Hair how to: Prada FW15 by Guido for Redken

“Insanely pretty” is the only way I can think of to describe the hair look that Redken Global Creative Director Guido created for the Prada Fall/Winter 15 collection at Milan Fashion Week, it really was a dream. It’s also a look that I can see being rocked more than regularly by long haired girls who like a little glam, and the accessories that sealed the deal were just perfection.

Putting a twist on the classic Prada look, Guido created a young, sophisticated updo adorned with beautiful jewelled barrettes for the runway show in Milan, and each and every model looked more than happy to be wearing it. Recreating the look from Prada’s Men’s show, Guido used Redken’s Stay High 18 High-Hold Gel To Mousse (not available until June in New Zealand) and Redken Fashion Work 12 versatile working spray to pull the hair into a high, tight updo. Then, he hand-placed Prada’s bejewelled barrettes on each model for the perfect finishing touch.

“The look at Prada this season is really a redux of the hair that I created at the Men’s show, but this version is a little bit cleaner and very young, but in a sophisticated way,” said the stylist. He said – not unexpectedly – that there’s always an “off-ness to the classic beauty of Prada, and that’s the feeling that we achieved with this style. It has a slightly 50’s or 60’s kind of feeling, which is always Prada-like, but it’s still very modern and sort of futuristic”.

He used Redken’s Stay High 18 High-Hold Gel To Mousse, “which is a very strong gel to mousse formula, to blow dry the hair up against the roots to pull it into this very high ponytail in the middle of the head. Then, I covered the elastic securing the ponytail with a piece of hair, and flipped the hair over into this little updo, holding it in place with the jewelled barrettes. I finished the style with Redken’s Fashion Work 12 hairspray to clean the hair up and hold the style in place. The loose ends of the ponytail give you that feeling of youngness and easiness, which adds to the modernity of the look.”

To re-create the look at home:

1. Apply a quarter-size amount Redken Stay High 18 High-Hold Gel To Mousse to damp hair and blow dry flat against the head and away from the face

2. Gather hair into a very high, tight ponytail in the middle of the head and secure with an elastic

3. Hide the elastic by wrapping a small section of hair from the ponytail around the band, securing with a small U-shaped pin

4. Section by section, backcomb the ponytail near the elastic to create volume

5. Flip the length of the ponytail to one side and secure with closed fasteners (i.e., bobby pins) and a decorative barrette

6. Finish with a thorough spray of Redken Fashion Work 12 versatile working spray to hold the style and clean up any flyaways

Photos by Lucas Flores Piran for Redken