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Evan Agostini/Invision, via Evan Agostini/Invision/Ap
The trimmed hair of Karlie Kloss has been declared the “cut of the moment.” More Photos »
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THE haircut of the year has arrived. Yes, already. Vogue is calling it the Chop, others have named it the Karlie, after the model Karlie Kloss.
Ms. Kloss, already a fashion world veteran at age 20, cut off about
seven inches of her dark hair late last year. Vogue declared it the “cut
of the moment” in a four-page feature story in the January issue,
saying “the season’s new hair is swingy, sexy — and refreshingly easy to
wear.”
The cut was the brainchild of the hairstylist Garren Defazio. It rests
just above the shoulders, with some layering in the front, and is topped
off with bangs. It echoes the signature 1960s haircut of Jane Birkin.
“I love it,” Ms. Kloss told the Web site Fashionologie backstage at a
fashion show soon after the new cut was unveiled. “I can’t stop touching
it.” She added that having short hair “actually takes the focus off
your hair and puts the focus on you. I’m starting to realize that it’s
all about confidence.”
Ms. Kloss, a host (with Joan Smalls, a fellow model) of MTV’s “House of
Style,” had long hair that served as a kind of blank canvas for stylists
and designers to work with. Such hair gives model a look that is
“plain, uniform, like a mannequin” Mr. Defazio said. “I gave her a
personality by cutting it.”
“Karlie’s been looking for a new look,” he said. “Her hair had been worn
out from shows and shoots. Vogue called and said, ‘Would you do a cut?’
and I said Karlie should be the one to do it on.” The length, at just
below the jaw, wasn’t so short as to be “out of proportion,” Mr. Defazio
said, but also allowed her hair to become healthy again.
He is emphatic that it’s neither a bob nor a shag, but a one-length cut
with a slight layer in the front. It’s a low maintenance look that sets
off the face. “I cut it to encourage her natural wave,” Mr. Defazio
said. “It’s long enough so she can gel it back, and it’s modern because
it’s airy and rumpled. Short hair is in.”
Versions of the cut, with its length hovering somewhere between the chin
and the shoulder, and with a few layers and fringe of bangs, has been
spotted on models like Arizona Muse, Catherine McNeil, Karen Elson and
Lily Kwong. The television presenter Alexa Chung has worn a similar cut
for years. Margherita Missoni and Jessica Seinfeld both cut their hair
into similar chops last year, as did the designer Olivier Theyskens, who
sent models for his Theyskens’ Theory Spring 2013 collection down the
runway in similar styles to his own.
“When Kate Moss cut her hair really short, everyone started cutting
their hair,” Mr. Defazio said. “When somebody who is notable finds their
look, it catches on and becomes a trend.”
It comes as no surprise that this cut came early in the year, when so
many women resolve to make changes in their look, whether it’s ditching
ombré highlights or deciding to wear their hair naturally curly. Even
the singer Kylie Minogue rang in the new year with a picture of a new,
shorter cut and the message posted on Twitter: “New Year. New Haircut.
Hello 2013.”
As for Ms. Kloss’s feeling about the cut, Mr. Defazio said: “She’s in
love with it. She can wear her hair natural and doesn’t have to blow it
dry. She said finally she’s got a look she can just shampoo, put on
lipstick and mascara, and she feels finished and modern.”
Perhaps most importantly, the Chop marks a turn away from the beachy
waves ubiquitous on everyone from Hollywood actresses (think of Sofia
Vergara) to suburban teenagers. “I’m so tired of the soft wave, red
carpet hair,” Mr. Defazio said. “Like dead straight hair, wavy hair got
old. Some of the other models are taking their hair above their
shoulders and in the salon, women are taking their hair to collar bone
and above. It’s a natural look.”
In a strange twist, Ms. Kloss recently walked in the Victoria’s Secret
fashion show, where she was given extensions to simulate long, wavy
hair.
The Chop has inspired an array of reactions online. A Huffington Post
headline asked “Karlie Kloss’ Haircut: The Next ’Rachel’?” referring to
Jennifer Aniston’s Friends-era layered cut. While some commenters found
the style plain, others found it inspiring. “Now that I see it on
Karlie, I have the sudden feeling that it would make me look like a
goddess,” Jamie Peck wrote on Thegloss.com.
“It’s been a year of big change for me,” Ms. Kloss said in the Vogue
article. “Now feels like a good time for a fresh start.”
Hair News Network
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