6 KEY HAIR TRENDS TO KNOW ABOUT FROM LONDON FASHION WEEK
London Fashion Week celebrated a major milestone this season. The autumn/winter 2024 edition, which wrapped up yesterday, marks 40 years since the biannual style extravaganza began.
Designers including Erdem MoralIoglu, Simone Rocha, Richard Quinn and Daniel Lee at Burberry presented their latest collections, working with backstage beauty pros who created stunning hair and make-up looks to complement the clothes.
Out of the big four international fashion weeks, London is known for avant-garde, boundary-pushing designs, but this season the catwalks gave us a host of beautifully wearable hair looks alongside more daring, fashion-forward styles.
The connection between runway and real life hair is similar to catwalk and high street fashion.
“The catwalk trends will be picked up by magazines first and you'll start seeing that transitioning into what people are wearing,” says Paul Edmonds, who worked backstage on several shows during the inaugural LFW in 1984, including John Galliano’s graduate collection.
“It's one of those things that you see movements and changes up to about two years after the shows.”
If you're looking for inspiration for your next cut or colour appointment, this season you've got a range of runway-worthy styles to choose from.
Here, the team talk through six key hair looks they loved from London Fashion Week and how to wear them your way…
1. The bouncy bob
At the Burberry show, some of the models sashayed down the runway with beautifully bouncy, chin-length bobs.
“I'm seeing this look everywhere,” says director Matilda Marshall. “The hair is cut so that it's nice and heavy on the bottom, but then you have shaping around the face.”
The great thing about this trendy bob is that the length and shape can be tailored to suit different face shapes.
“If you've got a rounder face you're not going to go too short, you'll have it slightly longer to elongate the face,” Matilda explains. “And then the opposite if you've got a long face, you're not going to then have a long bob.”
As for styling, she says: “It's about making it as big as possible. Start with volumising mousse and either blow dry with a large round natural bristle brush or a hot brush.”
2. The worn-in waves
Long-haired models at the Burberry show had their locks teased into tousled waves.
“It's like a soft version of the big blow dry, with more movement and layers in it,” Matilda says.
Creative director Alfie Oneill likes the undone vibe of the look: “It's like the ‘next day’ bouncy blow dry, like you’ve gone from Saturday night glamour to Sunday when it’s a bit more worn.”
To create weightless waves, start by blow drying with mousse then use a curling tong and brush out the waves.
Matilda adds: “You can either use a texture spray at the end or if you want it to look more glossy then use a shine spray.”
3. The Nineties heartthrob look
On the Dunhill catwalk, male models’ hair was pushed back into a Nineties style crop.
“As much as girls are going for Nineties look at the moment I think guys are too,” Matilda says. “It’s like at the start of Friends when the guys all had their hair like that, a mid-length layered haircut.”
Alfie agrees: “The young, cool kids are definitely going for longer hair, they love that floppy Nineties style that Brad Pitt and Johnny Depp had at the time.”
A layered cut is the starting point for this look, then it’s about adding volume with styling products.
Matilda explains: “Use either a volume spray or a salt spray first and dry that into the hair. Or with slightly damp hair you can add wax in and then dry it which gives more of a soft hold as opposed to looking too waxy.”
4. The silver curls
One of the most talked about beauty looks of London Fashion Week was the natural-looking grey wigs on the JW Anderson catwalk.
“This is about embracing the beauty of grey hair,” says senior stylist Tasha.
Alfie liked how the look contrasted with the more polished runway looks: “It's very natural in terms of both texture and colour, as opposed to coloured and blow dried hair.”
Matilda explains how the bouncy volume is created: “The nice thing about this cut is the layering on the top. That cutting technique gives a more rounded curly look.”
Blow drying with a diffuser and scrunching the hair with a strong hold curl cream helps to define the curls.
5. The 20th-century braids
At the Simone Rocha show, models with middle-parted bobs had rows of delicate braids plaited on each side.
“I like how they did a 20th century take on the classical square bob,” says Tasha.
“It’s very modern, but at the same time it's easily recognisable with around the ear braids. You’d definitely need some help if you wanted to try this look at home.”
Matilda suggests a combination of products to create the high-shine look: “Use serum first, blow dry it in, then you can add another layer of serum or shine spray. It's all about making it hydrated without it getting too greasy.”
6. The wet look waves
There was a vintage 1920s vibe on the Tolu Coker runway, where hair was styled in finger waves with a super glossy wet-look finish.
“I feel like this trend is on the rise,” Matilda says. “Last week we had two people who came into the salon wanting a wet look for their hair for a night out.”
Celebs are partly responsible, Alfie says: “It's the Kardashian effect, the 'just got out the shower' look.”
To get the Tolu Coker look you’ll need a generous helping of hair gel, or you could soften the 1920s curl style, Matilda suggests: “The modern take of it is directional tonging, so the hair all goes the same way so you get that soft wave.”
From the runway to real life
In the past, every model at a fashion show would have the exact same hair style, but nowadays there’s more individuality on the catwalks, meaning you don’t have to copy a trend strand for strand.
The looks we’ve seen at the latest London Fashion Week will continue to influence hair trends for months (or even years) to come, so who knows, maybe one of this season’s look will grown on you.
Feel like switching up your style inspired by the catwalks? Book a fashion-forward cut with one team at Paul Edmonds London.