It’s that time of year again, and I’m sure you’re all oh so excited: it’s time to start thinking about and getting ready for prom! Prom can be one of the most exciting times during your high school career, but it can also be super stressful trying to figure out everything from your hair to your dress to your date. Your hair alone can leave you worrying for days. Should you get it done professionally or should you do it yourself? Should you rock big glamorous curls or should you go with a more natural look? Should you wear it up or leave it down? I’m feeling particularly nostalgic for my high school days today, so I thought I would help you keep your stress levels down and give you a few helpful tips and hints!

Before you can make any hair decisions, you have to decide what type of dress you’ll be wearing! This may seem unnecessary, but how you wear your hair can have a big impact on how your dress looks. Pick the right hair style that compliments your dress, and your look will be stunning. Pick a hair style that doesn’t match, however, and it could completely take away from the beauty of the dress. Therefore, before you even begin thinking about your hair, you should try to get the dress choice out of the way.

Once you’ve decided on your dress, the next step is to decide whether you should go for big glamorous curls or a more natural look. This is where the dress comes in handy. If your dress is more of a flowy bohemian look, try and choose a hair style that seems natural and bohemian as well. Leaving it down with big loose curls is a great option for this type of dress because it’s simple, yet stunning, and will make your look appear almost effortless. If that option seems a little too effortless for your liking, another idea is to leave it down but add loose side braids to make the style seem more pulled together. If your dress is fancier and more elegant, though, you should consider going with a more glamorous look, such as big luscious curls.

The next decision you have to make is whether you should pull it up into an updo or leave it down or even partially down. This is another decision that should be based off of your dress, but this time you should just consider the top and the back of the dress. If the back of your dress has an elaborate design or you just simply want to show it off, make sure you wear your hair in some sort of updo. Even if your hair is short, wearing it down will leave at least a few strands covering the designs, and this can end up drastically taking away from the beauty of the dress. If the back is more simple, though, how you wear your hair won’t really have that much of an effect on it, so it’s completely up to your preference!

The last decision you have to make is whether you should do your hair yourself or shell out some extra cash to have a professional do it for you. This can often be a stressful decision because you may want to get it done professionally, but may not have the money to spend on this particular occasion. In this case, the best way to decide is to base this off of the first two questions. After answering those, I’m sure you have a pretty decent image of how you want your hair to look on this night. Consider the difficulty of this desired look, then make your decision from there. If the look is more natural and bohemian, there’s a good chance that it won’t be too hard to pull off, and you could probably get away with doing it yourself. However, if you’re envisioning a look thats much more glamorous and involved, you may want to consider finding a salon to do it for you. Doing your own hair can be stressful and can make you worry much more about it not turning out right. I suggest finding a salon that you are already familiar with because then you will have much more realistic expectations for the results. Not familiar with any salons in the area? Check out one of my favorite Pittsburgh PA beauty salons, Verve 360, to see all that they have to offer for your big night. Best of luck with the planning beauties, and most importantly, have fun!