We’ve all seen the videos of curly girls with thick, luminous hair that looks so full and healthy. Then, you look in the mirror yourself and see the faintest hint of scalp through your strands and sigh. But no need to fret! Fine waves are just as beautiful as any other hair type and in this blog, we’re going to share some of our tips and tricks to help you care for, style, and love your own wavy hair!
Tips and Tricks for your own journey
Tips and Tricks for your own journey
DON'T OVERWASH; DO CLARIFY
Some people with fine hair experience oily and greasy scalps, so their instinct is to wash as often as possible. While it’s true that you may have to wash more often than the average curly girl, it’s still important to not go overboard with the shampoo.
Over-shampooing can dry out your ends and make them more prone to tangling, matting, and breakage. Focus on applying shampoo only to your roots and avoid over-washing your ends.
If you find that you can’t shake that gritty, greasy feeling in your hair, you might be experiencing build-up. Residual product coating your strands can cause increased oil production at your roots. Clarifying every so often can help get rid of any residual product in your hair that your regular wash routine can’t tackle.
DON'T BE ROUGH
Rough detangling and other harsh acts, such as ripping out your hairband, will break your delicate strands. It seems harmless but broken strands are the main culprit of halo frizzーa faint silhouette of frizz that surrounds the crown of your head. Find a detangling tool that does not rip through your hair and easily works through knots. Take it easy whenever you're detangling or styling. If you hit a snag, work through it gently and patiently, always starting from the ends of your hair and moving up towards the roots.
LESS IS MORE
This is true for every step of caring for fine wavy hair. Use less shampoo to ensure you’re not drying out your hair. Use less conditioner to avoid your hair becoming too greasy in-between wash days, and finally, use less product to avoid buildup and weighing down your hair.
When using our Wavy All-In-One formula to style their hair, most fine, wavy-haired girls achieve their best results by using less water (which is the opposite advice we give to medium- or thick-haired curlies). Excess water can weigh down fine hair, making it harder for your waves to come through! Try styling on damp hair instead, adding light sprays of water only where it’s needed. To see an example of how this is done, check out our girl, Charlotte, and her fine wavy hair routine.
FIND A STYLIST WHO GETS YOU
Finding the right stylist for curly or wavy hair can be a challenge, so do your research and think about booking a consultation before making a commitment. The right stylist should be able to look at your hair and give you the best cut not just based on your curl type, but your hair density and thickness as well.
Long, soft, blended layers can help enhance the look of your waves. As your hair grows longer, the weight of it starts to pull down and stretch out your wave pattern, making it look looser. Layers can help remove weight on your ends and give you added definition, lift, and volume, which brings us to our next tip...
TURN UP THE VOLUME
Fine wavy hair is easily weighed down, which is why so many with this hair type struggle with attaining volume.
Here are a few ways to help your hair counteract gravity:
BE A LIGHTWEIGHT
As we mentioned before, when it comes to fine hair, less is more. You shouldn’t be heavy-handed with your products. Layering on multiple products or using too much of anything in your hair can lead to build-up, greasiness, and flat waves. Our Wavy All-In-One styler has the lightest consistency of all three of our formulas to give your hair the moisture and hydration it needs without dominating your strands.
If you're still finding that your products are weighing your hair down, try styling on dry hair using a spray bottle and a bit of product, like this:
GET LIFT OFF
Most people with fine, wavy hair experience flatness at the roots. To avoid this, give your roots special attention throughout the styling and drying process.
Styling: While styling, try leaning your head towards your shoulder to help lift your strands off of the scalp. Once you’re finished applying your product, follow up by scrunching your hair in your hands while bringing it up towards the scalp. This will not only enhance the wave pattern but will also give your hair lift and a bit of bounce.
Root Clipping: Root clipping is a technique that will allow you to manually keep the roots of your waves lifted as they dry. While your hair is wet, grab a small section of waves at the roots, lift it upwards and insert a duckbill (or similar) clip close to the scalp. Try focusing on the sections around your crown and surrounding your face. Once you've finished placing all the clips, allow your curls to dry and set before removing the clips.
Drying: Since water in the hair shaft can stretch and weigh down fine waves, diffusing your hair can help it set so that you don’t lose volume and definition during the drying process. Tilting your head towards the diffuser while drying will lift your curls off the scalp and create more volume—allowing your roots to dry faster. Want our top diffusing tips? Check out the blog here!
If diffusing isn’t your thing, then plopping is the way to go. By placing your styled wet hair into a towel, you can effectively remove excess water in your hair. Press your strands against your roots for more volume, definition, and faster drying time!
Fine hair ≠ unhealthy hair
Some people misunderstand fine hair and perceive it as a problem, but this is not the case. Fine hair is healthy, beautiful, and normal! You have gorgeous hair, and caring for it properly will help you feel even better about your waves. ❤️
