Fashion, Trends By Warren Holmes

Pixie Cuts Through The Years

Emma Watson has literally become the overnight hair icon and completely changed the public perception of her with that ‘pixie’ haircut.

Emma described it as ‘the most liberating thing I’ve ever done’, and that it does!

The pixie and Elfin haircuts are big favourites of mine due to the immediate impact they have. Cut correctly they can be styled in endless different ways and completely revolutionise your look. The key things to take into consideration is Face shape, hair texture and profiles. Be creative when visualising how you want it to look

*TIP – Do a home test and tie your hair back to see if you like your neck and ears exposed. Take some pictures of your hairline side profile, if your still happy….do it!

The Pixie cut though isn’t a new thing, it’s been around through decades and was a look favoured by Fashion Icons from Twiggy to Audrey Hepburn to Mia Farrow to Kate Moss.

It’s by no means a coincidence that a majority of the worlds most beautiful women at some point have dropped a pixie crop.

Here I give my views on some of favourite and not so favourite looks through the years!

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Emma Watson: ‘Over night Emma Watson became a hair Icon. She remind you of anyone? Twiggy. She nails it, enough said.’

Twiggy: ‘Twiggy has the face for any style and became iconic because of it. Her hair was her thing and isn’t really a ‘crop’ but she is the ultimate Pixie. I love the way the front is longer and tucked behind the ear.’

Agyness Deyn: ‘Agy’s a quirky kooky individual and portrays that through her Hair, I like anything short on her. I don’t think long hair would suit her, it would take over her too much. She came on the scene at a time when short hair wasn’t really being done on the runway and she sort of led the way in the resurgance of that whole boyish crop’

Audrey Hepburn: ‘A true Hair Icon, maybe the look is somewhat dated but the feeling isn’t. Audrey has that amazing pixie look but still craves beauty and elegance. A big reason for short crops and up-do’s working on her is her delicate chin that it puts emphasis on.’

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Carey Mulligan: ‘Carey re-invented herself with her Pixie cut. Short hair really works for her and I also prefer it blonder it’s softer on her features and skin tone, dark hair washes her out.’

Elizabeth Taylor: ‘Elizabeth can wear her hair in any way, she simply personifies elegance. Her eye brows are really striking so I would always keep the hair away from this area.’

Ellen Degeneres: ‘Ellen wears her hair looser, more seamless and shattered. The trouble is going with this style, it has to be made to look that way and maintained if it isn’t it just looks out of shape, im not a huge fan of Ellen’s hair in this picture.’

Mia Farrow: ‘Mia’s very strong features and gorgeous sharp jaw line are perfect for a Pixie crop, I would definitely go for a softer edge of the ears. I do prefer Mia when the fringe is actually shorter.’

Ginnifer Goodwin: ‘Ginnifer is in that Carey Mulligan mould, it kind of doesn’t work longer. Short hair is much more striking on her. Her ears stick out a little which is the reason for the length infront and sitting on the ear, so it visually looks softer.’

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Halle Berry: ‘Halle really is a beautiful woman and any style suits her. She has amazing skin which is another reason for dropping a short crop. The only criticism i would make is, she should avoid height and that ‘spiky’ feel.’

Hilary Swank: ‘I’m not a fan of short hair on Hilary, I love her as an actress and mid-length hair with an assymetrical fringe resting around the cheekbones would be more ideally suited to her.’

Jean Seberg: ‘Jean Seberg works the boyish cropped haircut perfectly. Only the most pretty girls can pull off this, her eyes and eyebrows are key to keeping this look feminine.’

Katie Holmes: ‘I’m not a fan of this haircut, it looks as though it’s been hacked into and shapeless. I prefer Katie with longer hair’

Keira Nightley: ‘Keira’s haircut is all about shape, texture and using the right product. The colour shows off the layers more. You can have fun with this length and shape and is a regular look in the salons not commonly seen on the runway or red carpet.’

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Kate Moss: ‘Kate’s face can pull off any haircut, I once did her hair and it went through my mind what it would look like shorter and darker, turns out she has done it. Check it out, Looks amazing.’

Michelle Williams: ‘One of my favourites, opitomises Hollywood glamour. Perfect haircut, colour is bang on and its styled so simply, it’s all about the shape and the face. Can also be worn more messier which would be ideal for most people’

Pixie Geldof: ‘Pixie by name and by nature, though I would say she is slightly more elfin looking! Short hair is her thing though and when styled well looks great. I love her with dark hair too. Anything deconstructed and un-worn is ideal for her.’

Sienna Miller: ‘Sienna, I love her. She can carry anything. I once put her Hair into a high ponytail to expose her neck which is important with short styles. I love this length on her, its soft and feminine and styled really well (which she is really good at doing herself).

Victoria Beckham: ‘Victoria is a petite woman, and short hair suits petite people as it doesn’t consume them and become overbearing. She sets a precedent with her hairstyles so I cant knock that. I was a fan of her pixie cut, screamed elegance and took her away from being the WAG’

Says Warren Holmes, International Creative Director at Nicky Clarke

Posted By Warren Holmes on 18.Nov 2010 under Fashion, Trends