Short Hair for Prom and Homecoming

How to Dress Up a Pixie, Bob & More

Who says prom hair has to be long to be dressy? In this gallery, I'll share my favorite prom short hairstyles including pixies, bobs and pompadours.

The key to a great short hairstyle for a formal event is to consider your dress. Your dress should be the centerpiece of your look, not your hair and makeup. This is easier for longer haired girls who can pull their hair up into updos, side 'dos or half do's to complement their dresses. If you have short hair, you do have options, just not as many.

Some things to consider with short hair...

Go All Out With Your Hair

You don't want to style your hair as you do every day. This is your chance to dress up your hair with waves, curls or even a headband. Hit the salon for a blowout and curls before prom or if you're doing it yourself, add some texture to your hair or a few curls.

A great look for short hair this year is to pull it back. Yes, even short hair can be pulled back. If your hair doesn't fit into a ponytail holder, you can use pins to pull hair back and tight.

Don't Skimp on Products

Product will be your best friend. You want your style to last all night.

If you are getting your hair done at the salon, you won't have to worry about anything, except maybe carrying some extra bobby pins or a small bottle of hairspray.

Go for a Cohesive Look

Everything should complement each other: your makeup should work with your hair should work with your dress should work with your jewelry should work with your shoes should work with your clutch.

Statement Jewelry

I tend to prefer simple jewelry and let my dress and shoes be the stand outs, but with short hair, you can take advantage of statement jewelry. This is that one piece of "wow" that stands out like great pair of earrings or a gorgeous necklace. Earrings work great with short hair.

Just don't do both because too much jewelry can be overkill. Pick either the statement necklace or the statement earrings. If you go with earrings, you can also choose a gorgeous bracelet.

Makeup Tips

Your facial features will stand out with short hair (you probably already know this), so you can either choose to highlight your lips with a bright, bold color like cherry red or a deep pink or you can go with a smoky eye. But avoid doing both or you could look like a clown.

In this picture, actress Ashley Benson goes with a deep cat eye and keeps the rest of her makeup light.  

You'll see some amazing looks in this gallery. So let's get started!

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Kate Peck's Platinum Pixie

I love a platinum pixie, especially the one here on model Kate Peck. Long bangs allow you a lot of versatility -- you can brush them down, wear them back or funk them up with a bit of molding paste.

Note how Peck's hair works beautifully with her dresses. She opts for a red lip and light eyes, a great manicure and fantastic shoes. When it comes to jewelry, she sticks to rings and bracelets.

Demi Lovato's 30s Pin Curls

Here, Demi Lovato's sultry 30's pinwave works beautifully paired with her backless dress. She breaks my "don't play up both the eyes and the mouth" rule and I think it's a bit aging. I would prefer a little less eye makeup here and maybe a different lip color. She's gone a bit overboard on the wine-colored lip liner, which stands out on this red carpet.

But the hair: perfection.

Dianna Agron

Dianna Agron's entire look here is pitch perfect. Her silvery smoky eye makeup is simply gorgeous and I love how she's blown her chin-length hair back. But what I really love her, aside from that plunging neckline, is her shoes. Her dress is flared and hits below the knee so the shoes are the true statement piece.

Kristen Stewart

What I love about Kristen Stewart's look here is just how fitting it is to her personality. She's a bit of an edgy tomboy -- you rarely see her in dresses -- but she doesn't change her stance just because she's wearing one here. I also like that she keeps her hair tousled and a bit casual but plays up her eye makeup. And those shoes are killer.

Love this look.

Emma Stone

This dress. Oh, this dress. It's so perfect from the lace bodice to the flirty skirt to the three-quarter length sleeves. Here, Stone pulls back her chin-length hair so that it doesn't get in the way of the dress and I love how her hair is not prissy and perfect, but a bit tousled and casual.

It all just works so beautifully.

Jourdan Dunn

The hair here on Jourdan Dunn complements the architectural details of this dress perfectly.

Sarah Hyland

I really like what Sarah Hyland has done with her long bob here. And I love her choice of dressy top and heels, which would be cool for prom if you aren't a dress kind of girl.

Julianne Hough

These tousled waves are so in right now, but what I really like about Julianne Hough's look here is not her hair, but rather the way her blue dress makes her light blue eyes pop. If you have eyes that are anything but brown -- green or blue or even speckled, you may consider your dress color. Choosing a color that makes your eyes pop is always a smart move.

Carla Juri

 There's something just so sweet about this picture of Carla Juri. She's not doing anything special with her hair, here, because it's so short, and her makeup is very understated, but the whole look works with this dress. It's just so pretty.

Olivia Phyland

The neckline of this dress works beautifully with Olivia Phyland's wavy long bob.

Lily Collins

Honestly, I find the material of this dress to be a bit tacky and the dress itself is ill-fitting, but from a distance it kind of works. Up close, it's a bit cringe-inducing.

I do love her pink lip color and her fake lashes, which don't look too fake.

Chelsea Kane

I really love this look on Chelsea Kane. The dress is super sexy and her hair works well with the entire look. I like that she chose long earrings as opposed to a necklace.

Shailene Woodley

Shailene shows how you can pull back short hair at the nape of the neck. But forget about the hair, what about that incredible dress. Wow.

Sibley Scoles

This pompadour paired with shaved sides is super cool paired with red lips.

Lucy Hale

Braids are another way of dressing up short hair.

Emma Willis

 I like the sleek sophistication of Emma Willis' hair here.

Rachael Taylor

Rachael Taylor's hair here is just perfect.

Coco Rocha

This is a funky version of the bob that would work with the right personality.

Julia Stiles

Just add curls and you're good to go.

Jessica Alba

More pin curls which are perfect for prom.

Emily Bergl

Another example of adding curls to short hair for prom.

The Perfect Pixie

I love how the eyes are played up here.

Scarlett Johannson's Hair

I love this style on Scarlett. And paired with a slinky dress, it's pretty much perfection.

A 30s Style Wave

More prom:

• Prom hairstyle hub
• Prom makeup tips
• Classic prom updos
• Photos of prom makeup looks from smokey eyes, to shimmery lids
• Prom hairstyle dos & don'ts