Gorgeous Beach Waves for Short Hair: 21 Examples to Copy

Beach waves for short hair

Beach waves for short hair create a modern look, brimming with texture and volume. It’s fun to wear and looks dashing for any occasion, whether it’s a formal or casual party!

Hairstylist Alyssa Berg of Sacramento, CA adores the idea of this short textured hair.

“Having a bit of a natural texture like waves or slight curls with this cut is nice. You could wear it natural with the right products, and it’ll give you an effortless beachy look,” she states.

This hairstyle requires time and effort to achieve a neat finish without flips. It isn’t a wash-and-go type. If looking for lower maintenance, Berg suggests a length past your shoulders.

For a lovely beachy haircut, opt for longer and internal layers. Avoid pieces that are too short as they create a volume that doesn’t look natural.

Berg explains, “If curled, all the texture you put in the underneath layers will pop through. If straightened, they lay nicely on top of each other.” Just ensure that the chop fits your face shape and works with your lifestyle.

When styling, ask your hairdresser for some tips.

Berg likes switching between a triple barrel waver and a 1.25-inch curling iron. She applies a texture or a sea salt spray to boost the hair’s natural texture.

To touch up second-day hair without washing everything, take a curling iron to throw a few curls in there!

Need ideas? Check out these inspiring photos on how to wear beach waves for short hair.

(Tap / Swipe)

Ocean Waves on Short Hair

ocean waves on short hair
Instagram @hairbyelvisp

To achieve ocean waves on short hair, use sea salt spray, then scrunch, then let loose. These three easy steps to get this suave chill-out style, especially for women with fine hair!

Low-Maintenance Beachy Waves

low maintenance beachy waves
Instagram @moiseshairstylist

Low-maintenance beachy waves are not as intimidating as they may look. The turn of a flatiron or your favorite curling iron will get you there. Add a light-hold hairspray and you’ll have a beachy wave style that lasts.

Beach Waves for Short Hair Overnight

beach waves for short hair overnight
Instagram @justindillaha_hair

Beach waves for short hair can last overnight. Like most wavy hairstyles, don’t forget to keep in mind that beach waves should not be tied up when you go to sleep but instead use a silk wrap like Sikelondon before going to bed. The silk wrap protects your hair from rubbing into the bed linen, decreasing breakage and frizz.

Loose Waves on Short to Mid-Length Hair

loose waves on short to mid length hair
Instagram @yukistylist

Loose waves on short to mid-length hair are a perfect solution if you don’t want to lose too much length while craving for a new hairdo. All beach wave hairstyles are made to resemble the loose and messy waves created by the salty water and the sun. Depending on how quickly the hair drops, the waves can be done a bit tighter or loose. For a better hold of the waves, use a pump of Kerastase – L’Incroyable Blowdry Lotion, which gives a long flexible hold.

Short Beach Waves

short beach waves for women
Instagram @hairbykasia_

Short beach waves are ideal when it comes to the movement and texture of the hair. Parting the hair and curling it section by section gives the most volume, especially when curling the very top layer of the black hair to create a beach waves hairstyle.

Messy Chin-Length Chop with Waves

messy chin length chop with waves
Instagram @styled_by_carolynn

A messy chin-length chop with waves is the perfect pair for ample amounts of texture, dimension, and volume. There are several ways to create a wavy hairstyle, taking bigger and smaller sections, as well as curling hair in opposite directions, offering different curl patterns and different movements.

Short Hair with Loose Beach Waves

short hair with loose beach waves
Instagram @styled_by_carolynn

Short hair with loose beach waves is a trendy twist to the classic short bob haircut. Hairstyles with beach waves are easy to accomplish by taking a one-inch curling iron and curling small sections, making sure to leave the ends out to keep them more straight and not damaged. Finish the style off by adding a texture spray, then combing or brushing through the curls so that they remain loose.

Edgy Bob with Beach Waves

Edgy Bob with Beach Waves
Instagram @shmoakin_hair

An edgy bob with beach waves is the perfect transition from long hair to shorter hair. Styling beach waves into the hair adds an extra flair of style. All that is needed is a flat iron or a one-inch curling iron and a texturizing spray!

Tousled Beach Curls

tousled beach curls
Instagram @sacaumut

No matter the cut or style, soft waves do fit any hair type. Not just for that summery look, messy beach curls transcend all seasons!

Short Bob with Beach Waves

short bob with beach waves
Instagram @nothingobvious

Posh and perky, a short bob with delicate waves makes you look like a doll. Curl hair and brush out to mellow out the waves.

Beach Waves for Short Hair Using a Flat Iron at Home

beach waves for short hair
Instagram @tyler_the_hairstylist

If you’ve been blessed with fuller hair, you get to enjoy having short hair more! There’s a lot to play around with when sporting a beach waves hairstyle.

Beach waves for short hair contributes to the overall body of your hair. Also, a flat iron is great for creating these small waves.

