Christmas party season is here and salons and barbershops will now be becoming busier than ever with clients booking appointments to have their hair color and cut refreshed for the festive season and to book in for styling ahead of any Christmas parties they may have.
For men, there will be three looks requested in particular—the "voluminous quiff," "enhanced bouncy curls" and the "faux hawk."
Voluminous quiff: The quiff is a classic style that never goes out of style and the Christmas season is a great time for clients to really experiment with their quiffs and allow their men’s hairdressers/barbers to create something cool and creative by adding more shape to the quiff and extreme volume.
For Shaw, it’s so important to use a hairdryer and large paddle brush when creating this look to direct the damp hair where you want it to go and to create volume and movement. Once you’ve done this, using a product like American Crew Fiber is a must. This will give the hair even further hold, increase fullness and add texture, whilst also giving the hair hold to keep the style in place all night long. It’s also got a low shine which Shaw says he loves as it looks effortless despite the effort that has gone to creating it! But also super cool and sexy.
Enhanced bouncy curls: Curls have been a key trend over recent years for men and for the party season, men will be looking to come into the salon to have their curls looking more ‘groomed’ —enhanced, bouncy, full of shine and with little to no flyaways.
When creating this look in the salon, Shaw says he always like to use a hairdryer with diffuser to work through the curls and give them definition, volume and shine with no frizz. He would then use a product like Label.m Curl Define Souffle to gently break up the curls whilst enhancing them and giving them a glossy finish, as well as added moisture that is needed throughout the winter months.
This party season we may also see the return of the perm, says Shaw. Men will be looking to change up their hair looks completely for the season and embrace a new look as they head into the New Year. A more modern take on the male perm will be wearing this with longer length on top and the hair super short at the side so that all eyes are on those gorgeous curls!
The faux hawk: Taking inspiration from the Mohawk, men will look to incorporate a faux hawk style into their look this party season. This is a great style for men who want something quick and messy that doesn’t take much time but that looks styled to perfection but has a messy edge.
The key to creating the faux hawk is ensuring the top of the hair is uniform in length but that it has layers throughout the top section to give it shape before fading the sides to ensure there’s a contrast.
You can then use a product like Label.m Matte Paste to give more definition throughout hawk and to separate the layers and allow them to really stand out. Finish with hairspray to ensure hold all day and night.