How To Get Jennifer Lopez Curls, According To Her Hairstylist

Before the flat iron-happy early aughts made popular the act of straightening hair to oblivion, J. Lo was apt to wear hers in blissfully bouncy coils, a visual manifestation of her Puerto Rican roots. A recent portrait of the now 51-year-old is a nostalgic reminder of their former glory, and to make it even better, her hairstylist just followed it up with a welcome tutorial on how to get Jennifer Lopez-style curls.

Read more: My Low-Porosity Hair Takes Forever To Dry — Here’s How I Deal

Because the singer clearly hasn't aged in any other perceptible way, her hair serves as the only indication of the decade. These days, the icon is rarely without a fresh blowout, but curls were her M.O. before she became partial to a hot tool.

Chris Appleton, her longtime hair guru, channeled a '90s aesthetic for her latest Coach holiday shoot: infusing texture back into Lopez's perpetually straightened lengths, evoking memories of crimpers. Remember crimpers?

As it turns out, no sawtooth-shaped iron was used. Shortly after posting the photo, Appleton filmed a nifty YouTube video inspired by the singer's look. He starts by wetting a model's (naturally curly) hair and saturating it in the anti-humidity Dream Coat by Color Wow (for which he is an ambassador) — "the only product I've found that doesn't make the hair crispy, but also gives great control," he said.

He twists the wet hair with his fingers, following the natural curl pattern, while working in the Dream Coat. After the product is fully integrated, he blows it dry with a diffuser — essential, he says, for controlling the curl — continuously lifting hair from the roots, scrunching it, and topping up with product partway through.

When it's 99 percent dry, Appleton works in a couple pumps of Color Wow Pop & Lock high-gloss shellac to break up the curls. "This is just going to give it a nice shine. It's kind of nourishing, but it doesn't weigh the hair down," he said. The final product should be perfectly flip-able, never stiff, sticky, or crunchy (some things should stay in the '90s). His essential products for J. Lo-inspired curly hair styling, ahead.

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