Kate Middleton's Hairstylist Reveals How to Recreate Her 'Effortlessly Chic' Tucked-Back Look
Max Mumby/Indigo/Getty Kate Middleton
Kate Middleton's hairstylist is revealing how to get her "grown-up chic" 'do.
When Kate, 40, handed out an award on behalf of Queen Elizabeth at the Design Museum in London earlier this month, she traded her signature bouncy blowout for a straight style with her face-framing pieces pulled back. The Duchess of Cambridge's personal hairstylist Richard Ward is now breaking down what went into the tucked behind the ear look.
"This was grown-up chic to die for," Ward said in a column for the Daily Mail. "Pulling the Duchess's hair back like that opened up her face, showing off her gorgeous bone structure in a striking manner. Her jewelry popped, and so did her eyes."
Ward added, "She's already so beautiful, but this style elevated her good looks to a glamorous whole other level."
Although the style seems as if it's just tucking back the front strands of hair around the face, Ward warns "don't be fooled by how effortlessly chic this hairstyle seems." He said that in fact, the process takes 90 minutes of "painstakingly getting it all just so."
Max Mumby/Indigo/Getty Kate Middleton
Ward said the key is a good blow dry with "any last kink or hint of frizz smoothed out with products and hair straighteners" then gelling or waxing the hair into place "one small section at a time."
He advised that uncooperative strands can be tamed by going over them with a comb covered with hairspray. And for long or thick hair, the front sections can be tied with a ponytail holder at the nape of the neck, which will be hidden by the hair on top.
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A loyal client of Richard Ward for more than a decade, Kate was a college student dating Prince William when she first started going to Ward's eponymous salon, situated just off London's King's Road.
Ward famously styled Kate's hair for her 2011 wedding to Prince William, perfectly a demi-chignon for her walk down the aisle.
"When she walked back into Buckingham Palace and her hair was all still in place, I cannot tell you the relief we all felt!" the hairdresser later told PEOPLE.
Chris Jackson/Getty Prince William and Kate Middleton on their wedding day in 2011
Despite millions around the world watching the nuptials, Ward also recalled that he has "seen brides far more nervous that Catherine!"
"She was fantastic — she kept us calm, not the other way round!" he said.
