Hot Mess Mommy Hair Tricks, Tips, & Tutes (As Tested by Jacinda & Jaime)

Oh prudent mamas, how we all can bond over the fading of our beauty at the hands of our lovely children. Yes, they are worth every puffy eye and greasy ponytail. Wouldn’t change it for the world. I would, however, not mind having my hair look cute again. Gone are the days of volumizing, piecing sections, blow drying, and straightening in that luxurious hour before work (if only we had known how precious that quiet hour of primping was! How we would have savored it!), but thanks to the explosion of beauty blogs and pinterest tips, there are now so many ideas for ways to get your hair looking extra cute that don’t take much longer than a ponytail. So Jacinda and I tried a bunch of them out and we present them to you for your thoughts/perusal/inspiration.

A little insider Jaime-and-Jacinda info (sadness?), is that we have a thing where we take super bad photographs of ourselves working at our computers in food-crusted pajamas with smeared make up, and text them to each other at all hours. Is that weird? Well, Jacinda understands me, and that is the best feeling in the world. So this time around we decided to snap phone pics of hairstyle tutes we’ve tried, in which we look…dare i say… presentable? Keep reading after the jump for some easy mom hairstyle pics, links to tutes, and maybe a picture of what our hair really looks like on your average day (note: we really, really love reading and replying to your comments, but maybe just don’t comment on those, ha)…

GAH, ok, here goes… this is what our hair looks like on your average day. Jacinda:

Jaime:

This is me right now this morning. I did the sock bun last night! Omg! I woke up with hair like this! It’s so easy. You roll your hair around a sock, go to sleep, wake up, pull the sock out, and you have instant, bouncy curls. This and some dry shampoo is perfect for the second day after washing. There’s a million tutes out there, here’s one: Sock Bun.

In comparison, here I am after going to drybar (love drybar) and paying for a blow out/style with curling rod. I love this look, but it’s not that different from the sock bun used above, right?? And that’s free! And takes way less time!

Here’s a great one that Jacinda has used to save date night numerous times. It’s called a Knotted Bun, and it could. not. be. easier. And it looks so fancy! This one is from our super close friend/ hair guru Sonya Benham, author of the blog Parlor: Diary of a Hairdresser (we adore her site for makeup and hair tips, and she’s a mom of a 3-year-old too, so she gets it). Check out this tute here: Knotted Buns.

This is spin-pin bun, where you pull your hair together, twist it around into a bun shape, then you screw in two goody spin pins. I think it is supposed to be neater than this, and I thought I looked like a mess when i saw this picture from the back, but the weird thing was that I got crazy compliments on my hair all day long. I can’t explain it, but I suggest good spin pins either way. They are so easy to use and if you do it right, they don’t fall out. I think most drugstore hair thingies (bump combs, funky clips) are a waste of money, but these are very convenient to have in your purse. I guess it’s just one step up from a ponytail, but at least it’s a step. 2 for $5 bucks on amazon: Goody Simple Styles Spin Pin

Ok, this one might seem slightly ridiculous at first, like you think you personally could never pull it off, but I was surprised by how much I liked it, and it takes six minutes max. It’s also a really fun one to do the matchy-matchy thing with your daughter. My husband kept saying how much he liked it, which was a total surprise to me. My friend/hairstylist (and mother of two adorable little gingers) Kristy came up with this and shows you how to do it here: A How-to For Hairbands.

This is just two small sections of hair from the front parted in the middle and each braided, then clipped in the back. I have bangs so this works well for me, especially when those side hairs that are supposed to frame your face are all not cooperating. And i love my leather rose clip. Should I do a tute on making one? I wasn’t sure anyone would want to get leather just to make this, but if you are interested tell me in the comments and I’ll do a tute.

Not sure you can see what is happening in this picture, but due to someone I won’t name, who wouldn’t put on her shoes, I was running late for a meeting (like, a fancy meeting, at Barneys in Beverly Hills, omg), so right before I jumped out of the car I did a quick manuevre where I just braided my bangs out of my face and pinned. I had read about it on pinterest, and while I don’t know if I was fooling anyone, they didn’t like kick me out of the restaurant or point and laugh. So my suggestion here is to always keep a few bobby pins in your car. And a mini dry shampoo to de-grease on the fly, I keep this in my purse or car at all times:Oscar Blandi Pronto Invisible Volumizing Dry Shampoo Spray, 5 Ounce

I’m not sure this pic does it justice, but this is a crazy-easy way to pull your hair together, and people always ask me “how did you do that???” Learn here.

This is a style I love to do in place of a ponytail. It’s so easy. Get the tute here: Simple Gibson Tuck.

I love this look that Jacinda rocks all the time, the simple side braid. No tute necessary, just braid that baby to the side and let it lay over your shoulder. My Jacinda is such a beauty!

And when all else fails, there’s always a cute headband. Jacinda made this, learn how here: DIY Braided Headband.

Or a fun hairclip. I made this one (and a matching little one for Scarlet). Learn how here: DIY Feather Hair Clips.

Gah, ok that was kind of embarrassing. Hopefully it was not in vain, perhaps you might try some of these looks? What do you think, and do you have any hair-saving suggestions for us?

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16 Comments

Eluned

You’ve inspired me! As from tomorrow I am going to be a glamour-puss mummy, at least from the neck up … if you don’t look at the face ;0) xx

Reply
Jaime

i am usually very ashamed of my looks but all day i’ve been flipping my sock bun hair and glancing at it in the mirror. i am obsessed and think y’all need to give it a shot. jacinda, at least your monster has some color. mine is white. well, it used to be white.

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Shauna

I’m so grateful that you wrote this post! I grew up having short hair, with a total short-haired tomboy mom, so I never got to practice fun hairstyles on myself. I feel like I’m totally useless when it comes to styling my long hair now, but you’ve given me some simple ideas to start with. Thank you!

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Narelle @ Cook Clean Craft

What a fun collection! You’ve given me a few ideas, but will have to see what works with my wispy, fine hair.

I’d love to see a tute for the leather flower. Old/thrifted handbags are a great source of leather.

Reply
Jacinda

I have a bunch of pretty new leather that I stole from under Jaime’s nose at tonight’s tophatter auction so I’d love a tutorial. Thanks!

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Kate

I love the hair! So pretty. Updos and ponytails give me headaches. Weird but true. I might just try the sock bun though. I have a wedding to go to in a few weeks and I need something other than blah hair.

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Trina

You girls are the best!!!! Thank You, Thank You, Thank You! I have a 4 year old and a 1.5 year old, so I feel like I’m doing good if I even brush my hair-kinda gross I know…

But all of these styles seem easy enough and actually make me want to try to have better mommy hair. So thank you really, I love all your make-up and hair tutes. It makes me feel like someone else actually gets it too 😉

Oh and I would love to see a tute for the leather flower clip…can you say Mother’s Day present!

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Pam@behealthybehappywellness

Love the sock bun! My daughter has STRAIGHT long hair, and when we do the sock bun, she wakes up with “movie star hair” as we call it! I’ve just been waiting for my hair to get long enough – almost there I think!

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