Over the last few years we have street-cast close to 100 individuals and their eye-catching hairstyles for our ongoing Cult Hair series. With salon doors shut for the last 3 months, we reached out to our former subjects to get the lowdown on their lockdown haircare regimes.

Name: Julie Verhoeven
Age: 51
Occupation: Artist

A description of my default quarantine hairstyle is: Desperate.

The last time I’ve seen the inside of a salon was: 18 January 2020.

Current methods of keeping my hair in shape include: Letting nature take its course, with the addition of occasional crimping and backcombing.

A hair lesson I learned during quarantine is: Don’t try too hard.

Having a bit more of a restriction in my self expression makes me feel: I don’t feel restricted, just challenged.

How, if at all, the way I think of hair and beauty has changed: I remain in fear of the ‘au naturel’.

Name: Katya
Age: 25
Occupation: Knitwear designer

A description of my default quarantine hairstyle is: Trying my best.

The last time I’ve seen the inside of a salon was: 3 days before the quarantine was announced. Last minute rush.

Current methods of keeping my hair in shape include: Using whatever hair dye I have lying around and sheepishly trimming my fringe with dressmaker’s shears.

A hair lesson I learned during quarantine is: Do NOT use dressmaker’s shears to trim your fringe.

Having a bit more of a restriction in my self expression makes me feel: I’ve actively been trying not to restrict myself – doing elaborate make up and hair several times a week just to entertain myself.

How, if at all, the way I think of hair and beauty has changed: Being in quarantine only intensified my belief that hair and makeup can make you feel better on a bad day. I’ve gone more maximalist if anything.

Name: Nan
Age: 21
Occupation: Sales assistant and model

A description of my default quarantine hairstyle: Flat twists under a satin headscarf. 

The last time I’ve seen the inside of a salon was: 2 years ago.

Current methods of keeping my hair in shape include: daily moisturisation using the LCO method and ALWAYS wearing a satin bonnet. I’ve also been taking time to focus on my wash day routine, making it more streamlined and using products that are the most beneficial to my hair.

A hair lesson I I’ve learnt during quarantine is: Patience is key, putting in the effort to properly look after your hair and keep it nourished will lead to the most amazing long-term results. The long-term health of your hair should always be prioritised.

Having a bit more of restriction in my self-expression makes me feel: Very introspective and gives me to time to think about what message I want to convey with my style and why. This way I can be my most genuine self by making sure my ideals, interests and personality are conveyed accurately.

How, if at all, the way I think of hair and beauty has changed: Over the last few years, I’ve really embraced my natural hair and texture. I’ve learnt that type 4 hair isn’t a hassle or even difficult to look after and I now feel so privileged to have this hair and I’m so much more confident in its beauty.

Name: Alan
Age: 23
Occupation: Plant maintenance, odd jobs and struggling artist

A description of my default quarantine hairstyle is: Business at the front. Party at the back. Yeehaw.

The last time I’ve seen the inside of a salon was: Hmm, must’ve been about 1785, when Sweeney Todd took a little too much off of the top.

Current methods of keeping my hair in shape include: Sheer hope that bed head is kind to me in the morning.

A hair lesson I learned during quarantine is: If you don’t like it, that deems a panic cut. 

Having a bit more of a restriction in my self expression makes me feel: Mundane.

How, if at all, the way I think of hair and beauty has changed: My tastes have changed but my ethos towards hair and beauty remain the same. If you like it, do it. “There is no one alive that is youer than you” – Dr Seuss

Name: Kat
Age: 23
Occupation: (Kind of) cook, (kind of) photographer

A description of my default quarantine hairstyle is: I started quarantine with a cow print Chelsea cut, so my current hair is the aftermath of that. I just spike up the front with water and sometimes curl both sides of my fringe to point inwards. If I’m feeling cute, I wear a yellow bow to keep my fringe back.

The last time I saw the inside of a salon was: The 5th of March.

Current methods of keeping my hair in shape include: Honestly, I haven’t been doing much upkeep. I just use water to style my hair and it dries like this! The rest is just toner shampoo, conditioner and the odd fringe trim. Other than that I’ve just been growing my hair out and letting it do its own thing.

A hair lesson I learned during quarantine: I’ve been spending some time watching online hair cutting tutorials, so I’m going to try put that theory into practice – though I’m not too convinced it’ll go so smoothly!

Having a bit more of a restriction in my self expression makes me feel: At first, I worried that I would feel very restricted and dysphoric as I had to leave my queer bubble in London behind during this time, but I just take every day as it comes. Some days (or weeks) I just wear sweatpants and PJs, and that’s okay! Other days I get dressed up, paint my face and dance around the house because that’s how I feel. I’m very privileged to be in a safe space where I am free to express myself during this time.

How, if at all, the way I think of hair and beauty has changed: My mind has been all over the place recently so I’ve been focussing a lot on self-care and grounding myself. Preserving my energy and looking inwards has helped solidify the idea that I dress for me and not for the people around me. It took a while to get to that point, but now I can comfortably say I wear what makes me feel good and comfortable. That said, I am very excited to play dress up with all my friends when this is over! It’s fun getting dressed up at home but it’s a lot more fun when it’s with my beautiful queer family.

