Wavies, how do you wear your hair?

[Katze]

This poll goes out to all the messy haired ones, the frizzy ones, the ones with hair with a 'mind of its own'. Layers and curlies welcome, too, just as long as you feel like your hair will 'never be smooth.'

I'm curious: how do you wear your hair? How do you LIKE to wear it?

I prefer to wear my hair down, freshly washed, or in a half-up. Any attempt at a tidy, pulled-together updo is pretty much a waste of my time, I've decided. Anything that encourages its wave, however, like putting it messily up when wet, or sleeping with it damp, makes me happy. If I put my hair up and try to make it smooth, the waves are weird when I take it down again - the only exception being a French twist.

So my preferred look for my mind-of-its-own hair is down. #2 is some kind of half up, though as my hair gets thicker getting these to stay is hard. #3 favorite hairdo is something messy - so that my hair's unruliness looks like it's on purpose. #4 - the dos that looks good on me but which I tend to save for dirty hair days, are coronet braids and French twists.

Buns absolutely don't work on me with my thin ends and different lengths; same goes for French braids.

My sweetie, also a wavy, wears a ponytail 90% of the time. Yes, he has damage, which then flies out all around his face. When he lets me, I do halfups or French braids for him with some oil or leave-in to contain the wispies.

So, fellow wavies, how do you wear your hair? From most favorite to 'OK' to least favorite...

[Fencai]

im pretty much with you on this one!
I try for down, but it usually ends up in a low pony tail, or a braid.

I do have success with a bun, however, I get all the little fly aways around my face that NEVER can be tamed!

and I also prefer something that looks like its messy on purpose!

[Florida Mom]

When I damp bun it with a hair stick, it looks the best. I can also do any french braids, heidi braids, dutch braids, and then I like how it looks.

When it is down or half-up it just looks frizzy and messy.

I just had a side swept bang cut in so I'm hoping that helps me like wearing it down - to have the long messy (slightly sexy) look on purpose....

In my siggy pic my hair was flat ironed the last time I got it trimmed (first time flat-ironing)... I wish it looked like that all the time.

[JessTheMess]

I like to wear it down, but since it's summer and the humidity likes to make me frizzy and hot, I've been wearing it up.
I just started french braiding my hair and I must say that it looks horrible lol, but it keeps the hair off of me when I'm sweating. If my hair is already dry, I like to throw it into a messy updo.

[Delenn]

I really only wear it down when it's been freshly washed and I can let it hang and air dry. I don't like my hair with bun waves after wet bunning. Same with my standard braided buns, I don't wear it down after that settles in and makes it's own pattern. Typically during the work week I have it up and bunned.

[Patrycja]

I'm part of the updo challenge,so it's up all the time. Usually in a scrunchie bun but its up :) I have the problem of my layers wanting to stick out of my braids and now my goto style isn't working anymore(the cinnabun).I try to tweak updos to make it work for me and my waves but I've been really lazy about it lately.

[iris]

My styles in order of preference:

1. Messy half-up
2. Messy bun
3. Down
4. Peacock twist

I don't strive for smooth hair, never have, probably never will. My face tends towards 'good girl' - it's very easy for me to look very serious, and um, not really fun. I feel that I look much more relaxed, and hence more attractive, if I wear my hair messy. Other people can look classy, sophisticated, strong with smooth hair - I just look boring, unimaginative, and plain with smooth hair.

I have the same 'goody two-shoes' thing going on with 'regular' clothes - so I wear skin-tight low-cut tops in bright colors, and wild shoes, to offset the overly virtuous face and balance it out to an overall 'normal' appearance - not really 'bad girl' but not 'good girl' either.

Iris

[spidermom]

I like to dutch-braid every last inch of it back when I'm doing something sporty or working in the yard. If I want to feel pretty, I'll tame the frizzies with gel and the blow dryer and wear it down. Lately I'm liking the messy stick bun (loop hair over stick, twist stick around a couple of times, then invert through the base) for casual wear. My hair won't stay neat and contained; all my buns twist, slide, and sag, which is a good thing because I look very stern with my hair all pulled back and contained.

