Zendaya has never met a hair length she couldn’t pull off. Micro bobs, sleek lobs, waist-grazing waves – she has made her way through just about every point on the hairstyle spectrum. Her latest cut might be her shortest in recent memory.
Attending the Prada Paradoxe pop-up party during New York Fashion Week, the actor debuted a fully fledged pixie: closely cropped at the back, with soft curls coiffed high on the crown and fluffed into an airy, frizz-free shape. It’s a natural conclusion to Zendaya’s gradual journey upwards: around Christmastime last year, she cut her hair into a curly bob-pixie hybrid, before experimenting with a longer bixie. Now, she has decided to fully commit to the chop.
It’s quite the about-face from press tour. For her blockbuster promotional run, Zendaya returned to goddess-like lengths, working with hairstylist Coree Moreno on waist-skimming waves and tendrils of extensions that more than matched the drama of her Schiaparelli couture gowns and sweeping Jacquemus drapery. Where that hair was mythic and statuesque, her new pixie feels light, romantic and a little playful.
The rest of her Prada look followed suit. Zendaya wore a bottle-green sweater layered over a pink button-down, with a brown slip skirt flecked with chartreuse embellishments. Rather than play up the severity that can come with an ultra-short crop, the styling leaned into its softness and femininity.
Her make-up, courtesy of longtime collaborator Ernesto Casillas, did much the same. Casillas has been using Prada Beauty’s pastel-heavy palette to craft the actor’s recent glam, and this time drew on lavender hues and Zendaya’s lingering summer tan for what he dubbed the “wisteria look”. Prada Touch Cream-to-Powder Blush in Cherry was swept generously across the cheeks and bridge of the nose, while Dimensions Eyeshadow in 01 Portrait brought muted colour to the eyes. Prada Balm in Noisette added a dewy finishing touch.
Casillas also prepped the skin with the Prada Augmented Skin Cream, Essence and Eye Cream before applying Reveal Skin Optimizing Foundation and Blurring + Micro-Correcting Concealer. Doll-like lashes completed the whimsical effect. With curls framing the face rather than lengths competing for attention, the whole look felt feminine and super romantic.
And the pixie is already proving its versatility. Zendaya was later spotted heading out to dinner in New York with her co-stars Hunter Schafer and Alexa Demie, this time considerably more dressed down in a red sweater, straight-leg white jeans and black patent loafers. With little more than those tousled curls on top and the close crop visible at the nape of her neck, the haircut looked entirely different.