With temperatures soaring into the thirties this week and the heat wave promising to stay for a while, many people are getting more than a little hot under the collar. For those, like myself with long and thick hair wearing it up is an absolute necessity to avoid become too hot to do anything except take a dip in a swimming pool. This is a time when comfort and keeping cool becomes really important, almost as important as looking stylish. Of course it goes without saying, that the red shiny face and complete heat exhaustion look is not at all stylish, so a ponytail is the answer for both style, comfort and keeping your cool.

The high pony tail is  a great way to keep cool it keeps your hair completely out of the way. It also is a fresh and youthful hair style. For me one of the biggest bonuses is that it adds a bit of height and makes me appear a bit taller. Here is how to get the perfect high pony tail.

 1. Start by brushing the hair around your head, whilst holding it in a pony tail, with a paddle brush to achieve a smooth finish. If you like spray a little hair spray onto the brush to tame any loose strands or frizz, which can be a particular problem in hot weather. The pony tail will look very different depending on how high it is, experiment with different heights until you find the right one for you.

2. Once you have it right secure with a non elastic band. You will need to loop the band around until it is quite tight for a secure pony tail that does not fall down.

3. Clip back any loose pieces of hair that are not long enough to fit into the pony tail.

4. Now the fun bit, you can leave your ponytail as it is or decorate as you like by clipping in hair extensions, lots of little plaits (if it is long enough) and also using a decorative band or necklace around the base of the pony tail. For a really elegant way to wear your hair up, I love this Balmain Elegance Cannes Style Clip-in hair piece.

pictures from www.daniellescutt.com

If you have been looking every where for a way to make a real style statement this summer, then look no further. This headwear by up and coming designer Danielle Scutt is perfect. Twisted pieces of material and scarves are intricately woven into and tied around a variety of different hair styles. The great thing about this look is that anything goes. There  is no set way of twisting knotting and tying the material around the head, for a look that oozes urban cool. Sunglasses and large hoop earrings are added for a really glamorous edge.

Black and white coloured scarves are combined with bright colours for a really eyecatching look. For a more dressy look shiny materials and more elaborate up hair do’s are used.

 To create your own version of Danielle Scutt’s head wear, try using this Zandra Rhodes silk scarf and yellow silk chiffon scarf.

Last seasons tousled, just got out of bed hair is still very much on trend but there is also another option for those who prefer a more polished look. The chignon or ladylike up do was spotted at many a catwalk and is the perfect way to show off the seasons statement necklace. If you have long hair an up do works well with almost any evening wear, it can also be worn in the day time for a bit of added glamour.

At Marc Jacobs, hair was scaped back into a severe and very neat bun. This works well with eighties style make up and is a great way to show off razor sharp cheek bones.

At Bottega Veneta, hair was rolled around the neck but looked just a bit undone, perhaps just as it would look after a hard night of partying.

At Louis Vuitton, the hair was very feminine and elegant with a loosley structured but very high up do and wavy sweeping fringe.

At Elie Saab, the whole show had a nostalgic feel about it. The retro hair styles were smooth and polished for a look that oozed screen siren appeal.

Pictures from www.style.com

These hair styles may look like a bit of a challenge to create but the effort will be well worth it. All you need is a mirror, perhaps a willing friend to help and an array of hair accessories including grips, rollers and lots of hairspray.

These BaByliss ceramic high speed rollers are perfect for creating quick up do’s, they heat up an in minutes and give a smooth shiny finish.