Super-Hair.Net
Cutting-Edge Hair News - 2024
She may be the "middle child" in her family, but Bella Hadid has developed a great reputation by following her family's tradition. Her mother was once a model. Older sister Gigi is a model. And so is Bella - a "Model of the Year" in Britain who was named to the "Time 100" list of influential people in 2023. So are women rushing out to do what Hadid did in October? After returning to a deep-brunette shade (away from a color that our voters preferred in 2019), she had bangs cut into her long locks. They're not quite full, and they seem graduated - a variation on the "curtain bangs" trend.
Is Bella's beauty blossoming even more with bangs? Our Hair Fans are delighted - so much so that the change received unanimous support over eight days (4-0). One called it a "more youthful look." But we're not sure if it's really a long-term look. There's evidence of a "bump-it" for luxurious extra thickness from an Instagram collection Hadid posted from Dubai, yet the bangs did not appear to be affected. Could we have permission to borrow one of Hadid's hobbies - climbing on one of Hadid's horses, and trying to trap her in a show ring?
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She could have been a Hair Fan's Hall of Fame member. But Kiran Chetry fell a few votes short of induction in 2011 - despite winning two Crown Awards, one of them a stunning defeat of Bonnie Bernstein. Chetry was leaving CNN during that Hall of Fame vote, displaying short styles that were tough enough to hold in Capitol Hill breezes. Chetry hardly has appeared on television since then, so her look at the 2024 World Series may have surprised Hair Fans. Her X/Twitter account showed her at New York's Yankee Stadium with long golden locks that matched her jacket.
We could have asked you about the Chetry color change, but we asked more simply: longer or shorter? Hair Fans surprised us a bit by saying "longer" by a 75% margin (6-2). We're surprised because, while no one left a comment, Chetry's hair seems a lot thinner with the extra length. She also seems to need her ears for control. Yet we don't recall ever seeing her hair collapse - so maybe the Super-Hair from Nepal has hidden strength which rivals Yankee icon Barry Judge.
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The vote came down to the wire. It was nip-and-tuck, tooth-and-nail, hammer-and-tongs... all those cliches. There were no "battleground states," to our knowledge. It was a simple battle for first place - not for U.S. political office, but whose hair is superior. When our "Election '24" showdown ended as polls closed across the Central Time Zone, there was deadlock. Toss-up. Too close to call... all those cliches.
Democrat Kamala Harris received 50% of the vote for which woman would win a Super-Hair War. So did Republican Melania Trump (3-3). Not to overlook any candidate, we put Green Party nominee Jill Stein on our ballot - but she gained no support at all. (Maybe organic beauty lines need to be more vocal for her.)
While the vote ended in a tie, this is realistically a loss for the GOP. Its women dominated all our previous U.S. Election hair polls, and in 2020 Trump topped Harris 44%-6%. What made the difference? Was Trump too much in seclusion - or did Harris's smile wow our voters?
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Australia has many outstanding hairstyles. We recently traveled there and saw the proof. But that country has not won a major Super-Hair Cup since 2009 - and hasn't even reached our World Cup tournament since 2014. The first woman to win a City League title "down under" was Kate Collins, an evening "reader" with 9 News in Adelaide. She won in early 2013 with a short cut, then spent time on our Top Ten Tresses list. But the second half of 2024 has been a time of growth for Collins - with her style going longer, approaching the bust line in October.
With our next AAA Cup coming in 2025, could Collins contend for the Aussies? Based on our one-week vote, it's hard to tell; Hair Fans wound up evenly divided about the change (3-3). "Shorter has more body," one wrote, echoing the poll below. Collins hasn't spoken about the change publicly to our knowledge, even though some Australian publications would make a big deal about that. At least she can take comfort in knowing there's a Kate Collins Middle School - only in the U.S. state of Virginia.
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Other Brazilians have won Crown Awards through the years. Yet for decades, the unofficial standard-bearer for style in Brazil has been Gisele Bundchen - perhaps even during her marriage to U.S. football star Tom Brady. Her signature hair look has been long "beachy" waves. But in early October, Bundchen posted something very different on Instagram - blonde instead of brunette, shoulder-length instead of longer and even more voluminous than usual.
"Wig?" one of our voters simply asked when we posted a question about the Bundchen change. Perhaps so; she wrote alongside the new look she was asked to "play Monica Vitti", a late Italian actress, for a commercial. Yet the shorter style impressed Hair Fans, who preferred it by an 80% margin in a one-week vote (4-1). "Shorter has more body," one wrote, while another said the longer look "hangs too limply." Which may explain why Brazilian Pamella Azeredo is in the Hair Fans Hall of Fame, while "supermodel" Gisele is not.
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Some characters in daytime dramas live glamorous lives. Others play more stay-at-home characters. Since Melissa Ordway (Gaston) has appeared for years on The Young and the Restless, we'd assume she's on the glamorous side. Ordway has displayed longer styles on the show for years. But she decided in early October that it was time to "change it up a bit." The evidence comes from Instagram, where she says stylist Christine Pasqualone made "my hair dreams come true" by cutting her hair to a wavy bob stopping at her chin.