[Ursula]

While my hair is wavy, I find that if it is well moisturized, the frizz is reasonably controlled. If it isn't well moisturized, forget it!

I usually wear a bun - to the extent that many people I know and see regularly don't realize how long my hair is - I'm the woman with the bun, not the woman with very long hair.

There is sometimes a hint of wave in the smoothed back part of my hair, while it is bunned. I don't try to get it completely flat, I just pull it back, and it has a subtle texture.

If I wear it down, I tend to comb it out, and that creates a mass of waved hair, rather than trying to keep defined locks. It's straighter after it's been bunned, but that's about it.

But for frizz control, I find that tons of moisture is the key - not just one deep treatment, but an ongoing emphasis on more and more.

[Altocumulus]

When it was shorter (i.e., until midback or so), I wore it down and wavy/curly every day. This was pre-LHC, so I also S&C'ed every day.

Now I rarely wear it down, mainly to keep it out of the way. I prefer buns (figure 8s are always dependable, I also like cinnabuns and inside-out buns, and infinities if I can get them centered properly) because I'm trying to protect my newly trimmed ends. I wear an english braid when I do karate because I don't feel the buns are secure enough. I get tons of flyaways and baby hairs, but I just ignore them. It simply is not in the nature of my hair to be smooth!

Braid waves are ghastly on me - flat on the head and a giant puffball of frizz on the length. Bun waves are also horrible, featuring a giant bump on the back of my head. I recently learned that a scrunchie bun at the nape makes really nice bun waves - smooth on the top but not flat, then large spiraling ringlets at the bottom. This eats up a lot of length, though - my hair only comes to BSL when I wear it that way!

[Stacy_E]

My favorite style, for how it looks, is down, but only if my hair has been wet that day to revive the waves. After sleeping on it I don't like how it looks and I feel like I need to wear it up in either a bun or french braid or pony tail. Ironically, it is smoother after sleeping on it, too. But I like the look of waves over smooth slept-in hair.

I'm also fine-haired, and I've been watching the Fine Hair & Damage thread, and it's caused me to second-guess my favored routine. Since I like my hair best when down and with freshly-dried waves, I have been getting it wet every day, either WO or CO or CWC. According to the good advice on that thread, though, I should not wet it every day and should wear it up mostly, if I want to grow it long (currently just hitting BSL, my goal is waist-length). Actually, this advice is easy to follow these days as I live in the desert of Arizona and with 100+ degF temperatures I need to wear it up to keep cool.

So back to your question, looks-wise I like it down, but often wear it up (in bun, ponytail, braid(s)) to keep cool, to protect my hair, or to exercise.

[Periwinkle]

Up or braided or tied back, always. I hate the way my hair looks when it's down - partly because it swamps my face, partly because the waves go insane, mostlyy because it gets in the way and partly because of damage concerns.

My hair is much, much straighter when it's brushed (with braid waves, it's about a 2b, and otherwise, it's about a 2a, but brushed, it's a 1c) but I'm trying to cut down on brushing because apart from waves, my hair is nicer without it.

Fortunately, though, my waves are happy to be smoothed into updos. Unfortunately, I have one huge layer about 1/5" from the end of my hair, which makes lots of updos look bad on me. I also don't have much of a repertoire because of my length.

I tend to French/Dutch/English braid or wear a French twist or figure 8 with the ends clipped. Occasionally, I wear cinnabuns with the ends clipped to keep them more secure.

[AprilElf]

Though I still get my fair share of frizzies (depending on how long since wash day), my hair behaves pretty well however I style it.
I don't wear it down very often because it gets so tangled that way, and just gets in the way.

I currently favour: flipped-up cinnabun, KarenLynn knot, orchid wrap/bun, rose bun, figure-8 or infinity, 2 & 4 strand rope braids.


ETA: braided Chinese bun also favoured

[mira-chan]

I wear it up. fully up (bun, log roll, etc.) pretty much all the time. I don't really care if the bun I'm wearing doesn't look the best on me. I really don't like to wear my hair down, it feels weird sand gets in the way. Even if it looked amazing down it would be at least in a braid withing two hours.

