Forget fussy, unnatural up-dos, the area’s beauty experts agree bouncy, beachy waves, romantic braids—and even sleek ponytails—are the hot trends for this year’s prom hair.

“It’s a lot softer and more natural,” said Tyler Emerick, a stylist at BeautyFirst in Cranberry. “It’s not as structured of an up-do as it has been in the past.”

For this year’s prom, Emerick is forecasting braids as one of the top hairstyle trends—and he’s not talking about the tight schoolgirl braids or French braids of your youth, either.

Instead, Emerick said this year’s braids are unstructured and soft. He predicts another top trend with girls will be blown-out hair worn down, but with lots of volume.

Marian Davis, owner of Velvet Salon and Boutique in Harmony, sees carefree, beach-worthy waves as one of this year’s hot hair looks. Like Emerick, she also is seeing braids added to up-dos.

“It’s really all about the braids in the hair,” she said.

If you’re going for the braided look, Harmony Kaiser, owner of Harmony Salon in Pine Township, suggests trying an ultra-trendy basket weave braid, which involves five strands entwined together.

Also hot this year is a high, sleek ponytail that gives a hint of a masculine edge.

“This comes straight from the runways of New York,” Kaiser said. “Those styles will translate into what’s new for the spring and summer collections.”

At Profiles Styling Salon in Cranberry, owner Cheri Parise said girls in the know are turning to Hollywood for inspiration. She said soft chignons, buns or hair worn to one side are all red-carpet worthy looks.

“Everything is softer with a romantic feeling,” she said. “Loose curls and soft waves—anything we see that are more Oscar-type of hairstyles.”

Makeup trends for this year are similarly soft and romantic.

Michelle Pascal, owner of the Merle Norman Cosmetics in the Streets of Cranberry, said a “naturally flawless” look with peachy undertones is a hit with the teen girls.

Also popular is a smoky eye paired with a high-shine lip gloss. One thing she steers away from is a harsh red lip. Instead, she said her clients favor peach and coral colors. 

They’re so young, so it’s more of a fresh clean look,” she said.

What trends do you expect to see at the Upper St. Clair prom? Tell us in the comments!

This story originally appeared on Cranberry Patch.