Maybe Ordway is fulfilling the "Restless" part of the show's title, because we assume her bosses approved this change. But do you approve of it? Our nine-day poll (extended by road trip computer issues) found Hair Fans unhappy; 90% of them think the style should stay long (9-1). "Neither," one voter said, concluding both looks were "not that impressive... limp and boring" even though Ordway's left photo comes from a Hollywood event. Another showed the educational side of our site by asking if she's related to "John Ordway, who traveled with Lewis and Clark" two centuries ago. We were unable to get a good answer to that. We think she's more logically connected to the Ordway Center for the Performing Arts in Saint Paul, Minnesota, but we can't confirm that, either.
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You could turn the lights on and off at home with the flick of a switch. Or you could install a "dimmer" switch and do it more gradually. Some women take the gradual approach to their hair as well. E! News noticed Khloe Kardashian doing that in recent months. She was reddish-blonde in May, but adjusted it to "chocolate" brunette by September. Food actually may have had something to do with it, as Kardashian said she felt "strawberry shortcake vibes" earlier in the year.
Which look makes you hungrier for a piece of Khloe's cut? Our voters might be choc-a-holics, because our one-week poll ended with 83% support for the darker shade (5-1). "Brunette color is the only thing not fake about her," one voter wrote. But Kardashian keeps the hair real in other ways; one short video on Instagram shows long hair flexing into her eyes. She may be a TV superstar, but her hair is not Super.
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While some women refuse to reveal their secrets to perfect styles (that's part of what makes Super-Hair so intriguing), others don't care and spill everything. That's what internet star Emma Chamberlain did in September - posting a "hair confessional" on YouTube, complete with what appeared to be a hand-sketched flipchart. Chamberlain explained her recent "hair history," from "kind of gorgeous" brown in 2019 through differing lengths and colors (not always in the nicest language). She shared her story with mid-length black-brunette hair - but the "big reveal" was Chamberlain's latest look: a chin-length platinum-blonde bob with light bangs across the forehead, accompanied by a classical-sounding choir.
At age 23, has Chamberlain finally found her best style? Our one-week poll had far fewer votes than the 1.4 million YouTube views she received in two weeks, but Hair Fans approved. In fact, they were unanimous for the short cut (4-0). We didn't ask about the lighter shade, but one voter wrote, "I like the bangs and color of the newer look." It certainly tops Chamberlain's "story-telling" style, which looked ordinary. As long as she trims the bangs properly (they were in her eyes in a scene with a stylist), she may have something for followers to Emma-ulate.
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She's played many roles on television - from a mayoral assistant working with Michael J. Fox to a 911 dispatcher. Yet when she appeared at the 2024 Primetime Emmy Awards (the on-time one, not the strike-delayed January show), Britton was in a group representing TV moms. She was a coach's wife for years on Friday Night Lights, and at the awards show displayed long hair which still could qualify for "trophy wife" status at age 57. Britton's style impressed enough voters to win the prize for the best style of the show.
Britton took half the votes in a contest that started in the final minutes of the ABC presentation. Padma Lakshti of Top Chef was a close second with 38%, despite being humiliated during a presentation for never winning an Emmy. Kristen Wiig, who joined in a
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When we compiled our Ultimate 50 at the launch of this site in late 1999, a few "supermodels" had to be on the list. Some may have been surprised that we ranked Naomi Campbell above Cindy Crawford and Carol Alt - but we did because she showed amazing skill with keeping long hair in line. Campbell's length has gone up and down in the last 25 years, with some blaming that on extensions. Now in her mid-50s, Campbell still keeps us guessing - such as in a Harper's Bazaar "icons" September cover shoot. The woman who's admitted battling alopecia is shown with a short cut with nothing seemingly dropping on her neck.
Is shorter classier for Campbell? Not at all, our voters say; they unanimously voted it down in a one-week poll (5-0). A series of questions filled the comments section: "Did she get her hair caught in desk fan... Did she get drunk and chop... Is that style called the Moe Howard?" The latter "Three Stooges" reference may be unfair, since Campbell turned it into a short steamy style during New York Fashion Week. But we understand the longing for her long locks. Perhaps the magazine did as well...
...because the cover story also includes this photo: Campbell with a ponytail (clipped on?) racing a cheetah - the fastest animal on Earth. Now this is the "Super-Naomi" we've come to admire and dream about. Would you try to chase this supermodel down - and if you caught her, would Campbell's reputation for fighting prevent you from capturing her?
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They may not be as famous as "Travis and Tay-Tay" - but actress/singer Hailee Steinfeld is dating a pro football star. Her "beau" is Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen. And in recent months, Steinfeld has broadened her career to include a "Beau Society" newsletter for her fans. It's there where Steinfeld explained a major change in her hairstyle. She also explained it to People magazine: long hair feeling like "dead weight... I'm constantly trying to get it out of my way." So she had stylist Mara Roszak cut it in June - all the way to a nape-of-the-neck bob.
Did Steinfeld call a good "audible" with this cut? Some Hair Fans sacked it: "Terrible. Long hair icon no more," one commented. But Steinfeld escaped the negative onslaught to win a 57% vote of support for the cut in our week-long poll (4-3). We're frankly surprised the margin wasn't larger, given the photos we posted - with her short hair leaning at the very brink of collapsing. If Allen's a real Hair Fan, he might go after it for more than a two-minute drill.