Favorite are wrapped, not twisted buns and a cornonette.
Cinamon and beebutt buns are ok when I'm lazy or hair is complaining otherwise.
Least favorite - fully down or half up. If I want some hair down I wear a bun with a tail of the length loose.

[girlcat36]

My hair will always look messy. In 42 years I have not been able to tame it. To compensate, I always try to have my clothing outfits 'pulled together' looking so I don't have an overall sloppy look.
The half-up is standard for me. Braids are messy. I used to live in a scrunchie bun, but due to my hairloss, all my hair will not go in a bun anymore. I am very bummed about that! By the end of the year, I should be able to get it all in a bun and will probably wear that way mostly.
I could never have short hair because my hair cannot be cut into a style. It just won't behave.
My hair usually looks dull, frizzy and messy. Sometimes I think people look at me and feel sorry for my hair!
I always read your posts with interest, Katze. Our hairtype is so different, but we seem to have the same hair problems.

[cherryblossom]

down normally but i like messy buns or plaits as they stop my hair from flying everywhere. I hate ponytails as it pulls my hair (which is very heavy) and give me a headache.

[jojo]

normally down or a half up for me, when I am not at work but at work it has to be above the collar so normally a bun or messy twist up thingy!

[Madam Librarian]

I like wearing my hair down the best. I enjoy my waves.

When I pull my hair up, I default to either a messy half looped ponytail bun, or a sort of french twist and bun hybrid that I can clamp down rather quickly. I don't care much for buns or braids (especially braids) since I have to comb through my hair to detangle and smooth it for styling. I have to wear my hair neat for military stuff, and right now a sock bun is the neatest thing I can pull off. I am anxiously awaiting more length so I can do a loose bun held with a stick or a fork.

I do find that any sort of styling pulls the wave right out. Seems like the twisting or braiding fights against my natural wave pattern. I need to wet my hair pretty frequently in order to keep it happy and behaving well.

[LongForLife]

Even though my hair can be really hard to style, I actually love my waves/spirals and always have. My favorite way to wear my hair is down, and that is usually how I have it when I go anywhere. It has wonderful waves, and since it has been layered is much more attractive to me, even when a little messy. The worst time is when it is freshly washed though, as it tends to get poofy at that point.
Around the house I usually just have it in a looser nape of the neck ponytail, that does not pull on my scalp creating headaches. Or in a simple topsytail.
I also wear my hair half way up some of the time. My least favorite would have to be up, as I have not had enough practice with up-dos. I used to wear my hair in a braid or even a bun more often, but since being layered, the ends stick out all over the place, so I almost never wear it up. Maybe I need some new ways to try and practice, or maybe those up-dos just don't work well with deep layers.

[FlipHunny]

I prefer to wear my hair down for looks, but sometimes it just gets in the way. That's why majority of the time it's in a simple bun with an octopus clip. I also love the waves and curls I get from bunning, and wear my hair down like that.

[SweetPea88]

I really like how my wavy hair looks down, but I usually will only have it down on wash days or the day after a wash.

I've found that to do anything with my hair it really needs to be fully dried. If I don't let it dry while its down completely, the underside of my length looks clumpy and greasy and looks like its still wet. Of course on wash days my hair is a bit poofy so I usually let it dry and then put it up in a basic cinnabun. I've found that this calms down the poof factor but leaves nice waves.

When it's not a wash day my hair is usually in a braid of some sort and I find that this can help calm down the messiness sometimes accompanied with wavy hair. My hair also gets straighter as the week progresses.

[Radulfr]

Outdoors in the wind, I wear a single braid or ponytail.
Indoors I often let it hang loose.

[rubyredslippers]

I like the look and feel of my hair down the best, but being wavy, and constantly surrounded by a frizzy halo, it doesn't always cooperate. If it's going to cooperate at all, it'll be the day after wash day, when it's tame enough to leave loose but not so tame it's greasy. If it dries asymmetrically, it's not going down until after the next washday.

So half-ups serve me best most of the time, with down coming second.

I like updos, particularly cinnamon buns, up with a pair of hairsticks. I also like english pigtail braids, those serve me well often (once a week or so).

