5 Steps To Reinventing The Ponytail

Our beauty editor Suzanne Scott heads backstage at Victoria Beckham’s AW16 show to see Redken’s Guido Palau apply his magic touch to the humble ponytail.

Victoria Beckham is a fan of a ponytail; it was only this week that I spotted her backstage at her AW16 show in New York wearing one. Fitting then that the focus of her beauty look at her show was the kind of super chic low pony that wouldn’t seem out of place on the designer herself.

It’s not just Victoria who is a fan of this simple style either. Kendall Jenner, Blake Lively and Gisele are all keen on a pony. And, did you see  Jennifer Aniston’s cute ponytail – complete with bow – when she walked the carpet with husband Justin Theroux at the premiere of Zoolander 2? Copying immediately.

A ponytail doesn’t have to be just for the gym. And don’t believe what anyone tells you, a ponytail is so office appropriate; you just have to style it out properly. If Jen and co. can get away with a ponytail on the red carpet then surely we can wear one wherever we want.

Redken’s Global Creative Director Guido Palau was responsible for the sleek and shiny number at Victoria Beckham. He told me, ‘Victoria has established a beauty identity over the seasons; it has become a minimal, wearable idea of beauty.’ He’s not wrong.

Here’s how he did it… Step 1: The hair needed to be long for this ponytail so where it was shorter Palau added in some subtle extensions. Step 2: Next he prepped damp hair with Redken Satinwear 02 (a blow-dry lotion) and Redken Pillow Proof Blow Dry Express Primer. Step 3: The hairdryer came next; in this case GHD Aura hairdryer. Palau told me ‘You need a fast drier with nozzle to get the hair moving in the right direction.’ With his fingers he blow-dried the hair backwards into a low ponytail. Step 4: Once secured, Palau used the GHD Curve Curling Iron to add some movement to the lengths of the ponytail if the hair was very straight. Step 5: Lastly, Redken Triple Take 32 Extreme High-Hold Hair Spray (which is only available in the US but you might want to try Redken Control Addict 28 in its place) over the front portion of the hair. The idea was that the product would make the hair around the front of the face appear smooth and glossy while the length of the ponytail was left a little fluffy and soft.

Feeling inspired? Check out our gallery on the best celebrity ponytails.