Latest news with #Cofone
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The Independent
24-02-2025
- Entertainment
- The Independent
Hair crimping is back – how to make the most of the early noughties trend
At London Fashion Week, Chet Lo revived a hairstyle synonymous with the Y2K era: crimping. In a departure from the prevailing natural hair trends, the Asian-American designer embraced a nostalgic aesthetic for his autumn/winter 2025 collection. Known for his bold, textural designs, Lo collaborated with celebrity hairstylist Anna Cofone and Authentic Beauty Concept to achieve the distinctive Noughties look. Models sported a striking combination of pin-straight hair interspersed with uniformly crimped sections, a hallmark of the early 2000s. Cofone explained the inspiration behind the hairstyle: "The inspiration for today's look is very much a continuation of patterns and panels," she said. "We wanted to mimic the patterns in Chet's clothes, so we've got these cool, crimped panels appearing at the back of the model 's hair and on some of the sides." To achieve the desired sleek and shiny finish reminiscent of the era, Cofone utilized Authentic Beauty Concept's hair balms and glow serums. These products helped to tame flyaways and create the signature Y2K shine. While the smooth, glossy hairstyles evoke the early Noughties, the crimping itself also recalls trends from the 1980s, a decade that has seen a resurgence on this season's runways. 'I think it's great that it's got this reference to the Eighties,' says Cofone. 'Do I think [crimping] is going to come back? I think people can definitely play with crimps and see what shape they get – for sure.' The nostalgic crimped hair was the perfect accessory for the low-rise skirts and asymmetric tops that flooded this season's runway – ushering the return of early 2000s fashion – much to Gen Z's happiness.
The Independent
24-02-2025
- Entertainment
- The Independent
Y2K crimping is coming back, according to fashion week runways
Chet Lo brought back Y2K crimping at London Fashion Week, steering away from the hyper-natural hair trends of the moment, and leaning into style nostalgia. The Asian-American designer, known for his clashing textural designs, collaborated with celebrity hairstylist Anna Cofone and Authentic Beauty Concept to create a textbook Noughties look. Cofone combined pin-straight hair with uniform crimps, creating a quintessentially Y2K look for Lo's autumn/winter 2025 collection. 'The inspiration for today's look is very much a continuation of patterns and panels,' said Cofone, 'we wanted to mimic the patterns in Chet's clothes, so we've got these cool, crimped panels appearing at the back of the model's hair and on some of the sides.' As for the products, the goal was to look shiny and slick, so Cofone used Authentic Beauty Concept's hair balms and glow serums to calm any flyaways and add that Y2K-style shine. While flat and shiny hairstyles are reminiscent of the early Noughties, crimping also recalls the trends of the Eighties, which have been observed on this season's runways. 'I think it's great that it's got this reference to the Eighties,' says Cofone. 'Do I think [crimping] is going to come back? I think people can definitely play with crimps and see what shape they get – for sure.' The nostalgic crimped hair was the perfect accessory for the low-rise skirts and asymmetric tops that flooded this season's runway – ushering the return of early 2000s fashion – much to Gen Z's happiness.
The Independent
17-02-2025
- Entertainment
- The Independent
'It's about bringing their vision to life': What it's like to be a Fashion Week hairstylist
As London Fashion Week takes the capital by storm, it's all go for the fashion and beauty industry, following a hectic awards season. Hairstylist Anna Cofone, global creative advocate for the Gen Z-coveted hair brand Authentic Beauty Concept, is one of the brains behind some of fashion week's biggest looks. When she's not styling global stars like Lana Del Rey or Margaret Qualley, Cofone works with designers on the 'big four' fashion week shows – across London, Paris, Milan and New York. While there are a lot of similarities, working with high-end designers requires a change of tack from working with celebrities. 'There's a lot of freedom to be honest,' says Cofone. 'Obviously, everyone's different, and each designer has their own vision, but there's a lot of room for interpretation.' Having worked with the Princess of Wales' favourite designers, including Roksanda and Erdem, as well as Harry Styles' go-to label, S.S. Daley, Cofone knows better than anyone how to merge high fashion with fun fads in the thick of a backstage environment. Unlike celebrities that may all be emulating a certain trending style, each fashion week show requires radically different looks. Take Chet Lo, one of the industry's rising stars, known for his futuristic and hyper-textured designs. 'He is, by far, probably one of the most organised of designers,' says Cofone. 'So I'll get the deck with the full looks sometimes two, three weeks before the show, which is unheard of, and he'll send me a mood board and say 'this is what I'm feeling'.' Chet Lo's level of preparation allows Cofone to experiment, refining styles in the weeks leading up to a show. 'I'll just play for about a couple of weeks and then he'll come down, I'll show him what I've done, either on a model or on mannequin heads, and then we translate it. 'Once we've kind of adapted it, we actually do it on the hair test day, where there's usually the makeup artist as well – that's where it's finalised.' But not all designers provide such a clear creative direction. For David Koma, Cofone had to take a more instinctual approach. 'His inspiration was Pina Bausch – the dancer and choreographer. That's all he said to me,' she recalls. 'So I looked at his previous collections and tried to get a better feel for what the silhouettes were, because he hadn't shared any images of the clothes.' Through studying Bausch's fluid movements, Cofone conceptualised a deconstructed ballet bun: slicked back in the front but falling apart in the back, combining sharp structure with an ethereal softness. 'There was this two-tone, two-texture thing going on,' she says, 'slicked back but then really textural and quite soft in shape.' Despite months of preparation, London Fashion Week is notorious for its last-minute challenges backstage – and hair and beauty is certainly not immune. 