How to Make Straight Hair Wavy

Co-authored by Noël Reid-Killings

Last Updated: March 9, 2024 References

If you’ve had straight hair your whole life, you can sometimes feel like straight hair is boring and uninteresting. Wavy hair can give your hair more movement and make it look fuller. It’s possible to spice up your hair with a bit of hair product and a little effort. Try making straight hair wavy with or without heat.

Method 1

Method 1 of 5:

Wearing Braids Overnight

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Follow your normal routine to wash and condition your hair. Aim to do this around late afternoon or evening or whenever you have time to let it air dry.
Use a towel to get extra moisture out of your hair before letting your hair air dry. Your hair should be damp or about 75% dry. If you don’t want to wait for it to air dry, then use a hair dryer to get it 75% dry.

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3
Add curl-enhancing cream or mousse to your hair. Apply a quarter-sized dollop of curl-enhancing cream or curl-enhancing mousse to your hair. Mousse will give your straight hair more volume, while curl-enhancing cream will help to keep your hair smooth.
- You can also add texturizer to your hair. This can help straight hair from falling flat.
- Depending on the length and texture of your hair, you may want to use a different hair product. For example, volumizing mousse is better for stick-straight or fine hair. Styling cream may help control frizz and flyaway hair for thicker hair.^{[1]
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Once you have mousse throughout your hair, use both hands to scrunch up your hair. Do this all over your head. Your hair won’t really hold the waves at this point, but it will help your hair from going stick-straight.
Take some time to let your hair air dry. If you have really long hair, this might take a while. You can speed it up somewhat by turning up the heat in your house or going into the sunshine for a bit.
Spritz texturizer throughout your hair. This hair product will help your hair hold waves in it.
7
Braid your hair into 4-5 braids. Separate your hair into 4 or 5 chunks. Braid each one loosely. You can use a rubber band or bobby pin to hold each end. You can also just scrunch or twist the end of the braid and it might hold on its own (especially if you’ve used enough texturizer), but using a hairband or bobby pin is best.
- You can also twist your hair instead of braiding it.
Go to sleep in your braids. Don’t worry if they get messed up or one of them comes loose. You’re going for a wavy, slightly messy look anyway.
When you wake up in the morning, gently undo the braids in your hair. Don’t run your fingers through the braids to undo them. This will reduce the waves.
Use your hands to carefully scrunch your hair all over your head. Then add some hairspray to hold the shape.
11
Rebraid your hair every night. When it’s bedtime again, put 4-5 braids in your hair again. You don’t need to start the process from scratch every night. Instead, skip washing your hair.
- You may want to add a tiny bit of texturizer spray to your hair before braiding, although you may already have enough product in your hair.
- If you have very fine or short hair and it tends to get stringy quickly, you might want to wash your hair every night. In this case, you’ll have to start the process from the beginning.

Method 2

Method 2 of 5:

Using a Salt Spray

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1
Make a salt spray. A homemade salt spray is easy to put together and you can use it to get the same kinds of waves that you have after a day at the beach.^{[2]
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Research source} Put the following ingredients into a clean spray bottle:
- 1 cup of hot water
- 1-2 teaspoons of sea salt
- 1 tablespoon of coconut oil or argan oil (or you can use a half tablespoon of each)
- ½ teaspoon leave-in conditioner
Mix well to ensure that the sea salt dissolves and the other ingredients are mixed well. This should only take about a minute of good shaking.
Use your normal routine for washing your hair. Use a towel to soak up extra moisture out of your hair.
Spray liberally all over your hair. Flip your hair upside down and get the underside of your hair as well.
When your hair has been sprayed with the salt spray, use your hands to scrunch through all of your hair. Do this for a few minutes.
Take all of your hair and braid it into one or two big braids. Let your hair dry.
When your hair has fully dried, take out the braid. Give your hair a good shake. Then, apply some styling cream using the palms of your hands, and use your hands to scrunch through your hair some more.

Method 3

Method 3 of 5:

Using a Curling Iron

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1
Add hair product to your hair. Starting with dry hair, rub a quarter-sized dollop of hair product through your hair. Mousse and texturizer are good options. These will both give your hair volume and help hold the style longer.
- If you have short hair, use less hair product in your hair. Otherwise, your hair can get weighed down too much.^{[3]
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- Find a strong hold mousse to get maximum hold throughout the day.^{[4]
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This size of curling iron will allow you to make a slightly tighter curl in your hair. The heat from the curling iron will be able to reach every strand of hair more easily this way. If you use a large-barreled curling iron, your hair will not hold the waves as well.^{[5]
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Take the hair around the crown of your head and pin it up. This will keep it out of the way while you curl the hair underneath.
4
Curl a small chunk of hair at a time. Take 1 small chunk of hair at a time and wrap it around the curling iron. Make sure not to clamp the iron shut on the hair. Instead, wrap the strand around the outside of the iron and leave 1 to 2 in (2.5 to 5.1 cm) extending from the barrel. Hold for a few seconds and let it go.^{[6]
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- A styling wand is another good option for curling your hair.
Continue to curl your hair, taking down the hair that has been pinned up.
6
Flip your head upside down and give a shake. You don’t want all the curls to stay in corkscrews. Turn your head upside down and toss your head around.^{[7]
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- Don’t comb your fingers through the curls unless you want a very subtle wave.
Use a strong hold hairspray to cover your hair. Spritz hairspray all over. Careful not to overdo it, especially if you have shorter hair. Too much hairspray will make your hair look crunchy.

