30 Days of Twist & Pin Hairstyles – Hair Romance Challenge

I have set myself a challenge. 30 days, 30 hairstyles using the Twist & Pin. 

For the whole month of May I will be posting Twist & Pin hairstyles to prove how versatile this technique really is.

I was inspired by a tweet from The Blog Stylist and she wrote about the Little Black Dress experiment that The Society Stylist initiated in 2009. I loved the idea and wondered what sort of challenge I could set myself and so 30 Days of Twist & Pin was born.

I haven’t been very consistent with posting on Hair Romance so posting every day will be a challenge for me. But I really want to illustrate how many things you can do with your hair besides a ponytail, even if your hair is too short for a ponytail. 

I started pining my hair when I was growing out my really really short hair and it got to that awkward stage where it’s not short but not a bob. It’s just a bit fluffy. I was growing out the short layer at the back and started folding and pinning to create some attempt at a hairstyle but it really worked. As my hair grew I had enough to start twisting and pinning and so it developed.

I hope 30 Days of Twist & Pin in May provides some hairspiration on how to wear your hair. Click here to subscribe to Hair Romance so you don't miss a post.

Would love to hear any requests you have or what format you would like to see the challenge.

Sweet twist and pin variation

This is another of my favourite twist and pin updos. It’s deceptively simple to do and looks both sweet and stylish.

Like the French roll twist and pin, this is a great hairstyle for when you are don’t have time to dry your hair. You can easily do this style in wet hair and it will dry with a nice wave in the ends. You can even cheat by just blowdrying the top of your hair to keep it smooth. This hairstyle will hide the rest away in these sweet twists on the nape of the neck. This updo is also perfect for a second (or third!) day blowdry.

Hair product tips

• Starting with wet hair? Run some Moroccan Oil through your hair from midlenths to your ends.
• If your hair is a little dry you may want to use a serum to smooth down any flyaways.
• A spritz of hairspray will make it last all day.

Step by step

1. Part your hair on the side.
2. Take a small section of hair at the left behind your ear and twist and pin on your neckline.
3. Do the same twist and pin behind your right ear and pin on your neckline.
4. Then separate the rest of your hair into equal sections and repeat, twisting into little buns and pinning on the nape of your neck.

Through many attempts I found that if you do the left and right first, it’s easier to keep a straight line. If you start at one side you tend to go up and it’s hard to keep the sections even. This hairstyle looks best if you have hair all one length or long layers. It will be hard to style with short layers unless you use a lot of product. 

As always I recommend using good hair pins in the same colour as your hair.

Have you tried this style? Tweet me a pic or tag Hair Romance on Facebook. Drop me a comment below to let me know how you go.

French roll twist and pin how to

French rolls were a huge trend on the red carpet so far this season and here’s a twist & pin version I’ve been wearing for a while. 

I love this hairstyle for when I don’t have time to blowdry my hair. It’s easy to do in wet hair and means my hair dries smoothly with a nice wave through it. This is another fabulous hairstyle for after the gym in the morning as a great work hairstyle. 

This is my third day hair after a brilliant style by the Follicle Oracle so this is also great hairstyle to hide the kinks and get another wear out of your straight hair.

Hair product tips

• Starting with wet hair? Run some Moroccan Oil through your hair from midlenths to your ends.
• If your hair is a little dry you may want to use a serum to smooth down any flyaways.

Step by step

1. Pin back your fringe, or the front section of your hair. I like a little bit of height but not too much of a bump.
2. Taking a section from each side of your hairline and bring together into a twist at the back of your head.
3. Twist the section around your finger and pin into a small bun
4. Repeat steps 2 & 3 until all your hair is twisted and pinned into a line.

Today I did four twists but that’s the beauty of the Twist & Pin, there are endless variations. Try up to seven twists for this style.

Have you tried this style? Tweet me a pic or tag Hair Romance on Facebook. Drop me a comment below to let me know how you go.

Five fabulous hairstyles to take you from gym to glam

One of the most common New Year’s resolutions is to lose weight and/or get fit. So that means either diet or exercise. Preferably both. If you’re struggling to keep your New Year’s resolution these hair tips will have you glad to go to the gym.

I have a love hate with exercising. I always feel better for doing it and get that real endorphin rush but unless I really plan my time I will find any excuse not to go. Such as “I just washed my hair” or “I have to go out/go to work and won’t have time to wash my hair afterwards”.

Inspired by my revelation of my new favourite hairstyle and how well it worked on my post-exercise (read sweaty) hair, I decided to put together a list of my top five hairstyles to save you from hair disasters after the gym. 

