The other day, after changing my profile picture on Facebook, my friend Cat from the blog 3KidsandUs made this comment:
And so I thought…is there a secret to big hair?
To be honest, good hair is something that is often made, not something everyone is born with. You can have crappy hair and still get it back to soft and silky. I know in my life I have had pink hair, green hair, bleached out hair; hair has been something of a hobby of mine. I have messed up my hair so badly in the past that I have had to cut it above my ears.
Really.
*you dont want to see those shots….”Elf” is not a style I rock well.
So I wanted to share with her (and you) a few tips on how to get your hair “fluffy”. I call my personally preferred style “Celebrity from the 90′s” or A La Cindy Crawford.
Health
Whether you choose to have your hair long or keep it up to your shoulders, maintaining your hair health is as important as maintaining any other part of your body. As a teenager I used to get my color out of a box, but as an adult I bite the bullet and go to a professional salon. Somewhere along the line I learned that putting chemicals into your hair does require some sort of skill. While I am educated on bleach, color, and everything in between out of experience, I take my knowledge to a professional and have them do the dirty work in the end.
As a result of my alternating bleach and color from season to season, I do not take lightly the maintenance of deep conditioning ( I do Professional Keratin treatments every 6 weeks) and the times I have to let my hair ‘rest’ by not blowing out every day. I also use quality shampoos and conditioners.
My top choice for Shampoo and Conditioner if budget isn’t an issue? Pureology.
But getting big hair is something that takes practice and here are a few steps that I found work for me.
How to get Big Hair
Step #1: First wash and condition as normal.
Step #2: At this point most people would go for the blow dryer and curling brush. However I found that what works even better is to let your hair dry naturally…no brush to flatten it out. I usually just put up in a pony tail and let it air dry for a few hours and then let down. If it still has some tinges of wet to it, Ill then take a blow dryer and finger dry the rest of the way. Don’t worry about what it looks like, it will probably be messy and crazy.
That is OK.
Ignore your husbands sideways looks at this point.
(Step 1 – Step3)
Step #3: After its dry, I pull half my hair half way up so my under layer is visible and take a 1 inch to a 1 1/2 inch barrel ( I use a Revlon curling iron where you can set the heat..it cost me about $9.99 and I set on the highest setting of 30) and hand curl the under part. Then I slowly let down layer after layer curling each section as I go.
This process can take 5-20 minutes depending on length and thickness. Because your goal isn’t to have even curls around your head and you just need to get it curled in general, do not worry about how it looks AS you curl it. It takes me about 20 minutes and I have a TON of hair.
I watch cop TV while I do it. Goes by quick.
Note about Revlon Curling Iron: I found that it works great, although the reviews of it online are poor. Your hand DOES go over the dial that changes heat setting, that’s a badly executed design, but for $10 at Walmart, I have been using it for 6 months with no issues…I would buy a new one if this one broke.
Step #4: Once its curled, I turn my head upside down and fluff up with my fingers and flip my head back up.
At this point you can choose to spray it if you like with hairspray (I do not) or use some kind of smoother depending on your hair type. I prefer to put a few squirts of Garnier Fructis Triple Nutrient Spray (which is a leave in conditioner) in it while its still upside down and then turn over and smooth. Don’t go overboard if you use that…it has natural oils in it and can make your hair greasy if you over spray.
I found my hold stays the entire day, even without hairspray, and the curls make for a cute pony tail if you decide to put up.
Here is the finished look:
If you have tips to maintain healthy and big hair, feel free to leave in the comments!
~Trisha
I use Garnier Fructis deep conditioning 3 minute hair masque once a week and I rarely blow dry (my hair dryer is used more often on the dog than on me). I have really thin hair that is mid back length, and I’ve used this for 3 years now. I have box dyed my hair darker, then lighter, then darker, and now lighter again in the past year and it still looks healthy. Of course I also use Garnier Fructis length & strength shampoo and conditioner so that probably helps, too. And now that I know the secret to your beautiful hair, I’m deffinately stealing it the next time I go out.
I get the frizzies too when I let mine air dry, it’s really scary. I also notice that the weight of the thickness of my hair tends to pull it down and make it flat a few hours after I’ve curled or done anything with it. I’ve also got natural curl in the back and straight sides to work with. BLEH. I’m going to try a couple of your other techniques though, so thanks so much for sharing! Your hair is BEAUTIFUL. Did I mention that it’s beautiful?
Ohhh these are great tips! Believe it or not, I have never thought of sectioning it off in layers to curl the “under parts” too. Thanks!!
Oh you gorgeous girl you! Love your big hair
I have long, thick hair too. I use a big barrel curling iron and flip it up the day after I wash it. Then flip my hair like you did and whip it back. That seems to make it full of volume and I love it! My hair has not been this long since high school 
You are such a doll! Great pics by the way!
I do the same thing but I use the flat iron instead. I have a little natural curl in my hair and it tends to frizz if I don’t flat iron (I can curl it too). I get that pony tail line if I put it up…what’s your secret to not getting that?
for me the curling iron takes out the frizz, but the frizz helps keep the curl..make sense? I also flat iron on occasion and like that too…i just prefer to have it big and fluffed up. I am an 80′s-90′s girl at heart, what can i say! Maybe you are doing it too tight if you have a ponly tail line? Use a fabric covered one, like a scrunchie instead of an elastic.
is there a specific way that you curl it? Lately when i have been curling mine I feel like I am still stuck in the 90′s with the curls, I would start at the bottom & roll up but that doesn’t seem to look good…
I love the new color, BTW!
yes, i do it the same way but kinda do it sideways..if that makes sense
back in the 80′s a friend of mine use to put her hair up in a pony tail when she got out of the shower. I always thought it was the craziest thing. Funny thing is her hair was beautiful and wavey when she took it down about 2 hrs later.
your hair is gorgeous Trisha. AND Wow SO long too!! Will you keep it long after the baby?
yes i find its easier to care for in a lot of ways. I can slick it back in a pony tail in 1 minute….when i had short hair i found that i spent a lot more time trying to style it because I couldn’t pull it up. I figure the long hair is here when i want it to look dressed up and easy to pull back when not.
Totally awesome! You are so beautiful.
that was nice of you to say
Yet another reason I wish I had straight hair . . . . sigh . . . I can’t do the tousled curl look.
And — apparently I can’t write my own blog title out either. . . .
Hmm — I posted another comment first, but it’s not showing up. . . .
Just know that I’m jealous of your hair.
ROFL on the Shoew. I forgive you.
How funny, I have the exact same curling iron and I’ve had it for a couple of years now. I’ll try the natural dry. I usually blow dry my hair to help straighten it bit because naturally it’s super wavy and ends up looking like a relaxed perm.
yes you want that. Trust me, i used to do the same thing…straighten it out first but the fluffier it is, the easier the hold in the curling iron on the back end.
Now I wish I wouldn’t have chopped my hair off! Big short hair just isn’t as cute.
Oh and btw, I have that exact same curling iron and love it.
no, its not…BUT when I was PG the 1st time, i totally lost my head and cut my hair short and then still refused to not curl it…so i have some big short hair in those shots. Its kinda funny….big belly, big hair. I should dig them up. They are a warning not to make hair decisions while hormonal.