The lazy girl’s guide to curls

Your curly-hair styling routine is about to become a lot more straightforward!

somewhere between the third round of conditioner and the first 20 minutes under a diffuser, your arms start to shake, your brow starts to sweat and the whole operation seems very much not worth it. You know what is worth it? Cutting out all the steps you don’t need. Consider this your great hair cheat sheet.

WASHING

Lazyish If you understand the timesuck that is raking shampoo through matted, snarled curls, try switching the order of your shower line-up. “Condition the hair from root to tip and let it sit for five minutes before you shampoo,” says hairstylist Kim Kimble. “It makes things easier.” After showering, run a leave-in conditioner through your curls, especially if they tend to be dry or frizzy.

Lazier As with brunch and sexercise, it can sometimes be more efficient to combine activities. Co-washing means folding shampoo and conditioner into just one lather and rinse. Take your co-wash combo (cleansing cream works, too), smooth about eight pumps’ worth over soaked hair and rinse after five minutes. You should skip actual shampoo for only a few days, though. Once or twice a week, your scalp and hair need a sulphate-free shampoo to remove dirt and buildup, says Kim.

Laziest Dry shampoo is the obvious choice here, but it’s not going to do anything for your curls, which may need some reshaping during the week. Mist them with a curl-refreshing spray and scrunch it in. Or DIY your own by mixing four parts water with one part conditioner. For loose, wavy curls, braid your hair into two to four sections before dampening, says hairstylist Mara Roszak. When you get to work, take them out for refreshed waves.

DRYING

Lazyish It can take a long time to blow-dry curls with a diffuser, so speed things up. After applying styling cream or gel to wet hair, squeeze out as much moisture as you can with a microfibre towel, then blow-dry with a diffuser using medium heat and airflow. (Don’t crank up the settings to save time; it’ll make curls frizz or lose their shape.)

Lazier “Spend three to five minutes with the diffuser to get your hair halfway dry, and then let the rest just air-dry,” says hairstylist Jen Atkin. You just want to set the initial curl pattern with heat for definition. Focus on the roots if you have kinky curls and on the ends for looser spirals. Laziest You guessed it: air-dry your hair. Scrunch waves and ringlets periodically to encourage fullness and shape. If you have tight coils, section your hair and twist them into knots (small twisted buns) while your hair is still damp, before bed. “The roots will dry really well overnight and the rest will dry much faster in the morning,” says Kim.

STYLING

If you have coarse, tight curls Twirl damp hair into small two-strand twists (you should have about 16-20 twists in total). “It’s a cool, classic dreadlock look that you can leave in as long as you like,” says hairstylist Chuck Amos. And when you take it out, you’ve got defined curls.

If you have loose waves

Define your bends with a flatiron. Hold it near the roots of a small section and, as you glide it down, rotate the flatiron out and away from your head, says Mara. A few centimetres down, twist it in the opposite direction and repeat until you reach the ends.

If you have ringlets Shape them while you sleep. Pin spirals up on top of your head at night and they’ll look defined the next day. If any pieces need extra help, twirl them around a curling rod that’s about the same diameter as your natural curl.