April 16, 2023

How to Damp Style without Wet Frizz

Damp styling is a styling technique for curly hair that involves applying your products to towel-dried hair versus soaking wet hair. Most curly hair routines involve wet styling which means you apply your products to very wet hair, sometimes even while still in the shower for maximum clumping and frizz prevention. However, damp styling has so many benefits, including faster dry time, more volume, and stronger hold. Styling with hair that is too dry can result in stringiness and frizz, so how can you avoid this while also reaping the benefits of damp styling? In this video, I show you exactly how much water I use while styling to have the best of both damp and wet styling.

Step-by-Step Damp Styling Routine

After washing your hair and rinsing out your conditioner, rake your hands through your hair gently, lifting it off the scalp. Scrunch gently to squeeze out the excess water. Wrap your hair loosely in a hair towel or T-shirt.
After a few minutes, remove the towel and spritz the lengths & surface hair with a spray bottle or wet your hands. Ensure the lengths are evening wet without any frizzy areas. Avoid over-saturating the hair. The hair should not be dripping or soaking your clothes.
Apply a leave-in conditioner or curl cream. I went with a lightweight leave-in but either will be moisturizing. Comb through using a brush for even product distribution and to smooth frizz.
Section hair and apply a gel for hold and to prevent frizz. I prefer to go with lightweight, liquidy gel formulas that have water in the first few ingredients. This will apply easier to damp hair compared to very thick, sticky gels. Brush style to smooth frizz and clump the hair.
Using a damp section of your hair towel or T-shirt, scrunch your hair gently. If any frizz pieces form, glaze a light layer of gel mixed with water over.
Diffuse until the hair is fully dry. Use root clips for added root volume if desired. Fluff hair once fully dry and scrunch out any unwanted gel cast.

For reference, this was the amount of water that I used during my styling process. The spray bottle was full before I started.

How porosity affects how much water you use

Porosity refers to how absorbent your hair is, or well your hair can absorb and retain moisture.

High porosity hair is very absorbent so it soaks up a lot of water and when you squeeze it out using a towel or through scrunching, it releases it all leaving frizz. The layering technique I shared where you style damp, microplop, then go in without another light glaze of gel is the best method for high-porosity hair or those who struggle with getting a cast.

Those with low porosity hair struggle with their hair absorbing water and product, so it often sits on the surface and they can experience weighed-down hair easily. Styling with more water can increase absorption versus damp styling.

Medium porosity hair can experiment with either damp or wet styling, or use a combination of both like I did in this video.