Down curls are the style I’m asked for most, and the one I spend the most trial time on, because loose hair has nothing to hide behind. An updo can be pinned back into shape; a curl that falls has to have been set properly in the first place. The family runs from sculpted Old Hollywood waves to piecey boho-inspired tendrils, and nearly any length or texture can wear one of them as long as the method suits the hair. Below are 20 versions I’d happily put on a bride, with notes on how each one behaves once the day is under way.
Prep That Decides How Long a Down Curl Lasts
Every curl below depends on what happens before the iron comes out. Down hair has no pins holding it up, so it relies entirely on the set, and the set relies on the state of the hair you arrive with.
Wash the day before
Freshly washed hair is slippery, and curls slide out of it fast. Wash the day before, keep conditioner off the roots, and skip oil treatments that week because they weigh the lengths down. If your scalp gets oily overnight, that’s fine; dry shampoo at the root fixes it and adds grip at the same time.
Your texture changes the method
- Fine, straight hair: a smaller barrel than you’d guess, setting spray before heat, and each curl pinned to cool before it’s touched.
- Thick hair: smaller sections and more time on the iron, or the outer layer curls while the hair underneath stays straight.
- Naturally wavy hair: often better to enhance your own wave and only reshape the front than to fight it all over.
- Curly and coily hair: defined with product and air or a diffuser, not heat, so it keeps its pattern instead of drying out.
Humid days and outdoor ceremonies
Moisture in the air is what loosens a heat-set curl. On a humid day I use an anti-humidity spray at the start and curl a little tighter than the reference photo. A curl that starts too firm softens into the right shape by the ceremony; one that starts perfect is usually gone by the speeches.
1. Old Hollywood Glamour Curls
This is the most technical look on the list, and the one I’d never skip a trial for. Every section is curled in the same direction and pinned flat to cool, then brushed out with a boar bristle brush until the curls join into one continuous wave. That brushing is where it lives or dies: stop too soon and you get separate ringlets, keep going and it frizzes. A deep side part gives the wave its sweep. On very fine hair I mist a setting spray before the heat goes on, otherwise the ridges soften by dinner. Keep the earrings bold and the neckline clean so the wave has room to show.
2. Loose Romantic Curls
Big barrel, and each curl loosened with the fingers only once it has cooled. Warm curls pulled apart turn into fluff. I finish with a flexible spray so the hair still swings when you turn your head. Honest caveat: on straight, silky hair this relaxes faster than anything else here, so if your curls usually vanish within an hour, ask for a smaller barrel and let the natural drop do the loosening. Two face-framing pieces are enough. Any more and they stick to lip gloss.
3. Half-Up Half-Down Curls
Can’t decide between an updo and down curls? This is where most of my brides land, and for practical reasons. The top section pulled back gives a veil comb or hairpiece something solid to grip, and it keeps hair out of your food. I anchor it with two crossed bobby pins under a small twist or braid before anything decorative goes in. Almost every length can wear it. The only hair I’d hesitate on is very short layering above the shoulder, where the back can look thin next to the gathered top.
4. Beach Wave Curls
Beach wave curls are what most of my coastal brides ask for, and they suit sand and vineyards better than anything polished. I use a wide-barrel wand and leave the last inch or two straight, which is exactly what stops it reading as a formal curl. Texturizing spray adds grip and piecey definition. The trade-off is wind. A wave this loose tangles at the back on a clifftop, so I tuck a wide-tooth comb in the kit and suggest the photographer puts the breeze behind you rather than across your face.
5. Vintage Pin Curls
Pin curls take patience, and that patience is why they hold. Each section is curled, wound back into a flat coil and pinned against the scalp until it is completely cold, usually a good quarter of an hour, then brushed into soft volume and swept to one side. Rushing the cooling is the usual mistake. I like this with a birdcage veil or a few pearl pins in smaller rooms where guests see the detail up close. Squeaky-clean hair is the enemy here; second-day hair grips the set far better.
