Waterfall Bangs Are The Tantalizing Textured Hair Trend For Summer 2024
We've got the refreshing summer 2024 hair trend for you; waterfall bangs! Yep, waterfall bangs, or waterfall fringe as it's lovingly called, is making a comeback from summer 2023 to give us another dose of flattering hair beauty. If you don't remember the trend from hot weather's past, allow us to remind you. Waterfall bangs are essentially choppier bangs that are slightly longer at each side to frame the face. Essentially, think of it as a mix of eyelash bangs (for the length and wispiness) and graduated bangs (because of the longer sides). There's also a little curtain bang in there due to the length of the ends, as waterfall bangs tend to fall around the cheekbone. What you're left with is a somewhat low-maintenance cut that essentially mirrors a waterfall, because of the way it naturally flows and finishes at different lengths.
The best part is that waterfall bangs look great on all hair types. It adds texture and blends seamlessly into the rest of the hair, so they can soften up many cuts. Although, as with most bang cuts, you'll still need to make sure you're getting regular trims, the great thing about waterfall bangs is that they're meant to be long and imperfect. Because of that, you may find this bang style easier to maintain than something like a straight blunt bang, which needs to be regularly trimmed to keep its blunt edge.
What to ask your hairdresser for if you want waterfall bangs
Ready to take the plunge (pun intended) and get waterfall bangs? "Request a layered fringe with longer pieces towards the outer perimeters of the face that will frame it, and ask for them to be styled in a rounded shape," Milk + Blush's hair guru Alice Dawkins explained to Metro. She also recommended a trip to the salon and trusting a pro for this one, because the different lengths involved can make it tricky to get right when cutting your hair yourself.
It's also a good idea to ask a professional for the exact type of waterfall bangs that will suit you most, as the length differs based on your face shape or hair texture. When it comes to the latter, Jenna Spino, a hairstylist at Maxine Salon, explained to Real Simple, "On finer hair, they can make look fuller because the layers can create more volume in front. On thicker hair, they can break up some of that weight the front may carry."
Dawkins also noted that waterfall bangs are particularly great for people with heart-shaped or square faces or those with larger foreheads. That's because this bang style helps to highlight the cheekbones and eyes, because of its more curved line and the way it sits just above the eyelashes and cheekbones. However, with that said, because waterfall bangs are such a versatile cut, they really can suit any and every face shape.
How to style waterfall bangs
Once you've got waterfall bangs cut into your hair, from here on out it's all about styling the cut to get it to look its most flattering. One of the best and easiest ways to style this kind of cut is with a round brush. The bigger the round brush, the better when it comes to creating voluminous and textured waterfall bangs, which is perfect if you're looking to emulate a look like Rihanna's stylist Priscilla Ono showed off on Instagram in April.
You'll want to add a dollop of mousse (how much will depend on the thickness and length of your hair, as thick, long hair will need a little more) and then blow dry it using the round brush. The Dyson Airwrap or Shark FlexStyle with a brush attachment is also great for this style. You may find it even helps to alternate between blow-drying the bangs upward (i.e. wrapping your locks around the round brush towards the ceiling) and downward to create volume and get the longer ends to fall in a more flattering, natural-looking way around the face. Finish things off with some texturizing spray for that extra bit of zhush.