If You've Got Wavy Ends & Flat Roots, You Need To Try This Air-Dry Hack

For those with textured hair, "heatless curls" often entail your everyday air-dry. But if you have a looser strand pattern, like 2A or 2B waves (i.e., fairly straight roots with wavy ends), you may need a little extra help adding body and structure. 

As with any air-dry, you'll want to first form the strands with nourishing, hydrating products. Although, if you have looser waves, you'll want to towel-dry your hair a bit before reaching for a lightweight styling product to secure more volume (as opposed to those with defined curls, who will want to apply products on sopping-wet locks). Cohen uses a soft microfiber towel to absorb extra moisture—these provide less friction on the strands than traditional terry cloth, which minimizes frizz.

For her stylers, she applies two pumps of leave-in conditioner and a hair oil (both from Crown Affair, of course) from mid-lengths to ends, and uses the brand's wide-tooth comb to gently detangle her tresses. "Your hair as a fiber is super vulnerable when it's wet," she says, so be patient during this process—no need to hack your way through knots and snarls. 

Once your hair is aptly hydrated and detangled, it's time to clip: Grab the two front sections of your hair in both hands and twist them away from your face. Wrap both sections around your head and secure the ends with a small to medium hair clip at the back of your head, kind of like you're creating a half-up, half-down style. Make sure the clip locks firmly in place.

Next, gather the rest of your hair and split it into two sections. Twist each section with both hands, again twisting away from your face. Clip the ends in front of your face and let the strands hang (you might look like you have a long wizard beard for the time being, but a funky 'do is the price we pay for salon-quality heatless waves). "When you're twisting the bottom, make sure you get all of that hair in," Cohen adds, or the forgotten strands might fall limp. If you have denser hair, she says feel free to split the bottom sections into four instead of two—you'll just need an extra hair clip to secure it in place. 

Then all you have to do is try to keep still while your hair dries; for Cohen, that takes 45 minutes or so, but you may have to spend more or less time with the clips depending on your hair's porosity and dry time. Once her hair is about 90% dry, Cohen removes the clips, shakes out her strands, and allows her hair to dry the final rest of the way.