Poofed Hair – From the Jersey Shore to Runway Ready

If you haven’t had a chance to see the kind of poof I’m talking about, visit the MTV website for some Jersey Shore clips featuring "Snooki". Once you’re done laughing at just how high this girl’s hair is, look up the models walking the runway for the Oscar de la Renta Fall 2010 collection. Suddenly, what was once funny is becoming fashionable. Even Chanel had poof on the runway and that’s a company known for keeping it classy.

Heck, even Johnny Weir was sporting the poof at a recent event. Which, you know, means it’s super-trendy.

If you like having super-trendy hair straight off the runway or the Jersey Shore, here are some tips on getting your poof halfway to heaven.

Styling Products Are Your Friend

Start with a handful of mousse. Once you have even coverage, begin your style at the front with a large-barrel curling iron (a 2” will do, but a 2 ˝” will work even better) and make sure you let the style set around the iron. It would be better to leave the curling iron in longer at a lower setting than turning it up and doing your style quickly.

So What Do You Do With that Big, Fat Curl on your Head?

Once you have your big, beefy curl it’s time to backcomb it until you feel like your arm might fall off. Also known as “ratting” your hair (I think the eighties terminology just might come back with the styles) this gives great volume at the roots and will keep your poof from going flat halfway through the night.

Once you have the roots backcombed, smooth the top layer of hair over and to the back. Secure with bobby pins or a clip. Now comes the fun part – hairspray, hairspray, hairspray. You could even consider putting on a layer of hairspray, combing it through the top layer over the ratted roots, and then add another layer on top for extra-solid hold. The best part about all this new millennium hairspray is that it doesn’t have the CFCs your 80s hairspray did, so you can have all the wicked hold and know that your hairspray isn’t slowly destroying the ozone layer in the process.

Of course, if you style your hair in the bathroom, make sure to turn on the exhaust fan – it’s just better on your lungs than hanging out in a room full of hairspray.

Finishing Touches

If you don’t have bobby pins available and your styling drawer is fresh out of clips, you’re still in luck. With just a little more hairspray, you can make the sides of the poof descent and blend into the rest of the style. It is a much less dramatic style when you blend it into the rest of the hair, which is a shame, because if you’re choosing to rock a poof you may as well do it up right.

The variations of the poof are many, and finding the right one for you just takes some practice. Start with the right hair tools to make sure your poof is runway ready!