Missouri stylist colored those stripes in Olympic gold medalist Alysa Liu’s hair
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Missouri colorist spent five hours toning Liu’s existing striped halo.
- Liu added annual rings at home since 2023 and sought salon toning for Milan.
- Stylist predicts halo trend; says clients have asked and moms want wigs.
That striped, halo hair that figure skater Alysa Liu rocked while winning Olympic gold in Milan? It took a Missouri hair stylist five hours to amp up that look.
Kelsey Miller, who works at Thirteenth & Washington in St. Louis, grabbed international attention for her work as Liu became the first American woman skater since 2002 to win gold.
Liu’s hair is horizontally striped like a raccoon tail, alternating between bands of dark brunette and blond.
“There’s a picture I saw where she was holding the American flag after she got her medal, and just seeing her stripes alongside the stripes of the flag, it looked so cool together. I was like, ‘Oh my gosh, I got to be a part of that!’” Miller told KSDK in St. Louis. “That is such a rewarding feeling.”
Liu has said the rings on a tree trunk and how they showcase the passing of time inspired the look. She dyed the first gingery blond ring herself in 2023 and bleached a new ring at home every year after that.
“I just wanted to be a tree,” she said in a TikTok conversation with Paralympian Haven Shepherd.
But she knew she’d need salon-grade products and a pro’s help when she decided to lighten up the colors and tone down the brassiness. The chance for Miller, who specializes in color, to be that person “just kind of fell into my lap,” Miller told KSDK.
Liu was in St. Louis last month for the U.S. Figure Skating Championships.
“It’s such a small world,” Miller told the TV station. “One of my clients was actually out to lunch with someone who works in the figure skating world and for the organization.
“When they were here in January, she couldn’t tell me who it was or what I was going to be doing, she just told me that there was a figure skater who needed her hair done and asked if I had any time to do it. I did, and she said, ‘OK, I’m going to give the coach your phone number and he’ll reach out to you.’ And he did.
“At that point, I was like, ‘OK, can you tell me who this is and what I’m going to be doing?’ Then he sent me videos of Alysa skating.”
During their five-hour session together, Miller turned the light-colored stripes Liu already had into a “milk tea” hue the skater desired and taught Liu how exposure to different climates, like the one in Milan, would affect her hair.
“I mean it makes me like super emotional ... I would have never expected any of this to happen but to see my work out there and everyone is talking about it,” Miller told KSDK.
The stylist thinks the halo look will catch on like the famously short, pixie-like style worn by 1976 Olympic gold medalist figure skater Dorothy Hamill, who single-handedly inspired a generation of really ... bad ... haircuts.
People are asking Miller how to talk to their own stylists about the halo look and moms want lookalike wigs for their daughters.
After she skated to historic gold, NBC reporter Mike Tirico told Liu she might be starting a trend.
Ever cool, Liu said: “Guys, do whatever you want with your hair.”
This story was originally published February 23, 2026 at 12:41 PM.
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