The Surprising Secret to Perfect Air-Dried Waves

My hair has always been unruly—slightly puffy and slightly feral, the type of mane that, since middle school, has cost hundreds of dollars in smoothing products and even more in flat irons that burn and fry, creating split ends that go up to the root. So how does this texture fare in the humid summer weather? It doesn’t—once the temperature goes up, there is no straightening iron in the world that could keep my untamable strands under control.

And it isn’t easy to deal with. My coworkers have that covetable wash-and-walk sort of hair—obedient lengths that are shiny and soft, which have never been touched by a silicone serum or 480-degree heat-up device. Until recently, I wrote off their good fortune as the luck of the genetic lottery and resigned myself to a life of frizz. But during a recent appointment at the Flatiron District’s Butterfly Studio, hairstylist Amanda Colihan—whose red hair resembles mine in texture—shared a dependable technique that I could do on my morning subway ride or while eating breakfast in the morning.

“It’s about persuading your hair,” says Colihan. “We aren’t doing hardcore styling.” So what exactly does it take? About 20 minutes of your time (depending on how fast your hair dries), a tiny amount of product, some sectioning, and mainly some twisting. As for myself, I test-drove it during my hour-long commute, and it is as easy as a flick—or rather a twist—of the wrist to get naturally air-dried hair with little effort. Here, a guide to getting it right.

1. Take a break from the age-old rule of brushing your hair after you get out of the shower. “The more you mess with curls, especially, the straighter and frizzer they will get.” says Colihan. In other words, do not do anything that will tamper with your natural texture from wash to finish.

2. Forget what you knew about towel-drying. “Take the towel and dry from side to side in a scrunching motion. It is a way of taking the water out of your hair and starting to make your hair do what you want it to do,” says Colihan. “Even if you don’t have curls and waves, you are getting it started.”

3. Different textures require different products—but don’t overdo it. According to Colihan, start by asking yourself whether you’re trying to create waves—or control them. If it’s the former, “first, use Spray à Porter by Kérastase on wet hair. It won’t make it sticky, but it will hold it. This works for both fine hair or natural waves,” says Colihan. If you have thick hair that needs sculpting, on the other hand, or have curls that need some control, “use Shu Uemura’s Kaze Wave. I wouldn’t use regular mousse to air-dry.” Either hair type can reach for Après Beach Wave and Shine Spray by Oribe. “A lot of the beach sprays take the shine out and make hair tangly. This will give you a beachy look, but still keep it shiny while smoothing out your ends,” says Colihan.”The trick to applying it is to lift the hair up and apply it–-not directly on the top.”

4. Divide your hair into sections. “Do five sections. Two in the front, two behind that, and then one in the back.” says Colihan.

5. Start twisting. “Try to twist the pieces different ways—toward and away from your face,” says Colihan. “But remember—most importantly—twist the two sections in the front away from your face.” Translation: Just keep twisting until dry. You can do this really anywhere—I had one hand on the subway pole and twisted the rest of the time en route to my destination.

6. Shake it out. At first the, twisty curls may look a little Goldilocks-esque.“Once it is dry, flip your head over, and shake out your hair,” says Colihan. “Make sure to do it when it is dry, not damp” to create a believable natural wave.

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