Frizzy nape hair always escapes single english braids, but I do these, for practicality. They just require reworking at lunch. I like dutch braids better and french braids don't flatter my face well.

My hair no longer likes peacock twists, and I cannot for the life of me figure out gibson twists. French twists I have trouble with.

Oh! And pony tails! I absolutely cannot do these if I want to wear my hair down because the bump will not go away until it is washed. I don't do these often, only with very greasy hair. It looks good but I worry about damage and . . . I don't think to do them very often. I like flipped-through pony tails better, though. But they always look frizzy.

Yeah, I'm pretty resigned to the fact that my hair is frizzy and will therefore always be frizzy. So I don't let that inhibit my style choices too much (except for that english braid. And peacock twist. And flipped-through ponytail).

[Rae~]

Up, up, UP for me. In fact, I can't remember the last time I wore my hair down apart from air-drying around the house.

[PrincessColene]

Usually down. It does what it does and I gave up trying to control it.

[allege]

I braid it most days, because if I am going out at the end of the day I can take the braid down and my hair has really smooth waves which is lovely.

Other days I pull it into a bun. Yesterday my ends had a lot of curl to it so I pulled it into a ponytail with the ends looped through so my curls were around my face and very lovely.

[Roseate]

Up, up, up! I like making updos, like the way I look in them, and I like then being able to wear my hair down for a change and really feel that it is a change. I usually wear my hair down for special occasions (carefully timed for one day past washday), and it does feel special!

My hair holds lumps and bumps from updos and ponytails, and not in a flattering way. So once I've put it up it stays up (in public) until I get it wet again, which is usually only once a week.

[Katze]

So how do those of you who wear your hair up keep it from frizzing out and looking messy? I find I can do more updos now, but they never look tidy unless I brush and oil the heck out of my hair to get it to lay flat...and even then, it's not smooth...

[sneakybea]

I usually wear my hair up, because I've usually got a purse or a backpack slung over my shoulder, and it makes my hair tangle terribly if it's down. My updos can get messy, but it's usually a soft and wispy messiness, if that makes sense. I think it also helped that I cut bangs because that was some of the hair that fuzzed out of my bun anyhow.

[gmdiaz]

Before joining the LHC, I wore my hair almost exclusively back in a simple ponytail. *oh brother* or in a half-up, or just down.

I've got wavy hair, that CAN look sexy tousled but most often just looks like I overslept and didn't have time to do anything with it.

So now, in the order of preference:

Various buns with coolio hair sticks. I favor the quickie KarenLynn Knot.

I really like side twists tucking back into a flipped pony tail or twisty sides pulled back into a half-up pony tail, secured with a big and fabulous sterling barrette.

And I still like to wear my hair down but it's looking better because I've been working to add tons more moisture to my messy waves; coconut oil, jojoba oil, leave-in conditioners etc. But it's starting to get long enough that it will catch on metal hardware as I go through doors, so I try keep it up and back to protect the ends.

[JamieLeigh]

All different ways! I love wearing it down, especially now that the temperatures have warmed up here, and it's a breezy 70 degrees most days. It catches the breeze near the bottom, and I think it looks nice waving around down there. :)

And I love buns...mostly a braided bun for me, but I'm branching out some now that I've learned to use hair sticks.

And braids. I think I braid it at least once a week.

I'll do pretty much anything with my hair that doesn't involve coloring or cutting. :)

[ReddishRocks]

I like to wear my hair down mostly. I wash every three days, and due to the products I use, my hair looks best on wash day. :) I revive it somewhat the next day, and then day three is always some sort of updo.

I've been relying almost entirely on Flexi-8s to do a tails-up/peacock thing or a messy French Twist. I have a lot of deep layers too (some as short as my chin that I'm trimming as I go to grow at the same rate as my hemline) that help to maintain my hair's shape, but that makes bunning difficult. If I choose to do a bun, I use a lot of U pins with hair sticks, or maybe a multi-tined hair fork. Once I get my Ficcare, I hope that will add to my options.

