Ponytails, blowouts, pigtails, curls, and more

When the night stretches its dark tendrils out, trying to snatch away the day, it means October has arrived. Autumn is a magical season filled with festive gatherings, frightful fun, and wondrous transformations. For one special night at the end of the month, anyone can be whoever they want to be. Whether it’s Britney Spears, Barbie, or Baby Spice, a key part of your costume, the aspect that really shows you paid attention to detail, is getting the hair right.

To make sure you nail that crucial part, UNITE wants to help you “get the hair you want with the hair you have.” The company’s American-made line contains over 50 products that are PETA-certified cruelty-free and made without the bad stuff, such as parabens, phthalates, talc, formaldehyde, and more. Plus, over 75% of UNITE’s products are also vegan.

Celebrity stylists Eduardo Ponce, Sophie Sugarman, Cesar Deleon Ramirez, Hayley Heckmann, Patricia Lansingh, and Daved Anthony Munoz, along with beauty influencer Annabelle Hooper have all contributed to this article. These artists graciously offered professional styling tips and the UNITE products they used to achieve the look they wanted for their famous clients. They also tailored their advice to help you transform yourself into Barbie, Ariel, Britney Spears, Baby Spice, Paris Hilton, or a disco queen, so you can be a fashion icon this Halloween.

Barbie

Barbie was introduced to the world in 1959 by Ruth Handler. Ruth came up with the idea to create a fashion doll that inspired young girls with the knowledge that they could be anything they wanted. Over the years, Barbie has been everything from an astronaut to a surgeon without ever losing her flare for iconic style. With last summer’s “Barbie” movie and the previous year’s Barbiecore trend,this empowering doll seems to be more popular than ever. If you’d like to be Barbie for Halloween, three celebrity stylists have some tips for three distinct Barbie hairstyles: ponytail, blowout, and feathered.

Ponytail

One of Barbie’s most iconic looks is the ponytail with a swoop. Paris Hilton was recently photographed at Paris Fashion Week sporting this look. Her stylist, Eduardo Ponce, offered a few tips on how to get it.

“Before blow drying, I prepped Paris’ hair with a cocktail of 7SECONDS Detangler and LAZER Straight Relaxing Fluid. This mix is one of my favorites to protect the hair from heat,” he said. The combination of products gave Paris smooth hair that was free of frizz, while adding moisture and thermal protection.

“After blow drying, I sprayed U:DRY Fresh Dry Conditioner throughout before flat ironing Paris’ hair for added smoothness and heat protection,” Eduardo continued. U:DRY Fresh is a benzene-free, waterless conditioning spray that is formulated with argan oil and macadamia nut oil. The combination gives hair a silky, smooth finish that doesn’t feel greasy.

Once he flat ironed Paris’ hair, Eduardo used SECOND Day Finishing Cream and Lé:Play Hairspray to secure it into a ponytail. These two products tamed any frizz and created that enviable, super-sleek base.

To finish the look with flare, Eduardo polished the ponytail with SMOOTH&SHINE Styling Crème and SESSION-MAX Spray to produce a high shine with a budge-proof hold. 

Blowout

UK-based celebrity hairstylist Sophie Sugarman took a different approach. She created a Barbie-inspired blowout for social media’s stunning fashionista, Camila Coelho, to display during the Paris Fashion Week. Sophie said you can’t go wrong with this well-established, praise-worthy style as long as you have the right products.

“Prep is key with this look,” Sophie began. “That’s why I love using UNITE’s BLOW&SET Lotion — it lifts, curls, and sculpts the hair to make it long-lasting. After using this on damp hair, I then take my round brush and blow dry the hair with a curl, pinning the hair up after each section to set. Once the hair has cooled down, I pin it down section by section.”

To achieve long-lasting volume and fullness, Sophie said she likes to add U:DRY High Dry Shampoo to the roots of the hair and tease slightly at the roots so she can lock in that volume.

“Lastly, I apply TEXTURIZA Spray through the mid-lengths and ends to give it that effortless texture,” the styling artist concluded.

Feathered

If your Barbie vibe is a little more retro, celebrity stylist Cesar Deleon Ramirez has a look that will thrill you… as well as everyone who sees you. For the 2023 Grammy Awards, Cesar gave singer, songwriter, and fashion icon Bebe Rexha a style that would have impressed Farrah Fawcett. 

To achieve Bebe’s ’70s-inspired locks, Cesar said that he “applied BLOW&SET Lotion on our damp Wildform Wig hair to set and hold the shape. Using a small ceramic round brush, I dried and smoothed out each section.”

Once dry, the stylist said, “I sprayed the weightless and translucent TEXTURIZA Spray to the root area for volume and grip. Using a 1.5-inch marcel iron, I curled and over directed each section forward, then clipped it to cool and set.”

After installing Bebe’s wig, Cesar brushed each section out and sprayed it with the flake-free and brushable Lé:Play Hairspray. This versatile product from UNITE offers an all-day hold that is soft and bouncy and has a satin finish.

