The slicked-back bun technique sounds straightforward until you are standing in front of a mirror, late, with a mysterious bump and a halo of flyaways that refuses to lie flat. Five hairstylists and a handful of editors who wear this style regularly have broken down exactly where things go wrong and how to fix them, step by careful step.
Prep Is Where the Slicked-Back Bun Technique Begins
Before a brush even touches your hair, the prep stage sets whether the whole thing holds together or falls apart an hour later. Hairstylist Chris Russell recommends spritzing with a heat-protectant spray, rough-drying, then running a thermal brush through the hair to create even texture and controlled shine before pulling anything back. Not everyone reaches for a hot tool: Hailey Roy, who has 3C curls, skips heat entirely, preferring to work with her natural texture. Hairstylist Kee Taylor advises smoothing a lightweight oil through the mid-lengths and ends on dry hair to improve manageability, adding that a little goes a long way on finer strands. For curly and coily hair, hairstylist Justine Marjan suggests keeping the hair slightly wet with water to help with detangling and using a wide-tooth comb when pulling it back.
The consensus across hair types: work with your texture rather than fighting it from the start.
Section by Section, Not One Almighty Yank
Ask any of the five stylists what the single biggest mistake is and you get the same answer, trying to brush everything back in one pass. Hairstylist Mandee Tauber, principal artist of global content at Oribe, starts by creating a radial part from the crown to the tops of the ears, dividing the hair into a top and bottom section, then styling the bottom first while the top is clipped out of the way. On straight or straightened hair, she applies a pomade stick directly along the hairline and works a boar bristle brush through in long, controlled strokes, focusing on condensing and refining. Taylor explains that boar bristles create the tension needed to stretch and smooth the strands without requiring you to pull excessively tight, which matters for scalp health over time.
For curly and coily hair, Tauber swaps the pomade stick for a gel sérum applied generously around the hairline. Marjan adds that if additional hold is needed, spraying a firm-hold hairspray on the roots and brushing back before securing with a second elastic is the more scalp-friendly approach compared to brute-force pulling. Russell likes to position the ponytail at the crown with the hair running parallel to the cheekbones, saying the higher placement creates a natural lifting effect on the face. Low placement works equally well: it comes down to personal preference.
Before wrapping the ponytail into a bun, hairstylist Taylor Carter recommends dusting texturizing powder through it and teasing small sections individually to build internal volume. Once the interior has enough fullness, only the outside layer is smoothed, which prevents the finished bun looking flat. Detailing the hairline is what separates a good result from a polished one: Russell uses a flat iron to refine the hairline, then works baby hairs with a toothbrush-style detailing tool.
Wrapping and securing the bun varies by texture. Tauber twists the entire ponytail into a tight rope before wrapping it around the base, tucking the ends underneath and using a large U-pin on straighter hair. For curly and coily textures, she wraps a large elastic around the completed bun instead. Bumble and Bumble editor and content director Sophie Panych, who has a background in dance, splits a single ponytail into two parts rather than forming two separate ponytails, wrapping each section in turn and using both internal and external pins. She says it lies flatter and stays more secure. Russell intentionally leaves the last inch or two of the ponytail exposed after wrapping, keeping the look from feeling too set and formal.
At the finish stage, hairstylists reach for different products depending on the result they are after: a few drops of a restoring serum for shine without stiffness, a dry wax spray to lock the bun while preserving soft texture, or a sleek styling cream worked into the hairline with a detailing wand. For coily hair, Marjan offers one final step worth adopting: wrapping the hairline in a silk scarf for at least 20 minutes after styling to set the look and prevent frizz from creeping back. It adds time, but according to Paul Mitchell-favoured stylist Marjan, it is the detail that makes the finish last.
Every stylist makes the same closing point: the first attempt will not be the best one. The technique requires practice before it becomes second nature, but the combination of correct sectioning, the right products for your texture, and patience with the hairline detail will get you there.
