The messy side braid is the LBD of hair, i.e. a total classic.
It’s so bohemian, feminine, simple to style, … no wonder it’s a firm favourite amongst many top models and celebs.
Best of all, this look is so versatile and can literally be worn anywhere.
Eva Longoria, for instance, has worn this style sooo many times, both on the red carpet and when out shopping!
You don’t even need to worry about being precise with the styling, because the whole point of the look is ‘messy’!
I have always loved the side braid style, and even wore my hair that way for the L’Oreal Colour Trophy Awards last year.
Here’s how you can recreate it:
1. This kind of style doesn’t really work on freshly washed hair, so if you’re finding it difficult to style, just spritz some dry shampoo throughout the hair, or maybe add some Osis Dust It Mattifying Powder, as these will all texturise the look further. If you want to create some height at the crown of the head, lightly backcomb the roots, and then hold it in place with some hairspray.
2. Next, pull the hair to one side, and gently tease the strands with a comb (or a backcombing brush). This will help with the ‘messiness’ of the look. When hairstylist, DJ Quintero, was styling Blake Lively’s hair into a messy side plait earlier this month, he first used a curling iron all over her hair to give it lots of texture. He explained how he then loosely gathered random pieces and started fishtailing her hair to one side. It’s up to you whether you want to go with a French braid, a fishtail plait, or a traditional old-style plait.
3. Once you have finished braiding the hair and have it secured with a hair tie, you can start very lightly teasing the hair out of place, but only do this if you think it’s not already ‘messy’ enough. (On that note, just make sure you don’t overdo the messy appearance either!) As soon as DJ Quintero was finished braiding Blake Lively’s hair, he teased random parts of the hair to give it an imperfect feel, before spritzing it with some Serge Normant Dry Oil, and finishing it with L’Oréal Elnett hair spray.
So there you have it! A perfect style to try out this bank holiday weekend!
Sue xxx
Sounds great 🙂 xx
Decided to give this a go this morning after reading this… had already straightened my hair so used Umberto giannini backcomb in a bottle to add height to the crown and texture before doing the plait… simples!