How To Get Heatless Curls For Medium To Long Hair

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People have different preferences when it comes to their hair. Some like them long, others want them chopped short, while yet another is somewhere in between. Then there are also differences when it comes to styling, with some people loving voluminous curls, while others wanting them straight as can be, but anyone who likes curls wants to know how to get heatless curls.

There’s no arguing that having perfectly waves can give anyone such a boost of confidence, but those who have not been blessed with naturally curly hair will need to put in a bit of work to make it that way. However, even though a curling iron will give you beautiful, bouncy curls in any shape you like, it’s not a really practical solution if you’re going to style your hair in curls every day, as it will only end up damaging them.

And damaged hair will lose its shine, become brittle and dry, and may even stop growing, and then you’ll have a world of problems trying to get them to their original, healthy self, through hair growth masks or other remedies.

Thankfully, a curling iron is not the only way to get curls – far from it actually. After all, people have been styling their hair long before curling or flat irons were invented. There are several methods you can use to get curls of any shape you like – from loose beachy waves to tight coils – and they don’t use a bit of heat, and sometimes you don’t even have to spend a penny on curlers.

Scroll down to see a list of methods you can use to get heatless curls if you have long to medium hair:

Bendy rollers

The foam bendy rollers come in a variety of sizes, depending on what type of curls you want to achieve. There are short thin ones which are used for getting tighter curls as you can only wrap small sections of hair around it. The thicker the curler is, the bigger your curls will be, but it also depends on how much hair you use, and how long your hair is.

For example, you can use 8-10 medium sized rollers, and get smaller curls, or just use 3-4, and you will end up with looser curls. Another tip is to put your hair in a very high, loose ponytail on top of your head and use just one bendy roller and your hair will end up resembling a blow-out. Really, the options are endless.

Keep in mind, however, that if your hair is on the shorter to medium-length side, it’ll be harder to use fewer curlers than if you had longer hair.

Here is a video by Charlotte Hole for reference:

Foam rollers

Foam rollers are thicker in diameter and have a plastic clasp to secure them to your hair. You can also use these in a variety of methods, and the tightness or looseness of your hair will depend on how much hair your wrap around.

Using about 8 foam rollers will give you similar results to using 3 bendy rollers, but you will get more control over them.

Check out this video by Jessica Kellgren-Fozard for reference:

Curlformers

These are a newer invention which started appearing everywhere a couple years back, and just as with the two previous options, you can use it in a variety of ways to get different curl shapes. You get a long plastic gripping stick which you can use to grab hair and drag them through the curler, which then bends into shape and curls your hair as it dries.

Here’s a video by Lainey Marie Beauty for reference:

Headband method

Just place a headband around your head like a hippy, and then begin tucking and wrapping pieces of your hair around the headband until they resemble a twisted headband updo.

Leave them on overnight, and after you let them down, just comb through them with your fingers or a wide tooth comb, and you’re done.

See this video by Pretty Reflection for reference:

Clip method

This is a very simple method which involves wrapping sections of hair around your finger in a spiral and then just pinning them in place with a hair clip. Let them dry for a few hours or overnight, and let them down.

Real Beauty by Cynthia on YouTube explains it very well:

Twists method

For this method, just divide your hair into a few sections depending on how curly you want your hair to be, twist them around itself, then roll them into a bun and secure it with pins or hair ties. When they dry, take them out and carefully finger-brush through them.

Watch this video by Morgan Gregory for reference:

Ballerina bun method

This is pretty self-explanatory. Just secure all your hair into a loose ponytail on top of your head, and get one of those ballerina bun donuts or bun-creators and wrap your damp hair around it. Leave it on overnight and when you wake up, you will have bouncy, loose curls.

Learn how with this tutorial by Luxy Hair:

For tighter curls, you can divide your hair into two sections, like high pigtails and follow the same method.

Just use socks!

If you do not have any of these products, and no time to run to the dollar store to get them, the simplest alternative is to just use socks.

You can wrap sections of hair around a calf-length sock, tie them and leave them on overnight for the kind of curls you would get from the bendy or foam rollers.

Another way to use socks is making a ballerina bun donut out of them. Just cut the tip of the sock at the toes, and then begin rolling back the sock around itself until it forms a donut, as it’s shown in the video above. Then proceed in the same way as you would with a store-bought ballerina bun donut.

Keep in mind:

DO NOT leave your hair soaking wet! It needs to be only a little damp if you want it to dry and hold your curl. If you use soaking wet hair, when you take out your curlers, you will still have wet hair and no curls.
You do not need to have freshly washed hair for this to work. You can do in on second or third-day hair too. All you need to do is spray your hair with a little water or run a wet comb/brush through them before rolling them in the curlers.
The more hair you roll, the bigger and looser your curls will be, and similarly, the less hair you roll, the tighter the curls will end up.
Do not roll all your hair in the same direction – roll them all away from your face.
If you use a twisty method, there’s a chance your hair will continue to roll in itself through the day and end up looking more stringy, and less curly.

And there you go, you’re now well-taught in the art of heatless curls. Go enjoy your new fabulous hair.