How to style a textured half-up topknot
Throwing your hair up in a topknot is hands-down the easiest way to deal with dirty, gritty, really-needs-to-be-washed hair. But you know the feeling when you’ve had your hair snipped into a chic new bob and you suddenly panic because your carefree bun days are over?
The good news is that it is possible to do a topknot on short hair. In fact, it’s more than possible. Meet the ultimate bun for short-haired gals: the half-up topknot. As long as you have the right tools in your kit, it’ll take you no time at all (and it looks super cute, too!).
Need some help creating this short hairstyle? Check out our easy step-by-step guide for styling a half-up topknot, with a little texture on the side.
Toolkit
The best part? You don’t really need a whole lot when it comes to doing a textured half-up topknot. You’ll basically just need a heat tool, a styling product and a couple of things to hold it all together. You can, of course, just do this style on straight, sleek hair, but we’ve decided to add a bit of texture for that effortless 'lived in' messy bob.
We used ghd Platinum+ Ink on Pink Styler and KMS Hair Play Sea Salt Spray to create texture through the hair. For the hair elastic, we went with Scunci 100 Pack Value Pack Elastics in Black (if you have lighter hair, go for a blonde variant) and Lady Jayne Bobby Pins to secure the base of the bun.
1
Start by creating loose curls
Take a one-inch section of your hair and place a flat iron at the root, rotating away from your face. Gently slide the straightener down the section of hair to create a soft curl.
2
Continue all the way around
Take another small section of hair and place the iron at the root – this time rotating the iron in the opposite direction. Repeat step one and two until you’ve curled all of your hair.
3
Add some grit
To really nail that ‘tousled’ look, you’ll want to create some workable texture (if you haven’t washed your hair in forever, you can probably skip this step!). Lightly spritz your hair all over with a sea salt spray, and shake out the curls with your fingers.
4
Create a ponytail
Gather the top third of your hair into a high ponytail. Don’t worry about using a brush – a messy topknot is the goal here, so just use your fingers to scrape back the strands (you don’t want it looking too polished and sleek).
5
Secure it
Secure your ponytail at the top of your head with a hair tie, but don’t pull the ponytail through the elastic on the final loop.
6
Loosen it up
The messier the better! Loosen the bun by tugging at it for some added volume.
7
Wrap into a bun
Once the hair is secured, wrap the ends around the base of the bun to hide the elastic, and discreetly secure the tail with bobby pins.
And you're done!
That’s how to do a textured half-up topknot in just a few simple steps.
Looking for the best products to use on short hair? Check out 10 styling products every short-haired gal needs in her kit.
Do you have a favourite hairstyle for short hair? Please share with us in the comments section below.
Main image credit: Sevak Babakhani
Hair & makeup credit: Sarah Laidlaw
Erin Docherty is a Beauty Writer for BEAUTYcrew, Beauty Editor for Women's Health magazine and a Grooming Writer for Men's Health magazine. She has a keen interest in cosmeceutical skin care and is currently working on minimising her 9-step skin care routine – because ain’t nobody got time for that. When she’s not writing about the latest beauty news, or applying copious amounts of serum, you can find her spending all her money in Sephora.
