Some days dry shampoo just won’t cut it.
You need to wash your hair but those precious minutes you used to apply a conditioning treatment mean you don’t have time to style your hair.
Now I normally wouldn’t recommend going out with wet hair but sometimes there’s no other option.
That’s when you need some chic and easy hairstyles you can do in wet hair.
If you like to go the the gym in your lunch break, these hairstyles are also a fast way to get back to work in time.
Or in summer, when you’ve been swimming, these styles are simple enough to do poolside. All you need are a few bobby pins and maybe a hair elastic or two. You’ll be ready for sunset drinks before you know it.
Try my 7 easy hairstyle tutorials you can do in wet hair and let me know which is your fave look.
Wet Hairstyle Tutorial – Low Twist & Pin Buns
The low Twist & Pin buns are probably my favourite hairstyle for wet hair. This style smooths down the top half of my hair but leaves loose waves in the ends of my hair when it dries.
You can see my video tutorial of the Twist & Pin buns here or see my step-by-step instructions below.
Step-by-step
You’ll need: Bobby pins
- Comb your hair back and split it into three equal sections.
- Twist the middle section down and loop it around into a bun at the nape of your neck. Pin in place with bobby pins.
- Do the same with the right section, twisting it into a mini bun next to the first bun. Secure it with bobby pins. I like to weave a pin through both buns to make sure they stay in place.
- Twist the left section into a matching bun and pin it level with the other two buns.
The bonus with three buns is that your hair dries faster than when it’s twisted into a single bun so this style if perfect if you have thick hair. You can even style four or five buns if you like.
Wet Hairstyle Tutorial – The High Ponytail
When your hair is wet, embrace sleek styles like this simple high ponytail. Just remember to do my trick to remove comb lines from your hair.
Step-by-step
You’ll need: A strong hair elastic, or hair bungee
- Gather your hair high on the crown of your head.
- Use a comb to smooth your hair and get rid of any lumps and bumps.
- Then use your hand to smooth away the comb marks. Run your fingers or the side of your hand over your hair to flatten any comb marks in your hair.
- Secure your ponytail with a strong hair elastic or wrap a hair bungee around to hold your ponytail in place.
Wet Hairstyle Tutorial – The Fishtail Ponytail
Take your ponytail up a notch with this simple fishtail braid. And yes, I said simple! Fishtail braids look more complicated than they are to do.
Step-by-step
You’ll need: A strong hair elastic, or hair bungee and a small clear hair elastic
- Put your hair in a high ponytail following the tutorial above.
- Split your ponytail in two. Hold one side in each hand and keep these separate as you braid.
- Cross a small section from the left to the right. Take a small piece of hair from the left side of the left ponytail and combine it with the right ponytail.
- Repeat on the right. Take a small piece of hair from the right side of the right ponytail and combine it with the left ponytail.
- Repeat this process all the way down the ponytails. Each time, cross a small piece of hair from one ponytail to the other side. As you move down the ponytail they cross over, forming the fishtail braid.
- Tie the end and stretch it out. Secure the end of your fishtail braid with a small, clear elastic. Gently pull at the sides of the braid to stretch it out. This makes your hair look thicker and fuller, and emphasises the shape of the braid.
You can also try this fishtail braid in a low ponytail or in a side ponytail too. Don’t forget to stretch it out as this really shows the braid. As your hair dries you can mess up the braid a little more to add texture to your fishtail. I do love a messy fishtail braid.
Wet Hairstyle Tutorial – The Fishtail Bun
I love the fishtail on its own, but if you work somewhere more corporate, you’ll love this bun version.
Step-by-step
You’ll need: A strong hair elastic or hair bungee, a small clear hair elastic and bobby pins
- Place your hair in a high ponytail and fishtail braid as per my tutorials above.
- Stretch out the braid and make sure your ponytail is tight so that it won’t drop as your hair dries.
- Curve your braid around to form a bun. Make sure to tuck the ends underneath so that they don’t poke out of the finished bun.
- Pin in place with bobby pins.
