By Tempura / Getty Images
From Alice bands to bows, barrettes and scrunchies, hair accessories and hair jewelry have made a remarkable comeback in fashion in recent months. But it's the headband that stands out as the must-have this spring, accompanying a preppy style comeback. Whether plain or printed, wide or thin, and with or without other accessories, the headband is already the star of the season.
From Alice bands to bows, barrettes and scrunchies, hair accessories and hair jewelry have made a remarkable comeback in fashion in recent months. But it's the headband that stands out as the must-have this spring, accompanying a preppy style comeback. Whether plain or printed, wide or thin, and with or without other accessories, the headband is already the star of the season.
What happened to that casual style that was supposed to dominate fashion in the post-Covid world? It didn't take long for natural looks -- and chic styles -- to come back to the fore, from the catwalks to the streets, bringing with them that preppy chic style synonymous with the Blair Waldorf character from "Gossip Girl." While she owns Alice bands by the dozen, she's also a fervent fan of headbands, many of which have accessorized her most chic and sophisticated outfits over the years. Now the preppy look is back, along with its emblematic headbands, to be worn without moderation this spring!
800 million views
Just a few months ago, at the end of 2022, the Plazacore trend was already bringing back a preppy chic wardrobe, with a focus on ruffled shirts, babydoll dresses, pleated skirts, high socks, beads, ribbons and Alice bands. The headband proved more discreet, but not for long. As the sunny days approach, this accessory is taking a place of choice in preppy wardrobes. On TikTok, the trend is such that hashtags associated with the term 'headband' have already scored more than 800 million views, with a multitude of tutorials about different ways to wear them.
With 120 million annual shoppers, the global fashion search engine Stylight confirms the trend, claiming to have recently seen an increase in traffic for the headband category. In detail, the platform reports a 114% increase in search interest for headbands in March 2023, compared to the same period a year earlier, well and truly showing a growing interest in this hair accessory. At the same time, the #preppy hashtag has nearly 22 billion views on TikTok, also establishing itself as one of the most popular styles for 2023.
Tried and tested by Bella Hadid
As usual, celebrities have been quick to embrace the trend. This is the case of the star model Bella Hadid, who has been seen wearing the accessory several times since the beginning of the year. Other fans include Nicola Peltz Beckham and Kendall Jenner. But beware, it is not about wearing a headband like an amateur tennis player, nor as if you're having some kind of beauty treatment. Here, headbands are used to channel preppy style.
As you can see, followers of the trend aren't wearing headbands with tied-up hair. The best way, or at least the most chic way, to get the look is to wear a headband with loose hair, whether straight, wavy or curly. Here, there are two options: let a few strands come out of the headband or pull all the hair back. For a bolder and nostalgia-tinged look, try wearing a headband with volume-boosted or backcombed hair, like Brigitte Bardot.
