Hair Style Files: Red Carpet Ready at the Teen Choice Awards

This past weekend Hollywood’s teenage dreams were tearing up the blue carpet at the Teen Choice Awards to honor the year’s biggest achievements in music, movies, sports, television and fashion, voted by their peers.  

Although most of the VIPs are not old enough to vote in an election (or in some cases, see a rated R movie), they embodied class, finesse and elegance of A-listers way beyond their years. 

When we were age fifteen, our go-to hairstyle was a scraggly ponytail with short bangs (we really embraced the awkward years), so you can understand our feelings of styl-envy for these stunning starlettes. 

Luckily we care more about beauty than our pride, which is why we identified two of the night’s top trends and simple steps to achieve them at home:

Chic Chignon: Pulling hair back into a chic chignon is a quick way to transform your style into a sophisticated statement.  

STEP #1. Begin by spritzing L’Occitane Aromachologie Control Mist ($24 at Loccitane.com) on dry, straight hair to prime the surface for a smooth start 

STEP #2.  Clip Dancing with the Stars Glamarama Extensions (available at HSN.com) into loose hair to add volume without permanently tampering with your tresses

STEP #3.  Use your fingers to gather hair into a low ponytail, then target treat stray strands with John Frieda Touch-up Flyaway Tamer ($10 at Drugstore.com), and tie with a hair elastic

STEP #4.  At the base, twist the tail clockwise on itself to create a tight spiral and anchor the bun into place with bobby pins (about 4 will do the trick)

STEP #5.  Secure shape and shine with UNITE Max Control Hairspray ($27.50 at Unitehair.com) to keep every hair in place

Stick Straight: Maximize the appearance of healthy hair with a stick straight style that accentuates rich texture and radiant shine.

STEP #1. Start by washing hair with John Frieda Full Body Shampoo + Conditioner ($7 at drugstore.com) Insider Scoop: straight hair must be freshly washed or it will quickly turn oily and appear dirty

STEP #2. Saturate each strand with UNITE Lazer-Straight Relaxing Fluid ($26.25 at Unitehair.com) before flipping your head over to your knees for an “upside down” blow-dry (use a flat paddle brush to speed up the process)

STEP #3.  When the mane is meticulously dry, tame frizz with the Keratin Complex Straight Day Spray ($24 at Keratincomplex.com) for enhanced shine

STEP #4. Then, separate hair into three levels (underneath, back of crown, top), and as you go through the bottom and back, flat iron 1-inch sections until hair is smooth and sleek

STEP #5.  Polish off the top level by curling the ends under for a salon quality finish

BONUS! Side Swept Bangs: If you are ready to head out the door, but feel like you need a little more umph in your coif then add some hair flair with side swept bangs.  If you aren’t ready to make the cut try Hairdo Clip-In Bangs ($29 at QVC.com), which let you try the style for a fast fringe bang with no strings attached