I haven’t used a curling iron or wand to curl my hair in years. My flat iron is my best friend when it comes to getting soft, bouncy, beachy waves. It kills two birds with one stone – smoothing the frizz and giving me lots of body and bounce to my curls.
It is honestly so much easier to get the hang of using a straightener to curl your hair than messing with a curling wand. I’ve never burnt myself doing it this way, I will tell you that much!
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My Hair Type
I have very fine, naturally curly hair. And not very much of it! My hair curls pretty easily, but falls the minute there is moisture in the air. It needs lots of hydration, but gets weighed down by anything too heavy. Sounds fun, right?
It Starts In the Shower
Do you ever go to wash your hair and feel like your shampoo just doesn’t suds as it should? It probably means you have a lot of product in your hair and need to double cleanse, just like you would your face!
Wash, rinse, repeat wasn’t put on those shampoo bottles for nothing. Wash twice, deeply hydrate your hair, and rinse very well!
Before I Style
If I am curling my hair fresh from a wash, it needs a little grip and product to help hold the curl. I just pop a little bit of mousse into the ends while it is still very damp to give it a little bit of texture.
Once my hair is 80%-90% dry, I plop my entire head over and rough dry it upside down. Get as much volume in at the roots as you can and plop it up on top of your head in a bun to cool. Letting it cool on top will really help keep all the lift!
Pull and Twist
It sounds as easy as the bend and snap, right? It pretty much is, to be honest! The key to maintaining all that volume is to pull your hair out, not down, while creating the curl.
Once you have passed the straightener through about an inch or so, give it a twist. Go almost 360 degrees. And then gently pull the flat iron the rest of the way through the hair.
Take one inch ish sections and continue doing “The Pull and Twist” until you have done your whole head. Don’t be too worried if you miss a chunk here or there. That is the beauty of beachy waves. It doesn’t have to be perfect!
Fluff and Go
You are almost finished! Now you just need to do a few finishing touches and you are ready to go.
I like to gently rake my fingers through my hair to break the curls up a bit and pull everything together. You can use a brush if you want gentler waves.
I use a bit of hairspray to tame any fly aways and spritz a bit of dry texture spray to add the last boost of volume that will stay all day long.
These curls will usually last me two or three days, with a bit of retouching if the weather isn’t cooperating. I love how fast, fun and fresh flat iron curls look on my shorter hair.
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