How to Do a Chignon

Everything around you is ready; the best picked dress, matching shoes, glittering clutch with all the wanted compacts and accessories in it, but I guess the most important part is missing - what have you thought about your hairstyle? There goes down all the excitement. Well don't you sigh! We girls sometimes, never know what is right for an occasion. So, hoping that we often do not land in such situations, I have discovered some easy ways to know how to do a chignon. A chignon is a not too formal but a trendy bun which can be worn on any occasion looking all stylish and still sticking up a feminine look. Doing a chignon is very easy, you can work on long hair as well as short and can tie them tight or loose. You've just got to do it perfectly and believe me, you will still manage to grab all the admiring glances at you.

Accessories Required for a Chignon

Before we move on to learn some easy steps to do a chignon, the basics required for hairstyling are the hair materials and tools that are supposed to be used. Given below are some must-have hair accessories for a hairstyle like chignon.

Hair Accessories

• Hair Brush
• Hairpins/Bands/Sticks
• Hair Mousse/Spray
• Anti-frizz Hair Serum

It goes without saying! These are obviously the highly required hair accessories, which will be used while doing the hairdo. Once we have these read, what's next? Well, it's simply time for some action baby to get you all dressed up with that 'perfect' look, for a party or an event. Come, let's take a look at some helpful steps given below, so that you can start tying a chignon in your hair soon.

Steps to Do a Chignon

Step #1 ~ Hair Wash
Well, I know it is quite obvious for us to think that one is, of course, going to run a head bath before going out for a party or so. You win! Definitely one will. But you have to do it a day before the party or event. Almost all stylists recommend that washing hair a day earlier helps the oils in the scalp to settle down to the hair shaft, which will simply help in smooth brushing of your hair. In this manner, you will have smooth, silky and shiny hair to do the styling.

Step #2 ~ Brush Your Hair
When you learn how to style a chignon, brushing your hair very smoothly is important. Also, this is a decisive step to decide exactly, on which side you would want to part your hair; middle, side or just straight at the back.

Step #3 ~ Styling Materials
Depending upon the hair texture a person has, this is an optional step to know how to do a chignon. If you know that your hair is stalwart and uncompromising for that chignon to look beautiful, you may use some hair care products to make the chignon stay in its place, once it's set up. Try different products on a little section of your hair. Check whether that product suits you and then decide to go ahead with the overall styling. And yes, you will have to avoid making that fuss about your hair looking hay-like, because styling products are going to change the texture to some extent.

Step #4 ~ Making a Chignon

1. Knowing how to style a chignon starts from here. Split your hair into a ponytail, don't pull the ponytail too tight, just form a base to tie a chignon. Divide the ponytail into two parts. Bringing them close together, twist them tightly in the form of a spiral and tie an elastic band at the end of the spiral. Many hairstylists braid the ponytail together to give it a more ornamental look.
2. The next step is, positioning your hands to form a curl. This is a leading point to know how to tie a chignon for your hair. Hold the ponytail in one hand at the nape of the neck, and with your other hand, lift the ponytail or braid few inches above the skull base.
3. Once you achieve the position of the curl, start to curl up the twisted braid/ponytail from the base in the form of a bun to attain an updo hairstyle.
4. Oh! Wait there. It's not finished yet. You will need to pin up the chignon just to keep it in proper place. While you are twisting up the braid/ponytail bit-by-bit, you must keep pinning up the hairdo so that it doesn't fall out of place. For doing this, hold some hair from the chignon and place it to the bunch of hair at the back of your head.

Tips on Hair Products

• For normal long or semi-long hair, use a gel. Quickly and lightly squirt your hair with water and apply little amount of gel to it. Work your way through, making sure you cover the entire head. Just do not use the gel excessively.
• The same procedure can be repeated using mousse.
• Make sufficient use of hairspray on dry hair. It will develop some grip in your hair. And don't forget to shake the can occasionally to avoid ending up with excessive crunchy hair.
• Use soothing serum in case of too thick or wiry hair. It acts as a good holding agent.

Now before I royally conclude and tell you that these were some simple ways of doing a chignon, let me throw some light on the last step of my article (Step #4), i.e., pinning up your chignon using hairpins. Use of hairpins or bands are the most awaited part for women who love to dress perfectly. If you think your party is nice and grand for you to show some of what you have on your plate, probably you can use jeweled hairpins in your chignon, which would match the color of your dress or even your hair. Make sure you press the pin deep inside the bun such that only the sparkling jewels are seen in your hair. Another alternative can be the usage of thin bobby pins. Pinning your hair with a number of pins depends upon the quality of your hair, whether it is thick or voluminous. Also, it depends on the way you want to make it look; either messy or smooth for long hair. And to do a chignon with short hair, it is understood that one will need less number of hairpins in the process. Oh surely, there wouldn't be any compromise, you would still look good even with that short hair, and less-pinned chignon. One last note to press on - use more number of hairpins in the middle section of the bun because that is that part where the entire load of the bun gets added. Some hairstylists even make use of the hair sticks, if you certainly know how to get your way around that thing, go ahead and dress your chignon up with that as well.

And voila! I am done here. Hey, wait a second, before you rush yourself to face your dearest vanity, remember to practice these simple ways to do your own chignon in your spare time. This is, so that you won't be all hyperactive and run around in super-speed just a few hours before you present yourself on an occasion. Probably after you have perfected the art of coiling up this bun called chignon, if you read this article after a few days, you might just tell me: Hey! I know how to style a chignon and to that I would just reply: Yeah gal! you got it right, I am sure, now you do know how to do a chignon yourself!

By Fatima Rangwala