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Her latest album is titled Short n' Sweet - but the hair of pop singer Sabrina Carpenter certainly doesn't fit part of that title. She's displayed long blonde styles since emerging as a star on a Disney series in the mid-2010s. In videos from her first albums, Carpenter kept her hair basic - natural waves that didn't seem to require much effort. But in her 20s and the 20s, Carpenter has become more glamorous in her look. The most noteworthy change for us is the addition of bangs, which come in handy considering her videos have become more violent in theme and even controversial.
Did Carpenter make the right cut by adding bangs? Our Hair Fans are impressed, with 83% supporting the bangs over our week of questioning (5-1). "Awesome," one supporter wrote; "Full, fluffy, soft-looking" - in other words, great to watch in action. For older Hair Fans, it's tempting to add another question: does Sabrina Carpenter's hair now top Karen Carpenter's in her prime? We personally lean toward Karen, because Sabrina seems to let things get out of control too much - like she's had too much Espresso.
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Well before the Olympic and Paralympic Games arrived in Paris, "Emily" was there. Lily Collins has become a style maven in the HBO series Emily in Paris much like the ladies of Sex and the City did two decades ago. Her ways with her have earned her several Crown Award nominations, including a shared prize for the Best Bangs of 2022. But for Season 4 of her series, Collins apparently has banished the bangs - and in fact, several inches of hair. She showed up at the Hollywood premiere with a short cut that some dubbed a "French bob."
Should Lily receive the roses of victory for this latest move? Not according to our voters. Our one-week question found 75% of them prefer the Collins cut longer (6-2). "Not even close," one wrote; "the short hair is horrible." Another called the change "limp and lifeless." Yet another voter wondered if a compromise would work: "Like the shorter cut, but wish she'd kept the bangs." Now that would really be Parisian - as in Mireille Matthieu, the winner of our first EuroCup in 2004. We'll see if Collins cuts into that bob; at age 35, time is on her side.
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Our Crown Award for Best Hairstyle in Journalism has been dominated from the beginning by U.S. women. Even occasional U.S. viewers can understand why. But Monika Plaha changed that in 2024. The BBC News anchor not only won the Crown, but finished third in our Eurocup '24 representing England. She also won a Super-Hair Wars match. And now, people in the Leicester and Nottingham area (she anchors East Midlands Today) can rejoice again - as Plaha and her cascading brunette waves have been voted #1 hairstyle in the world!
Our annual one-week contest is based on the cuts in our Top Ten Tresses list. Plaha jumped to the lead and left the rest in the dust, gaining 60% of the votes. Second place was shared by shorter styles, as Caitlin Huey-Burns of CBS News tied at 20% with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. (Did we overlook her for EuroCup?) Yet as in 2023, only three members of the Top Ten received votes. No one left a comment about any of the Ten - but we know from other comment areas that at least one sportscaster could be on precarious ground.
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She's a model. She's an artist. And in the eyes of the paparazzi, Ava Phillippe might as well be the twin sister of Crown Award winner Reese Witherspoon. They look that much alike, especially when Philippe's hair is blonde. Yet in reality, Phillippe is Witherspoon's daughter. That's why they're seen together often. But with Phillippe a couple of years out of college, she may have felt it was time for a break. In late July, she showed off brunette hair on Instagram - announcing: "Time to see how the other half lives."
Was Phillippe living her best life then, or now? The darker shade has our voters impressed, as 57% supported it in our one-week poll. The old blonde color was backed by 29%, while 14% seemed to prefer something in between (4-2-1) - "auburn or strawberry blonde." Phillippe seems to prefer an all-out change, as opposed to something gradual. At least now, we'll have no trouble telling Phillippe and Witherspoon apart.
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When we search for City League entries, we often utilize lists - lists arranged by colleges, universities or TV stations. That's how we found Bailey Vaughn, a journalist at KTEN-TV in the "Texoma" region of north Texas. The photo posted on the station's website shows her with waves which stop at the shoulders. We think that picture was taken in 2021-22, but Vaughn's X/Twitter feed shows she hasn't settled for that. She's had longer styles - such as the one on the right, from a news trip to Oklahoma City in May. It's a few inches longer, with some curls that are invitingly full.
Were we misled about Vaughn? Based on your response, everything's OK. Our one-week poll found 89% of Hair Fans prefer Vaughn with a longer style (8-1). The good news for them is that photos on her feed show an even longer look, probably resulting from a straighter style. If she can keep it all under control (and it appears she's able to do that), the future for this young anchor/reporter seems quite bright.
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When it comes to hair, Lithuania must be doing something right. Our voters have declared that country the winner of our Super-Hair EuroCups three times in a row! Ballroom dancer Patricija Belousova began the run in 2016, followed by teen model Viktorija Jukonyte in 2020. Pageant winner Irmina Preišegalaviciute made it a three-peat in 2024. So it only made sense for us to ask you: which Lithuanian champion has the best hairstyle of all?