'At S.S. Daley, we were put into a room – I think the depth of it was, say, like a dinner table,' Cofone says. 'We had no power for the first hour. It was at the Royal Academy of Arts, and production hadn't thought about the fact that you've got a team of 18 hairstylists all needing to use hair dryers and other heated tools,' she laughs. At Roksanda, the models simply didn't turn up on time – a common but challenging occurrence at fashion week shows. 'The models didn't turn up for an hour and a half,' says Cofone, which forced her to rethink some of the pre-planned looks. 'So I'd say another skill is being adaptable and problem-solving. I've had 'disasters', but probably when I was a bit younger, like early on in my career. 'I guess that's what age and longevity gives you – you can learn from the experiences.' Age not only teaches you that you have to adapt to situations – but what products are truly worth the hype, and for Cofone, she's settled on Authentic Beauty Concept (ABC). Seeing growing demands for sustainable, vegan-friendly haircare, Cofone has observed a lot of these brands don't offer the same power as synthetic old-school products, but ABC seemed to have bucked that trend. When designer Di Petsa wanted mermaid hair on every model for her runway, Cofone had to work with a small budget: 'I was like, OK well, there's not going to be any time to do full heads of extensions,' so instead she focused on structure and shape rather than the amount of hair itself. 'The Amplify Conditioner, which has got this gel-like consistency, was perfect for prepping the hair,' says Cofone. For volume, 'we really amped the texture and the volume with a mix of the Nude Powder Spray and the Airy Texture Spray to just kind of create this almost aerated shape that gave the appearance of fuller hair.' London Fashion Week is as much about fulfilling a creative vision as it is about thinking on your feet, and for Cofone, the joy lies in the collaboration. 'It's about bringing their vision to life,' she says. 'That's what makes it all worth it.'
The Independent
28-01-2025
- Entertainment
- The Independent
Lana Del Rey's hairstylist on current trends and how to find the one that works for you
'Ultimately, although I don't believe in trends, I do think that women are wanting to look and feel more confident,' says the brains behind Lana Del Rey's iconic Sixties-style beehive, Anna Cofone. Cofone has been styling the Video Games singer's hair since 2011. Having worked with the likes of Cindy Crawford, Dua Lipa and most recently Margaret Qualley, Cofone is part of the industry that creates trends. 'Some things just happen really spontaneously and intuitively,' she says, 'like when ribbons became a trend, when [Did You Know That There's a Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd] came out, at all of Lana's shows, every single person that I could see was wearing ribbons in their hair. 'And can that be described as a trend? Or is that just more of a cultural moment within music that has inspired a look?' Cofone has become an integral character in Lana Del Rey's performances. The singer memorably showed up late for her Glastonbury set due to alleged complications with her hair – 'My hair takes so long to do,' she told disgruntled crowds – and when it came to headlining the British Summer Time festival in Hyde Park, Lana Del Rey incorporated the act of getting ready into her performance, with Cofone walking on stage to style her Sixties-style updo. 'The underlying thread is storytelling,' says Cofone, 'it's about bringing their vision to life. '[You have to ask] what's the story? Who does the artist want to be? […] ultimately, there's a lot of emotional skills that come into play.' When she's not styling global stars, Cofone collaborates with designers on their fashion week shows, from Chet Lo to Roksanda and Steven Stokey-Daley. When asked what the hair trends for 2025 are set to be, 'People are definitely having more confidence exploring,' says Cofone. 'Looking back at the spring summer 2025 shows, where there was a lot of these small slicked-back silhouettes, whether that was with a gel or a pomade or wax. 'There's less fear of being perceived with quite a harsh, strong look – there's now a fearlessness, with women wearing their hair more androgynous. So I do think the shorter cuts are coming in. 'Pixie fringes, shorter styles – not necessarily like one-length bobs – but more layered shapes. [Shorter styles] and shapes can become quite a statement.' While the likes of Lana Del Rey may have already identified their signature styles, some of us are yet to find the perfect cut. 'My biggest tip would be to find a hair stylist that asks great questions,' says Cofone. 'You want a hair stylist that is asking, how would you describe your hair? What are you wearing at the weekend? When you're going to work, how much time do you spend on your hair? How do you want to be perceived? Because I think our hair is an addition to our personality. 'If you're a businesswoman going into the office with a suit, then the hair should be an extension of that, and I think it's only by virtue of a hair stylist asking those kind of questions that can give a person the confidence to really think, explore and consider something different.' If you're worried about diverting from a tried-and-tested style you've had for years, Cofone says start with simple additions, instead of statement chops. 'If you've got long hair, the best starting point is having some layers around the face. Just by having layers around your face, it creates more movement, it creates more texture. 'Then maybe you could go as far as having a long fringe, it starts to then become a look. It's got that lived in, more sexy and stylised feel.' If you're wanting to elevate how your hair already looks, Cofone says it starts with identifying your hair texture, 'First identify the texture, because the volume that you may or may not want to create can be addressed with the styling products. 'Don't wash your hair often – really only once every three, or four days – then use a mask at least once a week, and then make sure you're getting a trim every eight to ten weeks – this is going to make a big difference. '
