Period drama hair usually comes with a certain expectation: elaborate updos, perfectly placed curls, and not a single strand daring to escape. Daisy Edgar-Jones’ Elinor Dashwood has other ideas.
In the new Sense and Sensibility, Edgar-Jones wears her hair long, loose, slightly unruly, and wonderfully believable. It falls around her face, catches the wind, gets wet in the rain, and occasionally ends up pulled into a simple braid when Elinor is busy chopping wood. It is romantic, yes, but not precious. And that distinction is exactly what makes it feel so right for fall.
The hair and makeup designer behind the film, Nadia Stacey, told British Vogue that relatability was central to her approach. Rather than recreate the highly finished beauty looks associated with traditional period dramas, she wanted the Dashwood sisters to feel like real young women. Her references emphasized “wildness and freedom,” with the idea that we should be able to imagine the sisters lounging around the house with their hair down rather than spending hours having it arranged.
In other words, Elinor’s hair is not trying too hard. Which, naturally, makes us want it immediately.
The New Period-Drama Hair
What makes Edgar-Jones’ Elinor hair so appealing is the tension between its historical setting and its very modern ease.
The length is substantial, but the shape is softened with movement around the face. The texture is irregular rather than perfectly curled, with pieces that bend in different directions and ends that feel slightly tousled. It looks as though Elinor has spent the morning outdoors rather than sitting in front of a mirror with a curling iron.
That was intentional. Stacey told British Vogue that she wanted the hair to feel “practical,” pointing specifically to the moment when Elinor is chopping wood and her hair is simply pulled to one side in a braid.
That practicality is part of the romance. The hair does not look styled for an audience. It looks like it belongs to the person wearing it.
Think Windswept, Not Beachy
If you want to recreate the look, forget the perfectly uniform wave. The Elinor version is softer and more irregular, almost as if your hair dried that way after a long walk outside.
On straight hair, start by creating loose bends through the mid-lengths with a large-barrel iron. Keep the sections fairly large and avoid curling all the way to the ends. Once the hair cools, break everything up with your fingers rather than brushing it into a uniform wave.
If your hair already has some natural movement, even better. Work with it rather than trying to completely reshape it. A lightweight wave spray can encourage that imperfect texture while keeping the finished look soft.
OUAI Wave Spray
OUAI Wave Spray is particularly suited to this kind of styling because it is salt-free, so it gives hair texture and separation without the crunchy, overly beachy finish that can make loose waves look more deliberately styled. It is also designed to enhance natural texture and control frizz, making it useful for creating the kind of touchable, slightly windswept movement that defines Elinor’s hair.
The trick is to use it sparingly. Mist through damp hair, scrunch lightly, and let it air-dry or diffuse. If you are starting with straight hair, use it as a texture-building step before adding a few loose bends with an iron.
The Product Stacey Actually Used
There is one product recommendation that feels particularly worth stealing from the film itself: Oribe Supershine Moisturizing Cream.
Stacey specifically told British Vogue that the production used Oribe’s styling gel cream on the Dashwood sisters’ hair, while Edgar-Jones also wore back pieces for added length.
Oribe Supershine Moisturizing Cream
The cream is designed to smooth, soften, and add shine while keeping hair touchable, which makes sense for a style where the goal is polished texture rather than a rigidly finished hairstyle. Work a small amount through the mid-lengths and ends after styling, concentrating on any pieces that need a little more definition or softness.
It also helps explain why Elinor’s hair has that particular balance of softness and polish. The strands look healthy and conditioned, but not lacquered into place.
The Face-Framing Pieces Matter
The haircut is just as important as the styling. If you are taking this look to your stylist, ask for long layers with subtle face framing rather than a heavily layered cut.
The shorter pieces should begin around the cheekbones or jaw and blend gradually into the rest of the length. You want enough movement to keep the hair from looking heavy around the face, but not so many layers that the style becomes obviously feathered.
This is a haircut that works especially well when the hair has some natural texture because the layers have room to move. They can fall forward, tuck behind the ear, or separate slightly without disrupting the overall shape.
And that little bit of imperfection is important. Elinor's hair is never so symmetrical that it stops looking like hair.
Why It Works for Fall
There is something particularly satisfying about this look right now. Fall beauty tends to pull toward polish, but Elinor offers another version of it: hair that feels romantic because it is undone.
It works with chunky sweaters and wool coats, but it also works with jeans and a simple T-shirt. It can be worn loose on a windy afternoon, tucked behind one ear at dinner, or gathered into a low braid when you are actually doing something.
That versatility is very much part of Stacey's vision for the film. She wanted the Dashwood sisters to feel like people we could recognize, rather than distant figures trapped inside a period-drama aesthetic.
And perhaps that is why Daisy Edgar-Jones’ Elinor hair feels less like a costume and more like a haircut you suddenly want for yourself.
How to Ask for Elinor Hair
The easiest way to translate the look to your stylist is to ask for long, softly blended layers, subtle face framing, and movement through the ends. Bring a photo of Edgar-Jones as Elinor and emphasize that you want the texture to feel loose and natural rather than perfectly curled.
Then, when you style it, resist the temptation to make every wave match. Let some pieces fall straighter, let the ends stay a little imperfect, and finish with just enough product to give the hair softness and shape.
The goal is not to look like you spent an hour recreating a period-drama hairstyle.
The goal is to look like you happened to have excellent hair while walking through the English countryside.
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