By: Maggie Young
When you lead an on-the-go lifestyle, it’s critical to have some easy hair tips to pull together a finished look at a moment’s notice. The ideal way to do this is to prep your style the night before for an effortless hairdo when you wake up. Hair experts weighed in to share the best ways to rock a styled look with before-bed tips and tricks. Of course, you’ll have to do a tiny bit of tidying up in the AM, but these ideas cut out a lot of extra time and work when you’re rushing to get out the door in the morning. In general, dry shampoo, a straightener and a curling iron are key players for morning touchups.
Waves and Curls
If you want to wake up with beach waves and a more natural look overall, braids can help, especially if you have straighter locks. Emily Kearney, a professional hairstylist, says to braid damp or almost dry hair before you doze off. “In the morning use a dry texture spray and scrunch your hair once you have taken out the braids,” recommends Kearney. “Loosely pin bobby pins on one or both sides for a fun, relaxed look.” Other products Kearney noted are L’Oréal Next Day Hair dry styling spray and Moroccan oil dry texture spray.
If braids don’t work for you, there is another before-bed trick that creates a natural bigger wave. “Twist both sides of your hair (twisting towards the back) and then grab both sides into a low loose bun with a scrunchy,” shares Molly McPheter, a professional hairstylist at Roots & Branches.
Straight Hair Look
It’s difficult to produce a sleek and straight look after snoozing, especially with natural curls, but these tips will help you wake up with straighter hair. “Use a serum or smoothing cream to tame frizz and straighten hair,” Kearney telIs Lively. “Moroccan or Argan oil and hydrating styling cream/smoothing lotion are all great products for smoothing hair while adding moisture.” Kearney advises running the products through your hair while it’s damp and either blow drying or air drying. In the morning, all you will have to do is run the flat iron through your hair.
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Sleek Ponytail or Bun
Before bed, use a smoothing lotion, cream or serum on your locks. In addition, make sure hair is dry before sleeping on it. “In the morning you will simply smooth out the hair and shape the ponytail/bun as desired,” shares Kearney. “Use hairspray to tame flyaways.” According to McPheter, it’s also important to invest in a smoothing brush with boar bristles. Her recommendation would be the Kevin Murphy smoothing brush.
Avoid These Pre-Sleep Hair Mistakes
What you do with your hair before sleep can really affect your morning hair. It’s important to know what not to do so that you don’t mistakenly make morning styling more difficult. Kearney recommends not sleeping on wet hair as it makes it more challenging to manage and style the next day. In addition, McPheter shares that avoiding tight ponytails is key. If you do need to put it back, try a loose scrunchie.