Alexa Chung was officially 2009′s most stylish woman, and it’s not hard to see why- her outfits are always so well put together, but she always manages to look laid-back, as though she’s not taking it too seriously and she just happened to look so amazing.  Her hair in this picture really reflects the rest of her style- the looseness of this braid prevents it from looking too ‘done’, and she just looks soft and gorgeous instead of childish and twee, as french braids can sometimes do!

The french braid gives everyday hairstyles a cute (but not too cute) twist, and as Alexa demonstrates, can add an extra oomph to an evening up-do too. First things first though, you need to learn how to french braid your own hair! The video below is by emica2005 , and is really useful.