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Hair

Get Ready to See Cloud Curls Everywhere This Fall

Here's how to get the look.

Are you ready to let your hair down? After a summer of short cuts and heat-beating styles, the upcoming season is all about going big or going home. Enter cloud curls—the voluminous, carefree trend making a major comeback. This super easy style is perfect for any hair type and will make you feel like your head is in the clouds. Keep reading to learn more.

Featured Experts

• Shelly Aguirre is a stylist at Maxine Salon in Chicago
• Marie Nino is a colorist and stylist based in New York
• April Kayganich is a Hairstory stylist

What Are Cloud Curls?

Some trends require molding your hair into a specific shape or style. Cloud curls, on the other hand, celebrate your hair’s natural texture and movement. “Cloud curls are unique because they are allowing the more natural curl pattern to dictate what ‘cloud curls’ actually are,” says a stylist at Maxine Salon in Chicago, Shelly Aguirre. “The term has been coined, and it’s letting natural hair be its own style, even with the halo of frizz that is often associated with natural hair. It’s youthful and fun and more carefree than trying to control each curl and making it behave.”

This time last year, the Botticelli curl look was on everyone’s mind. And you can think of cloud curls as a twist (pardon the pun) on this look. “Cloud curls are softer, airier, and more voluminous compared to the structured Botticelli curls,” explains New York stylist and colorist Marie Nino.

Hairstory top stylist April Kayganich agrees that this soft volume lets your hair type shine. “How I see the cloud curls trend is that it is more inclusive to all curl types,” Kayganich says. “That is what sets it apart from the Botticelli curls trend. Cloud curls are easier to achieve because they are less defined, natural curls, so you’re not aiming for a particular curl pattern. Botticelli curls were after a specific look: a soft, diffused, loose corkscrew.”

How to Get the Cloud Curls Look

“For the tousled and fluffy cloud curl, your best bet is to let the curl pattern tell you how it wants to behave,” advises Aguirre. After the hair is dry, you should run your fingers through it and let it loose! This isn’t encouraging frizzy unkept hair; it’s letting the curls feel intentional.”

If you’re thinking big hair with a lot of attitude, you’re on the right track! “When I think of cloud curls, I think of Diana Ross in the 80s; I think of Solange on the cover of her album, A Seat At the Table,” says Kayganich. “This look can be achieved easily. One way to go about it is using less product. This is where you would opt for lower-hold products, specifically a cream. I would reach for Hairstory Hair Balm ($37) in this situation. You will still apply this product to really wet or very damp hair and rake it through. To get more volume and some hold, spray, lift and then diffuse. Let your curls live their best, undefined life.”

For Thick Hair:

Since big and full hair is the goal, thick hair does especially well with this free-curl trend. “If you have shorter curls and/or very dense hair, you could even use a comb attachment on your blow dryer to stretch the hair at the roots and soften the definition throughout,” Kayganich explains.

For Straight Hair:

For straight hair, you’ll need to first create and then deconstruct your curls.

“To make cloud curls airy and fluffy with a curling iron, start by using a larger barrel iron for looser curls,” explains Nino. “Wrap small sections of hair around the iron, leaving the ends out for a more relaxed look. Once the curls cool, gently separate them with your fingers, then lightly tease the roots for added volume. Finish with a lightweight texturizing spray to keep the curls soft and airy without weighing them down.”

Pro Tip: Aguirre suggests reaching for a texture spray if your straight hair is giving you trouble. “The bigger the hair, the better!”