I was having coffee with a friend last week, and we were talking about how lazy we'd gotten with our hairstyles throughout the winter. For me, having my ears exposed when the weather was in the single digits never sounded appealing. Now that it's warming up, there are no more excuses for slapping a hat on every day. It's spring, guys, and I'm making more of an effort to dress up my locks. Here's a simple way to fancy up a ponytail (simple is my favorite!): Step One: Gather up a ponytail, but separate a section of hair on each side in the front and leave that loose.

Step Two: Take a section of hair on your left side of the head and separate it into a top layer and a bottom layer. Take the top layer in your left hand. Step Three: Cross the section of hair over to the right side of your head, above the ponytail. Use a bobby pin to pin in place.

Step Four: Take the top section of hair on the right side of your head and cross over the left section. See that little tail hanging out of your first section? Grab that as you are crossing the right section of hair over. Pin in place. Step Five: Take your remaining section of hair on the left side and cross that over to the right. Don't forget to grab that little tail and incorporate it into your section before you pin. Pin in place just over your ponytail elastic.

Step Six: Take your remaining section of hair on the right (and that little leftover tail, if you have one) and cross it over to the left side. Pin in place. Steps Seven & Eight: If you have a short tail hanging out of your last crossover piece, you can just pin it under the ponytail. If you have a long tail remaining, grab a section from each side of your ponytail and wrap around the elastic. Pin in place. Once you are done you should have a fancy ponytail! Once you get the hang of this look, it's really only a five-step hairstyle! Create the pony, criss, cross, criss, cross! I love the simple hairstyles that keep me motivated to actually "fix" my hair! xo. Katie

Credits // Author and Photography: Katie Shelton. Photos edited with Celeste from the Fresh Collection