30 Feathered Hairstyles We’re Loving in 2024

If you’re looking for an airy style, feathered hair is the way to go. This look works regardless of your hair length, cut, or color. Read on to learn what this style is, why it’s trending, and see 30 real-life examples.

What Is Feathered Hair?

Feathered hair has layers brushed out to look like bird feathers. It rose to popularity in the 1970s, with stars like Farrah Fawcett rocking the look. It’s made a recent comeback, as many retro trends do. 

This time, you don’t have to wear big, blown-out curls like Farrah. Modern interpretations of feathered hair include:

• Pixie cuts
• Undercuts
• Mohawks
• Inverted and asymmetrical bobs

If you don’t want to style a full head of hair, you can spring for feathered bangs. There’s no end to this trend, as you’ll see with the following inspirations.

Feathered Hair Inspiration: 30 Ways to Rock the Trend

No matter the length or style of your hair, you can find a feathered hair look that works for you. Check out these 30 hairstyles to see what will work best for you.

1. Classic Feathered Hair

The classic look associated with feathered hair is long blond hair with textured ends. The way the long layers frame your face looks like bird feathers. This style is flattering on anyone and isn’t hard to achieve if you want to keep long hair but change it up a bit.

2. Wavy Feathers

Feathering your hair adds volume because the stylist holds the scissors at an angle when cutting the ends. If you have long, wavy hair, feathering it will make you look like a supermodel. Your hair will flow and always have motion and volume.

3. Feathered Long Pixie Cut

Longer pixie cuts look adorable with feathered ends. The feathering texture makes pixie cuts look softer, so they frame your face nicely. Because your hair is shorter, you might consider dyeing it to make it pop.

Read Next: Pixie Haircut Examples

4. Long Pixie With Undercut

This style is a spin on the long pixie cut. While the feathered ends help the hair frame your face, an undercut adds a hint of edginess to the look. You’ll love the juxtaposition of soft, feathered hair with a buzzed undercut.

5. Short Pixie Cut

It might seem like you don’t have enough hair to feather with a pixie cut, but even celebrities like Zoe Kravitz love this look. The texture added to the ends of your hair fluffs it slightly, adding volume and softness to this style.

6. Long Feathered Hair

If you want to keep the length of your hair so you can pull it back into ponytails, spring for the long feathered hair look. Instead of having shorter layers framing your face like the classic style, this has long layers so your hair won’t fall out of your top knot.

7. Thick Feathers

If you already have thick hair, you might worry that feathering it will add so much volume it’ll be out of control. Consider feathering layers on the outside of your hair instead. You won’t have layers hanging in your face, but you’ll still be able to rock feathered hair.

8. Casual Flows

Feathering your hair makes it look effortless and wind-blown. You won’t have to style your hair or use a product to make it shine. This option is a great way to downplay a dressy outfit.

9. Short Messy Hair

Continuing the casual feathered hair look is this short, messy ‘do. The cut itself is longer than a traditional pixie. The feathering gives the hair volume, and the highlights make it seem even fuller. This is a great way to try short hair without feeling like you have nothing left to style.

10. Short Sleek

Another take on the longer pixie is this sleek, feathered cut. You can still see the feathered texture in the hair, even though it’s combed flat. Even the hair at your neck will be slightly feathered, so the whole style looks soft and elegant.

11. Feathered Bangs

Whether your hair is long or short, it might seem like too much work to feather it all. In that case, you can feather your bangs. This works for side-swept bangs, short bangs, or even long layers. Feather the ends of your bangs so they stand out from the rest of your hair – it’ll give a very minimalistic look.

Read Next: Curtain Bang Inspiration

12. Colorful Feathered

This bright feathered style is sure to attract attention. The stylist used different shades of the same color to create a deeper, more natural look. The feathering around the face softens a look that might otherwise come off as punk.

13. Multicolored Feathered

Each feathered layer in this look is a different color, which draws your eye to the textured ends. You can see how each layer looks like feathers. You can style it with a product to spike out slightly. You can also comb it flat for a sleeker look.

14. Buzzed

Buzzing the sides of your hair doesn’t have to lead to a harsh look. Leaving the hair on top feathered will make it look soft and textured. You can spike up your hair for more volume or comb it flat for a more subdued style.

15. Feathered Undercut

The feathered layers in this look draw all of your attention until you see a sneak peek of the undercut. Because feathering adds so much volume, an undercut can keep your hair from being too heavy. This brightly dyed undercut complements the overall hair colors perfectly, but you could also choose to stay natural.

16. Mohawk

Mohawks sound like an extreme hairstyle, but this look shows how soft and elegant a mohawk can truly be. The feathered portion in the middle adds height to the look. The longer feathered sides keep the hair fuller than it would be with a buzzed undercut.

17. Natural Highlights

Natural highlights will lighten the hair around your face, beautifully framing it. Because the feathered layers already add volume and bounce to your hair, the highlights will make the look even more perfect for summer.

