But what’s with the obsession when you break it down? The chop’s appeal is in the swishy, sexy, volume it can add (which is one of the reasons it’s perfect for strands that are prone to deflating throughout the day) and the full, thick and flicky ‘70s shape has dominated on TikTok, with over 3 billion views on the platform.
Word from top stylists is: it remains one of the most requested chops in the salon. “Curtain bangs [or curtain fringes] will continue to go strong throughout the year,” LA’s coolest hair stylist and trendsetter, Sal Salcedo, told GLAMOUR. People are still bring endless curtain bang inspo to their salon appointments and putting their own stamp on them.
What are curtain bangs?
For the uninitiated, curtain bangs are sweeping bangs that — as the name suggests — frame your face, much like a curtain does a window. The look has roots in the ’60s and ’70s, where they were made popular by the likes of Jane Birkin and Brigitte Bardot, and they work across a range of textures and styles, from messy waves to curly shags, sleek blowouts and high ponytails.
As for anatomy, a curtain bang is a graduated fringe. It’s usually worn centre-parted and starts shorter in the centre, then gets longer towards the perimeter of the face. “It should start mid-way between the eyebrows and the bridge of the nose, then have more length at the sides,” explains celebrity hair stylist and ColorWow international creative director, Dom Seeley.
Depending on how heavy you get it cut, it can feel ultra swooshy or barely there. Either way, you should be able to tuck it back into the rest of your hair when it’s up, or tease it forward when you want more volume. “It has a flowy vibe. It’s not a solid bang or fringe, but it’s also not just face framing. It’s somewhere in the middle and it suits the majority of hair lengths too,” says Dom.
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Are curtain bangs high maintenance?
As hairstyles go, this one’s pretty chill. Curtain bangs are one of the most effortless fringe styles to wear since you can tailor them to you and your lifestyle. “Curtain bangs are the gateway to bangs, because they’re super versatile,” says Emily Heser, stylist at Cutler Salon in New York City. “They’re long enough to grow out or pin back if you want, but they can also be cut into a shorter look.” The style has steadily become both a celebrity and TikTok favourite for its easy-going vibe.
