Why You Need To Try ‘Hair Enamelling’, Fashion Week’s Hottest Trend

First Copenhagen, then New York, now London: fashion week is taking a step back from bold makeup and highlighting all things hair. You might've spotted natural textures and embellished braids, blunt cut bobs and towering beehives on catwalks and street stylers alike. But closer inspection proves that one hair trend is outshining everything else — quite literally.

From Brandon Maxwell to Ulla Johnson, the fashion week look of choice is hair that's so glossy it's almost reflective. Recently we brought you French glossing, which fuses permanent hair colour with a more subtle hair gloss to create a multidimensional glow, and not long ago it was all about hair glazing — a salon movement dreamed up by Wella Professionals UK colour trend expert Zoë Irwin, which enlists dye and bond builder to illuminate dull hair. But for 2022, dry texture is being sidelined for wet-look, slicked back styles where the shine is amped up to 100. Think plastered fringes at Tory Burch and drenched lengths at 11 Honoré and Altuzarra. The heavily lacquered look is glossy hair's rockier, edgier counterpart — and we're coining it 'hair enamelling'.

A new take on the wet look, hair enamelling lends a shellacked shine without being rock hard. The hype makes total sense. When your hair just won't play ball or you have a last-minute Zoom call, there's isn't much a handful of gel, dollop of mousse or veil of hairspray won't sort. Hair enamelling is the 2022 version of scooping your lengths up into a messy bun or a claw clip style without the need to adjust or redo throughout the day — and it's ten times as Instagram-worthy.

At London Fashion Week enamelled hair took centre stage during the Mithridate show, where Richard Phillipart for L'Oréal Professionnel created sleek ponytails with a gelled side parting. Similar slicked back and seriously glossy styles were glimpsed at Vin + Omi and Nensi Dojaka, and at Bora Aksu models with side fringes were given the gel treatment while the rest of the hair assumed a fluffed out texture. It's far from a coincidence, says Wella's Zoë. "People are really embracing the trend of all things glossy and glowing," she says. "We saw nuances of shine adorn NYFW with the likes of Altuzarra dressing Gigi Hadid in his shimmery, sequinned design" — with sections of her hair gelled to the side — "and models for Carolina Herrera featuring high-shine, wet-look hair." Zoë adds: "As we start to approach summer, I'm noticing more and more of my clients wanting to shed the dullness and bring the shine back into their hair."

Editorial hairstylist Neil Moodie seconds this. "The textured beach wave has been around for so long now that it's considered an everyday look. In contrast, the slick, wet look is seen as a bit more refined and on-trend, fashion-wise." Our affinity for balayage and highlights means that waves and a focus on texture have reigned supreme in salons to show off every single nuance of colour. The enamelled look is a lot simpler, says Neil, and best enhances hair that is all one shade. Though technically an AW22 trend, Neil predicts hair enamelling will take hold much earlier. "Not only is wet-look hair easy to do, it's also a very strong spring and summer trend," he says. "It allows for you to experiment with stronger and more playful makeup looks, too, and it just feels so refreshing."

You could say that the look takes inspiration from Korean skincare circles, where incredibly dewy 'glass skin' is trending. Similarly, whether you toss your hair up or decide to leave it down, it's all in the products. Flooding hair with moisture will minimise frizz and flyaways so it might be a good idea to boost your conditioner with something nourishing like Color Wow's Money Masque, £39.50, or Cantu's Shea Butter Deep Treatment Hair Masque, £7.99. If you have a TikTok account, you've probably seen that beauty enthusiasts are recreating hair enamelling with lube (yes, really). But if longevity is what you're after, stick to dedicated hair products. Try KMS Hairplay Styling Gel, £14 (a brand often spotted backstage at London Fashion Week) or Eco Style Moroccan Argan Oil Styling Gel, £5.99, both of which are lightweight but lend hair that enamelled lustre and brush out easily. Not keen on gel? You can fashion the same look using a mousse like Schwarzkopf Styling Keratin Hair Mousse, £4.50, and a boar bristle brush, or you might like Wella Professionals Oil Reflections Luminous Smoothing Oil, £17.48, which can be raked through towel-dried hair as a gloss-enhancing, leave-in treatment and smoothed over dry hair when styling to dial up shine.

If you're not quite into the wet look, you can still achieve an enamel-like gleam on dry hair. You've probably heard of the silk press (a chemical-free straightening alternative) and hair botox (the smoothing treatment taking over London salons), both of which make hair glisten. For high-shine hair all year round, Zoë suggests trying a regular colour treatment like Shinefinity. "Launching in salons in March, this helps unveil that healthy-looking shine that you can see and feel, with an ultra natural colour result. It adds depth and dimension to the hair." What Zoë loves is that it can be applied on any base colour, regardless of whether the hair is virgin or pre-coloured. "Due to its gentle formula (zero lift, zero ammonia, zero drying alcohol) this shine treatment is suitable for all hair types," she adds. For those who want to crank up the gloss without adding colour, try Kérastase's Chroma Absolu range, particularly Chroma Absolu Soin Acide Chroma Gloss, £37.60. This is an intensely glossy treatment that works in just eight seconds in the shower and makes dull, dry hair silky. It's hard to beat but if you're on a budget, L'Oréal Elvive's Wonder Water, £9.99, comes pretty close.

With Copenhagen, New York and London all in favour of enamelled hair, it's only a matter of time before Milan and Paris follow suit. Before then, you might want to rifle through your hair product stash — this one's going to be big.