Perhaps this stumped our voters, because not many offered an answer in our week-long poll. But Belousova's curls won a two-thirds majority, followed by Preišegalaviciute with one-third (2-1). Perhaps surprisingly, Jukonyte received on support even though she's won a Crown Award for Best Ponytail. The woman now known as Patricija Ionel is retired from professional dancing and is a mother of one (soon to be two). But her hair still has admirers - enough to pose for Playboy in 2023, although we're not sure how much they really care about hair.
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Left Photo courtesy Wikipedia/Watch With Kristin
Shannen Doherty's acting career took off in a wealthy way - coming to fame with a role on the series Beverly Hills 90210. in the early 1990s. We admittedly never considered her to have Super-Hair (especially compared to co-star Tori Spelling), as the long style flew into her eyes frequently even with light bangs. But it became an iconic look for Doherty, as she appeared in a variety of other roles and projects. As she endured a series of romantic and health challenges, Doherty lost her hair but grew it partly back. What she called a "sexy Parisian" look on Instagram in 2017 led to a shoulder-length cut by 2020.
As news spread of Doherty's death at 53, we wondered which of her various hairstyles was her best. Our voters preferred the long cut by an 80% margin (4-1). While no one left a comment, we can understand the thinking. That look was from Doherty's relative youth, and there was more hair for people to study and admire. May the cancer that took Doherty's life soon be conquered for good.
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Photos courtesy Entertainment Weekly
For more than 25 years, the women on ABC's The View have sparked controversy by the things they say - not really by the hairstyles they've displayed. Lisa Ling was one of our early finds, lasting more than a year on our Top Ten Tresses list. But some days, we see Whoopi Goldberg and wonder if she even cares about her hair. Sunni Hostin, who moved to ABC from CNN, showed some promise with her long locks. But things changed in the final days of the 2023-24 season. Hostin made a big cut, from well below the shoulders to shoulder-length. It was so noticeable that panelist Joy Behar asked her about it during a Hot Topic.
Hostin hinted hairstylist Matthew Yates made her look different to match a woman she saw at a party. One woman compared the change to a movie James "Bond villain." But our voters must prefer heroes, because two-thirds of them called on Hostin to go long again (4-2). One commenter even went to an extreme step: "I'll now stop following her on Instagram. Yep, it's that much of a downgrade." Yet Hostin promised there that the new "lewk... will be coming back." It's probably easier to keep in line, but OUR view is that she'll really need her natural curls for control.
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Right photo courtesy Daily Mail
Some women find a winning hairstyle and are wise enough not to change it. That seems to be what actress and "Real Housewife" Lisa Rinna did for about two decades - a short cut with sideswept bangs that were trimmed so well that a drop across the forehead usually caused no problems. The brunette look became so familiar that a wig line was developed to copy it. But for the June 2024 Paris Fashion Show, Rinna made a big switch - not by going longer, but by changing her color to platinum blonde. A salon in Sweden took 12 hours to get it right, with Rinna slicked-back one day and punk-spiky (some compared her with Albert Einstein) the next.
"I like to freak people out," Rinna said about the change in an Instagram video. We're not sure her color change did exactly that with our voters, but one person commented: "God awful new style." Two-thirds of Hair Fans urged Rinna to return to brunette. No one liked the platinum blonde shade, but one-third suggested she try a different color (4-2). "Go natural," another wrote, "which at her age would be gray, silver or white." Yet given Rinna's extra comment, "I love to shock people," we're not expecting that.
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Here's a note that will make some people feel old: Julia Roberts has a son who turned 17 in June - and that's her youngest child. The actress who played very eligible single women now has a family that's practically grown up. So does that explain some changes Roberts has made with her hair in recent years? We noted in 2023 that she added bangs to her long red hair for s while. Now in 2024, she's shifted completely away from red hair to what one magazine called a "sunflower blonde" shade. A colorist on Instagram admitted it was "drastic," yet was "slow and methodical."
Some critics on social media suspect Roberts went blonde because she's really turning gray. Our voters didn't express that view, but 70% of them think the red should remain. Only 20% prefer Roberts as a blonde, while 10% called for another color (7-2-1). "Don't care, she's 'woke'," one voter wrote. We were going to ignore that comment, but then we read Roberts introduced the change at a campaign fundraiser for U.S. President Biden. Maybe any hint of political "red" was considered wrong?!
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She came to fame Dancing in the Dark with Bruce Springsteen. Not Julianne Phillips, the Ultimate 50 member and lover - but Courteney Cox, a young actress from Alabama. Cox's cut was tight and short as she danced with the rock star in a music video. The hair was longer when Cox joined the cast of Friends in the mid-1990s. But as Cox turns 60, she's decided to take a short cut again. Not as far as that video, but to shoulder-length. One website called it s "piecey bob," while another declared it a "bixie" combining pixie and bob.
Has Cox caught onto something with this change? Maybe so, as Hair Fans gave it 60% support in our one-week question (3-2). One voter commented, "That haircut did her no favors." But consider this: Cox took that new unpinned style to a tennis court and played a few points against French Open champion Iga Swiatek - with the hair moving a bit, but not falling in her eyes. Look out, Jennifer Aniston...
