Crimped hair mania: the edgy ‘zig-zag’ trend

One of the most popular trends of the 80s and 90s is back this summer. The crimped hairstyle, also known as frisé, or hair in tight waves with a zig-zag effect. We remember this hair trend being sported by celebrities such as Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera and Tyra Banks, past vibes now destined to return to the catwalk during fashion week. However, these new waves are revisited in a 2.0 key, with a voluminous, almost Hollywood effect. Of all of them, the frisé trend is able to take us back to adolescence, when we all hoped for the magic of 30 in a second. How many of us wished to be Aguilera in Lady Marmelade, and to sport this well-known hairstyle first made famous in 1974, by Barbra Streisand.

The crimped hairstyle can give incredible volume to hair, especially if it is straight, and is easy to achieve with suitable hair straighteners or naturally – without damaging the hair – with very simple braids to be kept in place and then unravelled for a look worthy of Cindy Lauper and Carmen Electra in their heyday. In fact, using heat directly on the hair, especially in summer, can put the hair at risk. To avoid this, it is useful to protect it before styling with appropriate products such as heat-protecting sprays.

We have lived through profoundly minimal eras, and never could we have imagined that this trend symbolising excess would be back in vogue. Above all, the 1980s and 1990s represented two decidedly strong decades for the entire fashion system, under the banner of daring looks far removed from the concept of less is more.

THE FRISÉ HAIRSTYLES OF BRITNEY SPEARS, TYRA BANKS, CHRISTINA AGUILERA, KELLY OSBOURNE, BEYONCÉ AND CARMEN ELECTRA