I love how the fishtail creates more texture and interest than a regular bun. It also makes your hair dry with a nice wave when you take your hair down later. If you don’t have time to do the fishtail braid, a normal three-strand braid will also look great.
Wet Hairstyle Tutorial – The Sleek Low Bun
The easiest chic style for wet hair is the classic low bun. Like the high ponytail, embrace the sleek when your hair is wet and smooth away all comb marks for this simple look.
Step-by-step
You’ll need: A strong hair elastic, or hair bungee and bobby pins
- Comb your hair back and secure your hair into a low ponytail at the nape of your neck.
- Twist your ponytail tightly and wrap it around to form a low bun.
- Tuck the ends of your hair under and pin in place with bobby pins.
- Smooth any bumps with your comb. Try not to leave big gaps like I did this time!
- Run your hand over any comb marks to flatten them out.
Similar to my first tutorial, the Low Twist & Pin Buns, this bun smooths the top of your hair but leaves a nice wave from the shoulders down. If your hair is thick you may find it takes a while to dry in this tightly twisted bun. That’s where the loose triple bun comes in.
Wet Hairstyle Tutorial – The Loose Triple Bun
My hair takes forever to dry in tight hairstyles so this loose triple bun is a great solution. It leaves messier waves in my hair when I take it down. I like to use a sea salt spray in dry hair to further texturise my hair to make it look more beachy.
Step-by-step
You’ll need: Bobby pins
- Split your hair into three sections – the top section is across your head above your ears and split the bottom sections in half down the middle of your head. Clip the top section out of the way for now.
- Twist the bottom left section up and around into a loose bun. Depending on how long your hair is, you can fold your hair or make a figure-8 shape. Pin in place with bobby pins.
- Repeat on the bottom right section. Loosely twist your hair to create a bun and pin in place with bobby pins.
- Unclip the top section and loosely rake your fingers through your hair so that your hair isn’t flat against your head.
- Twist the top section loosely into a bun on top of the other buns and pin in place with bobby pins.
These loose buns are a perfect summer style as they encourage some curl but it doesn’t look too formal. It will also dry faster as it’s not flat against your head. If you take your hair down when it’s about 80% dry, you can twist your hair into smaller ringlets to help shape the curls at the ends of your hair.
Wet Hairstyle Tutorial – The Side Twist Bun
I like the shape this rope twist creates around your face. It will help to create some waves in your hair and you can make it as tight or loose as you like. Modify the side bun to suit your hair. You can keep it sleek and more formal, or just leave it messy.
Step-by-step
You’ll need: A hair elastic and bobby pins
- Make a deep side part on the right and comb your hair over to the left.
- Start your rope twist at your part line. Take a 1-inch section of hair and twist it under a 1-inch section of hair from your hairline.
- Twist the sections together, then twist them under the next section of hair from your hairline.
- Keep adding in section of hair from your hairline and keep twisting your hair back away from your face.
- Once you have passed your ear, combine the twist with the rest of your hair to create a side ponytail.
- Twist your ponytail around to form a side bun. Keep this bun as neat or as messy as you like. Pin in place with bobby pins.
For more hairstyle inspiration, check out my 30 Days of Twist & Pin Hairstyles ebook. Full of everyday style inspiration, it only takes a few bobby pins to get your hair under control.
What’s your favourite hairstyle to do in wet hair? How do you style your hair when you’re short on time?
These styles are great. I’m 43 and have long red hair halfway down my back. I’ve been feeling like I’m too old for such long hair. I’ve been trying different braids and styles lately. (Trying to get away from putting it in a bun every day.) I can’t wait to try these!
Hey there! Lately I’ve been looking for some ways to spice up day to day hair styles, and I am absolutely loving your blog. Thanks for sharing your ideas! I tried the triple buns idea and got several compliments, besides my hair drying nice and fast—love! I couldn’t figure out how to do the last one, but decided I would sit down and try it. After a couple attempts, I got it. It’s beautiful! I have one question, though. How do I keep the style from ‘disappearing’ from the front of my head? This happens when I French braid, too. It’s like I started midway down my head, when I actually started at the hairline like shown. I tried to do it tighter, but it doesn’t make a difference. So, sadly, only half of this gorgeous style ends up showing. The rest is smooth. Tips?