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People who have spent years in television news will tell you that everything is examined closely - and not simply the video and scripts. "Consultants" tour the U.S. and offer advice on everything from on-air slogans to the hairstyles of anchors. We don't know if Evansville, Indiana's Caroline Klapp has been affected by that. But in two years since moving from north Alabama, viewers have seen her length go up and down more than once. In September 2022, it was well below her shoulders; more recently, it's stopped at the shoulders or even trimmed slightly above them.
Which cut has you, uh, Klapping with approval? Our week-long poll found Hair Fans calling on Klapp to keep it cut. In fact, the short length had unanimous support (7-0). "Shorter has a bit more body," one voter commented; "Longer hangs too limply." Indeed, the shorter cut seems more solid. But she takes very good care to keep all lengths in place, so Hair Fans approaching her may need to have numerous plans.
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Right photo courtesy The Express
Her chances of becoming Britain's queen are microscopic - around #41 in line for the throne. But Lady Amelia Windsor is well-known across the commonwealth. In fact, she reportedly has a nice independent income as a fashion model. But one change can affect that - and the granddaughter of Prince Edward made one in late May 2024. Lady Amelia had her long blonde hair cut into a chin-length bob. It happened at a London salon where Meghan Markle received hair care as she wed Prince Harry years earlier.
One British publication called Lady Amelia's change "drastic" - and our Hair Fans seem to agree. The long look was preferred by 83% of them in a one-week poll (5-1). No one left a comment, but we agree that she should have left well enough alone. The lady even posted a social media photo of her chopped hair on the floor with added eyeballs - as if that hair was stunned, wondering what she was thinking.
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We were scrolling down Facebook on a Sunday morning when she crossed our path - and she stopped us cold. An attractive woman with "come and get me" bangs and long hair was promoting ESPN+ subscriptions with a ridiculously small microphone. A lengthy search revealed she's Victoria Arlen, who once won gold at the Paralympic Games with a disease which could freeze her body and vocal cords. We determined her bangs are relatively new - added since she was honored by Forbes 30 Under 30 in late 2023 in the wake of a medical relapse.
We knew Arlen belonged on our site in some way, and the new bangs provided that way. We asked you about them, and 89% of our Hair Fans voted for them (8-1). "Bangs are a more youthful look," one voter wrote. Some comments on Facebook even compare Arlen with Martha Quinn - the MTV VJ who made our Ultimate 50 list. May Arlen's body stay calm and her hair remain exceptionally strong.
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When you think of great hairstyles on the TV series Suits, you might think of Crown Award winner Sarah Rafferty. You might think of Meghan Markle, who attracted a British prince. But you might not think of Rachael Harris - perhaps because she was not a fullmember of the cast until the final seasons. Harris had a main role in the (shall we say) demon-inspired series Lucifer. So what was Harris's inspiration for a haircut she made for the May 2024 release of her movie Mother of the Bride (seemingly previewed weeks before)? She explained she simply wanted to "switch it up" - cutting from mid-length to a bob above the shoulders.
"I've had the same look for a long time," Harris said. Yet sometimes, "same" can be good - and in this case, our Hair Fans think so. Nine out of 10 voters prefer her blonde hair longer (9-1). But one sighed, "Neither fit well with her forehead." Another voter asked, "Did she thin it out, too?" At age 56, natural thinning can start to happen. Stylist Heather Abuel knows the answer - and her Instagram account is as buttoned-up private as a new suit.
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Right photo courtesy People
We've been reviewing decades of photo files, recalling how many celebrities have changed their looks over time. Jessica Biel is one of them - switching from long to short, from bangs on the forehead to none, and through "bronde" to dark brunette. In the week of the Met Gala in New York, Biel made another change. She stepped out with mid-length hair so "platinum blonde" that some might have thought she'd become prematurely gray at age 42.
Is platinum a "plus" for Biel? Not for our voters. Our one-week poll found 83% of them want her to stay brunette (5-1). No one left a comment, but we wonder if Biel changed her color for some kind of photo shoot. It turns out she may have made another change during the week of our question - posting a Bob with her apparent natural color on Instagram. Considering the language she used to describe that change, that might not last long, either.
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At age 58, plenty of women are thinking about gray hair. Maybe Shania Twain is an exception. But her most recent style change had us thinking along those lines. After a career that includes eight Crown Awards and membership in your Hair Fan's Hall of Fame, Twain returned to American Idol for her first mentorship in 13 years with a bright look - a shoulder-length cut not far from platinum blonde, as opposed to the brunette shade of earlier years.
Perhaps Twain really did this to promote her new concert residency in Las Vegas. Whatever the reason, our Hair Fans are not impressed: 80% of them preferred Twain's tresses brunette in our one-week poll (4-1). While no one left a comment, we wonder if Twain got the message - because as our poll ended, she decided to shift her color to pink. At least it's not that bright-red experiment of recent years, which had some comparing Twain to the girl in the Wendy's restaurant logo.
