Beauty: The 15-Minute Updo

Holiday parties, here we come

Photos by Rebecca Marie

Have a December calendar full of holiday bashes and very little time to do your hair? We get it. Meredith Boles, artistic director of Matthew Morris Salon and Skincare, has come to the rescue. This pretty updo takes about 15 minutes and, for those of you heading straight from the office, requires only a handful of tools. Ready for your close-up?

Prep roots with a texturizing spray. “It gets rid of that freshly washed feel, which makes it impossible to get hair up,” she says. Look for a cross between dry shampoo and hairspray, and spray through the ends if you have fine locks.

Curl with a 1-inch curling iron. “Create nice, loose waves,” Boles says. “It’s not about perfection, it’s about getting that bend in your hair so you can get it up easily.” You can curl your hair the morning of, too.

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Pull your hair up into two ponytails. Create two sections: a top one that goes from ear to ear, and a “nape” section, containing the hair below the ears. Loosely grab the top section and pull out strands around your face. “Nothing too heavy or wispy,” she says. “They should soften the look and make it feel tousled.” Pull the rest of the top section into a somewhat high ponytail, then pull the bottom section into a second ponytail as close as possible to the top one.

Backcomb each ponytail for volume, then twist each one in a figure-eight motion, pinning along the way. Start with the bottom ponytail and wrap it up and around the top ponytail; loosely pin in place. Wrap the top ponytail around the bottom one. The looser the look, the better. “Styling hair pins work better than bobby pins for this kind of updo,” Boles says. If your hair looks like a giant bun in profile view, pin down the are.a between the two ponytails to make it lie flatter and separate the two. To finish, spritz with a finishing spray. For shoulder-length or shorter hair, simply lower the two ponytails.

Meredith Boles is the artistic director of Matthew Morris Salon and Skincare, 13 S. Broadway,303.715.4673; 2644 Walnut St., 303.715.4673; 4941 S. Newport St.