After years of straightening, natural curls are having a moment

1 month ago 5

By Lucia Ferrari

January 13, 2026 — 1.30pm

Nicole Kidman was photographed this week leaving Sydney Airport for Nashville, Tennessee. She was all smiles and wearing Chanel, with full-on curly hair. It had been her first Christmas on home soil in Australia since she ended her 19-year marriage to singer Keith Urban in September last year.

After years of seeing Kidman with poker-straight, or softly tousled, hair, her return to her once-signature 1980s curls felt like a deliberate change. Fans, such as stylist Rachel Zoe, commented that they were “obsessed” with seeing Kidman embrace her natural curls again, and some of her followers commented it was perhaps a nod to new beginnings, akin to when she famously changed up her image and punched the air in front of photographers, following her 2001 divorce from Tom Cruise.

Nicole Kidman jets out of Sydney Airport.

As someone with naturally curly hair, I think the curls could also just be the sign of a good holiday and feeling confident and relaxed enough not to be a slave to the hairdryer and straightening tongs.

Curls are definitely a statement, emanating an air of nonchalance and confidence. I always think of designer Diane von Furstenberg, the queen of the laid-back curls, who manages to look both chic and laissez-faire, having not gone near a hair tong. And let’s not forget Carrie Bradshaw’s curls in Sex and the City, which seemed to be a narrative tool to reflect her “this woman cannot be tamed” game plan.

Of course, we’re used to seeing Kidman’s hair looking more styled and sleek on the red carpet. Her LA stylist, Adir Abergel, was behind her last year’s Sixties Golden Globe voluminous updo, which was so thick, swingy and swishy it deserved an award of its own for using a faux ponytail, tons of oomph and bombshell thickness (must have used several kilos of hair extensions?) throughout the mid-lengths to the ends. But off-duty, she has begun embracing her natural curls more and more – even when meeting Anna Wintour last October at the Vogue World Hollywood event, when Kidman chose a tailored burgundy leather blazer combined with her natural curls.

A full head of pre-Raphaelite curls was Kidman’s signature style in the Eighties and early Nineties – until she filmed Eyes Wide Shut. There’s a definite nostalgia for that era for lots of us. Notable for its volume and fluffy finish, think Cher, Madonna, Daisy Duke’s barrel curls and Stevie Nicks’s wolf cut. Hairspray was essential. Many misted their manes into rigid shapes that felt crispy and stiff due to old-school formulations. The perm was another big part of the era, as were mullets and other outré haircuts (shags and wolf cuts), which have crept back towards the edge of mainstream recently.

Someone who knows good curls – and how to look after them properly – is hairstylist Sam McKnight. On a recent visit to McKnight’s studio, I asked for pointers on how to create volume as my 50-plus hair began thinning dramatically last year. Instead of suggesting rollers and products, McKnight was unequivocal, telling me to save my hair, I simply needed to stop blow-drying and embrace my natural curls. I was a bit gutted to be honest, as for me, curly hair had always felt just “messy”. Acceptable on the beach, but not anywhere else.

McKnight gave me pointers on how to style my curls, telling me to channel Kim Basinger in the Nineties – aside from the fridge scene in 9½ Weeks, which I told him I didn’t have the energy or inclination to recreate. But I have to say, I’m a changed woman as far as the curls are concerned, and I now feel empowered, embracing my curls after 30 years of straightening. Here are the dos and don’ts I’ve found helpful.

Tonging technique

McKnight says the trick to making curly hair feel more slick is to let it dry naturally (or using a diffuser), using just your fingers, not a brush. When it’s dry, use some of his Happy Endings Creamy balm ($50, Sam McKnight), which is super light and transforms frizz into Kidman curls, and wide-barrelled tongs just on the ends and especially the front section, so it doesn’t look unruly. Leave the ends of the hair out of the tongs to make it look more “undone” but elegant. It’s genius.

Top tip

Hair stylist Michael Charalambous (who has tended the hair of everyone from Claudia Winkleman to Ivana Trump) says to keep frizz to a minimum, don’t rub your hair excessively with a towel when it’s wet because this fluffs up the cuticle too much. Just pat dry with a towel to get the moisture out. He says this is useful for men too, as they often tend to be too gung-ho with the towel.

The best cut

Stylist Luke Hersheson says: “Curly hair needs a bit of shape to look groomed after a certain age. Some soft face-framing layers around the face can look good. I did this on actress Connie Nielsen [from Gladiator] last year and it was a flattering, rock-chick but elegant look on her. One length can look a bit too boho.” He also advises cutting curly hair when dry so that you can see it evolving and how it will “sit”.

The perm is a no-no

Hersheson says: “The technology hasn’t really changed in 30 years, and perms can really damage the condition, so I’d stay away from them. Most people have some wave or curl in the hair, which you can work with if you want it to look curly.”

The Attitude

I love McKnight’s parting advice to me, which is, “We all have to care a bit less. Don’t aim for perfect hair. It’s much cooler to have it a bit undone. It will take years off you.” This is echoed in curly-haired actress Laura Dern, who told Vogue last year, “I’ve learnt to just let my hair be, because I have a natural wave and am comfortable with it being its own texture and less ironing it straight. I put in my old school clip and just shake my hair out.”

The Telegraph, London