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Right photo courtesy KAKE-TV
The biggest city in Kansas has provided at least two top-level heads of Super-Hair. Alyson Acklin spent an impressive four years on our Top Ten Tresses list, even though she adjusted her short style more than once on Wichita morning TV. Before her, there was Susie Santo - who directs the city tourism bureau and promoted herself with daring thick hair. When she was on the Top Ten list in 2014, it was shoulder-length and blonde. In 2024, it's below the bust line and brunette - and somehow even more massive.
We could have taken Santo's striking style in several directions - ut we asked you about those extra inches. Our Hair Fans were not thrilled, as three-fourths of them in our week-long poll preferred her shorter (3-1). We agree with that view, and Santos's color change plays a role in that. The darked shade comes across as tough asd fierce, not as friendly. But Santo certainly wants you to "Visit Wichita" - even in surprising ways. Did you know Wichita will host the U.S. Figure Skating Championships in 2025?
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Right photo courtesy Us magazine
She's become arguably one of Hollywood's most glamorous stars. But when it comes to hair, we think Zendaya is playing games with us. She can display pulled-back long looks, like in our left photo from 2022 - then turn around and have a well-styled bob for the 2024 Academy Awards. But we were struck by Zendaya suddenly showing up with bangs while promoting the movie Challengers in London during April. It's not her first experiment with bangs, but it led at least one fashion site to assume they're clip-ons.
Are the "chunky" bangs (as that same website called them) better for Zendaya? Our voters were impressed; 83% of them preferred them in a one-week poll (5-1). No one left a comment, but the bangs were gone when Zendaya's movIe tour moved on to Milan, then the U.S. We wish she'd settle down on one style and try to make it the best she can do - if only so Hair Fans can concentrate on how to undo it.
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Her X/Twitter profile describes her as a wife, mom, anchor and reporter. And even in a television area as large as Charlotte, Gina Esposito probably also is a home-stylist - preparing her own hair for the morning news. On most mornings, Esposito keeps things simple with a straight style stopping slightly below the shoulders. But on some days, Esposito turns on the curling iron. She even boasted a iittle about it on Facebook in early April, which is when we discovered her. Esposito joined meteorologist Madi Baggett in "feeling the curls" - even touching them with a slight push for the camera.
If Esposito's going to show them off, we're going to ask Hair Fans if she should. Our voters didn't mind at all - with the curls winning a two-thirds margin after one week. But not many of them seemed enthused either way (2-1). Maybe it's because the Hornets and Panthers of sports are down in the dumps. But someone daring you to touch her curls ought to provide a little enthusiasm.
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She was born in the Cincinnati suburb of Taylor Mill. Yet Carly Pearce considers herself a "Kentucky girl," and it's reflected in her country music background. She's been on tour with Tim McGraw, the husband of a Hair Fan's Hall of Fame member. And Pearce's long hair is getting a strong reputation of its own. A great-looking mane at the 2024 CMT Music Awards masde her the Hair Fans' choice as the best style of the night.
Pearce took her first "best-of-show" title her since the 2020 CMA Awards, scoring 50% of the votes in the week after the show. A surprising appearance by Hall of Fame member and Crown Award winner Jane Seymour (praising Trisha Yearwood) earned her second place with 33%. Newcomer Ashley Cooke was third with 17%. Mickey Guyton and Brittany Spencer made our ballot, but were panned by one voter who claimed their styles were fake. We actually asked that sort of question on X/Twitter about host Kelsea Ballerini - and 88% of the voters there were convinced she used extensions.
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There comes a point in the life of every actress that you can't play a "coming-of-age" role anymore. Sydney Sweeney may have realized that at age 26. The star of Euphoria kept her hair long for the first several seasons of that series. But for the Academy Awards in March (at least), Sweeney cut her locks to a steamy wavy bob. There's speculation Sweeney did it because she's in the running for a lead role in a James Bond movie, because she's keeping quiet about that.
Does Sweeney make you swooner more with a shorter cut? For most of our voters, it did. The bob bounced ahead of the longer look by a 71% margin (5-2). No one left a comment, but we regret to report she posed for the new cut with hair shaded toward one eye. At least Sweeney did that before coloring her hair jet-black, which also became an online issue. Is that what 007 really prefers?
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When it comes to places with Super-Hair secrets, you might not think of "drug stores." But CVS claims to have all the tools, from shampoo to irons - and it has an executive who might show off the results. Karen Lynch was dubbed "the most powerful female CEO in America" by Norah O'Donnell (a Super-Hair legend to some) for a Person to Person interview on CBS News in March. But O'Donnell showed two views of Lynch: a current curled look above the shoulders and a red-carpet style a couple of inches below the shoulders.
Which version of the CVS CEO is more grade-A to you? Our one-week poll ended with voters preferring a longer Lynch by a two-thirds margin (2-1). We had to think it over, but would up siding "shorter." Lynch went to a store for an interview with a hot-curled cut that not only is built to fight the elements, but dares you to personally test how strong it is with little margin for error. It shows impresssive bouncy hold in a clip we posted on X/Twitter)...
...and in fact, we can't resist. There they are: two excellently-prepared sideparts. Lynch looks more weighty and power-packed. But O'Donnell has years of experience with almost-unflawed hold and control. Whose hair wins? We think Norah meets her match here. Too bad she focused more in the interview on abortion pills and a new book.
