Clip

Aug 08, 2023

(Hair)

Experts share their tips.

No matter how you feel about cutting a significant piece of hair near the front of your face, you can't deny that bangs are having a moment. Curtain bangs, bottleneck bangs, baby bangs...the list of newly emerging trends seems never-ending. With celebrities like Dakota Johnson and Jennifer Lopez leading the charge, it's tempting to want to make the chop, but bangs require a level of commitment that not everyone is prepared for. Luckily, there's an easy way to try out a new look without any haircut remorse: clip-in bangs.

"I believe every girl should always have a set of clip-in bangs in her vanity drawer," celebrity extensionist Priscilla Valles previously told TZR. "They are super fun and low-maintenance." Stars like Bella Hadid have been known to change up their look with clip-ins, and recently, Emily Ratajkowski tried her hand at the piece-y Birkin bangs trend using extensions.

When it comes to choosing a clip-in bang, hairstylist Zachary Morad suggests making sure that the hair isn't cut too bluntly (straight). "If the bang piece is too blunt it's going to sit like a shelf over your real hair around your hairline," he says. "Buying a clip-in bang [piece] that has longer hair on the ends will make it so that your bang piece lies flat over your hair, concealing where your natural hair and the hairpiece meet."

TZR spoke with hair experts to get more details on clip-in bangs, their tips on how to style them, and the best extensions for a seamless look.

Installing clip-in bangs is a lot easier than you think. To prepare your hair, make sure it is laying in its natural, preferred part before clipping the bangs in. "An easy way to assure the clip-ins won't slide out is to gently backcomb where the clip-ins will be," says Valles. "You can also add a little hair spray."

According to Morad, the majority of clip-ins come with small, comb-shaped snap clips. "Some will have one clip, some three, and some more depending on the size of the bang piece," he says. "It makes it super simple because all you have to do is open the snap clips, position the bang where you think they should fall, and then snap the clips closed. This will keep the piece securely in place."

Valles recommends playing around with different lengths, pushing the bangs forward, or pulling them back to make sure they fit your face frame and blend in naturally.

Of course, one of the biggest challenges of clip-in bangs (or any hair extension) is making them look as natural as possible. Once your bangs are attached, you’ll want to finesse them so they look fully blended into the rest of your hair. Morad suggests first using a blow-dryer to give them volume and texture. "You want to use a round brush to blow them under and smooth them out giving them a slight bend," he says. "Then, I like to take the blow dryer and direct it down onto the bangs without using a brush to give them a more natural and piece-y look." Another great styling method, he adds, is to run a flat iron through the bands, slightly bending at the ends.

"Style your hair first then put on the clip-ins after to see where they are falling to match the style that way," Valles suggests. If you’re after a salon-perfect look, she recommends putting your clip-ins on and having your stylist cut them to frame your face and blend into your haircut.

Any hair texture can experiment with clip-in bangs, but curly hair textures tend to look the most blended. "Curly clip-on bangs are a fantastic way to elevate your look without having to cut your coils," says Morad. "Once your bangs are clipped into place and secured, take a little bit of styling mousse and work it through the bang piece as well as your own hair that sits around it. Scrunch or twist the hair to form your preferred style of curls and diffuse or allow to air dry. Once, dry use your fingers to fluff, separate, and define."

Valles recommends using a curling iron that can enhance the clip-ins to match your natural curl pattern. "Add in some curls, making sure you have a part [in your hair] and curl everything in the right direction [of the part]," she says.

Choosing clip-in bangs that are made out of human hair allows for more styling and manipulation as opposed to synthetic hair which can be hard to style with heat or product.

Below, get started on your *non-committal* bangs journey by shopping some of the best clip-in bangs out there.

We only include products that have been independently selected by TZR's editorial team. However, we may receive a portion of sales if you purchase a product through a link in this article.