I am a total braid idiot. I used to play the flute and I type something like 80 words per minute, so I know I have some sort of finger dexterity!!! I just need more practice I suppose. I had my mom do French braids in my hair before my surgery last week, and those contained my layers quite well.

I have face framing layers cut into the front because my husband abhors updos, LOL! The only way he tolerates them is if I have some of my face frame spirals out of the 'do to soften things. I have a very high forehead, so I agree that it helps! I think my updos give him stress flashbacks of my pixie (which he also didn't like so much, but loved me anyway ;) ).

[LHGypsyRose]

I like to where mine down, but since I seemed to have move to the windiest place on earth, I wear it in a braided bun most of the time. I am working on learning new stick buns though!

[Gutterfayrie]

usually up in a cini-bun for me, sometimes a braid. For a special occasion I might leave it down, but I can't stand for hair (other then bangs) to get in my face.

[Jules diamond]

I clip half my hair up with a big clip. I like wearing my hair down, but sometimes it's too poofy, so I use it to control the frizz.

[joyellen]

My hair is usually kept up out of my face. More often than not it's in a messy lazy bun held up with a no-tear hair tie, and now more recently, hair sticks and forks. Right now I have too many layers to attempt a lot of more complicated buns, but as it gets longer I'll try my hand at some. On the rare occasion my hair is down, I just let it air dry and fingercomb it.

[maskedrose]

I wear it down once or twice a week, only on wash days, and up the rest of the time. Every once in awhile the waves will survive being slept on, otherwise I'm just surrounded by a fuzzy, fly-away halo on my dirty days.

[helen2806]

I usually wear mine down - either damp combed so it's straight of after sleeping with french braids to control the waves better. If I wear it up it's mostly just either some sort of messy bun or a messy ponytail (I'm not an updo expert at all!)

[dulce-de-leche]

I usually wear it in a bun of peacock twist and let it loose when I get home from work to relax
my scalp.

[Arctic]

My hair is mostly up in some form, I hate having hair on my face :D My current project is to learn to twist in different direction, that's really hard!

[paper]

I like to wear my hair down, but I don't like my hair in my face. So, I usually compromise with a half-up.

[Petra]

Fav to least-Fav:

1. Down or half-up (freshly washed)
2. Pinned up randomly and interestingly--"siggy" style I guess--usually dirty hair day
3. Single braid or two braids
4. Messy bun
5. "sleek" buns--never end up sleek because of being a wavy anyhoo.

[janeytilllie]

I like wearing my hair up in buns. My wavy hair can easily tangle when its lose so I wear it up about 80% of the time. My fave buns are :

*The cinnamon bun
*Braided cinnamon bun
*chinese bun
* Horizontal Infinity bun

[Katze]

Fav to least-Fav:

5. "sleek" buns--never end up sleek because of being a wavy anyhoo.

I'm confused, you list yourself as 1a/1b, but can't get sleek buns?!? 1a is stick straight, 1b only has very, very slight waves. My sister has mostly straight (1b, I'd say) hair, and she can just twist and clip it and have a sleek smooth updo. I can't get my crown hair to lie flat at all, unless it is very dirty and I brush and brush and brush it. :confused:

Just CO washed and blowdried and combed my hair straight. Camera is recharging, but it makes a real difference (that I am not sure I like). Gonna see how it is to walk around with 'straight' 1b-1c hair...it is definitely smoother...

[Petra]

What I meant by sleek is that I can never really get the ends tucked in very well and their are bits that always stick out of the bun (not purposeful layers, its cut blunt but some sections just don't catch up/break off and and are always shorter)--so they are almost always sticking out somewhere so it looks messy. I've also got so many frags around my face that even if I slick them back they always stick out. I guess I read the question as least favorite hairstyle--which it is for me because I don't like how it looks on me when I attempt them.

I guess I'm more 1b/1c--maybe it is different "textures" when wet or dry? My hair is super schizo--it can be almost totally straight if I comb it when wet, and when its soaking wet I have strong waves with ringlets on the ends but it doesn't stay that way when it dries. If I don't comb while wet I get very wavy sections and very straight sections, and get the height at the crown from the waves and the fluffiness. :shrug:

I just did some henna streaks and will post some pix later but I blew it dry with cold air and because of that and the henna it looks totally straight.

