Here are all the most important beauty questions that needed answering in 2020

Google just dropped the U.S.’s top trending beauty searches in 2020 — and goodness what a year.

Just like everything in 2020, our beauty searches were affected by the lockdown. People wanted to know how to groom themselves at home, most of all. Moreover, just about every trending beauty search was a “how-to” and none of them involved makeup at all! 

These are the queries that had the highest spikes in traffic over a sustained period in 2020 when compared to 2019 — not just the most popular searches. Let’s dive in.

How to cut men’s hair at home

@regalgentleman

We had an idea so you can see a barber again… Want advice comment below 👇 #barber #barbers #barbershop #haircut #menshair #lockdown #quarantine

♬ Moon (And It Went Like) – Kid Francescoli

Men tend to keep their hair shorter, which means regular maintenance is needed. With barbershops closed, men bet on hair clippers and internet tutorials like this one from London barber Dan Gregory of the Regal Gentlemen. 

How to plop hair

@shakkarwarrior

Reply to @s.shajii how I plop my hair! It’s a great way to set your curls or waves before letting them dry #wavyhair #curlyhair #ploppingtutorial

♬ Electric Love – BØRNS

This t-shirt hair-wrapping technique has been used by Black women for years to get frizz-free curls, but during quarantine the multicultural curl coalition caught on and together we plopped to make our curls pop. 

How to color your hair at home

Whether it was for maintenance or a drastic transformation, people wanted to know how to dye their hair at home. If you’re one of them, check out our super low stakes dip-dye tutorial

How to wash your hands

In 2020, we learned that we weren’t washing our hands effectively. The more you know

How to style curtain bangs

Curtain bangs became a covetable feature this year, thanks to TikTok. The fringe opens up at the middle to frame the face and highlight the cheekbones. 

How to cut women’s hair

In The Know spoke with a slew of hairstylists in 2020, including Monae Everrett and Katie Cox, on how to cut your hair at home

How to do knotless braids

Knotless braids make box braids the ideal protective hairstyle (one that won’t damage hair). Usually, hair extensions are added at the top of the braid which can create tension-related damage. With knotless braids, the extensions are incorporated mid-braid for a lighter, more comfortable style.

How to fade hair

Kim Kardashian’s hairstylist Chris Appleton gave In The Know four tips for quarantine haircare, including tips on how to fade, or blend cropped hair on the sides and back. 

How to trim your own hair

Trimming your hair is always risky, but this simple bang-trimming technique might be the least risky. 

How to dermaplane

Dermaplaning is the art of using a blade to enhance the skin’s appearance by removing skin cells and exfoliating. It’s a service estheticians provide but that can also be done at home with a device like the one Lizzo uses.

If you enjoyed this story, you might also like reading about how to maintain your highlights at home without messing up your hair.

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Get the ultimate spa treatment with this $24 at-home wax kit

Comfy sneaker brand Allbirds released its first-ever running shoe

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