Wedding season is officially in full swing and that means planning the perfect look for your loved one’s special day. Sounds simple, but it never is. You have to plan your outfit, accessories and of course, what to do with your hair!

Not to worry. Whether you’re a hairstyle pro or a no-fuss kind of gal, we’ve got you covered with these on-point but easy to manage styles that are picture perfect for any event.

The One-Sided Wave

I love this style for so many reasons! It’s super easy to do, it’s very romantic, you can shake it around on the dance floor, it works with any length or texture, it’s flattering for any facial shape, and chances are you already know how to do flat iron waves with your hair. If you don’t, stay tuned for our video tutorial…

So if you’re stretched for time, you want something very easy to achieve, or you’re going for a simple but elegant look, dress up your waves with a dramatic side part and sweep them over to one side.

What you’ll need:

• A flat iron or curlers
• A paddle brush
• Bobby pins (preferably in a shade that’s close to your hair colour)
• Finishing hairspray

There are so many ways to put a curl in your hair. I tend to prefer the flat iron because I’m partial to loose, beachy waves, but you might want to use rollers if you want your curl to really stay. Hot rollers will set a curl that lasts for days. Magnetic rollers are great if you want to let your hair set for an hour while you do your makeup and get ready. It’s completely up to you! Whichever way you do your wave, don’t worry about where your hair’s part is, just be sure to spray your hair with a light hairspray before you curl it for extra hold.

Once you have your waves, determine where you want your part to be. For this style, you’ll want a side part so take wherever your usual side part is and exaggerate that by at least an inch. The deeper the side part the better because the whole look is swept over to one side.

Once you have your deep side part, take a paddle brush and sweep straight back from the hairline to just about the nape of the neck. Go straight back, not back and up, then secure the hair with a bobby pin.

Depending on how much hair you have and where your part is, you may have to do this again.

I personally like to do either an X to secure the pins or an exaggerated row of 5-7 bobby pins to secure the hair from the back of the ear to the nape of the neck because it looks intentional. Rather than hiding the bobby pins, you can play them up.

Once the bobby pins are in place, spray all over with finishing spray. You can add volume and a bit of edge by back-combing or scrunching the loose side, or leave your curl as is for a more perfectly polished and minimalist look.

The Full-Body Ponytail

I love taking everyday styles and making them formal. I also really think that the ponytail is seriously underrated. This tight, slick-back, full-volume ponytail is the epitome of elegance (with a wild side).

It’s a little bit more difficult than The One-Sided Wave explained above but still relatively easy to do. You’ll need medium to long hair to pull it off, but it’s extremely versatile. You can wear it with pretty much anything. It’s formal but simple, and just a little sassy.

What you’ll need:

• Styling foam/mousse
• Liquid gel
• Finishing hairspray
• A paddle brush
• Hair ties

You’re going to need a bit of mousse, a little bit of gel, and a lot of hairspray. The key to a full body pony is to start with a wave. All of the volume in the back is going to come from the curl that you put into your hair beforehand. If you want a big, dramatic ponytail, put a big curl in your hair and make sure that’s completely set and cooled before you start styling.

Next, gather your hair loosely and put it up into a ponytail wherever you prefer it to sit. The higher the better in my opinion, but you might prefer it a little lower. This style works either way.

With your hair tied back, run 2-3 pumps of styling foam over the hair from the hairline to the base of the pony, smoothing it all over the front, sides, and back.

Let it dry for a moment and take the ponytail out. You’ve created the general shape of where you want your hair to sit; now take the paddle brush and brush your hair back into the ponytail again to smooth everything over and create a nice, tight ponytail, and affix it with your elastic. I recommend putting the ponytail in as tight as you can.

Once you have your ponytail secure, take a bit of gel and smooth it over the hair from the hairline to the base of the ponytail to slick everything back and secure it firmly in place.

Spray your entire crown generously with finishing spray. Then spray the pony by gathering all of the hair in your hand, lifting everything straight up in the air, and letting go slowly to fan it out as you spray.

