Beauty / Pile It On: Channel Your Vintage Auntie With The Mega-Bun

Pile It On: Channel Your Vintage Auntie With The Mega-Bun

Beauty Apr 09, 2019

by Meena Khan | Features Editor - Beauty

The modern bun is not just piling hair on top, its is about volume fastening and products! Channel your vintage auntie with the mega-bun with these key tips right here!

The Duchess of Sussex knows how to work a bun but so do our beloved aunties who somehow manage to twirl and coil metres of thick, coarse tresses into Rekha-fabulousness for her kitty parties. Between the Duchess and our aunties, there is a middle-ground which modern South Asian beauties can navigate to achieve a mega-bun that works in the office and at cocktails.

VOLUME — PUMP IT UP

The typical, quick bun is where we draw our hair in a ponytail, coil it, and then secure said coil with pins and a smattering of hairspray. It is fast, easy and practical. The bun also tends to become lopsided as we go about our day and rarely ends up flattering our face shape.

The mega-bun is one that is built on the solid foundation of volume, regardless of hair type and texture.

One major issue with buns is that they tend to be flat at the crown with hair piled on top thus leaving you looking like a pin head. The look is severe and rarely flattering. A bit of volume at the crown ensures that the face is framed by our beautiful dark locks and creates a soft cushion upon which we can pile our hair. Consequently, one should always shampoo with a volumizing shampoo and conditioner to ensure that the hair has a lift that is ideal for a mega-bun styling. I recommend the Beautycounter Volume & Shape Shampoo and Conditioner because they rely on scalp-loving, refreshing ingredients such as spearmint leaf oil and orange oil to add volume.

**Channel Your Vintage Auntie With The Mega-Bun: Beautycounter Volume & Shape Shampoo.** Photo Credit: www.beautycounter.com

To create lasting volume involves more than washing and conditioning, one must also select the correct blow-dry product to add even more volume. If your hair is thin then I recommend the Kérastase Densimorphose™ Thickening Mousse because it the product cradles each strand and pumps up the heftiness at the crown.

If your hair is medium to thick, then the Kérastase L’Incroyable Blowdry is fantastic product because it is a cool gel that is easily worked into the hair and disappears therein.

The correct way to apply the blow dry products is to work them close to the roots but to never touch the scalp. The reason for the distance between the product and scalp is that there is sebum on the latter which can deflate the volume if there is too much product build-up.

Once the hair is protected, split it into sections using duckbill clips (they do not leave imprints on the shaft of the hair), and then using a round brush lift each section from the roots and blow dry upwards. It is okay if the shaft of the hair is not perfectly, silky straight as the point is to strengthen the base of volume, i.e. the cushion upon which your mega-bun shall sit.

DECIDING WHERE TO PLACE THE HAIR

Personally, I do not like Pebbles-type buns because they bring my pointy chin to the fore. What is the point of my observation? Everyone’s face is unique and bun placement is impacted by face shape. Below are some suggestions:

If your forehead is wider than your jaw (inverted triangle or heart shape), consider placing the bun either directly behind your head or closer to the nape to add a visual balance to the forehead.
If your jaw is wider than your forehead (triangle), consider the opposite and place the bun higher up on your head to create a visual balance.
If your face is long, place the bun in the middle of the back of the head to cut the length.
If your face is round, place the bun higher up (not on top), to create a soft lift for the face.
If your face is oval you can place the bun anywhere you like.

GATHERING THE HAIR

Once you have decided where to place the bun, the next step is to gather the hair and fasten it. The step is tricky because you can easily undo the volume that you have built over several steps. The trick is to wash your hands and pat them dry to avoid adding any oil or unwanted product to the hair. Afterwards, I take the same barrel brush and gently pull the hair into the other hand, making sure to never touch the scalp. Once all of the hair is gathered to create a ponytail, fasten it.

I am enamoured with the Invisibobble Traceless Hair Ring because it does not pull on the hair, it stays in place and does not give me a headache, unlike your standard elastic bands whose metal part always rips out a few hairs.

Fastening is crucial because it is the basis upon which you wrap the bun. In order to preserve the volume make sure that the hair is secure, not pulled into a mere millimetres of its life. The test is intensity you feel of the pull on the scalp. If the pull is too strong you know that you will need to unfasten the bun within a few hours because you will get a headache.

At this point, take a few dabs of a styling cream such as the Shu Uemura Kengo Feather Tenacious Hold Lightweight Cream and rub it into palms. Thereafter, gather the ponytail and dab the product along its body. Once the dabbing is done, gently wrap it around the elastic/ Invisibobble, and when the wrapping is done, fasten the hair with a few hair pins, making sure that they touch the fastener.

FINISHING TOUCHES

If there are tufts that ruin the visual line of the bun, pat them down with your palms . At this point there is no need for a final touch of hairspray because you want a soft volume at the crown and the bun is already styled with the cream.

WE LIKE BIG BUNS!

The steps outlined for the mega-bun apply for all hair types and textures. The trick is to select the correct products and to not overuse them. A little bit of quality product goes along way!

Meena Khan | Features Editor - Beauty

Author

Meena (@meenalaregina) always loved the idea of exploring the non-conventional idea of beauty. Having grown up as a pimply chubby teenager, she wanted to see the change in the world that best reflected your uniqueness as well. Her well-received collection of blogs where she tries on various beauty p...

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Pile It On: Channel Your Vintage Auntie With The Mega-Bun

by Meena Khan | Features Editor - Beauty

Meena Khan | Features Editor - Beauty

COMMENTS

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