You probably hear conflicting advice online for curly hair, and a lot of the common methods you see do not work for low-density or thin curly hair. I’m sharing alternatives for achieving more volume and fullness in your hair.

Even if you don’t have low-density hair, this will still help you achieve more volume.

Reminder: there is no right or wrong way to style your curls. These are alternative methods that have proven to work better for thin curls.

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Recently I’ve been testing some of the Prose custom products. Today, before styling I used the Prose Custom Shampoo and Conditioner. I will talk more about their products later in the post and you will see a sample quiz at the bottom of the page if you are interested in trying them out.

​Prose Custom Shampoo - 50% off first order from Prose
​​Prose Cream Conditioner - 50% off first order from Prose​

❌ Soaking wet styling
✅ Damp styling

Applying your products to soaking wet hair is a common technique in the curly hair world. Instead, you may want to try more damp styling if you want more fullness and volume.

It’s true that water helps to clump and form the curls, prevent frizz, and help products spread.

The downsides to soaking wet styling that no one talks about include:

• It can weigh down your hair because water is heavy. Think about how your hair is more droopy when it’s sopping wet.
• It also takes longer to dry
• It dilutes your products, causing you to potentially need more product and reduce the hold level. This is a big one that impacts all hair types, no matter what your density is.

If your gel is not giving you a cast, try using less water when you style. You may also notice more volume and fullness because the hair is less clumped.

Now, with wavy hair types, you may benefit from soaking wet styling if you struggle to get your waves to form. I will show you a technique to still style soaking wet but achieve hold and speed up your dry time.

Try a hair towel such as the Hair Repear towel to remove excess water from your hair. Too add back more water, a spray bottle makes it so much easier. See bottom of the blog for details on a towel giveaway!

​Hair RePear Ultimate Hair Towel​
​Buy from Amazon​

​Bouclème Flairosol Mist Spray Bottle​
​Buy from Boucleme with code GENA15​

❌ High-moisture products
✅ Less moisture + more hold

Everyone thinks that every curl problem, especially frizz, can be fixed by piling on more moisture. So many curl products are highly moisturizing, which is understandable because curly hair is naturally more dry than straight hair.

Too much moisture, such as layering on a leave-in conditioner, curl cream, oil, etc., is only going to weigh down your hair and reduce your hold, especially for someone with thin curly hair.

Another common method that does not work well for thin hair is the LOC method, which is using leave-in, then oil, then cream. This is way too much moisture for thin hair.

For more volume and more hold, reduce the moisture in your routine which will likely increase the hold of your gel. Use your gel by itself for maximum hold. I recently tried using only the Prose gel. This gel is moisturizing therefore is going to give plenty of moisture. Most gels nowadays are not super drying like a lot of the old, traditional drugstore gels that were high in alcohol and low in moisture.

​Prose Custom Curl Cream - 50% off first order from Prose
​​Prose Custom Styling Gel - 50% off first order from Prose​

Layering on a bunch of products is unnecessary especially for low-density or thin hair. If you do need more moisture, use just a leave-in conditioner and a gel, OR a lightweight curl cream and a gel. I usually go with those combos more in the winter when the air is very dry. If your hair feels brittle, looks, dull, and is frizzy then it could need moisture.

However if your hair is frizzy and feels SOFT, then you just need more hold and potentially less moisture.

I’m planning a full video on this topic and how to differentiate the two scenarios to properly diagnose your frizz.

❌ Styling upside down​
✅ Upright styling

Applying products while upside down is another common technique that often goes along with soaking wet styling that may not be the best if you struggle with your scalp showing.

The purpose of styling upside down is often to prevent all that water from soaking your shoulders and to get root volume. But you can actually achieve volume while upright and save your back

The downsides to upside down styling that no one talks about include:

• Tangles and matting in the back
• Back not styled or scalp showing
• Less control over how the hair lays/placement/parting
• Back/neck pain

​Tangle Teezer Naturally Curly Detangling Brush
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With low-density hair, you may struggle with your scalp showing or wonky curls in the back. Also, if your hair is damaged or high-porosity, then it likely sticks to itself like velcro and gets tangled and matted. Upright styling gives you more control over scalp covering and hair placement or parting. It’s essentially a more “organized” way to style versus a messier placement of hair.

In order to still achieve root volume, you want to brush the hair up and away from your scalp. You can do this with just your hands but a brush grabs the hair better. Even if you don’t want to brush style, simply brushing your hair away from your scalp then scrunching can give you a lot of volume because it’s creating space at the root.

Style for smaller curl clumps instead of thick curl clumps. Separate any thick curl clumps while your hair is still wet to prevent frizz.

❌ Plopping
✅ Miroplopping

Plopping is a super common technique that often doesnt work for low-density hair. Instead, you may want to try the microplopping technique. Plopping involves tying your hair up in your towel and letting it sit for a bit.

You’ve probably seen a lot, especially for routines that involve soaking wet styling. Many people like to plop after styling to absorb some water, then finish with air drying or diffusing.

However I personally find plopping to be a waste of time and it prolongs your routine. Some of the downsides include:

• Flattened roots where the hair has been smushed down
• Buildup from wet hair with product getting pressed into your scalp
• Wonky curls if the hair is not placed perfectly in the towel

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An alternative method is called microplopping which is just where you take your hair towel and gently scrunch your hair after you’re done styling and before drying your hair. This will speed up your dry time significantly because it absorbs the excess water.

