Loose Perm Styles

You can forget about curling irons when you get a permanent loose hairstyle.

Perm styles in the 21st century have come a long way from the 1980s poodle-inspired hairdos. The chemical technology has advanced so your stylist can control the tightness of the perm and work with the natural texture of your hair for a less damaging treatment. Loose perms add texture, waves or volume to hair. Keep in mind that no matter what style of perm you get, the style will relax, or loosen, in a few weeks.

Root Perms

A root perm adds volume to the root of any length or texture of hair. This type of perm will keep your natural hair texture while adding natural looking volume, so it may make already thick or voluminous hair look large. Root perms are a great way to upkeep any style of perm without damaging all of the hair with perm chemicals by just perming the new, flat hair that grows in. You will need to maintain the root perm -- whether by itself or as a part of any perm -- as it grows out, getting a new root perm once your hair starts to lose volume, every six to eight weeks.

Stack Perms

A stack perm uses perm chemicals and rollers stacked on top of each other through the hair to create volume in hair that isn't layered. Depending on the roller size, this type of perm can have small, tight curls or large, loose curls.

Spot Perms

A spot perm, or partial perm, focuses on one area of the hair, creating tight or loose curls depending on the size of the curlers used. You can use this kind of perm to even out partly wavy/partly curly hair, you can leave the first few inches of hair straight and curl the ends, just curl the very ends of the hair or add texture in a few full-length sections of the hair.

Multi-textured Perm

For a natural looking loose perm style to add to any natural hair texture or length, the multi-textured perm is perfect. Your stylist will use different sizes of curlers to create a look that doesn't appear manufactured but still gives you waves and texture.

Body Wave Perm

Popular with many celebrities, the body wave perm transforms straight hair into loose, even, flexible curls. When done to naturally wavy or curly hair, this type of perm will look much tighter, so this is best for people with straight hair to achieve the loose perm style.

Tags: hair texture, perm style, root perm, type perm, curly hair, hair that