20 Wavy French Bangs Ideas to Try Now
Twenty wavy French bangs ideas, plus the fix for the problem every wavy fringe has — it dries flat and splits down the middle. The answer is the first ninety seconds after you wash it.
In this article · 27
- Why a Wavy Fringe Splits
- The Ninety-Second Fix
- The 20 Wavy French Bangs Ideas
- 1. Soft 2A Wavy Fringe
- 2. Defined 2B Wavy Bangs
- 3. Tight 2C Wavy Fringe
- 4. Wavy Bangs with a Deep Side Sweep
- 5. Wavy Fringe with Curtain Layers
- 6. Long Wavy French Bangs
- 7. Short Wavy Fringe
- 8. Wispy Wavy Bangs
- 9. Full Wavy Fringe
- 10. Wavy Bangs with a Lob
- 11. Wavy Fringe with a Shag
- 12. Piecey Wavy Bangs
- 13. Wavy Bangs with a Bun
- 14. Rounded Wavy Fringe
- 15. Asymmetric Wavy Bangs
- 16. Wavy Bangs with Highlights
- 17. Beachy Textured Fringe
- 18. Wavy Bangs with a Ponytail
- 19. Grown-Out Wavy Fringe
- 20. Wavy Fringe Pinned Back
- Getting Volume Without Frizz
- Mistakes to Avoid
- FAQ
- Final Thoughts
Wavy hair has the opposite fringe problem to curly hair. A curly fringe holds its own shape and the difficulty is predicting where it will land. A wavy fringe lands exactly where you cut it — and then goes flat, and splits down the middle.
That is the whole issue, and it has almost nothing to do with the cut. It is decided in the ninety seconds after you get out of the shower.
Why a Wavy Fringe Splits
A wave is caught between two things. It has enough weight to fall flat, and not enough curl to hold a shape against that weight.
So a wavy fringe does whatever it did while drying, permanently, until the next wash. Left to dry on its own it does the most natural thing available: it falls away from the centre of your head in both directions. That is the split, and it appears whether or not you have a cowlick — a cowlick simply makes it worse.
The fringe also dries faster than the rest of your hair, because it is thin, exposed, and sitting against a warm forehead. By the time you have finished with the rest of your head, the fringe set twenty minutes ago.
Which means the fringe has to be dried first, not last.
The Ninety-Second Fix
Do this immediately after washing, before you touch anything else.
1. Rough-dry the fringe within the first minute. While it is still properly wet, not damp.
2. Point the airflow at the roots, not the lengths. Root direction is what sets the whole shape.
3. Move side to side, never straight down. Straight down is what creates the centre split. Pushing the hair left, then right, then left again breaks the natural parting before it can form.
4. Finish in the direction you want it to sit. The last pass decides it.
5. Cool shot at the root. Warm air moves the hair; cold air fixes where it landed.
Ninety seconds, once, and the fringe behaves for the rest of the day. Skip it and no amount of later styling recovers the shape.
The 20 Wavy French Bangs Ideas
1. Soft 2A Wavy Fringe
The loosest wave, closest to straight. Needs the most drying help of the three patterns.
2. Defined 2B Wavy Bangs
A clear S-bend through the fringe. The easiest wave pattern to wear as a fringe.
3. Tight 2C Wavy Fringe
Almost curly, with real spring. Allow about an inch of lift when cutting.
4. Wavy Bangs with a Deep Side Sweep
Dried entirely one way. The most effective answer to a persistent centre split.
5. Wavy Fringe with Curtain Layers
Blending outward into longer pieces at the cheekbone.
6. Long Wavy French Bangs
Sitting at the lash line. The extra weight actually helps a wave hold its bend.
7. Short Wavy Fringe
Above the brow. Bolder, and the wave shows more clearly at this length.
8. Wispy Wavy Bangs
Thinned so the forehead shows through. Light enough that the split is less visible.
9. Full Wavy Fringe
A deeper section, more weight. The density itself helps hold the shape down.
10. Wavy Bangs with a Lob
The most-worn pairing. Two soft shapes at the same scale.
11. Wavy Fringe with a Shag
Texture above and below. The wave reads as intentional rather than undone.
12. Piecey Wavy Bangs
Separated with a little cream so individual bends read distinctly.
13. Wavy Bangs with a Bun
Soft at the front, smooth behind. The contrast carries the whole look.
14. Rounded Wavy Fringe
Shorter at the centre, longer at the edges. It counteracts the tendency to split.
15. Asymmetric Wavy Bangs
Longer on one side, which gives the wave a direction to follow.
16. Wavy Bangs with Highlights
Two lighter pieces at the edges. The wave catches the lift where it bends.
17. Beachy Textured Fringe
Salt spray through the fringe for grit. It gives a limp wave something to hold onto.
18. Wavy Bangs with a Ponytail
The fringe is what stops a pulled-back look reading as severe.
19. Grown-Out Wavy Fringe
Parted deliberately rather than accidentally. If it is going to split, make it a decision.
20. Wavy Fringe Pinned Back
Two pins on one side. The answer to any day the drying did not go to plan.
Getting Volume Without Frizz
A wavy fringe needs lift at the root and smoothness through the length, which are opposite treatments applied to the same three inches of hair.
Product at the root only. A trace of mousse or root spray where the fringe meets the scalp. Anything applied down the length weighs the wave flat, which is the problem you started with.
Nothing creamy on the lengths. Wave has enough weight already.
A round brush for two seconds, not twenty. Lift the roots, then stop. Over-brushing a wave straightens it, and a half-straightened wave is the flattest thing there is.
Never a conditioner on the fringe. It is the fastest route to a flat, separated fringe sitting against the forehead.
Mistakes to Avoid
Letting it air-dry. It sets in whatever direction it fell, and that direction is a centre parting.
Drying it last. The fringe is dry long before the rest of your hair, so by then the shape is fixed.
Drying straight down. Straight down creates the split. Move side to side.
Product down the length. It flattens the wave.
Cutting it wet. A wave lifts half an inch to an inch as it dries — enough to change the length category.
FAQ
Why does it part in the middle? Because it dried that way — a wave has enough weight to fall and not enough curl to hold.
How do you stop it going flat? Dry it first, at the roots, side to side, within the first minute or two.
Wet or dry to cut? Dry — a wave still lifts half an inch to an inch.
Final Thoughts
Dry the fringe first and dry it sideways. Wavy bangs are not a difficult cut to wear — they are a cut that gets decided in the ninety seconds most people spend towelling the rest of their hair, and moving that ninety seconds to the front of the routine is the whole solution.
For tighter patterns see 15 curly French bangs ideas, and for the full range see 25 chic French bangs ideas. More in Bangs & Fringe.
