5 Tips to Ensure Long Lasting Curls

If you think long lasting curls or wavy styles are just not possible in your hair, think again! No matter whether you’ve got short hair or long hair. Fine hair or thick hair. Curls can last in any type of hair. It’s just about doing a few little things first. And once you implement these 5 tips, your curls and waves will last all day long.

Disclaimer: Some of the products mentioned contain affiliate links which means I may receive a small commission if you decide to purchase them. But this will have no extra cost to you. As you know, I only ever recommend products and brands that I absolutely love and use myself in both my professional and personal makeup kits. So that’s how I know how amazing they are and why I’m so excited to share them with you so you’ll get the same amazing results from using them too.

#1: THE NUMBER 1 THING YOU NEED TO DO TO ENSURE LONG LASTING CURLS!

If you only implement 1 of these tips, then let it be this one!

Because this is the key to long lasting curls and wavy hairstyles. In fact, it’s the key to any type of hairstyle such as braids or updo’s holding all day long!

You see, freshly washed hair is far too soft to hold any hairstyle, including curls and waves.

So if you’ve been frustrated that curls never last in your hair, this is probably the reason why.

How far in advance should I wash my hair?

It’s best to wash it at least 12 hours before you curl or style your hair.

For example, you could wash your hair before going to bed. Make sure your hair is fully dry. Then curl your hair the next morning.

In fact the further in advance you wash your hair before curling it, the better!

I usually wash my hair about 24-48 hours in advance of curling it. Curls or waves are my second, sometimes even third-day hairstyles.

And when I do this, I always have long lasting curls!

But I need to wash my hair everyday!

Actually, NO! You DON’T need to wash your hair every single day!

Trust me, your hair is not going to be dirty by the time you wake up next morning after washing it the night before!

Washing it every day is not good for your hair. All it does is strip it of its natural oils. Make sure to check out this IGTV video tutorial where I talked all about this, how to stop doing it and all the amazing benefits of it too.

You need to be especially careful if you’re using a mainstream brand shampoo and conditioner that contains very harsh ingredients such as SLES’s that strip it of its oils even more! This just leads to dry, brittle hair and causes split ends and breakages.

If you’re not sure what ingredients you should avoid in your haircare and skincare products, download your copy of my Natural Beauty Starter Guide. It’s totally free and contains a list of ingredients as well as some tips to get you started.

A little excess oil helps!

Your hair will not be greasy or oily if you don’t wash it every day. And if it is, it’s probably because you’re stripping it of its natural oils and it therefore thinks it needs to produce even more oil to make up for it!

But if your hair does have a little excess oil, this actually helps to ensure long lasting curls and wavy hairstyles!

It gives the hair something to grip onto and helps keep your style in place for longer.

#2: CHOOSE THE RIGHT PRODUCTS

There are 4 hairstyling products that really help you to create long lasting curls and waves. So takes a look at them now.

Heat Protection Spray

This isn’t necessarily going to make curls last longer. But it’s an absolute MUST!

Before you use any heated appliances such as curling wands or straightening irons, it’s SO IMPORTANT to protect your hair first with a heat protection spray.

This is non-negotiable!

Spritz about 3-5 pumps throughout your hair and this should suffice to protect your hair from the heat of the applicance.

Dry Shampoo

This is a great product to use if you have fine hair or oily roots.

It can give a little extra boost of volume. And also helps to absorb any excess oil in the roots and give the look and feel of freshly washed hair.

So if you’re someone who really can’t bear to go without washing your hair every day, this is a must-have product for you.

It will actually help you break the habit of washing your hair every day. As you’ll realise how amazing this little product is and how fabulous it makes your hair look and feel.

Try the Tabitha James Kraan Dry Shampoo that I spoke about in my Zero Waste Beauty Gifts guide. You’ll find it in the haircare section of the guide.

Sea Salt Spray

This one is optional. But it can really help to give your hair a bit more texture and hold.

It’s great for creating beach waves in particular. But I also love it for all types of curly styles.

Try the Elderflower Salt Spray from Less is More. Just spritz approx 2-4 pumps onto your hair before curling your hair and you’re done.

Hairspray

This might seem like an obvious one. But it really will help create long lasting curls and waves.

But I’m not just talking about spritzing it all over your head once at the end once you’ve created your curls. So head to step 3 below to find out what I recommend instead.

#3: SPRITZ WITH HAIRSPRAY AFTER EVERY LAYER OF CURLS

This is another key step to ensure you have long lasting curls and waves.

All you need to do is curl a layer of hair. Then spritz that layer with hairspray. Curl the next layer of hair. Spritz with some hairspray. Then continue to do this for each layer of curls. 

This is much more effective than curling your entire hair and then spritzing one layer of hairspray all over your head. And your curls will last so much longer when you do this instead.

#4: WAIT BEFORE TOUCHING YOUR CURLS

It can be very tempting to want to touch your curls or run your fingers through them right away. Especially if you think they look really tight at first. 

But I don’t recommend doing this!

It’s actually best to wait about 5 minutes to let the curls cool down first before touching them.

When the curls are still warm, they’re too soft and will fall out quicker.

If you still think the curls look too tight, wait until they’ve completely cooled down. And then run your fingers through them to loosen them and make them a bit more wavy.

BUT, don’t loosen curls too much!

omething to be mindful of is that your curls will drop more and more as the day goes on.

So even if you do loosen them with your fingers and they’re still not as loose as you’d like them to be, avoid the temptation to keep running your fingers through them.

The moment you walk out the door, they’ll start to loosen up all by themselves. Especially if it’s windy or rainy outside.

The more you start running your fingers through the curls, the more they’re going to loosen. And the quicker they’ll fall out! 

If you still feel after about an hour that your curls are too tight for you, then you can run your fingers through them again gently to loosen them a little more. 

#5: CREATE MORE CURLS, NOT LESS

If you’ve got very fine or very thin hair, I recommend making more curls rather than less. 

The reason is that, as you have less hair, you want to give the illusion that you have more. And making more curls will help to do this. It will create more volume. 

Again, avoid the temptation to run your fingers through them too much. As otherwise the curls will fall out much too quickly.

Please be extra kind to your hair type!

Fine and thin hair is so delicate. So you don’t want to damage it even further. 

NEVER curl your hair type (or use any heated appliance) without first spritzing your hair with a heat protection spray. So tip #1 above is even more important for your hair type!

I really hope you found these tips helpful. Trust me, you can absolutely have long lasting curls and beach waves if you follow these 5 simple steps. And even if you just implement step #1, you’ll already notice how much longer your curls will hold.

Let me know in the comments below, do you find it hard to get curls or waves to hold in your hair? Which of these tips will you try? Or will you try them all?