by S Morris

Created on: July 08, 2009   Last Updated: July 09, 2009

Whenever you're running late or just feeling lazy, you need a hairstyle that's quick and easy but still looks great. Long hair can be a challenge as it can suffer from looking boring if too little effort is put into it, but sometimes you just don't have time for it. These simple hairstyles are anything but plain and require only a hair elastic or two. Plus, these five fun hairstyles for long hair only take a few minutes to pull together.

The Low Side Ponytail
This traditional hairdo can be made stylish by leaving it loose and resting on the top of your back. When tying it, leave some room between the tie and your scalp. If you have layers in your hair, tie it low enough that the shortest layers are not held in.

The Half Braid
The simple braid is a great fall back for days you don't want to do much with your hair. Bring a little variety to a braid by only pulling back the top half of your hair and braiding it. This also pulls hair out of your face while still leaving most of it down still.

The Easy, Messy Bun
This can be a very sexy hairstyle despite the little amount of time it takes to do. Pull your hair back into a low ponytail, but don't tie it yet. Twist all of your hair and when it wants to twist around itself, let it. Once it's in a nice bun shape, wrap the elastic around the base of the bun while catching the tail of it. It should be pretty messy naturally but if it came together too smoothly, tug at it pulling some strands of hair loose. Also try gently raking your fingers against your scalp perpendicular to your hair to loosen the bun.

The High Little Pigtails
Pigtails can be fun and cute, but you don't want to look like you are trying to relive being seven years old. To make them fancier, take only the upper third of your hair, and divide that portion into pigtails, and let the rest of your hair hang down. This look is especially pretty on hair that is layered, as the pigtails will be shorter than the rest of your hair.

The One-Sided Twist
This cute hairstyle has asymmetrical pizazz. Try it on days when you want something special that doesn't require a lot of effort. Take some hair from above your ear. How much hair you grab determines how thick the twist will be. Separate the hair into two parts. Separately twist both of the sections in the same direction all the way to the end. Then twist the two sections together in the opposite direction as you did before. Tie it at the bottom. As you twist, if you pull it in front of your ear, it'll lie that way when you tie it, so if you want it to lie behind your ear, pull it that direction while twisting.

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