Hair Icon – Dita Von Teese

Every month we unveil our handbag hair icon, with top styling tips from the UK's finest hairdressers on how you can recreate her day and night looks yourself...

At a time when the sun's setting on sunny, summer beauty and 'Vamp' is back with a vengeance, it nice to see there's a burlesque beauty with old-school glam we can call upon to match our new autumnal wardrobe and post-summer pale skin. Dita Von Teese is fast become the hottest property on the red carpet and an iconic figure of her time. Ne'er a hair out of place, her look is nothing short of high-maintenance glam, adopting the slick, well-polished styles of a forgotten era - we want her hair! And here's how to get it – both an up and down 'do. With help from Leonardo Rizzo, Artistic Director of super-cool salon chain Sanrizz, there's no better time to be a bit of a Teese…

  Dita does 'down' 'Dita has a very classic 20's/30's look,' says Leonardo, 'Her dark hair colour contrasts with her pale skin, which suits Dita's burlesque style. She manages to make this contrasting look glamorous and not gothic.' Not an easy feat, but we're willing to try! He adds, 'the stark contrast between Dita's angelic pale skin and her raven black hair creates an altogether striking and distinctive look, unique to her image.'

Hard to believe, but Dita is actually a natural blonde! 'We often wouldn't advise many people to make such a drastic change but this suits her burlesque style,' notes Leonardo, 'when you do make drastic colour changes make sure you look after your colour to make it last longer. Try BC Colour Save Shampoo (£7.20) and BC Colour Save Conditioner (£8.30) to prolong the life of your colour and keep it looking vibrant.' Dita's hair is always super-glossy and in optimum condition, 'this can be difficult to maintain when the hair is just one colour all over,' Leonardo adds, 'but my advice would be to have regular colour washes, or with vegetable colour which are 80% conditioner - these will refresh the shade, enhance shine and build up the condition of weakened hair.'

Coloured hair needs extra TLC, so no neglecting your tresses – especially now colder climes are heading for our shores. Keeping locks alive with lustre with regular hair treatments. Leonardo suggests you 'book yourself in for an intensive treatment: they're great to rejuvenate and refresh solid colours. The SEAH Hairspa (01296 314000) range offers a range of treatments to suit the individual hair needs, but the SEAH Colour Embrace Treatment (£14.70) is perfect to maintain Dita-style colour and condition.'

Now you've got the colour and condition nailed, it's time to shake on to style. Nothing screams glamourpuss more than grown-up curls with plenty of gloss, so get rolling. 'This look is so classic, and great for an evening out this party season,' Leonardo says, 'simply set the hair in heated rollers, like the Remington Protect & Shine Fast Heat Ionic Rollers (£29.99, 0800 212 438 or www.Remington.co.uk). Dita's hair has been set in a different way to how you would normally use rollers; the hair is parted in a deep side parting and divided into sections, then rollers are placed in the hair vertically, creating a barrel curl.' Spray with a good styling spray for hold and manageability – Leonardo recommends the OSiS Session Styling Spray (£7.10, 01296 314000), 'spray generously and leave the hair in rollers for 10-15 minutes, then remove.' For a glamorous Dita-esque look, pin the curls back off the face on one side, and get ready to smile and greet your audience.

  Dita does 'up' Unleash your inner Flapper girl and start creating some seriously sexy '20s chic with your locks this season. Dita's up 'do is úber-glam, úber-glossy and, according to Leonardo, not as high-maintenance as you may think… 'To recreate this gorgeous look, the hair just needs to be simply set in heated rollers again - this will help to add volume and bounce to the style.' Vital if you want to do this 'do well.

Leave the rollers in for 10-15 minutes, until cool. Sounds simple enough, eh? Well the next step is a little more tricky – but still do-able with a bit of practise. 'Part the hair and manipulate with a technique called finger-waving. This process involves applying a soft gel, like Alternative Hair Straight On (£7.99) and then holding the hair between the fingers to comb in alternating directions to make a wave,' describes Leonardo. 'The gel will set the hair and allow it to stay in the desired shape. This will create a sleek, yet alternative look around the front of the head, which frames the face nicely.'

The back of the hair – just as important as the front with this style - has been made into a horizontal chignon according to Leonardo. 'This is created by rolling the hair under itself and pinning the ends to the head with grips.' Finish with a light hold hairspray to keep the style in place, et voila – burlesque beauty at it's best, but without a basque in sight!

Leonardo is based in the Guildford and Knightsbridge Sanrizz Salons, for an appointment: Knightsbridge: 134 Brompton Rd, Knightsbridge, SW3 1HY. 0207 589 4531 Guildford: 75 North Street, Guildford, GU1 4AW. 01483 577 739