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Height, as it were, was not really keynote in today’s Versace hair look in New York City. That is with the exception of one model (and one front row celebrity).
For a show which saw models step out with slicked, ironed hair, model Grace Elizabeth’s towering bouffant left an even greater impression. Yes, it was huge; backcombed upwards and outwards with the utmost brilliance by Guido Palau, but it looked even bigger on a runway which championed straight, sleek hairstyles. “Donatella wanted a few exaggerated looks,” Palau told Vogue backstage ahead of the Pre-Fall 2019 show. And exaggerated she got.
Grace Elizabeth’s hair was transformed into a towering half-up, half-down ‘do, one which instantly calls to mind Barbara Eden’s fountain-like ponytail in I Dream of Jeannie. Along with Elizabeth, model Luna Bijl’s mane also recalled the mountainous height of Jeannie. As high as a Manhattan skyline, Palau riffed on the iconic ’60s hairstyle and ramped up the volume with ample extensions, excessive teasing and a lot of spritzing (big gulps of Redken’s Triple Dry 15 Dry Texture Spray and Guts 10 Volumizing Spray Mousse, to be exact). “We’ve been seeing the [sleek], pulled-away look on a lot of celebrities, so we exaggerated it as a nod to Versace’s heritage of excess,” he explained backstage.
As for the model herself, she spent her time backstage bunking in with some neck pillows and old school foam rollers. Sharing the (protracted) evolution of her oversized coif on Instagram story, the model nestled with little neck pillows while the hairstyle – and height – set. Topped off with ornamental hair clips, the elaborate coif truly breathed new meaning into big hair.
But Jeannie’s high, half-up pony didn’t exist just on the catwalk. Front row, Kim Kardashian West sported a similar style, replete with glitzy glomesh hair tie (of course). Not quite as high (or voluminous) as Elizabeth’s up ‘do, Kardashian’s jet black lengths were pulled high and tight and fell at her waist.
A major coup for the hairstyle, does it get much better (or bigger) than Kim Kardashian and Versace? We think not. Jeannie would be most impressed.
