A huge hairstyle trend right now is the sleek, center-parted ponytail, shown off here by Lea Michele from "Glee" and Fergie. It's the perfect five-minute style for any straight-haired beauty. Here's how to recreate it: Start with damp hair, and run a small amount of smoothing gel through it (try Biolage Smoothing Gel, $13 ). Create your middle part, then blow-dry hair using a flat paddle brush like Mason Pearson Universal Nylon Brush, $115. Once hair is dry, secure it into a mid-height pony. Wrap a one-inch section of your ponytail around the elastic to cover it, securing underneath the pony with a bobby pin.
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Rachel Bilson
Bilson's hair always looks fresh worn down because she opts for natural-looking color and keeps highlights to a minimum. Thomas suggests using single-process color only (if your hair is straight) in order to protect it from obvious damage. He also recommends using a good fortifying shampoo and conditioner (try L'Oreal EverStrong Shampoo and Conditioner, $5.99 each) to help hold onto hair color and prevent strands from looking "messy."
When it comes to having straight or curly hair, a lot of women seem to want what they can't have; straight-haired ladies love the curling iron and curly gals reach for the flat iron. Well, this year is all about working what you've got, which means straight-haired women of the world, unite -- it's time to start celebrating your sleek strands.
Celebrities like Amy Adams, Reese Witherspoon and Blake Lively reveal how simple it is to show off straight, beautiful locks, and how to avoid common ways in which hair can look damaged, boring and lackluster. With some simple tips on coloring, cutting and care, you can safely put down the hot rollers and feel confident in these fun, flirty styles -- whether you wear them to the office or out on the town.
We chatted with celebrity hair stylist Eli Thomas, owner of Thomas Chance Hairdressing in Santa Monica, Calif., to let us in on all the top tricks for maintaining strong, gorgeous and fashion-forward hair with an attitude that when it comes to hair, "straight is great." Check out these gorgeous celebrity looks for easy ways to go au naturel with your 'do and embrace your smooth side.