Ombre Beach Waves and Short Hair

ombre beach waves and short hair
Instagram @tiffanycolorshair

Every angle and feature of these ombre beach waves and short hair truly captivates the hair color, curls, glasses, and cut!

Boho Inspired Beachy Curls

Boho Inspired Beachy Curls
Instagram @hairbykayti

Highlight your boho inspired beachy curls and dark roots by putting little flower pins in your hippie braids or around your head for a festival beachy wave look.

Effortless Beachy Hair with a Curl

Effortless Beachy Hair
Instagram @hairbytriina

The keyword here is effortless: go over your hair with some mousse or tie it up for an hour and you’ve got an easy beach waves hair style!

Beach Waves on Very Short Hair

Beach Waves for Very Short Hair
Instagram @peachiehair

Make way for beach waves on very short hairstyles like bobs and pixie cuts! Sea salt spray your way to gorgeous ripples on your dark brown locks.

Textured Beach Wave on Shorter Hair

textured beach wave on shorter hair
Instagram @nikcabral

The easiest way to get a textured beach wave on shorter hair is to spritz on some sea salt hair spray and scrunch your ends afterward. Instant vacation vibes!

Heatless Beach Waves Natural ‘Do

Heatless Beach Waves
Instagram @jacquie.hair

One way to heatless beach waves is to twist your hair in a bun right after getting out of the shower. Keep it on for around an hour then let loose!

Easy Short Layered Hair with Beachy Waves

Short layered hair with beachy waves should be heavily textured, like this slightly short inverted bob. These easy beach waves have a fun secret; about 1/3 of the hair is actually a very short clippered undercut.

According to stylist and owner of Camellia Hair and Beauty in Queensbury, NY, Rachel Lott explains, “the girl in the photo has thick curly hair, so this technique collapses the shape of the cut, keeping the back from being bulky or triangular. It’s also a fun wavy hairstyle for when she wears her thick hair up!”

When it comes to styling, Lott says “to finish styling, use a lotion for moisture and shine on your natural beach curls, then loosely wrap around a 1″ iron, alternating directions for tousled beachy waves.”

Messy Beach Waves Short Hair

This is a shattered lob, as it has lots of texture for a beachy flowy vibe! When getting beach waves, curl in the opposite directions. When you curl the top part of your hair, curl straight up at the base to ensure all that volume stays in place.

Ombre and balayage specialist, Yvette Sandoval, from Salon Amore’ in Gilbert, AZ, says, “use Bumble and Bumble thickening line for all the volume, and Moroccan Oil texture sprays to give it lots of texture and that messy beachy wave.”

Sandoval adds, “the shattered lob is a very versatile cut and will look good on women with any type of hair. Styling may take more effort with certain types of hair and texture but can be achieved with the right beachy hair products and proper education from your stylist.”

Subtle Waves on Medium to Short Hair

Subtle waves on medium to short hair? Yes, please! This cut was kept at a decent length with long layers, followed by lots of texture for that beach vibe. As for curling short hair, use a 1-inch curling iron followed by finger combing the curls to create loose waves.

Kathryn Di Gioia, owner of Di Gioia’s Beauty Studio in Hermosa Beach, CA, says “when it comes to hairstyles for wavy hair, less is more! Think effortless, easy, low maintenance. Women think more is better when in actuality it’s not. Desired products for these beachy-looking waves would be any dry texturizing spray, creams, textured paste, and salt sprays.”

She adds, “for hair type, the straighter the hair and less curly the better! If you have a more textured style hair or more curl then, of course, you’ll have to put in the extra work as to smoothing out your hair and getting it perfect the way you’d want it.”

Beach Wave Hair Tutorial with a Curling Iron

This light blonde textured bob haircut is very popular right now, especially the beach waves. With this bob haircut,  you can wear it straight and sleek or super fun tousled with beach waves.

Create your beach waves for short hair using a Chi 1-inch curling wand and Joico texturing spray. Go for a beach wave bob haircut if you have an oval face shape. Face shapes play a big part in choosing the right haircut to accentuate certain features. If you choose a haircut that doesn’t work well with your face shape it will accentuate features you may not want the eye to be drawn to.

Hairstylist Chelsea Brevik of Jamie’s Hair Designs in Thousand Oaks, CA, says, “be aware of higher maintenance. If you’re a woman who doesn’t want monthly visits to the salon for color and haircuts stay away from this cut.”

Chelsea also gives us a quick beach wave hair tutorial stating, “if you want to have cute beach waves, you have to curl your hair every day to create this style. Just don’t do it daily because too much heat can really damage your hair. For example, braid your hair at night, undo the braids in the morning and poof! You’ll have overnight beach waves and dry hair with no heat. As far as products go for styling you would need a leave-in conditioner, a heat protectant if your leave-in doesn’t have any, dry shampoo, and texturizing spray.”