Put a Modern Refresh on Side Bangs With These Pro Hair Tips

How to Style Side Bangs

We probably don’t need to tell you what side bangs are, but since the look has gotten a high fashion update in recent months, we asked Smith to describe it. “This look is great to highlight one side of the face more than the other,” he explains. “Flowing from a side parting, these bangs are cut on an angle and can sit over the brow bone or cheekbone and be solid or soft in their nature.” 

Pulling off side bangs starts at the salon. When cutting your bangs, advise your hairstylist to “consider a practical parting,” notes Smith. “It is a lot of work to force a parting into place every day, and so try to encourage your hair onto the side and see where the parting comfortably falls, therefore making it easier for your daily styling and maintenance.”

When it comes to at-home styling, there are some measures you can take to make sure your new side bangs look as chic as possible. Remember — these are not the flatironed-within-an-inch-of-their-life side bangs of your youth. To keep them from looking flat, Smith recommends reaching for a round brush and giving your hair some bounce. 

“Blow drying them up and backwards with a round brush is going to give a more aerated, youthful effect to sweeping side bangs and will lift the face, as opposed to flat blow drying or ironing.” he says.  

Smith also advises that you blow dry your bangs first, then move onto the rest of your hair. If possible, try not to let your side bangs air dry at all. “This gives you more control over them and you can always gently clip them into place while styling the rest of your hair to help them settle,” he notes. 

Once you’ve styled your bangs the way you want them, lock in your look with a flexible hairspray, like the Matrix Fixer Hairspray or the Garnier Fructis Style Flexible Control Hairspray.  “A puff of evo haze styling powder at the root of the bangs will also help more stubborn bangs stay in place without looking over-styled,” says Smith.