Ariel

The original The Little Mermaid from Walt Disney Animation Studios opened over 30 years ago, on November 17 in 1989. Since then, Ariel has become one of the company’s most popular princesses. Earlier this year, the iconic character was brought to life in a live-action film when Halle Bailey played King Triton’s daughter. Her version treated viewers to a princess with striking, 30-inch long, copper-red locs. If you’re considering being Ariel this Halloween, Hayley Heckmann, and Annabelle Hooper have a few tips for you.

Braided ponytail

Hayley Heckmann‘s vision of Ariel focuses on a long, gorgeous, ocean-inspired braided ponytail. She began by pulling the model’s hair up into a high ponytail and spraying MAXCONTROL Spray throughout for a strong hold that’s flake-free and offers a satin finish. MAXCONTROL’s formula is ideal for delivering the powerful, yet brushable hold required to create slicked-back up-styles. 

Next, Hayley rubbed CONUNDRUM Paste into the palms of her hands and started to braid. “This will make sure any frizz and flyaways are tucked away,” she informed.

Hayley instructed to finish the braid by adding in your favorite hair extensions — for extra length — and decorating with beachy accessories to complete the look with an under-the-sea vibe. 

Tousled tresses

If you prefer the original look from the animated film, beauty influencer Annabelle Hooper said to start with SMOOTH&SHINE Styling Cream. Apply it from mid-lengths to ends to hydrate, nourish, and protect your hair from ultraviolet and thermal damage. To create that ravishingly feral tousle, Annabelle curled the hair in alternating directions and used BOOSTA Finishing Spray for extra volume with shine and hold.

Britney Spears

From her early days on “The All New Mickey Mouse Club” to her recent freedom, the world has watched this dynamic woman grow and navigate the challenges of being a superstar. While she has many unforgettable eras, one of her most memorable looks was the iconic red latex bodysuit from her “Oops!…I Did It Again” video. To nail this always-popular costume, you have to get the hair right.

Celebrity stylist Patricia Lansingh recreated Britney’s look for Witney Carson‘s Dancing with the Stars appearance. To get it right, she applied BLOW&SET Lotion to Witney’s damp hair from root to ends to shape and sculpt. Then she rough-dried the hair upside down to increase volume and lift at the roots.

“Next, I used a round brush to smooth everything out,” she said. “Once dry and blown out, I applied the heavy-lifting volumizing powder, EXPANDA Dust at the roots to hold the tease.”

To finish, Patricia used two small rubber bands to lock down the sides and tie underneath the hair. She finished with SMOOTH&SHINE Styling Cream to help with flyaways.

Baby Spice

A couple of years before “Baby One More Time” became a hit, five girls from London captivated the world with a song called “Wannabe.” Emma Bunton, aka Baby Spice, was the youngest member of the world-famous quintet. She was always upbeat and smiling, and she represented innocence and purity. If this was your favorite Spice Girl too, wig expert Daved Anthony Munoz has a few tips for you.

To get the Baby Spice look, you need to focus on the playful pigtails. Daved used the cult-favorite and talc-free dry, translucent finishing TEXTURIZA Spray to add volume, texture, and fullness. Next, he applied the coconut-infused SMOOTH&SHINE Styling Cream to smooth dry and damaged ends. The product also added a durable high shine that will last all night. If you want to win first prize at this year’s costume contest, don’t forget to add large, playful pom-poms to top off the look.

Paris Hilton

A ponytail isn’t the only time Paris Hilton’s hair slays. Earlier this month, Eduardo Ponce posted “Really been into blowouts lately, all about the movement and bounce,” along with a montage of Paris sporting his flawless silky blowout. If you’d like to have Paris’ salon-quality hairstyle this Halloween, here’s the three-step routine that Eduardo employs.

For step one, Eduardo prepped Paris’ damp hair with 7SECONDS Detangler and BOOSTA Volumizing Spray. He gently brushed the products through her hair to make sure they were evenly distributed to coat each strand. According to the celebrity stylist, this combination delivers untangled strands for manageability. It also provides thermal and UV protection, and adds softness, shine, and weightless volume.

In step two, Eduardo blow dried Paris’ hair with a round brush, using tension to create a smooth finish. Once dry, he applied SMOOTH&SHINE Styling Crème on mid-lengths to ends to control frizz and flyaways. This styling cream can be used on wet or dry hair and also adds a healthy shine. SMOOTH&SHINE is formulated with organic Hawaiian white honey to revitalize and add strength, as well as crushed pearls and coconut to nourish and protect.

“To finish,” Eduardo said, “I used BOOSTA Finishing Spray for extra volume and Lé:Play Hairspray to shape the look, and set everything in place.”

Glamorous Curls

Last, but not least, Cesar Deleon Ramirez offers a cascade of glamorous curls that are suitable for costumes ranging from a vintage Hollywood star to a disco queen. His model, once again, is the ever-fashionable Bebe Rexha. To achieve the singer’s remarkably full-bodied, luscious lioness mane, Cesar used UNITE’s TEXTURIZA Spray. This dry, translucent finishing spray delivered volume and fullness with a matte finish and workable hold.

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