Styled by Mo

Posted July 6, 2012 - 12:42pm by Monique

Stay Cool, Look Hot

To say that the weather has been hot this past week is an understatement. With record breaking temperatures and consecutive days over 90 (and even 100) degrees it’s safe to say it’s hard to put any effort into getting ready in the morning. I admire women who maintain their morning routine of blow drying their hair and then using additional heated styling tools on mornings when the temperature has reached 90 degrees by 8 a.m. I would rather do anything but that. Typically, I would have resorted to an old friend, the ponytail. But thanks to a great find at H&M this past spring, I no longer have to. And with that I’d like to introduce you to your new best friend, the sock bun (also found online as the doughnut bun).

You’re probably wondering why in the heck this is called the sock bun. The sock bun originated when someone more creative than me realized that if you cut the toes of a sock off and rolled the sock downward, you ended up with a doughnut shaped ring that could be used to make a perfect bun. I don’t care for the idea of a sock (even a brand new one) in my hair, so I’m content with buying a store bought ring. My suggestions for what you need for a successful bun include a ring, two ponytail holders, rat tail comb and hairpins.

The first time I sported this look at work, everyone was amazed. Within weeks, I had convinced my colleagues that they too could do this and sock buns became a daily sighting in our office. The great thing about the sock bun is that it can be worn casually, at work or in formal settings. Trust me; you’ll get your money’s worth out of the ring. So now you’re wondering where you can purchase a ring and how to use it, right?

As I mentioned, I found my ring in the goodie bins by the check-out at H&M but you can also purchase them at Sally’s Beauty Supply and Walgreens. The biggest challenge I encountered when I purchased the ring was that it came with zero instructions; just some pictures and foreign writing. Thanks to You Tube, I was able to find multiple tutorials with different variations on how to achieve the desired look.  After spending a good hour sorting through tutorials, I decided I’d found the one that seemed the easiest. I was satisfied with the method I found until I took a trip back to my parents’ house this past spring. Feeling lazy, I pulled out the ring and to my surprise, was schooled by my mother on the proper technique for doing a bun!  Where was my mom during the hour I spent on You Tube trying to figure out how to use this? I could have saved myself time and lots of confusion if I’d just picked up the phone and called her! She had been a faithful sock bun wearer when I was growing up, which just shows how styles come and go and then come back in style. My mom told me her secret to having a perfect sock bun was to use a rat tail comb to aid in getting the loose ends of her bun underneath so the hair was hidden as much as possible so that the bun didn’t “sit” on the loose ends. You can find a similar technique to my mom’s here on You Tube.

My personal tip is that no matter what method you use, utilizing two ponytail holders is the key: one for your ponytail and the second to wrap around your bun twice so that you get a smooth, perfect looking bun.  Don’t be scared, you can do this!  Go get a ring and give it a shot.  And if you get stuck or have questions, leave a comment and I’ll do my best to help you out.

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