The Straight Hair Guide: 21 Sharp Cuts, Soft Layers, and Stunning Styles to Copy

Turn a super sleek half-up, half-down style into even more of a statement by knotting the pony part into itself, as this model did on the Ermanno Scervino runway.

Complement straight hair’s natural smoothness with the blunt edges of a bob. Then punctuate the style with a sharp center part.

This long and slightly piecey look stands out on near-platinum dyed hair. It would be equally as striking on jet black hair, too.

In addition to the high-gloss shine that’s hard to miss here, break up the traditional bell shape of a bob by pinning and tucking pieces in front of and behind the ear.

Similar to the knotted half-up look, this version features ends that are bent into a flowy wave, and loose pieces of hair are left loose to frame the face.

Change the shape of a traditionally bent under bob by flipping the ends up and out, 1960s style.

Swirl straight hair into a wispy updo a la Margot Robbie’s modern ballerina bun.

Play with textures by slicing hair from ear to ear, smoothing down the front and back, then creating flat twists and bantu knots right at the crown.

The details are subtle here, but this bob’s slightly longer and flipped-up front puts it in more casual, less business territory.

Keep a longer length silk press light and airy by adding some volume at the crown and slightly curling the ends upward.

The spikiness of this style is a Y2K throwback but offers a more futuristic take on a classic updo.

Let the face card shine by keeping hair primarily one length (no layers), and cascading behind the shoulders.

Creating a wave on straight hair may require some work, but even the slightest bend, paired with a deep side part, will give instant Old Hollywood glam.

Curtain bangs are an easy, non-committal way to add a bit of drama when you don’t want to go full fringe.

An evenly cropped cut that hits just below the ear is one of the easiest brush-and-go bobs for styling minimalists.

Whether you wear wigs, naturally have inches, or want to add extensions for length and volume, slick and smooth the crown so that it’s frizz-free, while keeping the product at the ends to a minimum so strands flow freely and don’t look stiff.

To prevent straight hair from looking like it has zero dimension, try a piecey wet look like Kim Kardashian does here.

Play up the spikiness that straight hair naturally serves with a Y2K-inspired fan bun, accented with loose strands hanging at the front and sides.

Intentionally styling an undone, messy look on straight hair can be tricky. To pull it off, add some texture spray, pull half of it back into a loose and low bun, and let the rest do what it does.

Instead of exaggerated bubbles that are easier to create with textured hair, keep the puffiness to a minimum and instead, make two segmented ponytails from one secured base.