Alright, so my short wavy hair has been driving me nuts lately. It just kinda… sits there? Fluffy but flat, no real shape. Looked like I stuck my finger in a socket most mornings. Needed to fix this curl situation, stat. Here’s what actually went down this week.
The Starting Point: Hot Mess Express
Honestly, it was rough. Every morning, same drill: Wash hair, towel dry like a maniac, maybe slap on whatever cream was closest. Results? Always a gamble. Some days okay-ish waves, most days just frizzy fluff. Felt like I was wasting time and money. Photos from Tuesday? Straight up embarrassing.
Digging Through the Pile
I gathered every product aimed at “waves” or “curls” lurking under my sink:
- That cheap gel everyone swears by – feels like crunchy glue.
- An expensive curl cream I impulse-bought months ago.
- A random foam sample from a friend.
- A light lotion that never seemed to do much.
Time to actually test these suckers properly.
Operation: Product Swap Out
Changed one thing each wash day to keep it fair.
Day 1: Stuck with the pricy cream. Applied it soaking wet, scrunched like crazy. Air dry took forever. Verdict? Meh. Waves looked defined while wet… then poofed out into soft fluff. Felt nice, no crunch, but vanished by lunchtime.
Day 2: Pulled out the cheap gel. Big glob smoothed onto dripping hair. Serious prayer hands action. More scrunching. Dreading the crunchy feeling. Left it alone til 100% dry. Surprise! Curls looked amazing – tight ringlets. BUT… felt like a helmet. Scrunched it out – boom, instant frizz city. Great definition, terrible feel.
Day 3: Went for the foam. Sprayed a bunch on damp hair, kinda like mousse. Tried finger-coiling a few sections. Air dry seemed quicker. Result? Limp spaghetti waves. Fell flat super fast, felt sticky. Pass.
Day 4: Mixed things up. Used LESS of the cheap gel and a tiny bit of the lightweight lotion on wet hair. Focused on scrunching water out with a t-shirt, not rough towel. Didn’t touch it til completely dry. Held my breath… Okay, wow. Softer than gel alone, way more definition than the cream or foam. Actual waves with bounce, no crazy crunch feeling. Hmm.
Playing with Water Levels
Day 5: Tried applying the same gel/lotion mix to hair that was just damp, not soaking wet. Disaster. Patchy, stringy waves, felt gross. Lesson learned: My hair needs that soaking wet start for the mix to spread right.
Day 6: Back to soaking wet application. Stuck with the gel/lotion team. Added one trick: After scrunching the water out, I plopped my hair upside down into the t-shirt for 15 minutes. Airdry after. Game. Changer. More volume at the roots, curls started higher up. Zero frizz. Curl clumps actually lasted until bedtime. Did a little victory dance in the mirror.
What Actually Stuck
So, here’s the routine that didn’t totally suck:
- Wash like normal, squish to condish (basically just squishing conditioner in).
- Out of shower, hair dripping wet.
- Mix a tiny scoop of that cheap gel with a dime-size of the lightweight lotion in my palm.
- Glide & Pray: Smooth it evenly onto soaking hair using open palms.
- Scrunch hard with a cotton t-shirt to pull out extra water.
- Plopping Prison: Flip upside down, pile hair onto a t-shirt, wrap it up turban-style for 10-15 minutes.
- Air Dry ONLY. Seriously. Don’t touch it til it’s crunchy-dry.
- Scrunch Out the Crust: Gentle squeeze to break any leftover gel cast. Fluff roots.
Is it magazine perfect? Nope. But defined waves? ✅ Less frizz? ✅ Lasting past noon? Huge win. Simple cheap gel + basic lotion won the day. Who knew? Still hate mornings though.