Name: Jack
Age: 26
Occupation: Hair stylist / session stylist

A description of my default quarantine hairstyle is: a textured platinum crop with a severely short fringe by taking my hairline off, to make it more extreme.

The last time I’ve seen the inside of a salon was: 21st March 2020.

Current methods of keeping my hair in shape include: Playing around with it myself as it’s my own blank canvas.

A hair lesson I learned during quarantine is: Always play around and explore to find your own way of doing something that’s original.

Having a bit more of a restriction in my self expression makes me feel: No different really, I express myself for only myself.

How, if at all, the way I think of hair and beauty has changed: It’s hard to say as we were still doing everything we normally do on a daily basis before lockdown. Going further, personally I think the industry will never be the same but we all adapt.

Name: Jender
Age: 28
Occupation: Artist

A description of my default quarantine hairstyle is: It’s been pretty varied! I went viral on tiktok a few weeks ago for my finger wave videos so I’ve been doing a lot of them.

The last time I’ve seen the inside of a salon was: End of February, I got a chop at the Sassoon Academy.

Current methods of keeping my hair in shape include: I always dyed and cut my own hair ages 14 through 25, and only started going to salons again when my friends could get me free haircuts, so I’ve just gone back to doing it all myself! I haven’t deviated much in colour and cut for about 6 years now it’s almost always short and yellow.

A hair lesson I learned during quarantine is: Never to underestimate the power of a good ‘do.

Having a bit more of a restriction in my self expression makes me feel: Despair

How, if at all, the way I think of hair and beauty has changed: Doing myself up, not just hair but the rest of it too, really keeps my mood in check. It’s good to keep getting dressed even when I’m just at home, there’s always Instagram if I want to show off.

Name: Adam
Age: 24
Occupation: Colour technician

A description of my default quarantine hairstyle is: “Shave a bit here and there and hope for the best.”

The last time I’ve seen the inside of a salon was: 8 weeks ago.

Current methods of keeping my hair in shape include: Shaving it all off.

A hair lesson I learned during quarantine is: Less is more.

Having a bit more of a restriction in my self expression makes me feel: Somewhat trapped. But I find other outlets for my needs for expression. I can’t live without a way to do that.

How, if at all, the way I think of hair and beauty has changed: In terms of the way things have changed, I think the one thing that’s on everyone’s minds is hygiene. Minimising contact and making sure everything is sterile. We all know what a busy salon looks like sometimes!

Name: Josh
Occupation: DJ, club promoter

A description of my default quarantine hairstyle is: Pink bouffant gone bad!

The last time i saw the inside of a salon was: A lifetime ago, I’d sort of gotten into a blissful routine of going to the Salon (Foster London in Shoreditch) about twice a week, so this period has been a bit of a shock to the system. But I’m working through it.

Current methods of keeping my hair in shape include: I panic bought all the pink crazy colour from Pak’s, so I’m well stocked up. Plus I call my hairdresser Dan for regular pep talks.

A hair lesson I have learned during quarantine is: I think it’s been a really good time to just have a rest. Obviously my hair is an integral part of my image, but it was feeling the strain from so many nights out and too much hairspray. Keeping it pampered with coconut baths and decent conditioners throughout the last months has been a blessing. So it’s ready for the comeback, shinier, healthier… And bigger than ever.

Having a bit more of a restriction in my self expression makes me feel: Reflective. It’s been a rare opportunity in London to look back over the last years and appreciate what I have and everything I possibly took for granted. It’s also been a great time for forward-planning, been getting very excited drawing up plans for my new projects… new looks… and new hairdos!

Name: Nicole
Age: 27
Occupation: Creative Director /Founder at @discodustlondon, my isolation makeup creations @nicmarilyn (I have also been teaching yoga on insta live via this insta during isolation)

A description of my default quarantine hairstyle is: like running through a tornado but its calm and I am enjoying it

The last time I’ve seen the inside of a salon was: My last hairdressers were Elpis and Libby at Sassoon, but my housemate Harley is about to open Belmont Stores in Walthamstow so I went to have a look last week as he has been working on it during isolation

Current methods of keeping my hair in shape include: Running through a hedge backwards and adding hair gel, maybe painting or spraying on some colours and glitter.

A hair lesson I learned during quarantine is: Apply hair gel to dry hair so you can tell what’s gel and what’s just wet from water and avoid fluff when it dries. Disco Dust eco glitter sticks really well to wet hair gel and once the hair gel is dry you can easily paint either Kryolan pigments, Mehron pigments, or Kryolan aqua colours for a temporary colour.

Having a bit more of a restriction in my self expression makes me feel: Inventive and more resourceful with what I already have.

How, if at all, the way I think of hair and beauty has changed: Doing my hair and makeup has been quite a meditation during the apocalypse, usually I do makeup on other people but if I start a look on myself, the time passes so quickly and it has been nice to not have to worry about time restrictions and be able to experiment as much as I want. I think my housemates and friends have also enjoyed seeing my colourful insta posts or seeing me walking around the house looking for snacks dressed like a creature. When my mum says ‘is that you Nix?’ I feel like I have succeeded in my mission!