When they handed out voluminous hair, I hid behind the door. My stick-straight strands have plagued me since childhood, when I idolized Shirley Temple ringlets and believed that only a perm and a pair of tap shoes stood between me and stardom. My mother, having been through the ringer of chemical processing herself—and also having no desire to buff tap scuffs off the floor—wisely nixed both. So I've spent the past couple decades practicing acceptance of my baby fine texture.
However there are times when I want to rail against my lot. For example in winter, when I wear a beanie, my hair naturally escapes the confines of the hat in a halo of wispy flyaways. Or worse, the hat slides right off my head since my fine hair has no grip. Yet as my friend Erica at 1011 Makeup showed me with this wavy bob tutorial, adding a little bit of texture can be the work of a moment—and it can have major style impact whether you want to wear a beanie or not!
For this look, keep in mind two things. First, product is your friend. Erica prepped hair with a volumizing styling spray for hold and body (step 1), added height at the roots with texturizing powder (step 2), and sealed against frizz with a lightweight shine spray (step 6). Second, think 'bend' not 'curl'. As much as I still love Shirley Temple, here we're going more for tousled body than boing-boing ringlets. So wrap each piece of hair only partway around a wide-barrel curling iron, leaving the root and ends straight (step 3). Tug on the end to release the curl (step 4), then backcomb gently at the roots to ensure lift (step 5). You'll be left with the perfect perch for your hat, or simply the subtle waves of your dreams—tap shoes not included!
Photos: Dana Grant Photography