong action much higher up, giving her a lot of root volume to match the thickness lower down.
This made her hair look very wide from eye level, which drew attention to her smoky eyeshadow and glowing cheek highlighter. Kate also chose a curl that was noticeably tighter than usual, which made her look more glamorous and stylish.
Michael Douglas, a celebrity hairdresser and founder of MDLondon, says that the overall effect is impressive, even though it’s just a small adjustment that doesn’t require a cut.
He agrees that Kate’s hair always looks great,
but he doesn’t like styles that have all the curls at the bottom and none at the top. Overall, I don’t like that look where you curl the bottom two-thirds of your hair and forget about the rest.
Placement and a smaller tong barrel are the keys to the look. “For me, volume should be at the top, not just at the bottom,” he says. “Hair is already thicker at the bottom because that’s where it all collects, especially if your hair has long layers or is all one length.” The curl looks great when it starts higher up. It’s better balanced, and it looks good on everyone, not just Kate. But it does show that whoever is doing her hair is doing a great job!
Michael says that starting a wave higher up makes the hair look more put together and is “very youthful”. If your hair is getting a little thinner as you get older, it works wonders: “It definitely makes up for that because volume looks like thickness.”
He goes on to say, “I think it looks younger because it is more relaxed.” It doesn’t look as “done”. This style works for all ages, but I think it looks best on older hair. Having this youthful energy in your hair makes you feel more confident.
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“The imbalanced volume look is because people are afraid to put a hot tool near their scalp, so just curl the ends.” But you just need to move the curling iron closer to the scalp. That’s exactly what the MdLondon Curl is for. The barrel is shaped like a cone that goes backwards, which makes the roots curl more tightly and the ends curl more loosely. Then, because the hair is heavy, it pulls some of the tightness out of the root, and you get a curl that is pretty even from roots to tips, like Kate’s.
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If you don’t have that, he suggests starting higher up and just using a small-barreled tong. A big 32mm tong is usually what gives you a nice beach wave, but it will also make your root flat.
It works especially well on Kate because her hair is long and layered. “It looks great if the shortest layer is at the level of your jaw or chin.” The hair tends to spring up and stick out if the layers are too short. This can look fun, but longer layers are usually better for this look.
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He also says that you need to use the right styling product to make it, and he suggests his new The Numbers line. “You need something that will hold, so look for a PVA co-polymer resin.” We have it in the new MDLondon The Numbers Two, which is great for getting your hair ready because it holds and protects against heat.
