If you jumped on the curtain bang trend but have been struggling to add volume to them ever since you left the salon, we’re with you. Like we knew side bangs weren’t exactly a wash-and-go job, but boy did we underestimate them. Apart from the rare occasion where they do look okay-ish on their own, our side bangs are usually naturally stuck to our face or sticking out in all sorts of directions. Sometimes even both - a very good excuse to pull a sickie at work.  

But curtain bangs don’t have to be the worst decision you’ve made this year. If you miss the time when double texting that guy was your biggest regret (NBD, we’ve done worse), here are our need-to-know tips for adding volume to side bangs that aren’t just for the pros. Side bangs good enough to get a triple text coming right up…

Gear Up with a Round Brush

Using the wrong hair tools to create bangs with volume is a rookie mistake. First things first: invest in a round brush – the bigger the better. Wrapping your curtain bangs around a round brush when blow drying your hair will give them bounce for days.

Hold a round brush horizontally across the top of your forehead and wrap your bangs over the top of the bristles. Dry them backwards and upwards as you rotate the brush towards you in your hand. Once fully dry, release your side bangs and they’ll naturally float back down to their natural position, but with way more volume.

Dry Your Bangs Before the Rest of Your Hair 

Most of us dry the rest of our hair before we try and tackle our curtain bangs. When our bangs only take a couple of minutes to dry, it makes sense to start where it’ll take the longest (in our heads anyway).

But when our hair is still super wet and fresh out of the shower, it’s easier to be styled before it starts to set in its natural ways. Basically, the quicker you start to dry your bangs, the more they’ll work with you, not againstyou, making it easier to add volume with a round brush.

Don’t Spray Curls N’ Clouds Volume Spray Directly onto Your Bangs

You’ve probably been tempted to get all up in there and spritz our Volume Spray all over your bangs, but having all of that product in your side bangs will only weigh them down and minimise volume.

To use Curls N’ Clouds Volume Spray to add volume to your side bangs, apply it as usual to the rest of your hair (by spraying and massaging it into the roots), then use the remaining product on your hands for your bangs.

If you really feel like you need a little bit more product, spray it into your hands first to avoid using too much product in your side bangs.

Regularly Wash Your Bangs

You might have trained your hair to go half a week without a wash and not look greasy (kudos!), but your bangs never seem to get the memo. As bangs involve less hair than the rest of your head, oil build-up happens a lot sooner. They also regularly touch your skin, transferring dirt and bacteria, and weighing down your hair.

But washing your entire head of hair just to keep your bangs clean seems crazy, right? And it is, especially when you can just wash your curtain bangs to get more volume. Whenever your bangs look a lil’ sad but the rest of your hair isn’t in the feels yet, grab a teeny tiny bit of shampoo and wash them separately to perk them up in between hair wash days.