1. The Reverse Ponytail of course! Brilliant hairstyle and my latest fave. Check out my original post to get the full how to and for more love about this hairstyle. 

2. The Twist and Pin – Perfect for curly or straight hair of any length. Hairstyle how to can be found here but it is infinitely versatile. Follow the links if you want to hear me rave on about this hairstyle and for more hair advice.

3. The sleek high pony – use that grease to your advantage and go for a high slick ponytail. Don’t go for a middle of a road pony, go high and wrap a section of hair around to hide your hairband. It’s the easiest finishing touch that elevates this look. A word of warning - don’t do this with a fuzzy or curly pony. Try a high plait instead. Hair must be straight to pull off the high pony.

4.  The chignon – really just a posh bun, but doesn’t chignon sound so much more glam? Tie all your sweaty locks into a low pony and then pin into a bun. Can be loose or structured, depending on your hair and how you are feeling.

5. The braid – love this look to get rid of a frizzy fringe especially if you don’t have your Parlux handy to blast it into submission. Haven’t yet got the dexterity to do this on your own hair looking at it backwards in the mirror? Well keep working on it (and you’ll end up with Michelle Obama arms) and an easy fix is just to twist it away like this hair idol.

Alas, no more excuses as to why you can’t fit a workout into your schedule and still have fabulous hair.  Bikini season is well underway in Australia and after a very busy party season I need to get moving so less bits of me are moving if you know what I mean...

Do you have a special routine for after the gym? What are your post exercise beauty or hair tips?

Gwen Stefani – leading the field in the twist and pin stakes

It seems everybody is talking about twist and pin styles on the web!

I have professed my love for Gwen Stefani and her amazing hair before and now even she is in on the twisting and pinning.

She looks fabulous once again and still has no regrowth. God she has miracle hair. Gwen, please share your secrets!!! She must get her hair coloured every week. 

Anyway, Gwen is rocking the sleek twist and pin as seen in my earlier post.

Sigh, girlcrush

Two ways to try this:

• Style it wet and let it dry in place.
• Blow dry and iron and then pin in place.

It almost looks like she has used a gel spray or something similar before starting to twist. I wouldn’t recommend this for long thick hair without professional assistance. Shoulder length hair is perfect and if you work carefully on each side from front to meet at the back you can pull this polished look off at home.

Product tips:

I would use a serum to begin with so you hair stick together better and stays smooth while you are styling it. Then finish with hairspray so it stays solid all night long.

Just another reason Gwen retains her place amongst the Hair Idols. Who else do you think belongs in the Hair Idol Hall of Fame?

Images: WireImages, Getty Images via Glamour.com

More simple twist hair styles for you to try

These two styles are perfect for when you are growing out a fringe or if know it won’t last if you try and straighten it for the whole event.

How to get Mandy’s look

Mandy’s style is super easy as you just twist the front sections from your part line and pin to the side of your head near your ears. Then just arrange your hair over the top so as to hide the pins and it’s super cute.

Time saver note: This is also a sneaky way to get away with greasy fringe for another day!

How to get Peaches’ look

Blow dry your hair straight. If using irons give it a little flick under at the bottom as this look needs some softness through the rest of the hair. Otherwise use a round brush to create some wave by blowdrying the ends under. 

Part your hair to the left side. Pin back the hair on the left by taking a small section and pinning back just above your ear. Like Mandy’s do, arrange your hair over the top to hide the pins.

For the twist:

Take a section of hair on the right brush it forward. Now, holding the hair with your right hand, place your left index finger on top and wrap the hair back around your finger where you want the twist to be. Slip a few hairpins in to secure it at the back and tuck the rest of the section underneath and hide it under the rest of your hair. You can just see the end of the hair that’s in the twist on Peaches’ photos so don’t worry if it’s not perfect.

You will need hairspray to keep this is place. Give it a light spray holding the hairspray about 25cm away from your hair. My favourite hairspray is Evo Helmet Hair.

Which is your favourite look and which one are you going to try this week? Now get twisting and let me know how you go! 

Images: WireImage via Glamour.com

Twist and pin for short hair

Enough already!! I can hear you say about the Twist and Pin.

I do have a tendency to go on and on about something when I love it. It’s true. I cannot stop telling everybody I know about something when I love it. I am a word of mouth marketer’s dream.

Anyway, back to things I love – the Twist and Pin!

This post is inspired by my new work colleague who just discovered Hair Romance yesterday (because I told her about it).

She has great hair but may be suffering from hair dysmorphia. She used to have long thick hair and last year chopped it all off into a sharp short style. She confesses she never did anything with her long hair and wasted it in ponytails and now she loves the convenience of her cropped do.