[AnnaMarie]

To get my hair to be smooth and sleek ( or at least something close to that lol) I usually keep it in a twisted bun, like a cinnabun. After I've washed it I'll let it air dry and it turns into an awful frizzy looking mess, l leave it till its still slightly damp, then I softly comb it smooth and put it in a cinnabun to finish drying. I find this really gets it laying smoothly. I also put it in a cinnabun to sleep then put a silk headscarf over it which keeps it smooth and helps prevent damage while I sleep. I pretty much always wear my hair up and as I'm a gardener I also keep it tucked away under a hat when I'm outside in the sun/wind/etc. I usually wear it in a messy braid - Rope braids are my favourite as I don't like the waves from english braids. Or in a bun. On special occasions I'll wear my hair out but thats about it . Sorry this is so long! :rolleyes:

[almudena]

I like to wear it down.

[Tangles]

To get my hair to be smooth and sleek ( or at least something close to that lol) I usually keep it in a twisted bun, like a cinnabun. After I've washed it I'll let it air dry and it turns into an awful frizzy looking mess, l leave it till its still slightly damp, then I softly comb it smooth and put it in a cinnabun to finish drying. I find this really gets it laying smoothly. I also put it in a cinnabun to sleep then put a silk headscarf over it which keeps it smooth and helps prevent damage while I sleep. I pretty much always wear my hair up and as I'm a gardener I also keep it tucked away under a hat when I'm outside in the sun/wind/etc. I usually wear it in a messy braid - Rope braids are my favourite as I don't like the waves from english braids. Or in a bun. On special occasions I'll wear my hair out but thats about it . Sorry this is so long! :rolleyes:

Twisted buns make my hair 2c curly... it's nice but I wish there was a way to get my hair straight minus heat.

[Maelyssa]

Currently I'm a medium-thick wavy who is disgruntled w/that 'bedhead' look.
Sure every few years it's sexy & trendy but it never looks well...'pulled together' like the other people at the office.
I used to love it down but right now it's being exceptionally tangly & messy so my favorite would be a somewhat messy bun which I tend to do damp. That seems to give me the most sleek 'pulled together' look.
I crave being able to wear it down again but those waves tangle no matter how healthy & soft my hair is.
I'm trying to lay off the heat stylers to tame it.
I definitely use oil.
If anyone else has a miracle let me in on it!

[SheWolf]

Down like in my avatar because it's easier. Up in a high ponytail for workouts because I have to. But I really want to learn how to do these cool updos I see all over the board.

[zombi]

I really like to wear my hair down best; after this, I like to wear it just pinned up at the nape of the neck. My hair's too thin to look good in buns; it only makes it obvious how much thickness I don't have, so I feel self-conscious if I wear my hair in a bun! :o

[Aditi]

im pretty much with you on this one!
I try for down, but it usually ends up in a low pony tail, or a braid.

I do have success with a bun, however, I get all the little fly aways around my face that NEVER can be tamed!

and I also prefer something that looks like its messy on purpose!
Same is the case with me too. I love to keep my hair down but my messy waves makes me look like a Ghost so end up with half-pony or pony.

[Arctic_Mama]

I have short, wavy and layered hair. That, along with my fineness, is a difficult combo :)

I wear my hair in a bun or messy double buns occasionally, but a French Twist or Peacock with a Ficcare or Brazilian clips is my standby. I will wear it down or half up for special occasions, and though I like sleeping with it loose if I do want it restrained at night a pokey French braid is. My default.

[LadyDi]

I like this thread. I didn't realize how many people have the same problem as me.

I prefer to wear it down, but it just gets bigger as they day progresses, or the curls at the base of my neck get tangled from rubbing on my shirt collar. So it ends up in a high ponytail or messy bun or twisty combo most days. I have no experience with all the fabulous updos that people here can do. Hopefully I can learn, but I don't know that I will ever be proficient at it...and I will always have that annoying halo of hair around my face from my thin curly baby hairs trying to escape!!!