Thanks!!
-Hanna
Thanks so much Hanna! It can help to pin the front of your hair in place to help hold it. Or you can use a product like dry shampoo/hairspray/texture spray to add grip and stop your hair from slipping. Hope this helps! xx
When do you add the Elastic Hair Band to your hair for the WET HAIRSTYLE TUTORIAL – THE SIDE TWIST BUN
Okay so I was planning on doing the side twist bun, but my hair has a very “strict” part that does not like being moved. I also have side bangs…so I split my hair in two and did the side twist down the right and then put that into a ponytail. Then I did the same on the left side. I was going to wrap them around into small buns, which would look cute on other people, but I hair is WAY too thick and when I wrap my hair around itself it falls and looks like a cone-shape. So I left it in ponytails and it looks super cute!! You should make a part two to these wet hair styles and add that hairstyle in it! Maybe it will help me do it easier.. liked these though!
great idea! Love your variation Kyndall! xx
These look amazing and I can’t wait to try them! One question, though: As a curry-haired girl, things like the sleek ponytail ends up looking frizzy and curly and not pretty at all. How do you deal with you hair curling during the day after doing these styles?
True! I have curly hair too and the buns or braids work better in my hair. I use a little hairspray to smooth down any flyaways as my hair dries. I just spray a little on my hands and smooth it over my hair. Hope this helps! x
This is awesome…
I have short curly hair and it gets more curly and coiled when wet.. i have been looking some elegant hairstyle for my wet hair… i tried them and loved it…. thanks a lot yaar… by the way ur haiI colour is awesome.. ?
Thank you so much! My hair colourist is Stevie at Stevie English Hair xx
Not only do I love these great options for letting my hair do its thing and look great but I love what you have done with your color. As a fellow strawberry blonde I would love to know what colors you used to get such a vibrant look!
Thanks Elizabeth! I go to Stevie English Hair for my colour and I believe they used Pravana colour for this look. You can see more of this colour when it’s dry in this post – https://www.hairromance.com/2013/10/new-hair-the-colour-mullet.html xx
I have severe hair envy! I need to try these. You have beautiful hair – the colours are incredible! I love this
Thank you! xx
These are so useful! Especially for the curly girls who don’t have time to diffuse if they can’t airdry.
Thanks so much Jessie! I do lots of styles in wet hair to save time x
These are so cute, but my (curly) hair has frizzy parts in the front that never stay put. Any advice in how to handle or strengthen these parts of my hair?
Hi Leslie, Hairspray is great for holding down these frizzy hairs. Check out my post on taming fine hair with more tips here x
I love the last one! My hair is somewhat short, so it works really well! They’re also nice because my hair gets greasy quickly, so it needs to be washed everyday!
Thanks Katie! I also have more braids for wet hair here xx
Ahhhh! My favourite part is the hair colour!!! I tried to get someone to recreate this but it definitely didn’t turn out right. Any idea how this was done?!?
Hi Cindy, my colour is by Stevie at Stevie English Hair. I think he used Pravana colour and you can see more pics of my hair here https://www.hairromance.com/2013/12/big-hair-friday-my-new-hair-2.html xx
Great post…
N?o?w? I? c?a?n? g?o? t?o? s?c?h?o?o?l? l?o?o?k?i?n?g? A?m?a?z?i?n?g? I? g?o?t? s?o? m?a?n?y? c?o?m?p?l?i?m?e?n?t?s? t?h?e?y? a?r?e? s?o? e?a?s?y? t?o? d?o?! ?
Thanks so much! x
I’ll definitely be trying these ones!
Thanks Theresa 🙂
How do you do a twist for the Twist and side bun?
Hi Nina, twist your hair away from your face, and follow your hairline 🙂
You are really pretty and your hair is amazing I’m so jelly and even though these hairstyles will ever work on my hair (it’s absolutely insane) they’re really cool! I’ll try them and see how it goes, just for the fun of it.
