Top 5 Hair Trends for Autumn/Winter 2023

Tom Smith, dubbed “The Hairvoyant” of the hair industry has unpicked and predicted the “it” trends for the upcoming months. Tom is an international Artist in residence at Billi Currie, Artist at Olaplex and International Creative Colour Director at Evo, his passion for hair is both creative and cerebral, believing a mindful approach to hairdressing can empower and bring purpose to life, truly cementing identity. Unique in his approach, Tom believes hair should be an entirely positive experience with his drive being to help everyone improve their relationship with their hair.

As ‘Barbiecore’ begins its decline, after predictably reaching its peak at the launch of the movie, there’s an eager anticipation for what comes next. Autumn brings in elements of the ‘cosy girl’ aesthetic every year, and the warm iconography of the season inspires with ‘pumpkin spice’ tones and a desire for healthier, toned down hair that needs a revival after a summer of barbie blonde and beach styles.

This year in particular, we’ll be drawing inspiration from ‘The Supermodels’ through to winter – a monumental docuseries set to reach our screens through Apple TV in September. Bombshell Glamour hair has been seen across red carpets throughout the last 18months and this luxurious, bouncy and voluminous aesthetic is set to continue to grow thanks to Cindy and Christy’s influence.

Whenever there is a strong trending aesthetic present, the opposite energy often gains traction – we’re absolutely seeing this emerge in the form of the ‘boy bob’, ‘the velvet crop’ and deeper grungier tones; the antithesis of barbiecore.

‘Quiet Luxury’ or ‘Old Money Glamour’ are fashion trends pioneered by luxury brands like ‘The Row’, who prioritise quality and purity above OTT attention grabbing design, we are seeing this translated into beauty with hairstyles that utilise more classic, elongated or filled out shapes with effortless movement giving us prestige ‘Heir Hair’ - styles born into wealth who’d accept nothing less than a grain of colour comparable to luxury fabric; cashmere, silk and heavy woven wools. Highlights and dimension are blended and blurred, giving an effect that is hard to describe – ‘a new bronde’ surges back to the forefront, alongside ‘nepo blonde’ and a profound appreciation for high quality hair services delivering high quality, and perfectly conditioned hair.

Boy Bob

Celebrity References: Halsey, Elsa Hosk, Chloe Moretz

What is it? A powerful and assertive shape that offers a toughness that mid length hair has been lacking in recent seasons, the boy bob is a winner for those wanting to make a statement but appreciate the practicality of hair swept away from their face, this style works fantastically on straight, wavy or curly hair, thanks to a need for visible styling product that holds the hair in place.

What to ask your stylist for: Cut the length in line with your chin, or the corner of your jaw depending on how bold you want to go. For fine to medium hair textures, keep layering to a minimum as you’ll need to keep the bulk of your hair, but for thicker, wavier or curly hair types layering can help to create the squarer, more androgynous silhouette this style requires.

How to Achieve the Look: Sam McKnight Happy Endings or Olaplex No.6 (applied liberally) will give the weight and definition your hair needs, then layers of Evo Shebang a Bang will add a waxy hold that looks editorial.

Velvet Crop

Celebrity References: Florence Pugh, Emma Corrin, Annabelle Dexter Jones

What is it? We’ve seen plenty of the buzzcut throughout this year and it’s evolving into a new type of ‘suede-head’ style using colour placement to further enhance the look. In order for this to work, the length has to be a little longer – just enough to allow for texture to be created with colour or styling product – or better yet, both!

What to ask your stylist for: When growing out a buzzcut, it helps to create ‘highs and lows’ to allow your hair to get longer in a flattering way, this can be done by tapering the edges to keep things tidy or by flattening the sides while retaining length and softness around the edges of the hairline for a more feminine look.

How to Achieve the Look: Oribe Silverati Illuminating Pomade literally contains particles of Silver that add the most incredible reflective shine with a light-nourished texture.

Shadow Bangs

Celebrity References: Billie Eilish, Rihanna, Nina Dobrev, Victoire De Castellane

What is it? Fringes and bangs have truly become their own stand-alone category, and this fuller, blunt style of fringe has spent a while on the periphery of what is popular in face framing styles, with bottleneck bangs and softer more sweeping options pulling focus. It’s interesting to me that the current growing presence of a full fringe is undeniable and eye skimming ‘shadow bangs’ show an edgier side of sultry for those who like the face framing this style has to offer.

What to ask your stylist for: The currently popular version of a full fringe is eyelash skimming and slightly curved down at the edges while being cut very blunt – monthly fringe trims will be required to maintain this. This shape works best on deeper tones of hair that’s either naturally (or willing to be styled) sleek.

How to Achieve the Look: JVN Blowout Milk will give incredible silky, fluid shine and protection for heat styling this sleek look into place. Try adding a pre-emptive shot of Evo Water Killer Dry Shampoo under your fringe (and keep the travel size in your bag) to avoid dreaded separation or stringy-ness.

High Low Hair

Celebrity References: Lousita Cash, Kerry Washington, Halle Bailey

What is it? This protective style is already long and statement making but the addition of a half-up, messy bun further increases the visual distance between the shortest and longest parts of the hair, giving a statuesque and confident appearance to the wearer. There is a wonderfully practical element to this trend – which often cements a trends popularity – as while extra long and potentially hard to manage, this half up offering keeps the lengths away from the face meaning the best of both worlds – long and statement making, yet comfortable and practical. Also great for a wearer who’d like to give the illusion that they are taller.

What to ask your stylist for: Braids can be traditional, twisted or locked but should max out the practical length and move freely from their base on the scalp to allow for versatility when styling. The amount swept up into a knot can vary depending on the your preference but for the ultimate cheekbone lifting effect draw up the parts of the hair that sit at the temples and above to the crown.

Heir Hair

Celebrity References: Jennifer Lawrence, Anne Hathaway, Suki Waterhouse

What is it? Part of the ‘Old Money’ and ‘Quiet Luxury’ macro trends, ‘Heir Hair’ oozes wealth and opulence. Extra long and extra thick, this is wealth signaling at its finest but not in a loud or boastful way. The texture falls in soft waves without looking like you’re trying too hard but happens to be in the most perfect condition with a grain of colour that is imperceptible, leaving onlookers (even hairstylists) not certain on exactly how it’s been achieved. This, elongated, naturally voluminous style can work on any colour providing it’s not bold or artificial looking but healthy and lustrous hair is a must – the ideal texture is like you had a blowdry two days ago – its still looking cared for, but lost its salon-fresh appearance and sitting a little more kinky than bouncy.

What to ask your stylist for: Very long hair can be subtly shaped and layered but its important to not over-do it. This should be cut with soft lines and not look like its been freshly trimmed but still be healthy and ‘chunky’. We’re looking to avoid too much structure so any face framing or fringe work should be ‘piecey’ and ‘grown out’ looking.

How to Achieve the Look: Living Proof’s fresh feeling ‘Volumising Hair Texture Spray’ will expedite your way to second day ‘lived-in’ looking expensive blowdry hair.