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The 80s Mall Bangs is Back: How to Style This Iconic Hairstyle

In the 80s, women started getting bold with their hairstyles and created some of the best and worst hairstyles in the name of bangs. The most popular ones were curly bangs, blowout bangs, or the iconic bangs hairstyle of the 80s, still known as the 80s mall bang.

You know how fashion is—what goes out of style today is tomorrow’s hottest trend. It looks like the 80s hairstyles are knocking on our doors again. So it’s time to check out some cool bangs hairstyles from the 80s.

As all the trends come back one way or another, 80s bangs are also reviving among many women. Many variations and upgrades of bangs have been introduced in the hairstyling industry, all stemming from the 80s. Among them are mall bangs- one of the great hairstyles in the history of hairstyling.

80s Mall Bangs

80s mall bangs for women
80s Mall Bangs (source: k80.official/Instagram)

If you were a woman from the 80s, high chances are that you got mall bangs once in your life. Now that they are back, getting popular among teenagers and young women, it must’ve been feeling nostalgic for you to see.

If you are a woman hearing about Mall Bangs for the first time in your life, you are not alone. But since every other woman wants a mall bang, you should know about this famous bangs hairstyle.

What Is Mall Bangs?

Mall Bangs were a common hairstyle among teenagers in the 1980s who used to hang around the mall all day and every day. To keep their hair intact and in good condition, those teenagers used to apply a lot of hair spray to keep their fringe high and mighty. This is where the name “Mall Bangs” came into being. 

This bangs hairstyle is short and blunt, and it’s often side-parted. They were named after this style, which was common among 80s teenagers who used to hang around the mall.

This is a high-maintenance 80s bangs hairstyle as a lot of hairspray is needed to keep the fringe high and up.

Also, don’t forget the amount of backcombing it requires. The fringe is put straight against the forehead or sprayed in multiple sections.

How to Get 80s Mall Bangs?

The quality of mall bangs is that they can easily be set according to your hair type, volume, and face shape.

Only hitting down a salon chair and requesting mall bangs is useless because 80s bangs were all about variety, so you should probably save some inspiration from the internet about the type of hairstyle you want before going to a hairdresser.

And don’t even think about cutting your own bangs at home because that can end awfully.

Prepare Your Hair

If you already have straight and smooth hair, there isn’t much prep you can do. Mall Bangs were achieved by hair spraying, bleaching, and doing every kind of damage to the hair to make it look wild.

This resulted in permanent damage to the hair. But in this era where safe hair products are available, if you have curly hair and textured hair, using frizzy hair products is enough.

This way you can also have mall bangs in your natural hair.

Use Less Hairspray

Hairspraying the bangs to keep them upright was the most important thing to achieve the mall bangs. But if you want to keep your hair healthy, try avoiding the hairspray as much as possible.

Ask your hairdresser about alternatives to using the hairspray. Use some natural wax or if the hairspray is necessary, try not to drown your bangs in it.

Other 80s Bangs Hairstyles

As we mentioned earlier, apart from Mall Bangs, other bangs from the 80s were also popular among women of different ages. If you are looking for more 80s bangs inspirations, check out these hairstyles:

1. Blowout Bangs

80s blowout bangs
Blowout Bangs

This is a vintage 1980s hairstyle that is becoming more common. Not only is it easy to get, but it is also easy to style.

Many people also refer to these bangs as ‘Curtain Bangs,’ all because they are parted from the middle and give the illusion of curtains being hooked to two sides.

The problem with blowout bangs is that they look perfect on silky and slick hair. But they often get messy on curly and frizzy hair.

2. Curly Bangs

80s curly bangs
Curly Bangs (source: thelitgypsy/Instagram)

These 80s bangs are perfect for curly hair. Even some women back in the 80s used to curl their hair to achieve 80s bangs artificially.

As we know, having bangs in curly hair is difficult and requires a lot of styling and care. But if you are naturally curly, you need not fear because curly bangs from the 80s were especially introduced for girls who wanted bangs without causing any harm to their beautiful hair.

80s bangs were known as great contributors to women’s hairstyles, all for the right cause. If you are thinking of getting some 80s bangs, know your hair type before getting a new haircut.