Combed off her forehead and bunched at the back of her head, there’s something so diplomatic about Keri Russell‘s signature hairdo. But there’s also an untidiness to it, teetering on the edge of its seams, threatening to unravel but always miraculously staying in place.
Celebrity hairstylist Brian Magallones considers this the perfect balance between a not-too-fussy and not-too-structured chignon, a style that sounds tough to style without a professional team but is actually quite easy to master at-home.
According to Magallones, it’s a three-step process that begins with a good blow dry. For the season four screening of Netflix’s “The Diplomat” in New York, he started by lightly dressing Russell’s brunette hair in Oribe’s Royal Blowout Spray before adding heat to it. “Next, I curled her hair using a large barrel curling iron,” he said, noting how “curling the hair helps to shape the bun and create a better finished look.”
From there, Magallones spritzed Russell’s hair with Oribe’s Dry Texturizing Spray while finger-combing it back in a ponytail at the “base of the occipital bone.” He then teased the ponytail and twisted it around the base, where it protruded from her head. “[I then] secured it with hairpins, keeping it perfectly imperfect,” he explained.
Think of this as the opposite of “business in the front, party in the back,” at least when it comes to texture. Rather than slicking the head in hair gel, Magallones purposefully keeps the product use to a minimum, allowing for natural curls to come through on top of the head. The back frizz is more confined, enclosed in the semi-neat bun.
“This is a look that I find particularly flattering on women over 50,” Magallones said. “It’s a style that is both effortless and intentional. It makes a statement without having to say anything at all.”
It’s certainly a favorite of Russell’s. In fact, the “Felicity” actress is rarely seen with her hair down these days.
Russell packed a similar chignon for Paris Fashion Week earlier this month, where she attended the Louis Vuitton spring 2027 show alongside her daughter, Willa Lou Deary. Here, the texture on top of head was even more prominent, sprouting around her face in short waves. Next to her, Deary sported the quintessential Gen Z slicked-back ponytail, parted in the middle and bristle-brushed back from the sides of her head.