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Get Accessorizing with These Gorgeous Short Hair Accessories

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There’s a lot to love about a great, short haircut. It's easy to style, it dries so much faster, and it's the perfect combination of sophistication and playfulness. But when it comes to versatility, most people still think that long hair has the advantage. After all, longer hairstyles can easily be styled into an updo, braids, or maybe even a set of space buns if you're feeling bold. But while short cuts might have less hair to work with, you can still get the same styling variety with just a few well-placed hair accessories. 

When applying hair accessories to short hair–particularly whenever you’re using hair pins–remember that texture will help to keep everything in place. If you have straight or fine hair or that’s what the look calls for, don’t stress. To gain more grip, lightly spray the section of the hair you’re about to pin with hairspray before application, or lightly spray the pins before securing them to your hair. This quick extra step will help give the pins some added grip to keep everything in place. 

Ready to give it a go? We’ve highlighted seven chic hair accessories for short hair below, plus tips on how to achieve each look.

Catherine Pham wearing hair pins with colorful rhinestones smiles

Look #1: Great Gatsby Glam Clips

Unfortunately, we’ll never be able to time travel back to the roaring ‘20s to live it up at one of the era’s famous flapper parties. That doesn’t mean we can’t dress like we’re heading to one anyway. This look pairs a simple, short hairstyle with an expertly arranged set of hairpins. It’s great for any length of short hair, be it a shaggy pixie cut or a shoulder-length lob. It’s dressy enough to rock as a wedding guest hairstyle and can work just as well for a day at the office. 

To recreate the style, lightly comb your hair and tuck it behind your ear. Then slide sparkling pins like these PINK PEWTER Harper Bobby Pins in just in front of your ear, so that the ends are pointing up toward the top of your head. Arrange them so that the base of each pin is touching, and the ends fan outward.

Alina Kozyrka mixing and matching different hair clips and hairpins

Look #2: Mix-and-Match Hair Clips

Sometimes, a little bit of chaos can be a good thing, as this busy-but-beautiful mash-up of sparkling hair accessories proves. This style works best when the hair has some texture added to it. Prep your short hair by using a texturizing spray and maybe even a curling wand to give those top layers a little extra oomph. For those with curly hair, embrace your locks for this style. The more texture, the better.

Get this look by using barrettes and hairpins like the PINK PEWTER Glitz Metal Hair Clip in Silver and these GRACE KELLY Pearl Bobby Pins. Gently grab the top layer of one side of your hair, slide it back so that it’s just behind and above the ear, and pin the hair clips so that they're all slightly askew. When you have this much bling, adding a bit of intended messiness helps keep the look from feeling too over-the-top.

Alina Kozyrka wearing a pair of elegant hair clips studded with clear gems

Look #3: Simply Sophisticated Hair Clips

Ramping up the drama doesn’t have to mean loading up on hair accessories. In fact, a show stopping hairstyle can simply center around a dramatic part. Case in point: this elegant ‘do. Here, we’ve added some light texture, but this style would also look fab with sleek, straight hair. 

First, use a comb to create a deep side part. On the side with more hair, take two matching hair pins and pin them just above your eyebrow, about a half-inch apart. We love these two matching PINK PEWTER Duchess of Cambridge Pearl Flower Pins. Remember, spraying pins with a bit of hairspray before attaching to the hair can give them a bit more grip.

A smiling Destene Kinser is wearing hairpins studded with big gemstones

Look #4: Get Glittering Hair Pins

Anyone in the mood for a little bit of magic? This fun, optical illusion hairstyle might look like you'd need the aid of a pro hair stylist to recreate, but anyone can get this whimsical style on their own. In fact, it's actually really simple to do. 

First, pull your hair back into a messy ponytail. If your hair is too short to be totally pulled back, try turning this into a half-up-half-down hairdo by loosely pulling back just the top half of your hair. Once your ponytail is secure, slide in a handful of pins like these beaded PINK PEWTER Queen Elizabeth Pearl Hair Pins. Make sure to slide in the pins so that the metal hides behind the top layer of hair but the pearled end remains visible. It should end up looking like pearls are floating in your ponytail. Houdini never looked so good!

Christina Santini wearing a messy high pony tail with a big studded hair clip

Look #5: Peek-a-Boo Clip

The fun thing about rocking a shoulder-length hairstyle is that it can still be wrapped up into a spunky high ponytail. The only potential downside is the presence of those just-too-short hairs at the nape of your neck that you can't gather into a ponytail. While you could hide them by pinning them up with bobby pins–we go over how in our guide to mastering the ultimate messy bun–you don't have necessarily have to. And, as this look shows, they can be harnessed to create a totally unique hairstyle. 

With this look, we’ve gathered all those shorties into a big statement hairpin. Flip your hair upside down and tousle it up a bit, collecting it all on the crown of your head. After securing your hair with a hair tie, collect all the stray hairs underneath using a big barrette like this rhinestone PINK PEWTER Radiance Metal Oval Hair Clip

This look works particularly well with curly hair, but you can get the look with other hair types, too. To make your pony as bouncy as possible, try tightly curling your hair and shaking it out just slightly before pulling it up into your ponytail.

Emma Isabella Holley wearing pearl-studded headband and red statement earrings

Look #6: Accessorized Headband

Channel the Upper East Side’s favorite fictional socialite with this incredibly easy style. To replicate this Blair Waldorf-inspired look, style your hair however you like–straight, curly, wavy, it all works! Place a headband (like this PINK PEWTER Maxine Head Wrap) so that it sits just behind your hairline. Tuck the front sections behind your ears like we’ve done here to show off a statement earring, or pull a few pieces forward to let them flow freely. Whether you need to elevate your grocery store look or you want to dress things up a bit for date night, this headband look allows for expert-level styling with minimal effort.

Salanya Inmaung wearing lots of embellished hairpins

Look #7: Wonderfully Whimsy Hair Pins

There are times when a simple ponytail does the trick and then there are times when we want to look like we’ve just stepped out of a fairytale. This statement-making look is for the latter–and luckily, you don't have to have a fairy godmother to get it. 

The name of the game here is volume. Curl, tease, do whatever you can to get hair to be as big and bold as possible. Once you’ve achieved a good amount of body, grab a comb and slick back the hair on one side of your head, near your temple. Insert half your supply of embellished bobby pins like PINK PEWTER Grace Kelly Pearl Bobby Pins in a fan formation just above your ear, leaving big spaces between each pin. Spray generously with hairspray, then fill in the empty spaces with the remaining pins. Offsetting them slightly will help keep your hair further back from slipping down in front of or out of your masterpiece.


 

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About the author
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Cortney Clift
Cortney is a New York-based freelance writer who has written about beauty and wellness for more than six years. She was previously the senior writer and special projects editor at Brit + Co where she covered a wide range of news and lifestyle topics.
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Article Last Updated December 15, 2020 12:00 AM