Method 4

Method 4 of 5:

Using a Diffuser or Funnel on Your Hair Dryer

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Follow your usual routine for washing your hair. Add conditioner and rinse it out. Use a towel to dry your hair so that it is just damp.
2
Apply foam mousse to your hair. Foam mousse will add texture and volume to straight hair, helping to hold the shape of wavy hair.^{[8]
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- Dispense a quarter-sized amount into the palm of your hand. Gently work it through all of your hair. If you have really long hair, you might want to use more. If you have pretty short hair, start with a smaller amount.
3
Divide and twist your hair into 1 to 2 in (2.5 to 5.1 cm) sections to reduce frizz. Use your finger to twist each of these sections. Slide your finger out from the coil to keep it twisted while you diffuse it. Your hair will have more movement and body as a result of these twists.
- If the twists come loose at any time while you are drying them, you can just retwist them.
4
Use a diffuser on your hair dryer. A diffuser is an attachment to a hair dryer. It is round with prongs that come out of one end. The diffuser will reduce the velocity of the air coming from your hair dryer, which leaves your hair less frizzy. It will also help with wave and curl formation.^{[9]
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- Use a medium to cool setting on your hair dryer. It’s best to use the cool setting, as this temperature will “set” your hair better.
- Tilt your head upside down or sideways. Place sections of your hair into the diffuser and move the diffuser up towards your scalp. Let your hair get about 80 to 90% dry.
- Stand upright and finish drying your hair with the diffuser.
5
Use a funnel system attachment. Instead of a diffuser, you can use a funnel system attachment.^{[11]
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- Place your hair through the funnel and turn on your hair dryer to a cool setting.
After your hair is dry, turn off your hairdryer and scrunch your hair with your hands. This will give your hair a little bit more wave to it.
To set your look, spray hairspray over your hair. Hold the container of hairspray a few inches from your head and spritz all over.

Method 5

Method 5 of 5:

Using Pin Curls

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Follow your usual routine for washing your hair. Add conditioner and rinse it out. Use a towel to dry your hair so that it is just damp.
2
Add hair product to your hair. Use foam mousse, styling cream or texturizer to your hair. Make sure it’s spread throughout your hair. Focus on the mid-length to the ends of your hair.
- If you have pretty short hair, don’t use hair product on your roots. This can make your hair look stringy.
3
Separate your hair into 10 to 15 sections. Each chunk of hair will be about 1 to 2 inches (2.5 to 5.1 cm) wide. It might help to pin up some of the hair around the crown of your head so you can work with the hair underneath.
- The bigger the sections, the wavier your hair will be. If you have very small sections of hair, your hair will end up more as curls.
Wrap the first section around your fingers. Roll the end of the section around your index finger and thumb. This will make a loop. Then keep rolling the hair around the loop up to the scalp.
When you’ve curled the entire section of hair up to your scalp, use a bobby pin to keep the curl against your head.
Pin up the rest of your hair in the same manner. You’ll have lots of bobby pins in your hair. Be sure to pin them against your head so that they don’t stick out and poke into your head.
Go to sleep in your pinned-up hair. If you’ve secured the bobby pins flat against your head, then you shouldn’t get poked by any of them in your sleep.
8
Take out the pins and shake out your hair. When you wake up, remove the bobby pins. Shake out your hair by turning your head upside down and tossing your head around.
- If you don’t shake out your hair and run your fingers through it, your hair will still be curly. To make it wavy, run your fingers through your hair or use a brush to soften the curls into waves.
Spritz some hairspray on your hair to hold the style.

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Question

Will this damage my hair?

Community Answer

Curling irons have a better chance of damaging hair than braiding and scrunching, so this is a low risk for hair damage.

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Will the braiding method work if I have only 1 braid in?

Community Answer

Yes, but it might not turn out as well as it would with more braids.

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Tips

If you're looking for a more long-term solution, consider getting a body perm. This treatment will add lasting waves to your hair.^{[12]
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Expert Source

Noël Reid-Killings
Celebrity Hair Stylist

Expert Interview. 25 November 2020.}

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