Melania Trump's Biggest Hair Fails So Far

Now the first lady, Melania Trump has always been known as a fashion girl. As a former model, the Slovenian-born FLOTUS has an impeccable eye for fashion and beauty, and it's very rare for her to make style mistakes. In fact, Melania Trump has had plenty of amazing looks in 2025 so far, and we're genuinely thrilled to see where she takes her aesthetic next. A big part of Melania's signature look is her long and luscious hair, usually highlighted to mimic a sun-kissed color. "When someone is going to be in the eyes of the public and will constantly be on the news, there is a look that people want to understand and be comfortable with and associate with," the first lady's hairstylist Mordechai Alvow told Refinery29. "She's not like a performer. There is a look about her where it's almost like she's the mother of the public. You want your mother to have one steady look."

While Melania has mostly stuck to the same hairstyle in the past few years, that doesn't mean she hasn't made hair mistakes. And while most of her cringeworthy hair moments stem from her pre-FLOTUS era, she has also experienced a few hair faux pas during her time in the White House. Of course, this all just proves that she may have stunning features and unimaginable wealth, but at the end of the day, she isn't immune to a bad-hair moment. And it is precisely those that make the first lady more relatable. So, here are some of Melania Trump's most memorable hair blunders!

On June 14, 2025, President Donald Trump and his wife Melania Trump attended the 250th anniversary military parade, which also coincided with the president's 79th birthday. As the two came out on stage, the wind was blowing against them — and Melania's perfectly styled hair was holding on for dear life. Unfortunately, photos were made, and we all got to see what Melania would look like with her hair pushed back: a style we truly never see the first lady wear. And now we know why.

Melania has a prominent forehead, and while there is absolutely nothing wrong with that (in fact, stars like Rihanna have shown us how to embrace it), the first lady is always trying to conceal it and make it appear smaller. Rocking a hairstyle that suits a larger forehead can make all the difference, and the first lady definitely knows it. "Pushing everything forward towards the face gives everything more volume and looks so iconic," hairstylist Jordan M. explained to Byrdie. And while Melania usually follows that advice, this time, no amount of hairspray could help her fight the weather.

The secret to perfect messy voluminous hair is finding the balance between styled and nonchalant. "We all try for perfection, but sometimes it's when the mistake happens that the magic happens," hairstylist Guido Palau explained to Vogue. And it seems as if Melania Trump never managed to find that balance, which is why she gave up on this hairstyle over the years. When Melania showed up to the FiFi Awards red carpet in 1999, the Slovenian-born model looked great except for her hair, which was noticeably disheveled. There is a fine line between perfectly messy and too messy, and Melania's was definitely on the latter side.

While there is a time and place for a casual and undone hairstyle like this, a red-carpet event paired with a fancy sparkly dress isn't the best combination for messy locks. Luckily, Melania has learned her lesson, and we haven't really seen her rock an intentionally messy hairstyle like this ever since. Today, the first lady tends to go for more sophisticated and perfected hairstyles, which certainly suit her style much more.

In 1998, Donald Trump and his then-girlfriend Melania Knauss attended the Festival of Cinema in New York City, and for the occasion, Melania went with another messy hairstyle. While the texture of her hair wasn't too bad this time around — even though messy bed head hair isn't really the first lady's best look — it was the uneven hair color that caught our eye.

Melania's roots seemed darker than the rest of her hair, and it wasn't flattering. Unlike the popular shadow-root hair trend, Melania's hair simply looked like it was in need of a dye job. Her roots were darker than her chestnut locks, making us believe that she had missed a hair appointment weeks ago. Luckily, the FLOTUS has (mostly) learned from her mistakes, and obviously unattended roots are not something we'd see on Melania today. However, one thing we would love to see the former model explore some more is reddish hair shades, as the chestnut-brown looked beautiful with her skin and eye color.

