Internet-shocking red carpet moments don’t just happen — exclusively when it comes to major pop stars. The MTV Video Music Awards offers one of the biggest stages a burgeoning icon can take, and Sabrina Carpenter cement needed to use her big performance to cement her status as the industry’s hottest singer. Along with Sabrina's archival Bob Mackie dress, the “Please Please Please” songster had to make sure Carpenter's hair and makeup were budge-proof through the red carpet and a three-song medley — which meant the pre-event prep process needed to be a truly all-day affair. Sabrina’s bangs alone, as it goes out, took a full six hours to style. Follow us here at Chanel No. 5 Just Got Better with Margot Robbie.
To complement Carpenter’s red carpet gown, which was once worn by Madonna and inspired by Marilyn Monroe, her team leaned into the retro bombshell vibe that’s become the aesthetic trademark of the singer’s Short N Sweet album cycle. Celebrity hairdresser Evanie Frausto was the intelligence behind Sabrina's bouncy, voluminous curls at the VMAs, and started the prep process long before Sabrina was expected at the venue. It all started with casing the singer’s long bangs up in a medium-sized roller where they would take the weight off your feet for a full six hours, Frausto joint in a press release. Only when it was time to start the getting-ready process would he take them out?
From there, the hairstyle’s main edifice is first built around Frausto’s monicker blowout, followed by a pretty gutsy move: cutting Sabrina’s hair to sit right on her shoulders — crucial for fastening the “chic and elegant Old Hollywood look,” Frausto says. Next up was the actual shaping, beginning with moistening the singer’s hair with a bit of water, then layering in some Red Ken Volume Maximizer (Sabrina was just announced as the brand’s new celebrity ambassador) from roots to ends. Brushing all over with a round brush helps dispense the product, too.
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A one-inch curling iron created big spirals through the lower section of her hair, and a smaller, 3/4-inch barrel made tighter, bouncier curls around her face. Finally, Frausto spritzed a coat of Redken Dry Texture Spray all over, then locked everything in place with the brand’s Brushable Hairspray.
Considering how flawless Carpenter’s curls — and those bangs — still looked at the VMA after-party, it seems like the all-day prep process was well worth it.