I love her hair and think it really suits her and her face shape. But I would love to see her try this style and think this is the perfect twist and pin for short hair.

How to get Hayden’s look

It really is as easy as twist and pin with this look. Use hair pins that match your hair colour for a more polished finish.

To create a bit more height in your hair you can either give the roots a blast up with your hairdryer then gently comb hair back into place. Or you could lightly backcomb the hair to tease a bit more height into it, especially on the crown.

Product tips:

A little bit of serum to add shine and smooth your hair and a little hairspray and you’re all set!

Do you have any tips for styling short hair?


Images: WireImages, Getty Images via Glamour

Twist & pin side chignon how-to

How amazing is this how-to? I am going to lift my game with my photography for my next hair style instructional!

So, I already told you that the chignon was coming back in fashion, and gave a little how to on the twist & pin here. Now, here is a very glamorous side chignon that combines the two and is simply gorgeous. You may have seen this floating around but it's too good to not repost.

Step by step how-to:

1. Using a round brush, blow-dry hair smooth and straight, focusing on the top sections.
2. Once dry, use a large-barrel curling iron to create waves from the ears down.
3. Build height and volume at the crown by teasing hair gently with a fine-tooth comb.
4. Gather hair into a low ponytail. Twist it along the nape of your neck, pinning as you go.
5. Once you reach your ear, shape the remaining hair into curls, and pin them back over the twist.
6. Spritz strands in place.
7. To add texture, gently curl and scrunch the wispy ends with your fingertips.

Images & how to via DIY Wedding Updos 

Twist & pin some more - celebrity up dos

You know how when you're obsessed with something you keep seeing it everywhere?

Well I keep seeing great up dos and twist & pin hair styles all over the web.

Here is a fabulous tutorial from Refinery 29 about Diane Kruger's recent twist & pin.  

It's much sleeker. I would style this while your hair is still wet and then use some hairspray to catch any fuzzies as your hair dries.

Head to Refinery 29 for full how to details.

How to – the Twist & Pin

This one technique can create an infinite number of styles. It’s my favourite styling trick and it’s so easy to do but creates far more complicated result that will make people stop you and ask “how did you do your hair?” wherever you go.

I’ve shown the twist & pin in curly hair here and here is a straight hair example.

First step, decide if you want a part or if you want some height at the front. Then take small sections of your hair and twist it round your finger like so.

Then grab a bobby pin and pin through both sides of the twist like so and try and anchor the pin the either the hair below or another twist.

Keep going until all your hair is twisted and pinned. It really is as simple as that.

Go on and have a practice yourself. Two simple tips –

• Buy some good quality hair pins, the stronger the pin the more hair it will hold.
• Try and hide all the ends for a smart finish or leave them out for a more relaxed look.

Short hair – I adopted this technique when I was growing out a short haircut so it’s perfect for shorter styles and bobs. You won’t get really round twists but you can really create a dynamic style.

Long hair – if your hair is too thick or too long to manage in individual twist & pins, section your hair into a ponytail and then take sections from within the ponytail and twist and pin all around the ponytail to hide the elastic. Once you have worked out a few styles this way, experiment with two or more ponytails – one above the other – so you can created different shapes with the twist and pin.

Leave me a comment to let me know what you think. I’m happy to answer any questions and would love to see your twist and pin styles. Send me a pic via email, or facebook or twitter. 

Hair Trends - The Chignon

Love the return of the loose knot - so simple but looks complicated.

These shots from Jason Wu fall 2010 via Refinery 29

Again another great style for the second day. I wore a similar style last week (another twist & pin) and will give this knot a go next week.

What to do with curly hair on the second day?

So you created beautiful curls with your lovely Parlux hairdryer, applied a conditioning treatment and used a serum to control the frizz and had a great day out with fabulous hair.

Then you slept on it and woke up looking like you just walked out of a bush backwards.

This is the reason most curly haired girls hate their hair. Unlike Queensland, it's beautiful one day and knotted the next.

What to do? Well, you can wash your hair and start all over again but if like me, you love a sleep in, relax a little while longer then grab some hair pins and just "twist & pin"!*


Start at the top and take sections of hair, twist and pin in place. Using your part as a guide to decide where to start sectioning, then take small sections and wrap them around your finger a put the bobby pin through the whole curl to secure it in place. I've left mine quite messy as I think it works better with the curls.
Have a play - hair is fun and it's so easy to experiment. Would love to see your styles.
* I almost called this blog Twist and Pin as it's my most common answer when people ask how I do my hair. I may make it my registered trademark...