‘Hair painting’ is fashion’s latest wild, Y2K-inspired trend
Fashion & Beauty
February 23, 2023 | 5:43 p.m
Hair painting is the latest art form gracing TikTok and the catwalk.
Tiktok/Danielmarcan; Instagram / alfredlewisll
Blondes have more fun? These trendsetters are different.
Vibrant hair art is the new, viral solution to achieving out-of-the-box style without necessarily committing to a permanent rainbow hue.
Colorful hair patterns — like flowers, hearts, and even tiger stripes — are the latest trend, overtaking both the runway and TikTok. On the app, the “hair painting” theme search has garnered nearly 300 million views, with users showing off their hand-painted hair coloring finesse.
At Kim Shui’s New York Fashion Week, models’ locks were stamped with the iconic ‘K’ emblem as they strutted down the runway in oversized space boots, luxe faux fur jackets and microskirts.
The presentation’s hairstylists, Jaylin Youm and Paul Miller of Jax and Kin, told Nylon that the “maximalist” do, created using stencils, “It-girl-with-a-credit-card and a zero f- – ks” should emulate attitude.” So a “woman who wants to stand out in every way”.
According to The Post, the collection was an “unabashed celebration of the female form” and self-expression. The move away from traditional style structure is putting pre-made hairstyles on the back burner – and the internet is clearly on board.
The bold hairstyle comes amid a 2000 resurgence. First, the low-rise jeans were returned, then tramps, flip phones, and “bimbos” — now culture vultures have hair to match. Celebrities have even joined the playful trend, like rapper Cardi B, who debuted a cherry red headscarf-inspired wig last year. It’s reminiscent of the early 2000s, when Lil Kim sported a teal wig with the Chanel logo on blunt bangs, or when the “How Many Licks” rapper sported a blonde unit with Versace Greek keys on the sides and fringe rocked.
As commitment-phobics hesitate to go all-in with permanent dyes, creative beauty gurus online are getting imaginative with their toolbox — using temporary tattoos, extensions, dyes, wigs, and more to maintain their natural looks while playing with the trend .
Poppy Ella, makeup artist and content creator based out of London, posted a real hair painting tutorial using liquid eyeshadows on Instagram. In the caption of her video, which garnered more than 45,000 likes, she said, “They stay SO GOOD,” but “it’s going to be interesting to wash that out.”
Inspired by his co-creator Alfred Lewis III, who posted a snap with his thermally colored locks, Poppy used the color cosmetic to get creative with her fringes and framed her face with the heat-inspired pattern.
But some daredevils aren’t afraid to risk it all for their luscious locks. A search for “#shavedheaddesigns” on TikTok, which has amassed more than 4 million views, will reveal an endless list of people with bleached buzzcuts and intricate, hand-painted hair-dye jobs.
Los Angeles stylist Jackie Bieber, who specializes in hair art and coined the term ‘buzzigns’, has carefully crafted ‘dos’ with floral patterns, leopard spots and skulls.
“I see hair designs as an accessory to my clients’ style,” she told Allure, adding that a “buzzing head” is a better canvas.
“You can apply different strokes and pressure with the brush, [that you couldn’t on long hair]’ Bieber added — though her TikTok of more than 623,000 followers proves she’s talented enough to do both.
In one popular clip, she showed off words embellished with dye on a wig. In another, with 1.7 million views, she boasted of meticulously hand-drawn flames on a client’s head.
“This is so gorgeous,” one delighted viewer captioned a clip featuring a vibrant floral wash of paint that has garnered 7.5 million views on Bieber’s page.
“So creative,” applauded another.
Meanwhile, not everyone was won over by the oversaturated look, with one characterizing the looks as cartoonish: “Why does it remind me of Bikini Bottom & Patrick Star’s board shorts?”
Load More…
{{#isDisplay}}
{{/isDisplay}}{{#isAniviewVideo}}
{{/isAniviewVideo}}{{#isSRVideo}}
{{/isSRVideo}}