Larry Sims Talks Creating Hair Magic With Gabrielle Union & Embracing Our Imperfections

With filming currently underway for season of the hit series Being Mary Jane, we’re all waiting with bated breath to see what newfound amazingness Gabrielle Union will be giving us. Since she first hit the scene, she’s consistently served goals, inspiring us with both her talents and stunning beauty and hair slay.

[SEE ALSO: Here’s How To Get Gabrielle Union’s Red Carpet Hair]

I caught up with celeb stylist Larry Sims, who is behind some of Gabrielle’s most memorable hair moments and has slayed the manes of other faves, such as Tracee Ellis Ross, Kerry Washington, Lupita Nyong’o, and Alexandra Shipp. 

With his gift for transforming the ordinary into edgy, he shared details on how he creates hair magic with the actress. We also talked about everything from what we should all be doing with our hair and the importance of embracing our imperfections. Keep reading for total hair inspiration.

Stephenetta (isis) Harmon: You have this way of reinventing edgy looks. Where do you draw your inspiration?
Larry Sims: I am inspired by so many things. [One thing is], I like to take relatable hairstyles that regular girls have been rocking on the street or are rocking in their neighborhoods and I’ll just try to multiply those in a really glamorous, beautiful or edgy way. I think that the girls in the ‘hood are sort of our trendsetters and then it’s up to the artists to take their visions to the next level.

SH: Do you have any favorite hair moments?
LS: Fashion Week last year in September. We broke out with that bob and it was so talked about. It was real piecey and choppy and a lot of people hadn’t seen her in that length. And, I do love [the half-up, half -down look] we created at the ESPYs.

SH: That half-up, half-down look was amaze! How did you come up with it?
LS: With that look, in particular, she sent me [a text of] the dress. [But] Gabrielle is like one of my best friends on this planet, she’s really like my sister. We see through the same lens in terms of beauty and execution. She gets my quirky, artistic ways and I get how she wants to look and feel on the red carpet.

SH: How do you keep her hair healthy underneath the wigs and extensions?
LS: When we work with her natural hair, we make sure that we give her deep conditioning treatments…We make sure her scalp stays nice and moisturized. And, we make sure her stays trimmed on a regular basis.