By Gritty Pretty
@gritty_pretty
Look past the furry brows and effervescent personality and you’ll notice that Cara Delevingne possesses a glorious mane. It’s underrated, really.
In our minds, no one does sleek hair better. Maybe Kate Bosworth – though, that’d be no coincidence since celebrity hair stylist Peter Gray names both women as clients. Oh and let’s not forget Rihanna. He does her hair too.
While Gray was in town for Melbourne’s Hair Expo, we asked the international stylist what there is to the super wearable, polished style.
Tip 1.
Healthy hair is easier to coax into a sleek state
“Both hair health and styling play equal parts in having sleek hair,” Gray shares. “Healthy hair is much easier to coax into a sleek state,” he adds, with a recommendation to use a nourishing oil treatment (TRY: L’Oréal EverSleek Precious Oil Treatment) as part of your haircare routine if you aren’t already.
Tip 2.
Different hair textures need to be treated differently
We then push him (verbally) for specifics. Cara D-type specifics. What tools do you use? What products? Name names, please and thank you.
The key, he says, is determining your hair texture (e.g. fine, thick, stupidly frizzy). On fine hair (like Kate Bosworth’s) he uses the Moroccanoil Heat Styling Protection spray and on more unruly hair types, like Cara’s or Rihanna’s, he’ll also add Moroccanoil Original Oil Treatment in Light through the mid-lengths and ends. Then, Gray takes a blow-dryer to the hair and uses a boar bristle brush to guide and smooth strands through.
Tip 3.
If you’ve got fine hair, use product and blast hair dry upside down
What about fine-haired gals who can’t get volume for volume’s sake. How can they get sleek hair without it sticking flat to their scalps?
“In this case, I would start with some volumising mousse at the roots (TRY: John Frieda Luxurious Volume Perfectly Full Mousse), and then blast it dry with the head upside down until the roots are completely dry, then continue as normal with a flat brush.”
Tip 4.
Opt for a blow-dryer instead of a flatiron
You’d think sleek hair would involve running a GHD up and down your strands a few times. Not to say that doesn’t work, but Gray completely omits flat ironing from his process and opts for a blow-dryer for softness and volume (TRY: Philips Pro Hair Dryer).
Start at the nape and then move upwards, working in manageable sections, he instructs.
Tip 5.
Manage fly-aways and frizz
“Fly-aways and frizz are caused generally by hair that is split or dehydrated, akin to skin flaking,” explains Gray, “so the only solution is a moisturising treatment and in extreme cases to get a trim.”
His quick fix if you’re pressed for time? “I use is a combination of a small amount ofHydrating Styling Cream and Treatment Oil in the palm of my hands and then smooth it over the surface to reduce fly aways”.
