How to Make a Curly Ponytail

A new twist on an old favorite can revamp your hairstyle and make you look good and feel great. The ponytail is a classic that is easy to dress up or down to suit your mood and the occasion. A curly ponytail can add instant glamor to both casual and even formal styles. The key to this classy hairdo is all in the prep work.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Hot rollers or curling iron
• Shine serum
• Claw clips for sectioning hair
• Hairspray
• Wide-toothed wire comb or pick
• Sturdy hair elastics

1. Begin with bone-dry, less than clean hair. Twelve to 24 hours after your last wash is prime ponytail time before it goes to the greasy side of the spectrum. Hair that isn't freshly washed tends to grip to itself better and makes for easy styling. If your hair tends to frizz or is very thick, iron your hair in sections with a straightening iron before you add curls to keep the look sleek. If you have thin or stick straight hair, add a volume boosting product to your hair before you add curl.

2. Fire up the medium-barreled curling iron or hot rollers, and then add a few drops of a shine serum to your hair, avoiding the roots. Section off your hair into half-inch thick sections with hair clips.

3. Curl all of your hair. Start with the nape of your neck and work your way to the upper layers by your crown and temples. If you are using a curling iron, pull out small sections of hair and spray each section with hair spray. Then, roll the section onto the barrel tightly, and wait for a count of 30 or so.

4. Unroll in the barrel vertically downward to create soft spirals. Use the same process with the rollers, but roll all of them and then leave them in until they are cool to the touch. After your entire head is curled, pull out a wide-toothed wire comb or pick to arrange the curls for a more uniform texture. Use the comb to pull the curls out a little bit, and blend them together for a more natural look.

5. Put a hair elastic around one wrist, and then start lifting your curls with the comb, one layer at a time, into a ponytail at the nape of your neck for a low ponytail, or just above the halfway point between the nape of your neck and the crown of your head for an elegant, high ponytail.

6. Make the ponytail. Don't pull the hair tightly from the root. Instead, leave just a little slack. The curls and hair spray can help sustain the extra volume without creating fly-aways. When the ponytail looks right to you, pinch it tightly in place with one hand and then work the elastic band on your wrist over the curls, and secure it tightly so that your ponytail doesn't flop.

7. Use the wire comb one more time to arrange the curls and smooth any lumps or bumps around the elastic, and then finish up with a bit more hairspray.