The striped hair trend first found its footing among alternative beauty fans, but it took Alysa Liu‘s debut at the 2026 Winter Olympics to turn the niche hairstyle into one of the buzziest new hair looks. Liu, who has added a tree-ring-inspired halo to her hair every year since 2023, unknowingly bridged the gap between subcultures and the global stage.
Referencing the raccoon-tail hair of the scene aesthetic, Liu’s signature hairstyle is undoubtedly an ode to alternative beauty trends of the early 2000s. While scene raccoon-tails are synonymous with neon colors, asymmetrical haircuts and side bangs — the Olympian’s black and silver striped look embodies a fresh and modern take on the quintessential style.
Although Liu only recently popularized her specific genre of striped hair, fellow Bay Area native Belle Zhao first experimented with a similar look back in 2022, when her black and blonde stripes became an especially popular source of inspiration at the NYC salon she frequented.
For Zhao, striped hair was an effective and unique way to keep up with bleaching her hair. “I discovered that if I alternated my natural black hair with the blonde, and just added a stripe every six months, I could extend the downtime between root touch-ups twice over. Plus, it was half as damaging, and my friends could find me in any crowd,” she tells Hypebae.
As a result, the artist inadvertently discovered a hairstyle that not only associated her with other hair color enthusiasts, but also came with never-ending glances from strangers. “I remember being on the subway and feeling the stares on me. I wasn’t used to this kind of immediate notice — it almost felt like I was taking up too much space because my hair was loud,” she says.
Even though Zhao has since left behind the look, she finds that committing to such a bold hairstyle forced her to be perceived — and subsequently, served as a way to outwardly identify herself as an artist. “Hair is a statement about yourself, and it communicates a lot with no words required. I think staying true to yourself requires the courage to be disliked,” she adds.
Zhao’s striped hair initially served as a practical way to maintain the integrity of her hair — but eventually, it morphed into a lesson on being perceived in the most unapologetic way possible. Similarly, for many fans of Alysa Liu, her halo hair is an evocative reminder that when you dare to be yourself, the rest of the world has no choice but to gravitate towards you.