6. Boho Tousled Curls
Here I curl loosely and then brush the curls right out, so the texture comes up fuller and fluffier than a defined curl. Flower crowns and soft headbands sit well on it because there’s enough body to hide the band. It belongs in gardens and woodland settings. One warning: brushed-out texture plus humidity can tip into frizz, so on frizz-prone hair I use an anti-humidity spray first and separate with fingers instead of a brush.
7. Side-Swept Curls
Everything goes over one shoulder, which opens the other side of the neck for earrings and an asymmetric or strappy neckline. The real work is at the back: I cross pins along the nape on the clean side so the hair doesn’t creep back during the ceremony. Side-swept curls also need one decision people forget, which is which side faces your partner at the altar, because that’s the side guests photograph. A small comb at the anchor hides the pins. Very long, heavy hair drags on that one anchor, so I use more pins, not fewer.
8. Layered Curls With Face-Framing Pieces
Layers do half the work. Shorter pieces sit higher and frame the face, longer ones fall behind, so the shape has movement even standing still. I curl in alternating directions so the pieces don’t merge into one block, and I always turn the front tendrils away from the face; curled inward, they close in on the cheekbones in photos. Fresh layers cut the week before can look choppy, so book any trim three or four weeks out.
9. Curls With a Veil
Wondering if you can wear curls with a veil? Yes, but it changes how I set them. A veil drapes over the hair and weighs the curls down, and tulle snags on hairspray that’s still tacky. I let the spray dry fully before the comb goes in, and place it at the crown or under a half-up section where there’s hair to grip. Long cathedral lengths pull backward, so that comb needs a pinned base beneath it. Expect the curls under the veil to be a touch flatter after it comes off; a shake from the roots brings them back.
10. Defined Spiral Curls
Spirals work best on hair that already curls, because they enhance a pattern rather than invent one. I rake curl cream through soaking-wet sections and then leave them alone to dry, diffused on low or in the air. Touching them while they dry is what causes frizz. Heat-made spirals on straight hair are possible with a small barrel, but they drop by the evening. Once dry, I break up any stiffness with a drop of oil on my palms, and keep accessories small so the spirals stay the detail.
11. Soft Waves With Deep Side Part
Simple, and harder to get right than it looks. Large iron, curls brushed out gently, and the part pushed deep so the wave falls across one side of the forehead. The part has to be set at the blow-dry stage: I dry the roots in that direction so they don’t spring back toward the centre by mid-afternoon. It suits a clean, sleek gown and very little jewelry. If you have a strong cowlick at the front, show me at the trial. It decides which side the part can live on.
12. Voluminous Bouncy Curls
Volume comes from the roots, not the curl. I backcomb gently at the crown, curl in alternating directions and leave them a little tighter than you want, since voluminous bouncy curls always relax by the reception. The extra body means it can carry a tiara or heavier sparkle. Thick hair needs less teasing than you’d expect; fine hair needs more, plus a root-lift spray before the dryer. Plan to brush the back out a little after the hugs.
13. Curls With Fresh Flowers
Small blooms with sturdy stems last in hair. Soft petals don’t. Baby’s breath and spray roses hold up for hours, while gardenias and hydrangea bruise and brown quickly against warm hair and skin. I pin or wire each flower individually rather than tucking it in loose, and ask the florist to deliver hair flowers separately so they stay cool until the last moment. One cluster on one side reads cleaner in photos than flowers scattered through every curl. Spring and outdoor weddings suit it most naturally.
14. Sleek Glossy Curls
Shine depends on a smooth cuticle, so this starts at the blow-dry: round brush, smoothing serum on the mid-lengths and ends, and the nozzle pointed down the hair shaft. The curls are then set and brushed only lightly so the surface stays reflective. Overdo the serum and it looks greasy under flash, so I use about a pea-sized amount. It belongs with formal, modern weddings and structured gowns. Coarse or highly textured hair can get there with a silk press, but book that a few days ahead, never the morning of.
