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#AskNickChavez I need a new style without cutting my hair but curls won't stay. Any ideas?

— @sweetchick79607) March 7, 2016

As you already know, curling hair is a great way to switch up your style and visually shorten hair (without the commitment of actually chopping any off).

But what if sporting curls is already your go-to style? Or, as in this case, you simply can’t seem to get your hair to hold its bend? Here is a great option for a fresh new way to make a statement hairstyle without a trip to the salon.

Faux Bob

If you’re looking to experiment with a shorter-looking style, but not quite ready to donate your hair to Locks of Love, try creating a romantic faux bob, a great option for date night!

To prep hair for this look, warm a  texturizing paste in your palms and run it through the ends of your hair. This will give your strands some grip so that your bob stays in place all day, while also creating that soft, wavy definition that makes you feel like a Jane Austen character.

Next you’re going to need some (okay, a lot) of bobby pins. But don’t worry, creating this style is far less complicated than that fancy up-do that you rocked at senior prom.

Simply braid your hair into two low ponytails, and then tuck each underneath themselves, fanning out the loose hair at the nape of your neck. Don’t worry about getting each side perfectly even; you want to allow for some casualness to keep the look from verging on costume party material.

Lightly spritz your faux bob with a flexible hold hairspray, like my  Featherlite Finishing Spray, to keep flyaways and frizz from making you look more frazzled than polished.

About Those Curls…

Every woman deserves a head full of curls if she so chooses! If you’re tired of using every ounce of arm strength to maneuver a curling iron, just to see all of your hard work fall limp by lunchtime, I recommend stepping away from the wand for the time being. If your hair is not holding its curl, repeatedly assaulting it with heat will cause damage with very little payoff.

Does that mean you must resign to only wearing curl-free styles? Never! The trick here is a change in approach. You will probably find that curls last longer when they’re set and dried, rather than scorched into submission.

Take a gentler approach to curling by wrapping damp hair around  rollers and blow-drying. When it comes to your dryer’s setting, low and slow is better than hot and fast (when you have the time). Better yet, go to bed wearing your rollers and then set the style in the morning with a firm-hold hairspray. Remove the rollers and finger comb through. I think you’ll find you have better luck keeping hair in place.