As the man behind Sports Illustrated hair, there is no doubt in celebrity hairstylist John Ruggiero‘s skills. So when we had former Disney star Olivia Holt enlisted as our next Mane Muse, John was the man to transform her mane. Known for her signature long locks and all-American image, Olivia was excited to see herself in a new way. Embarking on the shoot, John was impressed with Olivia’s maturity, “She trusts you as an artist, that’s really mature of her. She was like ‘whatever you think would look good on me’ so she’s a perfect muse. It’s a dream!”
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The first look was the faux bangs. Though Olivia only has horror stories of wearing bangs in the past— “I wore glasses and they’re a bit more trendy now, but back when I had them in middle school they weren’t!” she tells us. “I decided to get straight across bangs (a full on bang-do) and because I was so inlvolved in school and always had books in my hand, [people would make fun of me].” However, the bangs that John attached were much different and even Oliva admitted “they actually looked really good!”
John explains that creating the right texture in her hair at the beginning of the shoot is key for a great base that can hold a lot of styles. For this shoot, he prepped her hair with thickening spray and blowdried it in. “Olivia doesn’t have bangs, so I used a fake bang piece and basically took the crown of her hair and backcombed it. It was so fast.”
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For the next look, John simply took out the bang, and worked through her hair, giving her more volume and bend with a flat iron. A look that really shows off Olivia’s bright hue, she admits she’d love to go ombre some day. “I’ve always liked that look.” If you want to emulate a blonde tone like Olivia’s, just make sure you read this first.
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The final look was an architectural wet looking updo. “How do I explain this?!” John exclaims… “I left the top part of her hair out and I played around with it almost like, clay because this was after there was so much product in it that it just did whatever I wanted then I pinned it. For the back, I put it in an upside-down braid. It gave a look like she had super short hair -which she would look so great with!”
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So how does the starlet remain humble with an acting career that began at age three? “I think it’s important to surround yourself with good people and positive people. When you have those days that are more challenging than others, you’ll have them to lift you up and make you feel like the great person you are. I think [my advice would be] just to have fun. This industry is a tough one and you’re always looking for your next job and that’s the toughest part about it, but I think the most important part for me is that I’m having fun and that I’m working with good people.”
Muse: Olivia Holt @Olivia_holt
Hair: John Ruggiero @jrugg8
Photographer: @mrmikerosenthal
Makeup: Beau Nelson @beau_nelson
Wardrobe: Rhonda Spies @rhondaspies
Nails: Paloma Urbina @palomaurbina1
Art Director: Desirae Cherie @desiraecherie
Produced by: Ashley Alanis @ashley.alanis
Editorial Director: Justine Marjan @justinemarjan