Celebrity Hair Stylist Jen Atkin Made a Tool That's Supposed to Give You Chic Waves in Minutes—So We Obviously Had to Try It

Whether it’s the return of the “Indie Sleaze” aesthetic or the anticipation surrounding the upcoming Little Mermaid movie, loose, rumpled hair has been making major waves these days. Though if you’re celebrity hairstylist Jen Atkin or one of her many famous clients (see: Hailey Bieber, Chrissy Teigen, Gigi Hadid and Kendall Jenner), the beachy bedhead look is nothing new.

As you can see from Atkin’s video, theoretically you can get soft, natural-looking waves with a few clamps of this tool. Alas, it’s one thing to watch a professional hairstylist use her own tool (and make it look incredibly easy) and another to try it yourself, which is exactly what I did.

I tested the Triple Ripple Barrel Hair Waver several times over the course of a month and in various conditions including sweaty dance classes, the dry desert heat and a muggy day at the beach. I’ll be honest, the first two times I tried the waver, I wasn’t entirely convinced on it because my hair looked a little too undone for my liking.

This could partially be attributed to my hair texture though. I have thick, long and porous hair that’s prone to frizz. It’s also fairly coarse and has a natural bend to it. As such, I generally wash it every three or so days and tend to use a lot of creams and oils to keep it from puffing up too much.

1. Start with dry hair. For hair that’s prone to puffing like mine, I’d recommend using the waver on day-two or even day-three hair.

2. Section off your hair into a few even segments. Note: The tool is rather wide so it covers a lot of surface area, meaning you can get away with fewer sections.

3. Using a lower heat setting (I went with 325 per Atkin’s tutorial), begin clamping each section starting about an inch or two away from your roots.

4. Hold each clamp for a few seconds before moving the tool down the rest of your hair, shortening the time between each clamp as you get closer to the ends.

5. While your hair is still warm, gently break apart some pieces with your fingers to get an even softer look.

6. Option to finish with a hairspray or a heavier cream or oil (which is what I use because, again, my hair is puffy without product).

It initially took some trial-and-error for me to get a handle on the waver, but once I figured out how long to hold each clamp (a few seconds per section) and how to line up the barrels (horizontally for the loose waves you see above), I am happy to report that it’s pretty easy to use and works faster than if you were to try and replicate the look with a flat iron.