Both TikTok & NYFW Are Obsessed With This Season’s Top Hairstyle Trend

There are some hairstyles that merge the delectable combo of being relatively easy to DIY while still feeling elevated and fashion-forward, allowing the fantasy of a runway show to feel attainable from the comfort of your own home. Such is the allure of the braided ponytail, which is already proving to be a major beauty trend on the New York Fashion Week Spring/Summer 2023 catwalks. And if your TikTok and Instagram feeds are any indication, this latest boost to the hair look proves that braids will be everywhere for the foreseeable future.

While a low, loose ponytail became a popular trend for the F/W ‘22 season, appearing at Sergio Hudson, PatBo, and BRONXANDBANCO, among others, there is a much more dramatic and sartorial feeling to the braided option at the shows this time around. Whether you want a super sleek and gelled to the heavens option, as seen at Proenza Schouler, or you’d prefer to play around with length and colorful accents like the playful butterfly-inspired hair at Collina Strada, there is so much versatility to a braided ponytail that it can really work for any hair type and texture.

With many more shows coming up at New York Fashion Week S/S ‘23, prepare to see plenty of braided styles to choose from as your new fall hair inspiration. Keep scrolling for some of the top braided ponytails from this season.

Collina Strada

“Collina Strada is very playful and mixes a lot of different colors. We brought this into the hair with show-stomping moments,” said Evanie Frausto, lead hairstylist for Bumble and bumble who created the hair looks for designer Hilary Taymour’s latest collection. Featuring colorful accents like lime green and bubblegum pink on the roots and ends for some models (which Frausto used clay to achieve) many of the models sported jaw-dropping floor length braids that trailed along the wooden runway.

Hair was prepped using Hairdresser’s Invisible Oil Heat/UV Protective Primer or Thickening Spray to create an air-dry wet texture. To finish, Thickening DrySpun Texture Spray was used at lineup, right before the show.

And while a braided ponytail that touches the floor might not be the most wearable hairstyle for everyday, it does inspire the possibility of using extensions to achieve a more dramatic effect for fall.

Proenza Schouler

The hair at Proenza Schouler S/S ‘23 featured the ever popular wet hair look that has become ubiquitous on the runways over the last few seasons, in addition to a tight, low braided ponytail that trailed down the backs of a handful of models. The hair was slicked and smooth with a high shine finish that complemented the knit separates and sheer lace ensembles perfectly.

Deity

Whoever said braids are boring obviously hasn’t seen the stunning hair looks at Deity S/S ‘23, where contrasting ribbons gave the models’ hair plenty of glamour and intrigue on the runways.

Sandy Liang

To compliment the ‘90s-inspired glam by Ilia, the team at Sandy Liang created a stunning twist braid with a super sleek base, rose hair accessories, and bedazzled barrettes.

Kim Shui

Kien Hoang, Oribe Principal Artist of Global Design, interpreted the collection’s inspiration — female warriors, the four ancient beauties of China and the traditional dress of Hmong people — to create two sculptural braid looks. He used Oribe Gel Sérum Radiance, Shine and Hold and Supershine Light Moisturizing Cream to the lengths of the ponytail to keep them sleek and glossy and then finished the braids with the Oribe Superfine Hairspray to lock in the style.

Looks like we’ll be seeing this simple yet sophisticated look everywhere in the season ahead.

More to come...