How to Tame Your Bangs in the Humidity
Surviving a heat wave during your first summer with bangs is a rite of passage that comes with fringe territory. Good news: there are a few styling tricks and quick fixes that you can incorporate into your hair care routine that will help prevent bangs looking like a halo of frizz above your eyes for the entire season.
To keep you from regretting your decision to finally take the plunge and get the full or wispy fringe you’ve always dreamed of, we turned to two hairstylists for their tips on how to avoid summer’s biggest bang struggles.
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Struggle #1: They Get Oily
SOLUTION: To keep your fringe from looking like an oil slick, Corey Tuttle, Honey Artists hairstylist recommends blasting the underside of your fringe so that when they lay upon your forehead, there's some protection. For a fast and easy fix on the go, the pro suggests keeping a pack of oil blotting papers on hand. Antonio Prieto, founder of Antonio Prieto Salon in New York recommends stashing a travel size dry shampoo in your bag for touch ups.
Struggle #2: Your Travel Plans Conflict with Your Usual Bang Trims
SOLUTION: If your getaways this season fall on your regularly scheduled bang touchups, alter your usual style to keep your bangs from stabbing you in the eyes. Tuttle suggests sweeping your fringe to the side. "This will prevent your bangs from getting sweaty and sticking to your forehead," he says. A little extra length is all that's needed to be able to brush your bangs to the side and secure them with a bobby pin or decorative hair pin.
Struggle #3: Your Frizz is Out of Control
SOLUTION: To prevent your bangs from getting puffy, Prieto recommends prepping your hair before you step out into the humidity to keep it smooth. "Work a styling cream like Shu Uemura's Blow Dry Beautifier Thermo BB cream ($39; shuuemuraartofhair-usa.com), pre-blow dry to combat humidity," he says. "This will create a foundation that will last longer."
Another option is to run a leave-in conditioner through your fringe. Tuttle likes Bumble and Bumble's Lightweight Prep Spray ($25; sephora.com). Follow up with very small amount of an oil like Bumble and bumble's Hairdresser's Invisible Oil ($40; sephora.com) to seal in smoothness.
Struggle #4: You Have Cowlicks
SOLUTION: Stubborn cowlicks can happen in any season, but during the summer parts of your hair that grow opposite the rest of the strands on your head can get even more unruly. The bad news is that there's no real way to prevent cowlicks since they're the hair's natural growth pattern, but you can tame them by learning to work with them. "You can also cut them shorter to blend them into the hair, or grow them long to give weight and manageability to the hair, says Tuttle. "When blow drying, you want to dry the hair with a brush pushing it in one direction, and then after a few strokes, switch and brush the hair in the opposite direction, secure with flat clips that don't leave a mark, or simply wrap with a scarf to hold."
To shave some minutes off of your styling routine, Prieto suggests opting for a mild in-salon keratin treatment, which will last the whole season.
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Struggle #5: Your Thick, Full Fringe Feels Heavy
SOLUTION: If the actual shape of your fringe is contributing to excess forehead sweat and frizz, try altering their shape slightly for the summer. Prieto suggests switching things up by asking for "a long, less-layered bang that will help hold the style longer."