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Right photo courtesy People
Camila Cabello turned her Havana moment into great success - a top-selling record and album, as well as the 2018 Crown Award for Best Long Hair with a L'Oreal hair deal to match. But while she's had other albums, Cabello hasn't matched her style success here. The clear addition of extensions to her daringly-cut bangs meant the Cuba native didn't even make our Cup of the Americas in 2019, then was passed over for someone else fom Cuba in 2023. So that may explain why Cabello decided it was time for what she called on a podcast a "big physical change." She switched from brunette to platinum blonde as she turned 27, in a three-step process with colorist Nikki Lee.
Cabello admitted she tested the color change with wigs. Our voters apparently think the test was flawed, because the brunette shade was preferred by 75% of them in a one-week poll (3-1). We agree; after years of natural color, the blonde approach seems too fake. The only comment during the poll was about our Top Ten Tresses list, where Cabello never has been. We have an X/Twitter feed for general comments - or should we bring a message board back?
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Photo courtesy Deadline
Let's clear up something right away - Latina singer Becky G did not turn purple for the 96th annual Academy Awards. Our camera and the TV screen we used did not want to cooperate, for reasons we don't understand. Yet we thought Ms. G (as in Gomez) had a hair photo which was good enough to post - and we were right. The singer of The Fire Inside from the movie Flamin' Hot (which we're guessing might be a movie about Cheetohs) had a sizzling style with careful strength. THat made her the winner of our unofficial contest for the best hair of Oscar night.
Becky G. never looked back, taking 60% of the votes in the week after the show ended. Second place ws a tie between Mary Steenbergen (whose hair impressed at age 71) and Zendaya (only 27), at 20% each. We'd also note something strange, as we did on X/Twitter during the show: three people shared awards for Outstanding Makep and Hair, but two of them were men with hardly any hair on their heads at all. Disppointing, to say the least...
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Photos courtesy Parade
At least she should be thankful Lori Harvey has any hair on her head. After all, her celebrity adoptive Dad Steve does not. Lori may have used her show business connections to become a model. But she has branched out from there to her own skin care line (we won't talk about her underwear collection) - and some might say her soft mid-length cut warrants a hair care line as well. But at Milan Fashion Week, Harvey pulled a surprise by displaying a short cut. Not as short as Dad, but still a tight look.
Is Lori more lovely with longer or shorter hair? Our week-long poll ended with her locks in deadlock, a 50%-50% tie (3-3). No one left a comment that might have persuaded us one way or the other, but several Instagram visitors said she should remove the wig. (The regular length was back on IG days later.) At least we didn't do like her father did once, and post the wrong result.
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Right photo courtesy The List
There's the Angelina Jolie hairstyle you probably know - and then there are all the others. The actress has changed her look many times for movie roles. Remember her pouffy style to play a TV reporter in lLfe Or Something Like It? Or her blone straight look in Girl, Interrupted? And in rel life, Jolie has switched from brunette to blonde more than once. She's doing it again in early 2024, with a gradual process which took several weeks - a bit like the sun getting brighter in the midday sky in the Northern Hemisphere.
Does Jolie make you jolly with a brighter look? Our voters apparently are still in winter mode, because 60% of them preferred Jolie brunette in our week-long poll. That's down from 80% who said brunette in a similar question in 2018. Only 20% like her blonde, while 20% called for another color (3-1-1). That last percentage apparently wrote: "Go auburn." Uhhhh - the Best Manes on Campus section is elsewhere on our site, if that's what you meant.
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If you're a "Real Housewife" but you're not in a major city like New York or Salt Lake City, what do you do? The Bravo channel came up with a show called Summer House - bringing couples (especially attractive women, it seems) from all over the U.S. in the same house for a summer of "fun." But for South Carolina's Paige DeSorbo, the new Season 8 has a different vibe because she feels "lonely." Without getting deep into the soap opera, DeSorbo decided she needed to "do something so crazy," ss she put it on Instagram. She had bangs cut into her bob in early February, which was originally a longer thick style. "I needed somehting extreme," she explained.
Did she? Really? We put the change before Hair Fans for a week, and they didn't think so. Three out of four of them said DeSorbo is more delightful without the bangs (3-1). We agree; the look DeSorbo posted is much too messy. She seems to pose perfectly without them. In fact, to answer the Bravo online qusstion, "Does Season 8 newscomer Jesse Solomon plan to 'go after'" DeSorbo... well, he has the first shot. Then Hair Fans hopefully can start the pursuit - maybe after the bangs grow out.
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Any music lover who was thinking must have known who the mystery presenter would be at the end of the 2024 Grammy Awards. Celine Dion may not be able to sing anymore, due to health issues - and she even seemed to have trouble with words presenting the "Album of the Year" prize. But Dion potentially could keep impressing people with her hair, instead of her voice. Her style has changed often through the decades, and she appeared at the Grammys with a shoulder-length bob compared to the longer locks she displayed in the middle of the 2010s.