We all made questionable hair choices in the 2000s, and among Melania Trump's was undeniably the emo-inspired side-swept bangs she often rocked in the early aughts. At the time, this may have passed as stylish, but the style definitely didn't age well. 

Melania — who also had jet-black hair at the time — wore the particular hairstyle to a 2002 New Year's Eve party at the Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Florida. She paired the hairstyle with a satin baby-pink dress and dramatic statement earrings, both of which completely clashed with the grungy aesthetic of the hairstyle. Aside from the unnaturally deep side part, the black hair didn't suit Melania at all. In most cases, black hair suits those with darker skin tones, while those with lighter skin tones should stick to dark brown to avoid too much of a contrast. Unfortunately, Melania's 2002 look didn't get the memo, which is why this hairstyle deserves a spot on our list.

The women around Donald Trump have made plenty of hair mistakes over the years, and one of Melania Trump's most memorable ones was definitely when Vice President J.D. Vance tweeted a photo of the back of Melania's head in 2024, exposing her not-so-perfect extensions. Whether he shared this particular image on purpose or not remains a secret, but what's no longer a secret is that Melania uses hair extensions on a regular basis.

"You can spot the telltale signs where the natural hair meets the extension pieces, particularly visible in the mid-sections," hairstylist Julia North told Daily Mail. "This is actually a very common choice for public figures because it allows for versatile styling while maintaining natural movement." And while the hair faux pas revealed a secret Melania surely didn't want the public to talk about, the hairstylist does acknowledge that the extensions are a great match for the first lady's hair. "The color work is excellent though — they're perfectly matched to her natural shade, which is crucial for seamless blending." However, extensions are supposed to be unnoticeable, and we bet Melania (and her team) pay extra attention to the back of her head now.

We've already established that one of the easiest ways to conceal a large forehead is to push the hair to the front of your face. However, with this trick, there is the possibility of going overboard, and when that happens, it results in a very odd and unnatural hairstyle. That is exactly what Melania Trump gave us at the National Thanksgiving Turkey Pardoning Ceremony in 2017.

The first lady had her hair styled with a parting that looked off, and her curtain bangs seemed to be pushed down way too much, drawing attention to the crown of her head, which, in turn, appeared much bigger than it actually is. Because Melania had face-framing highlights at the time, the odd part and dramatic curtain bangs seemed even more enhanced. Finding the bang style that suits your face isn't always an easy task, but we can all agree that these ones are not it for Melania Trump. A more elevated curtain bang that isn't covering the majority of her forehead is a much better choice for the former model.

There is a reason we rarely see Melania Trump rock curly hair — the hairstyle doesn't really seem to suit her. In fact, Melania Trump looks so different in a throwback photo with curly hair that we had to do a double-take. In 2000, the model attended the opening of Aida in New York City, and for the occasion, she decided to go with messy curls.

Now, we know this was the early aughts, and we have to give her some grace, but the truth is that the hairstyle was all over the place. The curls were very messy and uneven, and the top was rather voluminous, creating an incohesive look. Had all of the curls been loose and messy, it would have been fine, but some seem very formed and tight, while others were more like natural waves. In fact, now that we think of it, the entire hairstyle is giving some last-minute energy. And judging from the fact that Melania never wears tight curls anymore, we can only assume that this hairstyle still haunts her.

Melania Trump's natural hair color is different from her usual look, which is what she's been rocking for more than two decades. The FLOTUS naturally has brunette hair, but over the years she's become known for her blended balayage and face-framing blond highlights. However, the first lady did have a bad blond moment in 2018, when her hair was the lightest and most yellow we've seen so far. While talking to Fox News, the shade was so noticeable that it drew comparisons to her husband Donald Trump's infamous hair color.

The brassy shade of her hair made Melania's skin appear more orange than it is, and the lack of darker strands created a flat and boring look. Luckily, Melania and her team quickly fixed the color faux pas. "At times, she will send me inspiration from images she has found that she likes, and I'll take some of the elements and apply them," her hairstylist Mordechai Alvow explained to the WWD. "Many times, I also send her images of fashion and overall looks I like for her. We also consider the event, the location and the 'team,' if it is a fashion event or a fundraiser." Unfortunately, the two didn't have their best cooperation moment when they decided to go with this particular shade.

