What's a girl to do with long, naturally thick and wavy hair and zero experience in styling it? She wears it in the same ponytail. For years.

Meet Sameena, 31. She was the queen of the ponytail, but she really wanted a new style -- one that she could easily pull together on her own every day. Over the years, Sameena's hair routine hadn't changed beyond getting regular trims and the occasional blow out.

"Since my son was born, I haven't had much time to make myself over or do anything special," said Sameena. "As a stay-at-home mom, I've had haircuts, but they've just been quick trims and maybe a blow out. This was my chance to get a new style."

Beyond changing her same old ponytail routine, Sameena wanted a new look for an upcoming trip to visit friends and family in India.

"I'm visiting my home country in a few weeks and I'll be attending a lot of parties, events, and weddings," said Sameena. "It'll be great to have a new look when I see friends and family."

The team at Cristophe Salon in Beverly Hills listened to Sameena's ideas about a new style and worked up a program that would transform her look from permanent mom ponytail to party in a few simple steps. Click to see Sameena's hairstyle makeover.

Sameena's hair is totally natural -- never touched by hair color or chemically processed in any way -- and she had long layers and a full, thick head of naturally wavy hair. In a word, she kept it simple, not stylish.

"I don't do much to my hair -- I might straighten it a little for a night out, but that's very rare and I never get it totally straight," Sameena said. "It's normally just thick and dry like normal Indian hair. I end up tying it up most of the time because my son pulls on it, and it's just easier with my lifestyle now."

To make Sameena's thick, textured hair more sleek and manageable, colorist/stylist Fanesia Vienna washed her hair with Tresemme Keratin Infusing Shampoo, $5.75, then followed the wash with Tresemme Kertain Infusing Conditioner, $5.75, a deep conditioning formula that nourishes every strand to make her hair less frizzy, more smooth, and easier to style.

Although Sameena's hair wasn't too damaged, she wanted a cut that would give shape to her hair and make it look healthier. Because her hair was all one length, Vienna settled on a cut that would create a shape for her hair whether Sameena wore it natural or straight.

"We took off about five inches," said Vienna. "I wanted to make her hair less bulky at the ends. We also added layers to give it some shape -- with this cut, she can wear it curly, too."

Vienna walked Sameena through styling her new cut -- first applying Tresemme Keratin Smooth Heat Protection Shine Spray, $5.29, which seals in shine and protects hair from the damaging effects of heat styling. After blow-drying Sameena's hair and styling with a round, vented brush, Vienna created a deep center part and kept her roots sleek and smooth. For the final touch, Vienna used the round to wave the ends of her hair out and away from her face.

Makeup artist Taylor Babian gave Sameena a bold makeup look with a smooth, radiant finish. She used a cobalt blue eye shadow over her entire upper eyelid and lined it with a smoky black cream eyeliner. Babian kept Sameena's lashes full and defined using a volumizing mascara and finished the look with a soft, natural lip color.