How to Get the Best Beach Waves Using Just Your Flat Iron
If you’ve ever wanted to travel with just one hair styling tool, or simply want to declutter your vanity, odds are you’ve found yourself wondering if it’s possible to create a beautiful look wave or curl with just a flat iron – and of course it is!
Not only is it doable, but it’s also relatively simple to achieve beautiful beachy waves or tight spirals sans curling iron. In a few simple steps, celebrity hairstylist and Moroccanoil spokesperson Bryce Scarlett breaks down how you can achieve a classic curl and an S-wave with just your hair straightener.
How to get beach waves with a flat iron
Simply put, an S-wave makes your strands look like an "S." Depending on how you decide to create them, either glam or more laid-back beachy wave, they're fairly simple to create. Here, Scarlett breaks it down:
Step 1: Prep hair with a heat protectant, and“spray it throughout hair, from mid-length to ends,” says Scarlett. This will save hair from too much heat damage.
Step 2: Section hair. “Begin at the base of the head at the root and create small sections. Then divide hair into thin 1-inch wide sections,” says Scarlett. “Smaller sections will give a more textured, beachy wave. Larger sections will create a softer, smoother, more subtle S-wave,” he explains.
Step 3: Create soft bends. With your flat iron held horizontally, take a half-inch to two-inch sections of your hair and create a soft S-shape bend by clamping and pulling the flat iron it alternating directions through the strand (view a tutorial here). To achieve a blown-out look, Scarlett recommends bending the ends of your hair under, and for a more undone look, he suggests stopping before reaching your tips to leave out the hair's natural texture.
"The more repetitions you do, the beachier and more textured it will look, whereas bigger distances between the waves will give you a more soft, glamorous wave," he adds. To add volume, Scarlett suggests using a texturizing spray in each section, and to create a sleeker look, he recommends using a frizz control product instead.
Step 4: Add finishing touches with product. To add shine and define sections, Scarlett recommends using the Moroccanoil Luminous Hairspray Medium. For a softer look, he suggests swapping the hairspray for a dry shampoo and brushing through the hair with a brush (or your fingers!) to loosen the final look.
How to create classic spiral curls with a flat iron
"Achieving a proper curl with a flat iron is similar to the idea of curling a ribbon with a pair of scissors," illustrates Scarlett. "It is all about creating tension and the perfect angle on the hair and gliding through in such a way that gets the curl to bounce back."
Step 1: Apply a heat protectant. Make sure to apply it throughout your hair, from root to top, to help prevent heat-related hair damage.
Step 2: Twist and pull the flat iron through hair. Clamp hair in the flat iron and with the hair between the plates, rotate the flat iron at least 180º. "Begin at the base of the head at the root and create small sections, pulling the iron away from the face, from the crown through to the ends," says Scarlett.
To create a more natural and texturized look, alternate between twisting the iron away from your face and towards it. Continue through all sections of the hair. To create volume, Scarlett suggests teasing hair at the crown of the head and not brushing through finished curls.
Step 3: Set curls with hairspray. Spritz a medium-hold hairspray on the hair and with your fingers, work it into your curls to help elongate the life of your hairstyle without looking crunchy or too done.
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