This technique is how you can still style soaking wet if that’s what works best for you, but still achieve a faster dry time and more hold. You can get more hold by applying a second light coat of gel after microplopping. Gently glaze it on and scrunch to avoid disturbing the curl clumps.

If you’re struggling with getting a gel cast, try this technique. Your gel is going to give even more hold because the hair is more dry at this point.

Diffusing

I highly recommend diffusing for anyone wanting to achieve volume and root lift. Air drying will cause the curls to elongate and remain flat, whereas the gentle heat from the diffuser sets the curl shape so they last longer.

My favorite dryer is the Curlsmith Defrizzion + XXL Diffuser which is super large so it covers an entire side at once to dry my hair fast.

​Curlsmith Defrizzion Hair Dryer & XXL Diffuser​
​Buy from Curlsmith​
​Buy from Amazon​
​Buy from ULTA​

Scrunch diffusing over hovering will also help your curls and waves spring up more.

For root lift, use the diffuser prongs to lift and hold, which dries the hair away from the scalp. This is not easy to do if your diffuser does not have prongs that are long enough to reach your roots. Use a diffuser with prongs that extend out past the end of the diffuser for best results.

Once my hair is dried, then I scrunch out the cast and fluff the roots which is essential if you want volume and softer-looking hair. The Prose gel gives a pretty good cast but I can easily scrunch it out.

I don’t usually use oils because I like to maintain more hold. Oils will soften the hair and can reduce your hold.

Prose review (not sponsored)

Prose offers custom haircare formulas based on a quiz about your hair and lifestyle. Many of you asked to see my quiz answers, so I’m sharing key questions that may have influenced my results. Keep in mind, Prose doesn’t disclose how answers affect the formula, so it’s best to complete your quiz based on your unique hair needs.

Samples from My Quiz

Please also note these are portions of some of the questions, not the full questions!

I answered questions about hair type and lifestyle accurately, opting for the more problematic option when I had dual characteristics. For example:

• Curl Type: I chose 3B (despite most of my hair being 3A) to prioritize hold and definition for frizz control.
• Hair Texture: While most of my hair is medium, I selected coarse since those areas are frizzier and need extra moisture.

Preferences like hold level were also included, which I appreciated. However, Prose’s note under the hold-level question—that their gel is “formulated for soft, flexible styles without crunch”—was disappointing. Crunch is essential for long-lasting curls and can easily be scrunched out.

My Quiz Results

Product Selection

Prose recommended a shampoo, conditioner, and curl cream for my routine. Since I always use gel for hold, I added it as an extra product, though I feel gel should be the default styler for curls.

Upon receiving my order, I noticed the ingredients list aligns with the featured components highlighted during the quiz. Below are the details of my custom products:

My custom gel:

Key holding ingredients: Corn starch and aloe. These natural film-formers create a cast but aren’t long-lasting, especially in humidity.

Essentially, this is a gel with natural holding ingredients (corn starch and aloe). Natural film-formers can create a strong cast but are often not long-lasting especially in humidity. I prefer polymers like polyquaternium as my main holding ingredient.

My custom curl cream:

Styler Performance: When used alone, the gel provided a decent cast, but my curls frizzed by the end of the day. I tested it with dry weather, but it’s likely not durable in high humidity. I will need to test more to be sure.

I prefer my results more with the curl cream and the gel. After seeing the ingredients of the curl cream, I see why. My curl cream has more of those polymers that I like: Polyquaternium, PEG-7 Dimethicone, etc. This is probably why my results lasted longer when using the cream.

What I Liked:

• Easy-to-complete quiz that covers a range of factors.
• Accurate product recommendations overall.
• Helpful for those new to curly haircare or struggling to find the right products.

What I Didn't Like:

• High price point ($32 per product without discounts or subscriptions).
• Lack of detailed ingredient explanations tied to quiz answers.
• No full ingredient list provided before purchase.
• Limited preference customization.
• Curl cream as the default styler for curls instead of gel.

Despite my skepticism, I was pleasantly surprised. The shampoo effectively cleansed without stripping, the conditioner offered great slip, and the curl cream balanced moisture without weighing my hair down. While the gel didn’t meet my long-lasting hold expectations, I think it is one of the best "natural" gels I've tried and the overall experience was positive.

🎁 Giveaway 🎁

Enter to win one of my all-time favorite hair tools, the Hair Repear Towel! This is game-changing in your routine. There will be one winner.

1. Subscribe to my blog by email (if you're receiving this, you're already subscribed)
2. ​Comment on this post with a video request or what you’re currently struggling with
3. You must be located in the US

Winner will be chosen at random on Dec 28 and contacted by email.

Good luck!

New Group Coaching Program!

I'm excited to announce my new 6-Week Group Coaching Program! After coaching hundreds of clients through 1:1 sessions, we've realized there is so much more value in ongoing curl support versus a one-off call that can often feel like information overload. This group program will give you access to curl coaching from me over the span of 6-weeks, so it's broken down into more manageable steps.

I'm offering a special early bird group rate that is discounted significantly from regular 1:1 sessions.

If you’re interested, just email me info@genamarie.co or DM me on Instagram or Facebook with the word "GROUP" to chat.

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