Is Dion more divine-looking with a shorter cut? Our voters said no, preferring her long by a long 83% margin (5-1). While no one left a comment, we'd say she had more style control through the years with shorter cuts (and they've been even shorter than we're showing). But we defer to our voters - who want Dion's hair to go on, even if her vocal cords cannot.
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If pop music in the 2020's is all about attitude, few express or live it quite like Miley Cyrus. She drives a Maserati. She walked on stage at the 2024 Grammy Awards, saying everyone at the front tables ought to know the words to her hit song. And she won the "Record of the Year" prize for it. Cyrus's thrown-back hair (in position and era) divided social media like few others at the show. But assuming it was her way of honoring the late Tina Turnet, our Hair Fans appreciated it - voting Cyrus the best style of the show.
Cyrus sailed to 46% support in our week-long poll, at a show where Taylor Swift's braids kept her off our ballot. Second place went to Olivia Rodrigo at 32%. Mariah Carey's stunning style was third at 23% - but we can understand why one voter commented, "I doubt that's all Mariah's real hair." We hope Cyrus is happy with this outcome. But we hope she's not expecting a separate award for it. As her winning song notes, she can buy her own Flowers.
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The TV drama Pretty Little Liars was about young women keeping secrets. But it made several nice Hollywood hairstyles public - including Canadian native Shay Mitchell, who already was known in that country for a DeGrassi appearance. She went on to appear in the series Dollface, with a similar midlength look. But Mitchell seemed ready for a Shay-kup at the start of 2024. She posed a punky-looking short cut on Instagram and declared: "New year, new hair."
We smelled a new lie there - and indeed, Mithcell hasn't shown any sort-haired photos since. But should she make the cut? Our voters preferred the long locks by a 60% margin (3-2). One voter wrote during our week-long question: "She's no Pat Benatar." Other web writers thought Mitchell looked more like Kris Jenner - making her far older than her current 36. Does she really want that?
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Left photo courtesy Marie Claire
In the days of Desperate Housewives, Eva Longoria had a medium-long head of hair that some Hair Fans desperately wanted. She had (still has) a contract with L'oreal and received a Crown Award nomination. But Longoria has been a risk-taker with her style more often than you might realize. She cut her hair to a bob for the 2023 Cannes Film Festival. And in the first week of 2024, she appeared at the "La Cena" event for Hispanic film in Hollywood with moist bangs - after showing no bangs the night before in Palm Springs, or in the days after.
Longoria admitted she put on a wig to somewhat copy Jennifer Beals's look in Flashdance. But should she have bangs more often? Our voters said no by a 63% margin (5-3). "Normally I like bangs, but those are terrible," one voter moaned. Another was unimpressed by the entire wiggy get-up: "Did her hair dryer break or did it get caught in the rain?" We doubt Crown Award-winner Beals ever was asked those questions...
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She walked on stage and received a standing ovation... but then again, it seemed almost everyone on stage at the strike-delayed 2023 Emmy Awards received one. Yet Christina Applegate was different. She walked out with a cane, because she's dealing with multiple sclerosis after an earlier cancer diagnosis. But the star of Dead to Me is still alive and joking. Her blonde hair looked as marvelous as ever. Amd she came from behind to win our vote for the best hairstyle of the ceremony.
A poll shortened to six days because the Emmys were on a Monday night ended with Applegate (a one-time Crown Award winner) receiving 40% of your votes. It was a tight vote throughout, with Katherine Heigl and Ana Wong tying for second with 20%. They were joined by "other," which a voter specified as actress Aubrey Plaza. Enjoy this view of Applegate while you can; she's indicating she might only do voice work from now on - and great hair is hard to judge when it's in hiding.
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Malaysia doesn't have much of a history in the world of Super-Hair. A former Miss Universe showed off a style change there in 2017. But that's about it. Unless someone comes along to change that - and that someone could be actress and Malaysian native Michelle Yeoh. She showed up with glamorous long waves at the Golden Globe Awards, and our voters were impressed enough to vote her the woman with the best hairstyle of the night.
The traditional kickoff event of Hollywood "awards season" had some wind in Beverly Hills, which affected some women's styles. But Yeoh's style stayed sturdy, and collected 56% of your votes. Second place was a tie at 22% between America Ferrera (who clearly isn't Ugly Betty anymore) and "Other." One name offered was Elizabeth Debicki of The Crown. Another voter said it "wasn't one of these five." Can awards show nominees please start wearing name tags, like game show contestants?
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We first met her as a steamy "Pussycat Doll". Then she became a judge (assuming they really do any judging) on The Masked Singer. Now Nicole Scherzinger is on a break before beginning a starring role in a Broadway musical. And through nearly all of it, Scherzinger has displayed long brunette hair that will get people's attention even if her singing doesn't. But during this break in her career, Scherzinger may be doing some experimenting. As 2023 ended, she showed a lighter shade online - what she described as "tiramisu" hair, leaning well toward a blonde shade.
Does Scherzinger's recipe for tiramisu have you hungry for her hair? Not for our voters. In fact, a one-week poll found 86% of them support, well, dark chocolate brunette (6-1). "Go natural," one voter said. So much for her turning it red velvet - but since her Broadway role will be in Sunset Boulevard, that sort of shading might be coming.
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