Every Detail We Know About Kim Kardashian’s Wedding Hair

Kim Kardashian’s wedding to Kanye West was an extravagant European fairytale. The couple pulled out all the stops for their nuptials, including a bachelorette party at Hôtel Costes in Paris, France, a 600-person rehearsal dinner in the Palace of Versailles’s Hall of Mirrors, and a ceremony at Forte di Belvedere in Florence, Italy on May 24, 2014.

Everything about the wedding was over-the-top, except Kardashian’s wedding hairstyle. The bride chose to wear her hair all the way down with a center part and very subtle waves throughout. You might be surprised to know that she didn’t even have a trial to decide on her wedding hairstyle. She placed all her trust in hairstylist Chris McMillan to pull off her perfect wedding day vision, and luckily, she ended up loving the final look. 

If you’re curious about how to get Kardashian’s wedding day hairstyle, we’ve got you covered. Below, we’ve got all the details on Kardashian’s wedding hair and how you can recreate it for your special day, according to celebrity hairstylist Clariss Rubenstein.

The Hairstyle

Kardashian’s chocolate brown locks flowed effortlessly down her back, with a striking center part adding a single dramatic element to the otherwise simple look. The front of her hair tucked behind her ears gives it a very subtle retro 70s feeling. This chic and elegant hairstyle didn’t distract from Kardashian’s cathedral-length veil, which she wore during the ceremony. 

“Kim’s wedding look is one of my favorite bridal looks,” says Rubenstein. “It’s feminine, romantic, and soft with a formal twist. I love the clean part, the intentional tuck behind the ear, and the soft waves.”

Kardashian is known for her glamorous, often over-the-top looks, which makes her choice to exercise some creative restraint and go with a more toned-down bridal hairstyle all the more impactful. We’ve seen her rock glamorous, Old Hollywood-style waves a hundred times on the red carpet. On her wedding day, Kardashian’s hairstyle was a more understated and refined version of the Kim Kardashian the world has come to know and love, which is a refreshing change of pace for the mega-celebrity. 

The Hairstylist

Kardashian has a roster of A-list celebrity hairstylists at her disposal that rotate in and out of her glam squad, but for this special occasion, she leaned on the legendary Chris McMillian (he gave Jennifer Anniston “The Rachel” haircut) to define her wedding day look. 

“I was really excited when Kim asked me to do her hair,” McMillan told Cosmopolitan. “I’ve worked with her in the past many times, but while I was cutting her hair recently, I mentioned to her that she would look gorgeous with her hair down for her wedding. I think she had also had that same thought, so since we were on the same page she just asked me if I’d do it.”

After showing him her dress and talking to the designer, Riccardo Tisci, about the overall bridal vision, Kardashian trusted McMillan as the expert to craft a complementary hairstyle for the modern, chic look they were after.

The Inspiration

Kardashian took a hands-off approach to her wedding day ‘do and let McMillian surprise her with the final look on the day of the wedding. 

“Kim and I talked about what we were going to do, but we didn’t do a trial,” said McMillian. “She is really open-minded to hairstyles, has a beautiful head of hair, and she really liked my input and ideas. So I decided to go with a center part, which I was set on, and then took inspiration from the gorgeous, flowing hair at Versace—I wanted her hair to look like Ali MacGraw in Love Story [smooth, with a center part, and a subtle wave].”

McMillian also told Cosmopolitan that the veil played an important role in Kardashian’s wedding day style. “She had a very long, beautiful veil, so another reason I wanted her hair to be down and kept super soft is because long veils are heavier and tend to smash down an updo,” McMillan admitted. “She ended up loving the final look and was so excited!”

The front section of her hair tucked behind her ears made the style more balanced when the veil was added. Kardashian’s long hair stayed laid back behind her shoulders as she walked down the aisle and throughout the ceremony, keeping her face and diamond-studded earrings the center of the attention. 

How to Recreate the Look 

Kardashian’s effortless wedding day hairstyle is stunning in its simplicity. She’s most certainly a trend-setter when it comes to her styling choices, but this look is definitely more timeless than trendy. 

By bringing together a few key elements, you can achieve the same look for your own wedding day. When choosing a hairstylist for your own wedding, there are a few specifics to communicate if you want them to recreate Kardashian’s wedding day hairstyle, according to Rubenstein. “If you’re going for this look I would ask for soft textured waves, a center part with volume at the crown, a tuck behind the ears, with control and smoothness around the front.”

To recreate this sleek and chic wedding day look, follow the step-by-step instructions below:

Step One

“To achieve this look, I would start with a smooth blowout,” Rubenstein recommends. McMillan applied Living Proof Perfect Hair Day 5-in-1 Styling Treatment onto damp hair, along with a little bit of volumizing mousse at the crown. Using a YS Parks medium-sized round brush, McMillan gave Kardashian the ultimate blowout to serve as the base for her subtle, glamorous waves.

Step Two

Eliminate frizz around the edges of the hairline with a tiny flat iron and create soft waves using a one-inch curling iron. “Using a wrapping technique, I would create waves from the ears down, doing each section in opposite directions to create a soft tousled texture,” says Rubenstein. She recommends a texture spray for the crown, mids, and ends of the hair, and a touch of pomade to smooth the part and sides.

Step Three

Make a clean center part using a fine-toothed comb. McMillan added a small pump of shine serum to make the ends look extra glossy and healthy. 

Step Four

Finally, tuck the front pieces of the hair behind the ears and finish with a strong-hold hairspray (Rubenstein recommends MONAT’s Strong Flexi-Hold Hairspray) to tame any flyaways.

“I didn’t want her hair to look wet, but I wanted it to look smooth, so I sprayed my Mason Pearson boar bristle paddle brush with Living Proof Control Hairspray and brushed her hair down to keep the top of her hair controlled and any flyaways around her hairline tame,” McMillan said.

Step Five

As a finishing touch, add a veil at the top of the crown and lay the hair flat behind the shoulders.

“After I put the veil on her, I secured it with four bobby pins, creating an ‘X’ formation on the right and left sides, and then sent her off down the aisle,” McMillan told Cosmopolitan. “Riccardo and I were just standing there in grips of fear, hoping the veil didn’t blow off in the wind, and also admiring how gorgeous she looked. Luckily, the veil stayed on!”