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What’s not to love about the ’80s?
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The decade is synonymous with statement-making beauty looks, particularly the big, bold, and decidedlycool'80s hairstyles.
’80s hair wassoiconic, it even birthed its own genre of music: hair metal.
(Its musicians had teased-to-the-heavens hair, heavy makeup, and the lowest of low-rise leather pants.)
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Like all good things, these ’80s hairstyles are circling back around bigger and better than ever before.
“These influences are trickling down from acclaimed designers andentertainment, while also trickling up from youth culture.
But dont bust out your mom’s crusty hair crimper or your Aqua Net just yet.
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“Hairstyling has evolved with modern tools and products,” says New York City-based hairstylistDevin Toth.
“Even our most undonehairstyles todayhave more purposeful definition.
They arent quite as fuzzy or rough in texture as they were in the ’80s.”
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Less crunch, more elevated styles.
Cosmetic chemistKrupa Koestlinesays its true that today’s products are much less harsh than they were in the 80s.
“Modern hair products contain much less alcohol,” she says.
As with any re-emerging style, the key to making an ’80s stylewerkis to make it modern.
With that, scroll on for some ’80s-inspired looks you might totally rock in the 21st century.
But were not suggesting you go full Billy Ray Cyrus.
Miley is more the style.
Wolf Cut
Hungry like the wolf?
The wolf cut can be styled a few different ways.
Use a flat iron and a strong-holdhairsprayto lock that look in place.
We recommend the L’Oreal Paris Elnett Satin Extra Strong Hold Hair Spray and Bumble and Bumble Bb.
Strong Finish Firm Hold Hairspray both will keep your hair looking freshly styled for hours.
Strong Finish Firm Hold Hairspray
Sephora
Nordstrom
3.
Fluffy Blowout
Big, fluffy, bouncy hair is so ’80s.
Their hair was the envy of, well, everyone.
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And, honestly, still is.
So, how do you get that ’80s fluffy hair?
“Eighties blowouts are all about lifting the roots,” says Toth.
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“Use lots ofvolumizing productsand lift the roots with a metal round brush.”
“The fluff is your friend!”
We love using the non-stickyLiving Proof Full Dry Volume and Texturizing Sprayand fine-mistUnite Liquid Volume Texture Sprayfor this.
(The latter works especially well on short, fine hair.)
Eighties icons like Cher, Dolly Parton, and Brook Shields lead the way with fluffy-to-the-max poodle perms.
Granted, thats mostly because we style curls with better products now, he says.
Moderncurl creamsdefrizz and moisturize without adding crunch or fuzz.
But Koestline says perms and other curly hair treatments have also come a long way since the ’80s.
So, were better at styling curls, but also better at creating them.
Dont assume you should probably actually geta permto achieve this look.
(Theyre a little, uh,permanent).
Use a small barrelcurling ironfor all-over corkscrew curls, or use heatlesshair curlerssized for corkscrew or spiral curls.
Once set, pull your curls apart for extra body.
Gravity-Defying Texture
“Eighties influence celebrates the shape and fullness of natural texture well,” says Robinson.
“There were amazing, full afro shapes from the ’80s which were done with perms.
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But this is a look that is ten times better with natural texture.”
Start with a deep side part and pull your curls apart for an airy, gravity-defying look.
Modern Crimping
Nothing is more indicative of the ’80s than that tiny zig-zagcrimped hair.
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Sky-High Side Pony
The pony had a few different incarnations in the ’80s.
Wear your pony in big bouncy curls or use a flat iron for an ultra-sleek look.
“The ‘80shigh ponytailworks perfectly with straight hair,” says Grenia.
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“Finish your style off with a scrunchie for a nostalgic ’80s look.”
Half-Up, Half-Down
The “whale-spout” half-up ponytail is a classic ’80s look.
This pony was often made spiky and textured with a crimping iron and a whole lot of backcombing.
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An oversizedscrunchiewas the finishing touch.
To get this look, curl all your hair with a large barreled curling iron andbrush it outonce set.
Pull the top half into a high pony and secure it with a thick ponytail holder or scrunchie.
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A Strong Bob
A bob is a pretty timeless look, but it has its moments in the spotlight.
They were everywhere, and according to our experts, theyre about to be everywhere again.
“Strong bobs are about to be all over the place,” says Robinson.
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“This bold hair is graphic, blunt, and geometric.
It shows up and doesnt wisp away into nothing.”
She says this is an especially great cut for people with fine hair.
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’80s Accessories
“Another easy, at-home nod to ’80s styling is accessories,” says Robinson.
“There are tons out right now, from clips to headbands to claw clips.”
Check out more hair trends to try:
And watch how to get the perfect shag cut:
