As the proverb goes, thick hair is both a blessing and a curse. Like the fairy tale princesses of yore, your piles of hair can be braided into almost any fashionable updo. They can probably even support the weight of a grown man (although we don’t recommend trying it). On the other hand, quality hairstyles for thick hair can be curiously hard to find.
With the right hair professional and a little inspiration, you should be able to wrangle your beautiful mane into a style that feels polished—not overwhelming.
What hairstyles for thick hair look best?
When we discuss the challenges associated with thick hair, it’s almost always a combination of two factors: weight and movement. Whether we’re talking about coarse strands or simply a scalp with lots of hair on it, all that follicular madness can weigh down even the most well-intentioned style.
Once you’re at the salon, your stylist will gauge your experience with hot tool styling and product formulas before suggesting either reduced length or layers. Once it’s been freed of excess inches, you’ll be surprised at how much texture your mane suddenly has.
Using a curling wand or blow dryer, your professional will set out to teach you how to create movement in your thick hair. Waves, layers, and curls visually break up the hair, helping it look weightless and bouncy. Bye-bye, thick hair blues.
The Textured Bob
The bob of 2017 is nothing like the one you remember from childhood—and thank goodness for that. While women with fine hair often have to be careful lest their cropped haircuts fall flat, thick hair means there’s no danger of that.
Be sure to sit with your stylist for a consultation before he or she ever breaks out the scissors. Thick hair shouldn’t be feared, but it does need to be treated with care. Any hair professional will have dozens of tricks for maintaining your bob’s shape. Before you know it, your thick hair will be totally under control.
The Laid-back Lob
Lobs are the skinny jeans of the hair world: Women of just about every age, hair texture, and length can get behind the cause. If you’re hoping to enliven your hair without saying goodbye to, talk to your stylist about a shoulder length lob with layers for movement.
For this cut to work in your daily life, make sure you’ve gotten a seriously in-depth curling wand tutorial from your pro before exiting the salon. Come Monday morning, you’ll be grateful for it.
The Curly Shag
Women who have thick, curly manes often get forgotten by mainstream hair culture even though they’re just as deserving of a good cut as the rest of us. That injustice ends today! Meet the curly shag, a retro cut designed to build volume at the crown while encouraging bouncy, springy ringlets.
Just as the lob requires a certain facility with the curling iron, the shag is all about using the perfect product to define curls and stop frizz before it starts. Make sure your stylist is well aware of those goals so he or she can help you choose a routine that actually works.