Chunky highlights and lowlights were a huge hair trend back in the late '90s and early aughts — and in the mid-2020s, the trend experienced a short comeback. In 2023, Melania Trump seemingly decided to add some dimension to her hair with chunky lowlights, but the look didn't really match her usual sophisticated style. 

Soon after, the first lady returned to her tried-and-true balayage style, and left her chunky streaks in the dust. The way that balayage highlights blend helps add a softness to Melania's face — and for her, the technique is a much better choice than chunky highlights. In 2024, chunky highlights became popular again with quite a few celebs rocking the trend; however, this time around, Melania steered clear of it. The former model may be willing to experiment with her hair occasionally, but she definitely won't make the same hair mistake twice.

A lot of Melania Trump's hair mistakes stem from the early 2000s — an era known for quite a few questionable fashion and beauty trends. One trend that transferred from the '90s into the 2000s was wispy bangs: a style popularized by beauty icon Pamela Anderson. "Bangs in the '90s were worn almost as an accessory," hairstylist Justin Toves-Vincilione told InStyle. "They were part of the haircut, but they weren't the focal point — they were there, but they were more of a whisper, while the makeup, hairstyle, and fashion were the shout." And while there's no denying that it looked stunning on the "Baywatch" star, Melania's interpretation was a look she certainly regrets today.

In 2002, the Slovenian rocked thin bangs that frequently looked stringy and greasy — a common problem associated with thin bangs. In fact, when Melania attended the Marc Jacobs Fall Collection show in New York City that year, her bangs were an accessory we wish we hadn't seen. In fact, we believe that it is these bangs in particular that keep the first lady from experimenting with shorter curtain bangs today.

Melania Trump's complicated relationship with the fringe didn't end when she experimented with stringy side bangs — in 2012, the former model decided that choppy, straight-across bangs were her new look. The hairstyle was popular at the time, but Melania's bangs are living proof that not everyone will look good with a popular hair trend. The FLOTUS, who has pretty angular and harsh features to begin with, only accentuated those even more with her full bangs, which also happened to be a tad too long and poking into her eyes. "Flattering bangs should frame and focus on your positive features — not overwhelm or cover up your face," Toronto-based stylist Samantha Stonehouse told Chatelaine.

While the former model has undeniably stunning features, a harsh hairstyle like this doesn't really suit her. Soft, split bangs — like the long curtain ones she rocks today — are a much better option as they soften her look while still enhancing her beauty. And if Melania is ever thinking of cutting a full fringe again, all she has to do is look at images of herself from the "Celebrity Apprentice" Live Finale in 2012, and her mind will instantly change.

While we don't want to get into the millennials vs Gen Z debate of whether side parts or middle parts are cooler (both are great), we do believe that there is such a thing as a side part that is way too deep. And Melania Trump is the perfect example of why. In 2003, Melania and her at-the-time boyfriend Donald Trump attended the opening of The Dennis Basso Fur store in New York City, and for it, the model styled her hair in a very deep side part.

The main problem with a style like this, which is the lighter version of her emo-inspired look, is that you can easily tell that her hair is lying in an unnatural position, as it is almost fighting to go back to the other side. An ultra-deep side part is appropriate for certain hairstyles — a sleek updo being one of them — but for those, a heavy amount of hairspray and gel is usually required to prevent that awkward strand of hair from wanting to move back to the side it's usually on. In recent years, the side fringe came back from its early aughts grave, but luckily, it wasn't as deep and gelled up as it was back then. "You can modernize the side bang by adding face-framing layers," hairstylist Lauren Bailey-Chaidez explained to InStyle.

Now, if you care for more hair drama, make sure to also check out the hair mistake that Kristi Noem keeps making!