Moving on up! For her husband Donald Trump‘s January 20 swearing-in ceremony as the 45th President of the United States, First Lady Melania Trump chose a deep side-parted updo that she helped style with her longtime hairstylist, Mordechai Alvow.
Alvow tells Stylish he wanted to achieve “a super chic look to work with the silhouette of the sky blue Ralph Lauren set. The outfit had beautiful tailoring, including a super high collar that is great for her long neck, and a 1950s feel, modernized with a touch of origami shapes. It was important to make sure her hair not interfere with the clean lines and monochrome color, so we decided to put her hair up, which also allowed her amazing bone structure to take center stage.”
After parting hair deep on one side “to partner with the modern cuts of the clothes,” Alvow applied leave-in conditioner from his Yarok product line to add shine and protect the First Lady’s hair from heat. He then massaged four golf ball-sized dollops of Yarok Feed Your Roots mousse into roots to boost volume before blowdrying with a round brush.
Products from left to right: Feed Your Ends Leave-in Conditioner, $20.40; Feed Your Roots Mousse, $27.20; Feed Your Style Dry Shampoo/Styling Powder, $18.50; Feed Your Hold Hairspray, $20.40. All products available at shop.yarokhair.com. 3% of all profits benefit the Pachamama Alliance to protect over 100 million acres of Amazon Rainforest.
Once her hair was dry, Alvow used a unique styling powder made with organic arrowroot to add texture, separating strands so the hair “doesn’t look too solid,” he tells Stylish.
He left the hair framing the First Lady’s face free, then secured a small ponytail at the base of her head. He loosely pulled back the remaining hair and pinned pieces above the ponytail, giving the style “an organic texture that felt carefree, natural and modern as well.” He sprayed the crown with medium-hold hairspray formulated with organic sugar cane (what gives it the stickiness, he says) and let it set.
For the elaborate bun, he twisted sections into loops and fastened them to the back of her head, leaving a few ends out. But here’s the best part: To loosen strands and finish the look, “I had her use her hands to add a personal touch,” Alvow tells Stylish.
