02 January 2009

Gothic hairstyles, can curly hair look good with your gothic outfit?

Happy new year to everyone! I hope everyone is still commiting to their new year resolutions...Mine is to update this blog more often! (I think you would be happy of hearing that and probably thinking: "about time!" :p)
Anyway, one of my gothic readers was asking me tips for curly hair and I have been thinking and reached the conclusion that I must write a post about it. Does curly hair go with the Goth look? I straighten mine OR I go for the wavy 40s look. But what about the 100%curly hair?
When you think of Goth and then curly hair....what does it come straight to your mine?....Well, Helena Bonham Carter, wh0 is not a good reference because she is a clear example of how not to dress and on top of that, curly hair (which is already difficult to style, in my opinion) emphasizes even more her "tramp-y" look
and it reinforces my theory that curly hair is not a very "gothic" look. It doesn't go with the sophistication and groomness that Goth requires and! very important, is a very warm and "virginal" look (if you think about it, Angels are always associated with blonde little curls) that is completely the opposite of the straight, sharp lines of black raven hair-do.

There are very differents ways to wear curly hair. You can give a romantic/mystic air to it by keeping it long and simple. This way, because of the weight, the curls will be very easy to manage and style and they tend to get bigger. However, prepare yourself to spend long time washing it, drying it and looking after it. It will be so long that the whole experience it might even take you to mystical levels!
This length doesn't tend to get as frizzy as shorter lenghts, however it dries much much easier so you will need to use conditioner in EVERY single washing and I would suggest you to get a very good leave-in serum to apply after every wash. (I like the one by Swartzkopf -a small pink tube, it is very creamy but not greasy). The spray formats don't work, so please, don't even consider buying one. I have tried them all and they are shite, it is like leaving your hair without nothing on it.


For all those corporate Goths or people who can't be arsed to spend an hour in the shower, there are other possibilities to keep the problem to the minimum. Either you can cut it simple (one whole lenght) to your shoulder (just above of it or a bit under BUT never finishing just on the shoulder or it will not fall gracefully because the bone is on the way)
A very good example of this look is the haircut that Michelle Pfeiffer has in Batman Returns, (the look is SO minimal, beginning of 90s, I know!) However, after over a decade, I still like it! Specially, the idea of wearing not soft make up but harsh-feline eyes which kills the cheesyness of the hair-do (I still think that this length could still look a bit early teenage)






Option B is to wear layers. If they are done properly, they will really revive any hair. You see, the problem of wearing one lenght hair (short or long) is that the curls tend to die on the roots (because they can't support the weight) so you look somehow stupid. The secret is to have very big layers (or you will end up looking like a mushroom with hair all over the place) always starting from just under the jar (this way, it's easier to keep under control because you can tie it all in a pony tail or keep it behind your ears with a nice pin).


After all these tips you must be thinking "okay, nice haircuts but I want to look more groomed and sophisticated, what else do I-ve got?"
Well,
option A -the obvious one- is to re-shape your curls professionally, with rollers. That means curlying your hair again. (or you think all those fantastic curls you see on telly are natural? NOOOO! Even Andy Mcdowell has hers done professionally for those adverts. Those curls are too perfect, they don't exist). Obviously, what lots of people do, taking advantage that they can choose a new hairdo, they go for softer and bigger curls, resulting in a retro 1940s look or just very big waves. However, if you still want to keep your small curls, I would suggest a very nice up-do which, in my opinion, are much more impressive with curly hair. I Like the one that Eva Green has. She looks elegant, groomed and gorgeous!

12 comments:

Anonymous said...

I think curly hair can be gothic, but it has to be dark hair.

Ryan said...

What about Vampire Lestat, he has very curly hair.

Anonymous said...

Wow, I am not feeling the curly love here! I am an elder goth with long curly hair. Admitedly I didn't learn how to work with it until I was in my late twenties, but now I get compliments on it all the time - on the street and in the club. Sometimes it is auburn and sometimes it is RED, but always it is beautiful! And, lastly, part of goth is not following the crowd. Seems like pin straight dark hair is following the crowd to me. I learned to love my hair at naturallycurly . com.

Otherwise, love your blog!
~Kris

dawn said...

really a helpful post, thanks for sharing...

Serena said...

well, curly hair is very elegant, so it really depends. What kind of goth are you?
For instance, Victorian goth-would look excellent with curly hair.
romantic goth- would look with braided or wavy hair. I have curly hair, and it's like frizzy and poofy and it looks absolutely scrumptious with almost everything I wear.

TheBlackWardrobe said...

Hi Serena! I am not a Goth! although I love Gothic. I tend to go for the Vamp vintage look. I used to be addicted to straightners and have my hair dead straight like a raven but I got bored of the Mona lisa look. I tend to go for something more romantic and girly nowadays. I love waves. They don't make the hair look liveless and flat and they are easier to control than proper curls.

Anonymous said...

I really think any colour curly hair can often be more gothic than straight black hair. Besides, no need to be so hard on Bonham Carter. It's exactly her trampiness that contrubutes to her gothic look. I like her as Bellatrix in HP, and I'm sure she's got more admirers.

Anonymous said...

I think that curly hair can look gothic. My hair is very curly and some styles I wear it in look really gothic. I also used to be a hair straightening addict but straightening my hair always gave me loads of split ends and my hair went really dry and horrible. Lately I've been getting loads of compliments on my hair and I'm really learning to love it. Oh and I love Helena bonham carter. She is really unique and beautiful she's great in Sweeney Todd her hair is amazing!

Anonymous said...

Goth is a state of being and as a result curly hair etc is perfectly acceptable. Goth is who you are, not what seems to look like it.

As for the 'curly blond locks of angels, that is a cherub not an adult angel.

Scarlett hall said...

I hate the sun

alinne said...

I think that the makeup does all, so you can have any color of your hair. It is true that darker colors have more impact. I just love curly hair.

Anonymous said...

You basically just said that no one of color can be Goth. I have curly hair and I wear it in victorian styles. As for other types of Goth, I don't see how curly hair could possibly look disorganized. It all depends on what look you are going for to begin with. You also lack good examples of curly hair styles that aren't so stereotyical. I believe Goth is what you make it. Not all Goths are white with curly hair, and not all Goths are willing to damage their hair to obtain a constant strait look.

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