The year marks the true start of a new decade, and yet 2012′s fashion trends are all about revival. True, there is a unique undertone of a modernist style appearing, but take some of the most iconic styles of the 20th century, infuse them with quality, and you’ll find the basis for the dominant styles of 2012.
The year’s hair trends are no different. For fashionisers in 2012, hair is all about revivals and evolution. With styles and colours we’re seeing the best of 2011 reborn, whereas cuts are offering reworked and luxurious revivals of styles that sit perfectly with the year’s clothing trends.
Read on to find out more about the year’s hair trends, including:
And while we’re helping you find out about the latest hair trends: if you’d like to keep up to date with all the latest trends be sure to subscribe to our free fashion newsletter or Fashionising.com’s Facebook fan page.
Men’s styles
2012 men’s hair trends
The page that you’re currently on is dedicated to women’s hair trends for 2012. However, we do also have a page dedicated to men’s hair. If you’re interested in finding out what’s on trend with men’s 2012 hairstyles, follow that link for the full guide.
2012 long hairstyles
Long & bouncy
Described as a gorgeous blow-out the bouncy blow dry gives long hair a groomed, elegant yet relaxed finish. Inspired, in part, by the 70s fashion revival but working across most of 2012′s looks, you can read our guide to the bouncy blow dry for a step-by-step tutorial on getting the look and ensuring that you have the optimum bounce in the roots and the soft waves to frame your face.
Hair type suited to: long straight hair & long wavy hair.
Hair colour suited to: all.
Homemade curls
Both nostalgic and modern, this girlish and quirky hairstyle features many an element of other 2012 hairstyle trends: it has a parting and obvious product definition. Soft and eye-catching, homemade curls give off a laid back air as one of 2012′s long hairstyle trends. Follow the link for a full tutorial as well as tips on what to style the hairstyle with.
Hair type suited to: long straight hair & long wavy hair.
Hair colour suited to: all, though we feature it with blonde hair.
French twist
Given that classic fashion revivals define 2012, it should come as no surprised to find that classic hairstyles also go a long way to defining the year. Equally of no surprise is the fact that the French twist hairstyle features for the year. Click the link for the full how-to and styling tips guide.
Hair type suited to: long straight hair & long wavy hair.
Hair colour suited to: all.
Season suited to: best as a spring / summer 2012 hairstyle
Looped under ponytail
Less of a bun and more of a ponytail that’s been folded and looped under, this hairstyle offers up a mood somewhere between easy and casual, and tightly equestrian. It provided the perfect compliment to Carolina Herrera’s spring runway; as it can to your own outfits. For your own looped under ponytail click the link for the full how-to guide and styling tips.
Hair type suited to: long straight hair & long wavy hair.
Hair colour suited to: all.
Season suited to: best as a spring / summer 2012 hairstyle
Half up Brigitte Bardot hair
It’s so classically sex kitten that we’d hardly limit it to a 2011 hair trend; but this Brigitte Bardot bouffant hairstyle – half up, half out and as sexy or as sleek as you want to make it – is one that sits perfectly with the year’s fashions. This is a modern, understated take that will suit day or night.
Women’s rockabilly hair
It’s the one 2012 hairstyle that’s in for both men and women. Emerging first as a men’s hair trend and now as a women’s, the women’s rockabilly hairstyle plays to the country Americana theme running through some of 2012′s fashion. Seldom subtle, but best worn rough and ready as on Proenza Schouler’s catwalk, you can see that style and all the others by following the link to the guide.
Side pinned waves
Flowing, bouncy waves accessorised by a side-pinned barrette create something of a girlish charm. While long hair works fantastically well for this look – as seen on the spring runway of Sonia Rykiel – this hairstyle can also work for short or mid hair lengths. A collision of forties glamour and seventies relaxed cool, you can create the style for yourself by following our side pinned waves how to guide.
2012 mid-length hairstyles
Retro faux bob
As perfect as a Stepford wife, as ice cool as Betty Draper, as vintage as yesteryear and as modern as tomorrow, 2012′s faux bob hairstyle gives the year a structured, pristine, ‘done’ hairstyle that borrows much from the 60s fashion revival. Read our guide to the faux bob hairstyle for the 6 key steps to making the look your own.
Wet-look chignon
Don’t be afraid to get your hair wet in 2012 – or at least give the impression that it’s wet. Amongst a long list of wet look 2012 hairstyles, this wet look chingon offers up plenty of versatility along with a relaxed feel. Follow the link for a step-by-step tutorial.
Hair type suited to: straight hair, relaxed curly hair & wavy hair.
Hair length suited to: mid-length haircut or long hair.
Hair colour suited to: all colours and complexions.
Piled up and pinned hairstyle
If there’s a middle ground between being stylishly done and carelessly undone, this 2012 women’s hairstyle occupies it. Elegant to a tee, it doesn’t require precision or complex tools (bobby pins are your friend – and lots of them) but it does require a little finesse to pull off that undone-done look of effortless chic. Our guide to the piled and pinned hairstyle takes you through each of the steps.
