Rihanna Made Us Do It: A Brief History of the Oversized Hair Clip Trend
Photo via @musesuniform
Oversized hair clips and pins are all over our Instagram feeds right now, but where did this nostalgic and ultra-feminine accessory trend come from? Everywhere we turn, it seems that millennial women are slipping back into the trends we loved in the 90s. The square-toed sandals we saw our moms wearing, playful and glittery eye makeup, and now we have arrived at hair clips. Remember those adorable butterfly clips? Good times.
When these clips started to takeover our lives — and our hair — we had no choice but to track the start of this trend and hopefully, show you where to buy jeweled and oversized hair pins for yourself.
Once upon a time (in 2015 to be exact), Rihanna attended a Met Gala after party wearing more bobby pins than any of us had seen at once at that time. It seems like it was a continuation of her 2013 VMAs look when she rocked a doobie wrap with studded bobby pins and people definitely took notice. This elevated version of every black woman’s under-the-dryer look caused quite the stir, and it was the handiwork of celebrity hairstylist Ursula Stephen. In addition to Rihanna, she’s done work for Ciara, Bebe Rexha, and so many more. When a celeb stylist like Ursula creates a signature style, we begin to see it all over red carpets and magazines before it trickles down to the it girls and WAH-LAH, we have a trend on our hands.
Solange’s hair stylist Nikki Nelms is also a fan of bold hair accessories. Her work can be seen on Zoë Kravitz and Serena Williams to name a few. She styled Kitty Kash with the excessive bobby pin look and was responsible for Janelle Monae’s literal eye catching look. Her unapologetic use of hair accessories has turned plenty of heads and has surely influenced style choices at a major scale.
Photos from @NikkiNelms
Though Solange’s famed A Seat At The Table album cover was actually the result of hair clips that were supposed to come out after making waves, this oversized look took the hair clip trend to the next level — giving women the boldness to recreate this look on their own. It was a bit of a slow build from Rihanna’s clips to the blinged out ones we have today, but now they’re a proud part of everyday wear. With the right use of these in-your-face clips, they can do all of the talking for you and be the center of your look.
Personally, I’m into the trend and have rocked a few oversized clips myself that I purchased from a flea market. Are you feeling it? Let us know in the comments below and check out where you can get your hands on some of your own.