To add volume and thickness to the ponytail, lift the top section and set it to the side and back comb just a little near the base of the pony for a lift or all the way down to the ends of the hair for lots of drama. Smooth the top section over again to top it off.

Pro tip: If your hair is too short for a long, full ponytail you can fake it! Create a high pony by gathering the top half of the hair at the top of the ears and drawing backward as if you were doing a half up/half down look. Gather the remaining hair and create a second ponytail in the center at the back of the head. The high pony will conceal the lower pony and the lower pony will add the illusion of length.

The Centre-Part Top Knot

This is such an elegant style. It’s Audrey Hepburn with a modern twist. If your hair is long enough for a ponytail then you can achieve this look. The most difficult part is putting your hair in a bun while retaining the center part.

What you’ll need:

• Bobby pins or hair clips
• Styling foam/mousse
• A paddle brush
• Hair ties

Start by spreading styling foam throughout dry hair from root to tip. Next, find your center part and use your paddle brush to smooth it down tight to the head. Tuck the hair behind the ears. Secure your center part and hold it in place by using a bobby pin or hair clip on each side.

With your center part securely in place, take your paddle brush and brush your hair up from the back. Starting from the nape of the neck and working your way forward, brush all of your hair into a high ponytail using the paddle brush, securing the hair along the crown as close to the scalp as possible. Keep in mind that as you brush your hair up and into the high pony, your center part will become shallow, only extending about 1.5 to 2 inches from the hairline. Be mindful not to disturb the center part for now. Secure the high ponytail with a hair tie.

Now take some liquid gel in the palm of your hand and smooth up along both sides of the head and underneath along the nape of the neck to keep everything nice and slicked back. Take what’s left on your hands and smooth it over the ponytail as well. You don’t necessarily want the top knot to be perfect, but you do want it to be smooth and the gel will help prevent any flyaways throughout the evening.

Next, twist your ponytail tightly until it started to wind around itself creating the top knot effect, and secure that with another hair tie. Use bobby pins to touch up any loose pieces.

Complete with finishing spray all over for shine.

The Mohawk Braid

I’m not going to lie, this is definitely more of an advanced style. The braiding makes it tricky but if you take it step by step and have a good mirror or two on hand to help guide you, you can definitely pull this off. I promise!

The Mohawk Braid gives the illusion that the hair is slicked back into a mohawk using a big messy braid for height and texture. I love this style because it looks professionally done no matter what. It’s meant to be messy, so it’s very forgiving. It gives you great volume and it’s glamourous. It works on all hair types except super short hair. In fact, it’s one of the only technical up-dos that I would recommend to a wedding guest. After all, you don’t want to overshadow the bride!

What you’ll need:

• Hair ties
• Bobby pins
• Styling foam/mouse
• Finishing spray

Start by pulling a small amount of mousse evenly through dry hair from root to tip. Take the front 2 inches along the hairline and pull the section up into a small ponytail at the front of the head. Allow the mousse to dry here for a couple of minutes.

Next, gather hair in 1-inch sections on either side of your head and pull it up and into the centre to make another small ponytail directly behind the first section that you’ve tied up. Work your way backward creating small, tight ponytails at the top of the head. When you’re finished you will have about 6 or 7 small ponytails going all the way from the hairline to the nape of the neck.

Now start from the top and braid the ponytails so that they blend together like a French braid to create a single braid that runs along the back of the head and down the neck. It’s important to keep everything nice and tight while you’re braiding your ponytails together (for now!) and leave your elastics in. I always recommend using an elastic that’s similar to your hair colour so it’s easy to conceal.

Once you have a nice tight braid, use your fingers to pull out small sections from the braid to start giving it a loose and romantic effect. Skip the comb and don’t use utensils for this – you want the sections that you pull out to be nice and big and not too perfect. Use your mirror every step of the way for this and go by how it looks.

Use hairspray or finishing spray to add some shine and hold everything where it belongs all night long!