Hair type suited to: straight hair, relaxed curly hair & wavy hair.
Hair length suited to: mid-length haircut or long hair.
Hair colour suited to: all colours and complexions.
Chignon with side waves
As seasons change, hairstyles are given new twists. This year the always dependable chignon gets reinvented. In this take, it gets a sweeping side part with soft waves on one side, creating a unique effect that varies with the angle you view it from. Visit the step-by-step tutorial on creating the chignon with side waves.
Hair type suited to: straight hair, relaxed curly hair & wavy hair.
Hair length suited to: shoulder length to long hair.
Hair colour suited to: all colours and complexions.
Double French twist
On the spring / summer 2012 runway of Diane von Furstenberg, models emerged with a back-combed crown that swirled back into two mirrored French twists. The effect? A 1960s style bouffant hairstyle that crowns any outfit with an elegant vintage vibe. We call it the double French twist, and that link will take you to a galleries worth of photo inspiration, as well as taking you through the 8 steps needed to getting the twist hairstyle in 2012.
2012 short hairstyles
Mod bob
Short. Voluminous. Messy. This is the 2012 women’s hairstyle that marries a short hair cut with the best of the 1960s fashion revival to create a Mod bob that’s been inspired by the likes of Brigitte Bardot and Twiggy. Follow the link for photo inspiration and a styling tutorial.
Afro hair
With the return of all things 1970s it should come as no surprise to find that the afro sits amongst 2012′s hairstyles. Appearing on the streets and in many a photo shoot, Afro hair is being interpreted for 2012 in a soft and dreamy way. Follow the link for styling inspiration.
Rock crop haircut
Given it has so many devotees, the pixie crop isn’t disappearing from amongst 2012’s haircut trends. But it is being adapted. In the face of the likes of the 1920s fashion revival, we’re seeing the pixie crop deviate into several different styles. There’s the 60s and 70s crops, there’ll be the 20s crop, and, for 2012, there’s the rock crop.
The short haircut for those to whom both the very short fringe (see below) and the rockabilly hairstyle (see above) appeal, the rock crop takes on an androgynous edge in 2012. And it does so for both autumn (fall) / winter and spring / summer 2012 courtesy of Lanvin popularising the haircut on both of its seasonal catwalks.
While in autumn / fall the rock crop haircut is given a rockabilly edge, for spring the haircut sits better alongside the wet look hairstyle (see below).
2012 hairstyles (all lengths)
Women’s side part
Whether you have short or long hair, or something in between, the side part is the fashionable hair parting in 2012. Working across most of the year’s fashion trends, and compatible with a large number of the other hair trends, our guide to the side part for women takes you through the different ways to wear the parting and provides over 80 different photos for styling inspiration.
Wet look hair
Perfectly slick or unceremoniously textured, flowing free or tied up high. A vast number of hairstyles across the spring / summer 2012 runways had one thing in common: they all had a wet-look finish. Read our guide to 2012′s wet look hairstyles to be taken through the key wet hairstyles.
Center part
As the default hair parting for most women it seems somewhat silly to cite a centre hair part amongst 2012’s hairstyles. But bear with us. Hairstyle trends often have more than one element about them, and that’s the case with the centre part in 2012. Suited to all hair colors, the centre part aligns itself with two or 2012’s revival trends: ‘60s fashion and ‘70s fashion for spring / summer 2012.
(Clockwise from top left) long and blonde with a 70s air at Kevork Kiledjian S/S 2012; a center part with 2012′s wet look at Alexander Wang; with a near-shoulder length bob at Luca Luca; with thick and dark hair at Luca Luca.
That means that the centre part continues to be all about long hair and soft waves. Naturally, there are other 2012 hairstyle trends that it aligns itself with and you wouldn’t be amiss to wear a centre part with the likes of the year’s wet and long hairstyle and its in-numerous up-dos.
2012 haircuts
The very short fringe / bangs.
Were it solely down to the costuming of The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo it’d be easy to write this 2012 haircut trend off as far too limited in its demographic appeal to have an impact upon the wider fashion conscious. But with Dragon Tattoo likely to decimate the box office, Rooney Mara’s prime positioning across old and new media, and the fact that Mara has been described as bringing a mainstream sex appeal to the role of Lisbeth Salander, this is one haircut where you can say demographic appeal be damned. After all, if the potential success of the Dragon Tattoo film proves anything it’s that the mainstream is now far broader. Hence the H&M x Dragon Tattoo clothing collection. Hence this short fringe / bangs.
Rooney Mara in Vogue magazine
Working across a number hair colors, though obviously a better fit with dark colored hair, the very short fringe / bangs needn’t have any demographic connotations at all. It all comes down to face shape. Keep the cut really short with a smaller forehead or a little bit longer, ala Bettie Page, if that’s what works better for you.
As if to prove both the latter point and the fact that the demographic limitations simply don’t exist with this really short fringe, you’ll find its a haircut that has also featured well away from the world of well-worn leather and umpteenth piercings. Model Aymeline Valade took the short fringe / bangs to the John Galliano spring / summer 2012 catwalk, and did so with a distinct level of modern elegance.
