Anyone else used to sleep with your hair in braids so you'd wake up with curls, back in the '90s? Looked a little like this:
Man, they were uncomfortable. But not so uncomfortable that you wouldn't do it. Like all things '90s, I'm confident kinky waves will come back at some point. I even did a photo shoot with crimped hair last year. It was cute, too!
Christian Siriano applied the "bedtime braids" technique during his Fall/Winter 2011 show, styled by Aveda, a couple weeks ago. According to a report released by Aveda, Siriano was inspired by "the graceful beauty of orchid flower petals" and "natural elegance."
Sounds good to me, especially considering many of the pieces in his mostly black collection mirrored flowers — a fit-and-flare skirt that curved and belled out like blooming petals, billowy tulip-cut skirts and oversized, scrunchy rosettes covering shoulder to thigh.
To achieve this flowery look, Aveda stylists started off the same way you and I did back in 1994, save for a few additional sets of hands.
Divide the hair into sections and start braiding. It's so much easier when someone else does it, isn't it?
And if you're in a big enough hurry, someone else'll do your makeup at the same time.
Ah, a model's life.
Aveda's stylists tied a knot at the end of each braid, which seems cumbersome. Aren't regular hair ties way easier?
Next comes the flat iron. Gotta heat up those braids! The model's weren't exactly able to sleep in them for eight hours like back in the day.
Next, they pulled apart the braids, lightly brushed them, and got to work with some hair spray.
I love all the kinks! The straight/wavy/straight effect is pretty cool. It looks awesome brushed out.
Works on short hair too. Hmm ... maybe I should give it a try?
I like when it's kind of faint like this too. Just a hint of texture.
Of course, the rest of your look has to correspond. This style could slip into Amish territory if you're not careful.
But overall, it's sexy.
Here's Mr. Siriano with his models.
Man, he's short. And here are a couple unnecessary celebrity shots, just for fun.
Mena Suvari, looking oddly like a country-western singer.
And the lovely Alexa Chung, desired best friend of every down-to-earth fashion girl. (alexa, call me already!)
Nice work, Aveda.
It's almost time for bed, which now has me thinking about braids. I think I'll save 'em for a weekend experiment. I'm not quite ready to throw myself into '90s hair. Not yet.
Photos courtesy of Aveda Corporation.