15. Curtain Bangs With Curls
Curtain bangs change the frame of the face more than any curl does. I curl them outward, away from the eyes, and park them in a velcro roller while I work on the rest, so they hold a soft bend instead of falling flat. Curtain bangs with curls sit comfortably at a modern or a boho wedding. If you’re thinking of cutting bangs for the occasion, do it at least six weeks out so you know how they grow and settle.
16. Crown Braid With Down Curls
A soft braid around the crown gives the top some structure while the lengths stay down. It’s also the most secure base for a flower crown or small hairpiece, since pins can lock into the braid itself. I pancake it, gently pulling each loop wider, so it shows from the side in photos. Layered hair is the tricky case: short layers poke out of a braid, so I’d plan on tiny pins or texture spray to keep them in. Garden and boho weddings carry it best.
17. Half-Up Curls With Twists
Twists are quicker and softer than a braid, and on fine hair they often look fuller. I take a section from each temple, twist it back toward the centre and lock both with pins crossed into an X, which grips far better than a single pin. Twisting back rather than downward stops them loosening as you move. The curls hang free below, and a veil comb slots in neatly above the join. On very silky hair, a little dry texture spray before twisting stops the pins sliding out.
18. Tight Coily Curls
Natural coils are about moisture and definition, not heat. I work curl cream through damp hair in small sections, finger-define a few coils at the front where people look most, and let it dry undisturbed. Shrinkage is normal, so the length you see wet isn’t the length you’ll get. Tight coily curls keep their pattern in humidity far better than any heat-set style here. A single sparkly clip or flowers on one side is plenty. If you usually wear protective styles, try a wash-and-go at your trial, since freshly released hair can behave differently.
19. Curls With a Bridal Tiara
A tiara needs something to sit on. I build a small backcombed base at the crown, set the tiara in and pin through its side loops so it doesn’t slide forward when you bow your head. Placing it slightly behind the hairline usually looks more natural than right at the front. With the curls falling free, the tiara carries all the formality, which is why it suits a ballroom. Wearing a veil too? The comb usually goes behind the tiara, and the pair should be tested together at the trial.
20. Messy Romantic Curls
People assume this needs no work. It takes as much as the polished version. I curl everything first, then pull pieces out, muss the shape and leave a few ends straight so it looks lived-in rather than accidentally undone. Skip the curl underneath and by evening it simply looks flat. Boho, outdoor and small weddings suit it, and one delicate clip is enough decoration.
What Down Curls Really Look Like at Hour Eight
I’m straight with brides about this: down curls relax over the day, every time. What matters is whether they relax into a soft wave you still like or into straight hair with bent ends.
The things that speed up the drop are predictable. A warm, packed dance floor, rain or sea air, leaning back against a chair, and lots of hands in the hair during hugs. The things that slow it are just as simple: a proper set, curls left to cool before brushing, and a final mist of spray held well away from the head so it doesn’t clump.
A small bag for whoever is minding your hair
- A travel-size bottle of the same hairspray used that morning
- A few bobby pins in your hair colour, already opened
- A wide-tooth comb for wind tangles; a fine brush will pull curls out
- A cordless mini curler if your hair is the type that drops within an hour
Give the bag to one bridesmaid and tell her where it is. If fresh curls for the reception matter to you, ask your stylist whether she can stay for a touch-up between ceremony and portraits; most will quote for it, and ten minutes there does more than any amount of spray in the morning.
Which Curl Survives Your Venue, Your Hair and Your Dress
Down curls are romantic, but they’re also the least forgiving style I do, which is why I match the curl to the hair and the venue before I match it to a photo. Polished waves and tousled boho texture sit at opposite ends of that range, and most brides belong somewhere specific on it. Bring your neckline and veil plan to the trial, ask for a strong-hold finish if your hair usually drops, and pick the version you’d still be happy with in photos taken after ten hours of dancing.
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