Wavy vs curly hair: Why the rules are totally different

The routine switch that made my bad hair days almost extinct.

For years, I thought I just had insanely frizzy hair. I’d shower, leave it to dry and bam, it was a mess. That changed one day during Covid when I came across a Reel that instantly hooked me: “Does your hair always look frizzy after you shower?” the girl in the video asked. Yes! I almost screamed at the screen. “Well, maybe it’s curly,” she told me.

I never thought of my hair as curly, but it made sense. Since then, I’ve been on a mission to bring out my curls. I’ve followed countless tutorials, each claiming it’s the only curly routine you’ll ever need. But they never seemed to work on my hair – I was always left feeling defeated and a little crunchy.

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After a lot of trial and error, I finally realised I was lying to myself. I didn’t have curls, I had waves. Figuring this out has completely changed my hair game. Now, I think I can finally say I’ve found a wavy hair routine that works.

As it turns out, curly and wavy hair types require a completely different set of rules. The key difference lies in the shape; wavy hair forms soft S-shapes, whereas curly hair forms more defined ringlets – this determines how the hair absorbs product.

Wavy hair like mine tends to take shape from the mid-length to ends, which means it doesn’t create as much natural volume. This is why it benefits from lightweight, volumising products like mousse, which adds volume without weighing the hair down. Curly hair, on the other hand, tends to be thicker, producing natural volume from the roots. Curls benefit from heavier moisturising products to keep tighter coils bouncy and healthy.

My fellow Fashion Journal intern, Lily, has the most stunning curly hair. She says it’s a “genetic anomaly” – the rest of her family has pin-straight hair. Like me, Lily was convinced she had frizzy hair for years until her TikTok feed started showing her videos of curly hair routines. After trying countless methods, “in classic me fashion, I landed on the one that felt the least effort,” she tells me.

If you’re looking to embrace your own naturally curly or wavy hair, here’s exactly what Lily and I do. Maybe, unlike us, it won’t take you years to perfect your hair routine.

Lily’s curly hair routine

Curl type: 3A

I start after a shower with clean, soaking wet hair. I use Clever Curl’s shampoo and conditioner, as well as their hydrating mask and blonde-toning treatment when I need. 

Then, I rake through a curl cream from my mid-lengths to ends. I am way less picky with products for this step – as long as it’s moisturising and feels nice in my hair, I’m happy. 

Next up comes the mousse. I use Clever Curl mousse and rake and scrunch it into my hair on top of the curl cream. 

This is the most important step: gel. Depending on the season and where I am, I use either the Humid Weather Curl Gel or the Dry Weather Curl Gel from Clever Curl. I take the gel between my hands and run it through my hair using something TikTok calls ‘the praying hands method.’ Basically, the goal is to coat the entire length of my hair in gel.

Finally, I scrunch and watch my curls take shape, either leaving them to air-dry or diffusing. 

Note that once dry, there will be a ‘gel cast’ left on your hair. I wait until my hair is 100 per cent dry and then dry-scrunch. This breaks the crunchy gel cast, leaving you with gorgeous, non-crunchy curls.

Amelia’s wavy hair routine

Wave type: 2B

I start before the shower. I wash my hair once to twice a week, rotating between a protein treatment and a hydrating hair mask before each wash. When washing, I’m not picky with my shampoo or conditioner, I just use what’s on hand (maybe don’t take my advice there). 

When my hair is squeaky clean, I scrunch it dry with a microfibre towel until it’s about 50 per cent dry. I don’t brush it, I just flip my hair and give it a shake from the roots.

Next, I spray my hair with a homemade concoction of leave-in conditioner and water, at a one to three ratio. I don’t use too much, just enough to re-dampen my hair slightly.

Then, mousse. I’m not too picky, but the John Frieda curl-defining mouse is a good one. I use just enough to coat both my hands, then use the praying hands technique to coat my hair roots to ends. I focus a little extra on my roots for extra volume. Then I scrunch gently, pressing rather than squeezing with my hands.

I let my hair air dry, leaving a hair claw at my roots for volume. Once dry, I gently scrunch any crunch away and add a tiny bit of oil to my ends to keep them shiny.

To find out if your hair’s wavy or curly, try this.