Long hair is quintessentially feminine and versatile and a look many of us aspire to, influenced in no small part by all those gorgeous role models from Aniston to Zeta-Jones. Nevertheless sometimes it's just too tempting to settle for the wash-and-wear approach, or to rely exclusively on straightening irons on a more or less daily basis. Break those bad hair habits in time for the party season with some expert tricks of the trade and allow your style to shine.

Couture curls
'If it's drop-dead sexy curls you're after you can't beat hot rollers,' says Sally Brooks of the award-winning Brooks & Brooks salon in London WC1, (www.brooksandbrooks.co.uk). 'Divide hair into two sections: top and bottom, starting with the underneath first. With the top sections, start from a side parting and roll the hair forward onto the face, keeping the parting flat. With the remaining hair, wind each section backwards, away from the face, to ensure sexy volume at the crown. Allow the rollers to cool down and lightly spritz with hairspray. Remove rollers and for a looser feel tip head upside down, shake curls out and spray. Brushing them a couple of times will create softer waves.'

Braidy bunch
If you've spent all your salary on a killer party dress you can still outshine Cinders on the cheap by simply dividing damp hair into plaits and leaving them to dry naturally overnight to create curls and waves worthy of a pre-Raphaelite heroine. The tighter the plait the more defined the curl.

Seductively straight
If your mission statement is shiny and sophisticated you can't beat sleek hair. To avoid it looking flat and lifeless you need to blow the cobwebs off your blow-dry technique. Begin by applying Charles Worthington Results Stay Smooth Blow-dry Straightening Balm, £3.99, then rough dry for a couple of minutes before pinning the top sections up out of the way so you can focus fully on the underneath ones. Ensure that each section is dried thoroughly before moving on to the next. With each section, use a heat-retaining round bristle brush - Denman, Kent and Charles Worthington are all good quality - and dry the root area first. Direct the airflow down the hair and straight onto the brush to smooth the cuticles and encourage shine. When all the sections are dry, go over the hair with a paddle brush and join all the sections of the hair together, making sure that the hair is fully dry and smooth. If the hair is not fully dry, it will go curly again very quickly and you will lose the style and shape.

However, if manual dexterity is not your thing you might want to invest in the BaByliss Beliss, £30 (www.beliss.co.uk), an ionic hairdryer incorporating a straightening attachment with tourmaline ceramic plates that grip and straighten hair for a silky, smooth and shiny finish. 'Clients often have problems with blow-drying their own hair straight – the most common are struggling to manage both brush and dryer simultaneously and also failing to get the correct tension on the hair to ensure a smooth finish. Beliss solves both these issues making it easier to achieve that salon finish at home,' says Lisa Shepherd, British Hairdresser of the Year. Get the foundation of your sleek style right and you should only need to give your straighteners the most gentle of workouts. For a really polished performance the professional quality 03 Hair Straightener, £80 (www.o3hair.com ), has a stylish pure white design and boasts ozone, ionic and ceramic technologies.

Work to wow
Give long hair of any description some desk-to-dancefloor glamour by creating a quick half-up style. Secure the top sections only into a ponytail and for some additional catwalk kudos twist a small section around your hair elastic to mask it.

Stash it
Batiste Dry Shampoo, £1.99, instantly refreshes, and restores that just washed look. Toni&Guy Rapid Response Leave in Conditioning Gellee, £1.59, hydrates areas of dryness, discourages frizz and enhances definition of natural waves. Angel Celestial Hair Mist, £17, gives locks A-list allure and also neutralises smoky odours.