This Japanese-inspired jellyfish haircut is the latest TikTok beauty trend
These days, TikTok is the arbiter of cool — and the hairstyle that’s all over your For You page may be the jellyfish haircut. The jellyfish haircut hashtag on TikTok has been viewed by around 208 million people at this point, and stylish folks everywhere are taking notice.
So what is a jellyfish haircut? Basically, it’s a cut that features two separate sections. The top portion looks like a bowl cut that ends mid-ear: think of the bell of a jellyfish, with locks made to frame the face in front. The second part is a longer, straighter inner layer, mimicking the flowing tentacles of jellyfish. You can make the cut more or less dramatic by blending layers and through styling, but it’s definitely an eye-catching style that maybe isn’t for everyone.
“It’s essentially a version of a mullet that plays on shapes and contrasting lines,” Sally Beauty color and style expert Gregory Patterson told Popsugar.
If you think maybe you’ve seen cut in anime shows or on K-Pop stars, you’re probably not wrong. According to Dazed Digital, the style originated in the Japanese Heian period (794-1185). It’s a variation of the hime haircut, which has two short sections in front of the ears. Because of its appeal in modern Japanese culture, you often see the jellyfish cut combined with bright hair colors.
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To highlight the cut, some people are adding various hues to the two different sections, as Sinister Elegance Hair did in this TikTok video:
@sinister.elegance Entering the jellyfish era #greenscreen #jellyfishhair #jellyfishhaircut #hairtok #vividhair #trendinghairstyle ♬ It’s A Wrap – Sped Up – Mariah Carey
If you’re not sure all that drama is for you, here’s a version that’s more subtle when used on naturally wavy hair, from Tiktoker Clara at @bsokii:
@bsokii I have very mixed feelings- #jellyfishhaircut ♬ Genesis slowed – J🫶🏾
In this post, TikToker Raheli at @raheli_e32 gives herself a jellyfish haircut. While she labels the video “not my best work,” we think she’s clearly a pro because she nails the style:
@raheli_e32 not my best work 🪼. #jellyfishhaircut #pinterest #hairtok #hair #wig #ugc #ugccreator #wiginfluencer #wiginstall #fail #jellyfish #greenscreen ♬ som original – 🦇
The jellyfish haircut is more versatile than you might think. The bottom part can be curled inward or out. Or, you can put hair into pigtails, ponytails, braids, and more, as TikToker Mari Melody at @silveryerba did. She colored her hair black on the “bell” and added green, yellow and orange face-framing layers for the “tentacles.”
@sillyyerba Reply to @bondjonescreations im starting a jellyfish club with jelly themed events for those interested! I’m setting up the Discord for it today! Stay tuned for an offical announcement soon! It’s going to be so cute. If you don’t have the haircut you can be a baby jellyfish. Theyre called ephyrae 🥹 excuse the mess! We are in the middle of rearranging right now!💓💓 if you read this ur a qt #jellyfishhaircut #sorryitsmari #hair360 #hairquestions #jellyfishhair #diyhair ♬ Jellyfish – Declan DP & Kodomoi
You can also style the bell section in various ways and turn yourself into the main character of any anime, as @yuri_naoto died:
@yuri_naoto Replying to @ravanampreg styled two ways, my usual (curled out with curling iron), from the salon (curled in with round brush + hair dryer). Small change but I also got purple streaks over a base of silver hair! 🐁🤍💜 (my hair used to be half & half purple + grey). #hairinspo #jellyfishhair360 #jellyfishhaircut #fruitsmagazine #サブカル女子 #原宿系女子 ♬ original sound – lainiwakurafanpage
Fortunately, if this style doesn’t work for you, you can always just lop off the bottom section for a cute short bob. Ready to try a new look?
MORE: Stacked haircuts are back—here’s what to know before you get one
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