Rough Cut Makes Powerful Hair Inspiration in Insurgent

Pixie haircut and styling tips

Want to take your hair from sweet to fierce in one fell swoop? Take a page from the Insurgent playbook.

Cutting one's hair has long been a powerful statement made by women looking to claim their power. When Mia Farrow's character chopped her hair from long, flowing locks to a tight crop on the TV show Peyton Place in 1966, she explained the change by saying, "I took a look at my little girl hair and decided I didn't like it anymore."

Flash forward nearly 50 years later and lobbing off one's hair is still a symbol of strength and independence. In Insurgent, the latest Divergent series installment, heroine Tris is seen with a short pixie cut—a more knowing and tough hair look than the one she wore in the first film.

Gone is the prim-and-proper bun and the girly, high pony that Shailene Woodley's character wore in the series' first film. Now, her hair is cropped short as she pursues her quest of discovery and defiance. The look says she's ready to fight back and not let anything get in her way—much less let hair get in her face.

TIPS: How to nail the side braid

If you're as inspired by Tris's no-BS haircut as you are her no-prisoners resolve, then taking your hair short for spring may be a confident way to make a statement of your own. When thinking of going pixie-cut short, like Halle Berry, Charlize Theron and Miley Cyrus, try these styling tips to keep your hair looking as fierce as your attitude.

Create texture: It's easy to think that short hair requires no styling. In reality, achieving Woodley's on-screen and real-life piece-y chic look requires styling products that define your cut. Apply a dime-sized dollop of light pomades or wax, like Sally Hershberger 24K Superiority Complex Texturizing Paste.

Make it sleek: To get in on the ubiquitous sleek hair trend that's sweeping the red carpet, employ a flat-iron to create a smooth texture and apply an anti-humidity hairspray like Oribe Imperméable to keep frizz and puff at a minimum.

Go for high shine: Create a look that says "finished" by giving your pixie a glossy edge; use a shine-producing wax also designed to achieved structured shape, like R+Co Continental Glossing Wax.

Whether wild and textured or razor-sharp and sleek, an Insurgent-inspired cut is a surefire way to make heads turn as you take on the world.