Thanks Deana! 🙂 even if they don’t work exactly the same in your hair, hopefully they inspire you to try something new xx
my hair hardly grows long.and its quiet getting me worried..any tutorials to help make it longer? cos am dying to have one of those braided hairs on
Hi Raina, check out how to make your hair grow fast and 10 foods you should eat to make your hair grow faster xx
You made my trip alot easer with no hair in my face
I love them all. So simple and pretty looks. Plus the best part easy to do with the excellent instructions. Can’t wait till I can get the 30 day tutorials.
Thanks Marcella!
Have you seen these Spin Pins by Goody? They are sold in the US, not sure about Australia, but they are awesome for thick hair and quick updos. They have totally replaced the jaw clips or using 20 straight bobby pins. I use them for French twists and all kinds of buns.
http://www.goody.com/Products/Hair_Accessories/Simple_Styles_Spin_Pin?colId=df976d93-59e1-4844-892b-19a40f22cfb0&c_id=1a7ea079-c44c-481e-8d02-db7cd0b32277
Hi Rachel, yes I’ve only recently got some. They’re awesome! Though you do need to be careful if you weave two together… xx
Pretty!! i’ve done a similar post on this same topic but guess you came up with some more beautiful hairstyles for wet hair! love your ideas & yeah superb article!
XOXO,
Sarah
Thanks Sarah xx
I really like these hairstyles, they helped me out a lot! The best 2 are definitely the fishtail pony and the one where you can turn that into a bun. I originally needed a hairstyle idea because I was going out for lunch and I needed to have a shower before hand otherwise I wouldn’t get a chance to shower that day and after I’d had my shower I realised I had no time to dry my hair. Normally with wet hair I just tie it in a folded pony~tail but I didn’t want to do this as I was going to a nice restaurant!
Thanks so much these style ideas were a great help 🙂
Thanks so much Nora! x
Hey Nora good to hear you online. I tryied these hairstyles but I don’t think they look good in my hair
I love these! i think my favourites are the first and last im always partial to a good fishtail braid!
http://www.beautyandtheboy.com
Whoops!!! Sorry when it says ‘ i don’t feel comfortable putting my real. I meant to put name after real. Sorry!
Don’t worry, my name isn’t Bird. I just don’t feel comfortable putting my real. Any way, your hairstyles are really cute! I am really exited to try them all!
From Argentina……. Estoy fascinada con tus peinados!!!! Soy tu principal fan….!!!! Impresionante!!!!
Always let your hair dry fully before piling it on your head! You’re asking for a yeast infection if you don’t let it dry. And yes – you CAN get yeast infections on your scalp!
Hi I’m only a teen but I love these styles. I have VERY thick hair which can take over 12 hours to dry! It’s also quite long. I’m always looking for easy quick styles before going to school or soccer practice. The last one stayed in for my whole soccer tournament- thanks so much!
Thanks so much for trying them Milly! So glad you loved them x
This is perfect! When I let my hair air dry it looks like I’ve been electrocuted, I’ve been twisting it into a simple bun or doing a braid of some kind. I’ll definitely have to try some of these styles. Thank you!
Could you pretty PLEASE do a post on your hair colour? I absolutely love it.
Thanks Donna! You can find more pics of my hair colour here – https://www.hairromance.com/2013/12/big-hair-friday-my-new-hair-2.html. I’m not sure how to describe it but my colourist is Stevie of Stevie English Hair. He used 3 or 4 different colours to create the sections underneath. I’ve now gone a little more red and I don’t have the crazy colour underneath anymore. This hair was so much fun!
When I had long hair I would always go with a simple braid! It would my hair so nice and wavy. But now just a high ponytail or what I call a twist and clip. It’s not long enough for most braids but I can’t wait to grow it out again!
Love the waves you get from a simple braid too 🙂
I would recommend NOT to put a ponytail on wet hair as it will cause breakage because hair shrinks as it dries! Try different braids instead!
I never (rarely) blow my thick hair dry and I wash it every day. I have super healthy hair, but it is always wet in the morning. This is great! I never know what to do with it.
