It is officially Met Gala season and with the return of The Devil Wears Prada 2, we thought it would be fun to up the glam and teach you how to achieve big voluminous hair that rocks the red carpet by the most iconic starlets. 

The good news: getting that look has a lot less to do with having naturally thick hair than people think. Most #hairinspo you see on Pinterest comes down to the right prep, proper product layering, and knowing where volume actually matters.

While we’re sharing the products we reach for most often, the routine itself is completely customizable. Mix and match depending on your hair type, styling habits, and the kind of finish you like best. Whether you’re going for a subtle lift or a full-on 90s Pamela Anderson blowout, this is more of a guide than a strict rulebook. 

Enough talking, let’s get to styling.

How To Get Glamorous, Voluminous Hair

Step 1: Start in the Shower, Healthy Hair Holds Volume Better

One of the biggest misconceptions about volume is that hair needs to feel stripped or squeaky-clean to hold shape.

In reality, overly dry hair tends to frizz more easily, lose shine, and fall flat faster because it lacks flexibility and movement. Healthy hair holds a blowout much more beautifully because the cuticle is smoother and has more elasticity.

The goal is balanced hair: a clean, fresh scalp with soft, hydrated lengths that still feel light and airy. 

The Foundation: Sam McKnight Cool Girl Volume Shampoo

If you want volume, the prep starts before you even pick up a blow dryer.

A good volumizing shampoo should clean the scalp properly while still leaving the hair soft enough to move naturally. The issue with a lot of traditional “volume” shampoos is they can leave the hair overly dry. So, take your hair to new heights with the Cool Girl Volume Shampoo from Hair by Sam McKnight, aka one of our favourites. It gives lift while leaving your hair extra soft, using Voluminis™ technology to help create fullness, and beneficial ingredients like fermented rice water and Pro-Vitamin B5 help strengthen and hydrate the hair at the same time. You’re left with fuller hair that feels healthy and oh so touchable.

How to use it:

1. Massage thoroughly into the scalp

2. Rinse

3. Shampoo again if needed

Step 2: Nourish Your Locks with R+Co Television Perfect Hair Masque

The Television Perfect Hair Masque is one of those products that makes your hair look immediately healthier. Thanks to ingredients like Snow Mushroom Extract, Pequi Oil and Abyssinian Oil, this mask deeply conditions without making the hair heavy, which is important when volume is the goal. If you want glossy, soft, very “expensive hair”, then you need this treatment.

It’s especially good if:

• your ends feel dry

• your hair tangles easily

• your blowouts never look smooth enough

How to use it:

• Apply after shampooing

• Focus mostly on mid-lengths and ends

• Leave on for 2–5 minutes

• Rinse thoroughly

Twentyseven Tip: If your roots tend to get oily quickly, avoid applying heavier masks directly at the scalp. Rich conditioning formulas can sometimes weigh the roots down or cause volume to fall flatter faster, especially on fine or naturally limp hair. Instead, focus masks through the mid-lengths and ends where the hair usually needs the most softness, hydration, and repair. Keeping the roots lighter helps maintain that airy, lifted shape much longer.

PS. You don’t need to do this daily, we recommend applying this step once a week or before special occasions that require your best hair.

Step 3: Condition Strategically

Similar to the hair mask, a lot of people accidentally flatten their hair at this stage.

Conditioner is important because smooth, hydrated hair reflects light better and styles more beautifully, but placement matters.

The Lightweight Conditioner for Extra Oomph

Following the shampoo, the matching Cool Girl Volume Conditioner keeps the hair soft, glossy, and easy to style without flattening everything you just built at the root.

What makes it especially good for volume is the balance of hydration and structure. The formula uses Voluminis™, a dual-action active that helps create fullness while also supporting overall hair health, so the hair feels thicker and more lifted without becoming stiff. Fermented Rice Water (an ingredient long used in Southeast Asian hair rituals) helps strengthen and smooth the hair with amino acids and antioxidants, while Amaranth and White Nettle Extracts boost shine and improve manageability.

How to use it:

• Squeeze excess water out before applying

• Focus from mid-lengths to ends

• Comb through gently for even distribution

• Rinse thoroughly

One of the easiest ways to keep volume longer is by simply not over-conditioning the root area. Your scalp does not need conditioner, your ends do.

Want to save on this shampoo and conditioner? Buy it as a set and get 10% off. You're welcome!

Step 4: Foam Is the Difference Between a Light Lift and Sky High Volume

The Hero Product: Cool Girl Volume Foam

If there’s one product category we think deserves a comeback, it’s mousse. Or foam, technically. This is nothing like the crunchy formulas people remember from the early 2000s, this will give you va-va-voom structure. The Cool Girl Volume Foam lifts at the roots, adds fullness through the lengths, and helps hold the shape with zero stiffness. It gets bonus points for heat protection, which matters if you’re using hot tools regularly.

How to use it:

• Apply to damp hair

• Focus mainly at the roots and crown

• Distribute a smaller amount through mid-lengths if you want overall fullness

• Blow dry roots upward using your fingers or a round brush

Twentyseven Tip: Flip your head upside down while drying the roots until the hair is about 80% dry. Then flip back over and smooth the ends afterward. The root direction makes a huge difference! 

Step 5: The Finishing Touch, A Cult-Favourite Texturizer

The Finishing Step: Cool Girl Barely There Texture Mist

The Cool Girl Barely There Texture Mist is easily one of the most-loved products in the shop, a staff pick, a client favourite, and it’s a hair product that will permanently live on your shelf after your first try. If you get only one thing from this entire lineup, make it this.

A few sprays instantly give the hair lift, texture, separation, and that done undone fullness that makes your hair look cooler in seconds. Seriously giving model off-duty in a bottle.

How to use it:

• Shake well

• Spray lightly through the crown, mid-lengths, and underneath the hair

• Tousle with your hands

• Brush through once if needed

Good for:

• second-day hair

• adding lift back into a blowout

• making freshly styled hair feel less “done”

• giving fine hair more presence

Optional: Rollers for Extra Volume + Blowouts

Volumizing Roller Clips

These volumizing clips are ideal if you mainly want root lift around the crown and face frame.

They’re also incredible for refreshing hair the next morning while you do your makeup or drink your morning coffee.

Best for:

• quick root lift

• fine hair

• second-day styling

• lower-maintenance routines

Ceramic Hair Rollers

These KITSCH ceramic rollers create more bend and softness through the lengths.

Perfect if you love that brushed-out, glossy blowout look that’s everywhere right now.

How to use them:

• Insert into almost dry hair

• Focus on crown and face-framing sections

• Hit lightly with heat

• Let cool completely before removing

The cooling part matters more than people think, that’s what helps lock the shape in. And always brush the curls out afterward. The goal is softness and movement, not tight, pageant curls.

The Final Look

Getting glamorous hair really isn’t as complicated as people think. All you need are a few quality products, proper prep and technique, and some practice can completely change the way your hair looks and feels right from your own home. Try this routine out and get ready to feel like the best version of yourself walking out the door. 

Very Met Gala afterparty. Very 90s supermodel off duty. Very Devil Wears Prada if Andy Sachs had better hair in act one.