The right haircut and a modern style can take years off your look. If you’re still rocking an outdated style or regularly skip trims and color touch-ups, it will age your appearance fast. Just like fashion trends, hair trends come and go, so if your style has seen better days, it’s time to book that salon visit. Ahead: Outdated hairstyles and trends that are making you look older and less attractive.
1. Messy Buns: Aka Lazy Girl Buns
Messy buns and loose updos might seem like effortless ways to style your hair, but they look disheveled and lazy. This style quickly isn’t chic; it’s sloppy, especially if your hair is frizzy or falling out everywhere. For a polished, put-together look, try a sleek, low bun or tight ponytail.
2. Heavy Uneven Bangs: Big on Drama, Low on Style
Bangs are tricky beasts. When they’re too heavy or too choppy, they overpower your face and draw attention to a large forehead or fine lines and wrinkles. Super short bangs can make your face look longer and older. Instead, opt for overgrown layers that can be swept to the side for a more natural and flattering vibe.
3. Harsh Pixie Crops: Less Is Not Always Chic
Pixie cuts can be super chic, but they don’t suit all face shapes, especially if they’re cut too harshly. A severe pixie crop can emphasize fine lines and wrinkles and make you look harsher and older. Plus, they have little to no volume, so they can fall flat. For a more flattering look, don’t go for a cut that is too close to your scalp, and add some layers for softness and texture.
4. Long Unlayered Hair: Limp and Craving Volume
Long, straight-hair hats lacking layers or volume can actually drag your face down, making you look tired and older. Super straight hair can also cling to your scalp, highlighting thinning areas or a receding hairline. Past a certain age, it’s better to go slightly shorter, just past the shoulders, which is an excellent length, and add soft layers to give your hair some bounce and movement and your face a lift.
5. Severe Blunt Bobs: Make You Look Unapproachable
A blunt bob, especially one that ends at the ears or jawline, can create a harsh, boxy look that ages your appearance. This style can also highlight a double chin and make your jaw appear wider. For a softer, more youthful look, opt for a shoulder-length bob with a soft side part and subtle layers.
6. In-Between Lengths: No Man’s Land for Hair
Hair stuck at that awkward in-between length can look dull and aging. This length often falls flat and limp, which can drag down your face and make you look unattractive. Either grow your hair a little longer and add some layers for definition, or cut it shorter for a more defined and elegant look.
7. Tight Spiral Perms: Stuck in the ’80s
The tight spiral perm was all the rage in the ’80s, but please, let’s leave it there. Perms add unnecessary volume and can make your hair look dry and damaged. The chemicals involved in the perming process can also cause frizz and breakages and accelerate hair loss. If you love curls, opt for soft, beachy waves created with a curling iron instead—this is a look that is modern, flattering, and much easier to manage.
8. The Infamous Mullets: A Crime Against Fashion
The mullet may have made a brief comeback, but this cringe style is best left in the past. With its stark contrast between short in the front and long in the back, the mullet is unflattering, off-balance, and ugly. Never try too hard with your hair; choose styles that suit your face shape, feel natural and modern, and make sure any layers are well-blended.
9. Shaggy Textured Styles: A Hot Mess
Shaggy haircuts might seem cool and carefree, but when they’re overly textured, they can look messy and unattractive. A shaggy, unstructured cut can create too much bulk, especially if your hair is short. This look can also give off a major bedhead vibe. For a more polished style, opt for a modern shag with defined layers that enhance your natural texture without going overboard.
10. Unnatural Streaks: A Fast Track to Fake
Over-bleached or badly blended streaks create a dated and unattractive look. Chemical dyes can also damage your hair, leaving it dry, brittle, and straw-like, which can make you look older. If you want highlights, go for subtle, balayage-style streaks in a shade that is close to your natural hair color.
11. Highlighting Regrowth: Roots Are Not a Trend
Nothing ages you faster than neglecting your roots. When you let your regrowth run wild, it creates a harsh contrast between your natural hair color and your highlights, making you look older. Regular touch-ups or embracing a more natural, low-maintenance shade that suits your skin tone can keep you looking chic and younger. And never ever rock roots as a look.
12. Scrunchies and Butterfly Combs: A Bad 90s Hangover
Scrunchies and butterfly combs might be back in fashion for a nostalgic touch, but to be honest, you just look like you’re stuck in the ’90s. While they’re handy for hanging at home or cleansing your face, overall scrunchies and hair accessories can look young and tacky. Opt for sleeker hair ties or a chic headband.
13. Loose Ponytails: A Messy Girls Guide to Hair
A loose, low ponytail is comfortable and perfect for the gym, but it’s not doing you any favors in the style department. This look can sag throughout the day, making you appear messy, tired, and older. Instead, go for a higher, tighter ponytail that gives your face an instant lift and looks more polished and chic.
14. Teased Bouffants: Old Fashioned Overload
Teased, voluminous looks are dated and unattractive and take you into Barbie Doll territory. The excessive volume can also make your head look out of proportion. If you love a little lift, do it in a more controlled way with modern styling techniques like root-lifting sprays or blowouts that focus on creating natural, bouncy volume.
15. Frosted Tips: Stuck in the Past
Frosted tips evoke memories of the early 2000s, but that’s where they should stay. This overly stylized look is not only dated, but it can also make your hair look dry and damaged. If you want to add some lightness to your hair, go for a more natural sun-kissed effect with subtle highlights or balayage.
16. Sculpted Updos: Prom Queen Energy
Fussy sculpted updos have their roots in outdated formal events like the prom. These styles lack movement, look old-fashioned, and are too stiff and unnatural. For a more youthful, modern look, opt for a looser, more relaxed updo like a chic bun with some face-framing strands to soften your features.