Thanks so much for these! You mentioned your trick for getting rid of comb lines, but I couldn’t find what the trick is. Maybe I missed it. Can you tell me where you wrote about it? Thank you and I adore your website 🙂
Hi Kathleen, I just run the edge of my hand over the comb marks to smooth them
I did the loose triple bun yesterday when it was just too hot to bring a blow dryer anywhere near my head. It worked beautifully! Stayed in place all day and resulted in big soft curls. Thanks so much for the styling tips!
Thanks for trying it Tiffany and thanks for letting me know how it worked 🙂
I especially love the last one because I have long bangs which look absolutely AWFUL air-dried! I feel like that would be a fantastic way to get them out of my face and looking pretty, wet hair or not. Now I’ve just got to figure out how to do it… 🙂
Thanks Erin, you should definitely try it 🙂
Love the hairstyles, but love the color more. Do you have any DIY tips for achieving a similar color effect at home?
Thanks Jenna xx You could use a pink semi permanent colour on the underneath section of your hair. I do have a DIY pink highlights tutorial which uses clip ins
Love the braid. I hold my wet head over – gather the hair in a ponytail at about the middle of the head.Loosley turn spiral Stand up keeping a hold on the hair. Clip it, leaving hair for a tousled look which will cover the clip. The end result looks like a french bun with a tousle. (you can tuck the extra in the bun if you do not like the loose ends/tossle
that’s a great idea for wet hair, love it x
These are so cute! I also just wanted to say that I looooove your hair coloring!
Thanks Diana! x
I usually go for number 2-3 or 4, but I’ll try all the others now 😉
http://justsem.wordpress.com/
Thank you! Have fun with your hair xx
I tried the side twist bun last week when I was running late for work, and it worked perfectly! I have lots of layers and they didn’t fall out, plus a bonus of gorgeous waves when I took it out.
yay! that’s awesome Crystal xx
These are brilliant! I have extremely long mermaid length hair (we’re talking about five inches past the top of my hips) of course it’s very thick and wavy to boot. I was getting very tired of the wet hair massive low bun every four days. I can’t wait to try these out! My hair might actually dry in 24 hours this way 🙂
Whoa! Your hair is so long Renee! Sounds amazing!
I’ll have to see if I can snap a picture of it for you 🙂
SOME days? Every day for me!!
haha Kathy! That’s why I love dry shampoo so much too 😉
I absolutely love the 1st, 6th & 7th. Usually when I have wet hair I either puy my hair in a basic French or Dutch braid. Sometimes I do them in pigtail braids.Then, when I take my hair down I get this lovely wavy/curly look for the rest of the day.But I definitely plan on trying these new styles soon!
Thanks Gina! I love basic braids for wet hair too. The waves they create are lovely x
Just tried #6 and it looks so cute! But since I have super thick hair I had to braid each section to make sure the pins stay in place. I’m definitely going to be using this style often ?
Those are perfect and look so easy. I’m definitely going to try them out.
Thanks so much Jaelan 🙂
You god damn genius. I love this. x
Awww thanks Smags! xx
I always do a sleek high pony when I have wet hair, but I am loving the look of the side twist bun. Definitely going to add some of these to my wet hair repertoire!! // timidlioness
Thanks Casey! x
Is there a video tutorial out there for the side twist bun?? I’ve started to try it several times, but as much as I study the pictures and the written instructions, I can’t get the rope twist part right. PLEASE help!!
Hi! I will add a video for this to my shoot list. This is an old tutorial but it’s a similar style in wet hair – https://www.hairromance.com/2011/12/easy-beach-hair-style-tutorial.html – hope this helps! x
Ooh I am about to get my 2 month summer holidays (am a teacher) and this time of year I only let my hair dry naturally so every 2nd or 3rd day I wash and go so I am really looking forward to trying these hairstyles and have them down by the time school starts back. At the moment, I either put it into a loose side braid or rope braid. Curls actually tend to come out in pretty good shape from both, but my mop is so thick it generally needs to be taken down to fully dry so maybe that also helps. Roll on Friday until I can start trying these out 🙂
Enjoy the break Tracy! Let me know which ones work best in your hair 🙂
Great! This one goes to my favorites!
Thanks Agneta! x
Are they easy
Yeah ?