Very short bangs on Aymeline Valade
2012 hair accessories
Headscarf / hair wrap
With a new year comes new hair trends, and with new hair trends come a lust for new accessories. In 2012 the head scarf gets revived in a number of ways, from the retro-chic of vintage styles to the exotic appeal of the head wrap.
Read our guide to the head scarf / hair wrap at that link.
2011 long hairstyles
Double hair knot
There’s been a fixation of late for hair trends for long hair to have an effortless appeal to them: the double hair knot 2011 hair trend builds on that appeal. As simple as it sounds, this is a hair trend that can be worn in 2011′s autumn (fall) / winter seasons along with the year’s spring / summer seasons. Click the previous link to find out more, along with ‘how to style it’ tips and product recommendations.
Braided topknot
With 2011′s hair trends dominated by hairstyles as opposed to particular cuts, it’s should come as no surprise to see that braids remain on trend. In 2011, however, the begin to fuse with other popular hairstyles, in this case the topknot. Click to find out more about the braided topknot including a detailed how-to guide, and a look at the catwalks that inspired it.
Half up braided hair
The side braid mightn’t be 2011′s hair braid of choice, but something with braids pulled to the side had to replace it. An effortless option comes to us with two braids in the form of the half up braided hairstyle. Made to be worn with an effortless attitude, follow the link for our how to guide to this 2011 long hairstyle.
Bird’s nest bun
By no means is this already a full blown 2011 hairstyle trend, nonetheless this is a look that moved with immediacy from the spring 2010 and pre-fall 2011 catwalks to the red carpet. And there it may remain as a 2011 hairstyle trend for that special event, despite the fact that it has the key element of all 2011 hair trends: an effortless look. Read more on the bird’s nest bun / powderpuff, including a detailed how to, by following the link.
2011 short hairstyles
Waved bob
You’ll see in the 2011 haircut trends section below that the bob is back for 2011, though specifically with a fringe. For those who want or already have a bob haircut the question becomes how to style it in 2011. Taking the lead from the waved hair trends of 2010, the waved bob hairstyle is one of the on-trend ways to style a longer bob (again the trend length) in 2011. Click to read about 2011′s waved bob along with a simple how-to guide.
2011 haircuts
When it comes to picking your haircut for 2011 there’s one thing you need to know: the year’s fashion is all about revivals. Revivals of the 60s, revivals of the 70s, and revivals of more recent looks. And as it is for fashion, so too is it for 2011′s haircuts.
In 2011 the most on trend haircuts take their influences from the 20th century, with short haircuts influences by the 1960s and mid-length haircuts influenced by the 1970s. Read on for more information on 2011′s haircut trends.
Fringe / bangs
Hair trends tend to come and go, but not so for this 2011 women’s hair cut trend, which is experiencing a major resurgence. Last a major trend in 2007 / 2008 this hair cut detail had died off by 2010, which was a year in which hair trends were dominated by hairstyles as opposed to hair cuts. But in 2011 it’s back as an overarching hair cut trend, one that can be worn with nearly all of the year’s hair colour and hair style trends. Find out more about fringes / bangs for 2011.
2011 medium length haircuts
Bob with fringe / bangs
The bob is back, is reinterpreted and is re-imagined. Yes, it last with us only a few short years ago, but as a 2011 haircut the is longer and sports a fringe / bangs. As a 2011 hairstyle the bob is softer and more retro-inspired, having been infused with a 60s backcombing and a 70s soft, rounded shape. To find out more about the bob with bangs / fringe as a 2011 haircut and hairstyle, follow the link.
2011 short haircuts
Pixie crop haircut
Recently hair trends have moved in three year cycles, and it’s no different for 2011′s hair trends. Hence we see yet another evolution of this short hair style as it reverts to the same short length that was last popular in 2007. In 2010 it was a haircut all about short sides and a longer fringe, as a 2011 haircut though the pixie crop is short all over – find out more by following the link.
2011 hair colors
Choosing a 2011 hair colour
Normally Fashionising.com’s annual hair trends guide lists individual colours to inspire you. 2011 is no different. But there is a twist. You see, 2011 hair colours are about more than individual shades with picking a new hair colour for yourself being a trend in itself. And we’re not talking about any change of shade, but a dramatic, head turning change. Hence 2011′s hair colour is just change it. Read our guide on picking a 2011 hair colour to find out more.
White blonde
With 2011′s hair all being about strong cuts and colours the strongest of blonde hair colours was always going to feature. And so it is that with models such as Siri Tollerod pushing the look white blonde / platinum blonde features as one of the hair colour trends for 2011, with it being a particularly strong look for the spring / summer 2011 season.
Red hair
Deserving of its own dedicated article, redheads are, in 2011, the new bombshells. Being a rare hair colour puts redheads into their own exclusive group; but that doesn’t mean you can’t join them. Seen throughout history as everything from fiery warriors to seductive maidens, red haired beauties have plenty of ongoing appeal. Read more on the redhead hair colour trend – who should try it, and how to style it.
