How To: Styling Bettie Bangs

A few days ago I went and got a Bettie bangs style fringe cut.  For those who don’t know, Bettie bangs are named for the icon who made them famous: burlesque girl Bettie Page.

Unlike other fringes, Bettie bangs curve up at each temple into a characteristic u-shape.  This can make styling them a little difficult.

This short how-to focuses on how I get my new fringe to sit nicely.  This is on freshly washed hair that’s been left to air dry.

Step One:

Use a fine tooth comb to comb your fringe forward.  Tuck the rest of your hair behind your ears, out of the way.  If your hair is fine, spray and rub in some dry shampoo or texturising powder now.

Step Two:

Spray your fringe with a heat protection styling spray.  I’m using Elnett Satin Styling Spray (about AU$10 from Chemist Warehouse)

 

Step Three: 

Using a small diameter curling iron (mine is 1 inch), curl 1 inch wide sections of hair horizontally.  Make sure the clip is on top of your hair and curl the hair under.  Hold for as long as necessary for your hair to hold the curl.  Continue until all sections are curled.  It’ll look pretty funny!

Step Four:

Using your fine tooth comb, comb your hair from underneath then from on top, pulling it gently into place.

Step Five: 

Once your hair is where you want it, spray it with hairspray (I’m using Tresemme Freeze Hold – about AU$7 from Chemist Warehouse).  Using the flat of your comb, push up and hold the ends of your hair in place while the hairspray dries, if needed.

And you’re done!  Add clips, a scarf, bandanna or flowers as desired.  What I love about this new haircut is that even when the rest of my hair is unstyled, I can achieve a retro look just by styling my fringe like this (and yes, the rest of my hair is still damp in these photos)