18. Dip-Dyed Feathered Hair

You don’t have to dye all your hair for this look. Keep your roots, and don’t worry about regular salon visits. Dip-dyeing means the ends of your hair are the brightest, and the color fades on the way up. It looks great for feathered hair because you want everyone looking at the textured ends, anyway.

19. Peek-a-Boo

The layers of feathered hair make it the perfect style for peek-a-boo hair. This is when you dye the underside of your hair something completely different from the rest. The bright color will peek out when you pull your hair up or let it show through the layers.

20. Choppy Long Hair

A step cut is a style with choppy layers. It differs from feathered hair, but there’s no reason you can’t combine the two. This look has starkly cut layers of different lengths, but the feathered ends ensure it blends beautifully.

21. Choppy Short Hair

The choppy layers can work for short hair, too. This look has super-short layers framing the face. Longer, chunky layers give volume to the back of this ‘do. The whole look is light and airy—perfect for when you need a fresh look.

22. Feathered With Bangs

You’ve seen feathered hair and feathered bangs, but what about combining the two looks? Layered bangs give you some volume that looks great when you comb them to the side. That style combines with the feathered ends of longer hair to make an impactful style statement.

23. Ombre

Ombre is a color gradient in your hair. You can choose to stay natural or go bright. It’s best to get this done at a salon so the stylist can step back and ensure the colors blend smoothly. When done on feathered hair, the final look draws attention to the textured ends of your hair.

24. Loose Feathered Curls

Because feathering your hair adds so much texture, you might be hesitant to try it if you already have curly hair. More volume added to curls can make you look like a cotton puff. But feathering works beautifully with loose curls. It gives you the perfect tousled look without adding too much weight.

25. Defined Curls

If you use a product to style your curls, you’ll love how feathering your hair changes the look. The layers make the curls easier to manage. Shorter feathered layers frame your face beautifully with curls, while you can still pull back the longer layers into a ponytail.

Read Next: Curly Haircuts

26. Shag Cut

Shag haircuts are a retro rock and roll look that is coming back into style. Pairing this cut with feathered ends is a great way to hit the latest trends. It can look sharp and shaped or soft and casual, all depending on how you style it. Add layers throughout the cut for more volume.

27. Voluminous Feathered Hair

You might be hesitant to try feathered hair if you already have voluminous hair. In this case, the stylist feathers the outermost sections of hair. Instead of giving too much volume, you’re adding texture to the hair that’s already there. It’s a way to add interest to your look without your hair getting out of control.

28. Inverted Bob

This is a soft version of the inverted bob. Sometimes these angular haircuts include an undercut so you can take your hair even shorter. The feathered look makes this cut look timeless and soft. The long layers around your face have volume, but you can still comb it flat.

29. Asymmetrical Cut

This is a beautiful, edgy look to try if you’re going from long hair to short. Keep some of the length for one side of the cut and use it for feathered layers. You can also cut the rest of your hair in feathered layers, but they should be drastically shorter if you want to make a statement.

Read Next: What Is the Karen Haircut?

30. Feathered Hair for Men

You can’t leave this list thinking that feathered hair is only for women. Men with longer hair can wear this look as well. Layers can add volume to their hair while also making it lighter. Short layers can frame their faces, or they can leave it long and feathered to pull back into buns and ponytails.

Things to Consider

With so many options, there’s no doubt that there’s a style of this look that would look great on you. But before committing to changing your style, check out these considerations to make sure you get the perfect cut.

Hair Type

The array of inspiration photos show you that anyone can rock the feathered look. You can have thick, long hair that looks casual with feathered ends. You can have short or thin hair and use feathering to add volume. Even curly hair can look great with feathering. Just be sure that the look you want matches the type of hair you have.

Maintenance

Some of these styles require more styling to get the right look. If you have curly hair, you’ll have to add the feathering to your regular hair maintenance. However, you can opt for feathering just the ends of your hair and still pull off this trend.

Color

Feathering is independent of hair color, so you shouldn’t feel a need to dye your hair to pull off this look. That being said, it looks carefree with natural highlights to frame your face. Adding pops of color, dip-dye, or ombre also makes feathered hair stand out.

Feathered Hair vs. Layered Cuts

Because feathered hair relies on layers, it might not seem different from a standard layered or step cut. However, stylists have a specific technique for feathering that gives it a unique texture. Layers are regular cuts, and step cuts are chunky layers.

Low Risk

One of the best things about feathered hair is that it’s a low-risk style. If you have long hair, you can feather it. If you have short hair, you can feather it. If you want to make a big change and go from long hair to a pixie, you can take that risk and still end up with amazing feathered hair.

Is Feathered Hair for You?

People think of feathered hair as a dated look, but these styles show that it’s back and better than ever. The texture added in a feather cut gives your hair a unique texture. A modern twist on feathered hair can elevate your look.

You Might Also Like:

• 30 Pixie Cut Examples
• Layered Haircut Ideas
• Short Shag Haircuts