I am relaxed with almost waist length 4a/b hair. I airdry all the time with straight hair for the past 4 years. Here is what I do:
1. After you have put in all of your leave-in products, I take sections of my hair and comb the sections with a very wide tooth comb.
2. After using the wide tooth comb, I move down to a medium spaced tooth comb. Comb each section with the medium comb.
3. After using the medium spaced comb, I move down to a smaller/finer tooth comb. Usually a rat tail or barber comb would do the trick. Don't go too fine though.
4. Take your time as you smooth out each section. If you come across some impact (tangled hair) when using either comb, go back up to the larger comb to tackle the tangle. Then come back to the finer tooth comb.
What you are creating is a smooth wet set with this method. I usually comb my hair straight back, throw in about 4 large purple rollers. I roll up most of the hanging hair right above my shoulders. This way, the wet hair is not rubbing against my clothes. Use those duck clips on each end of the roller to secure it. Put a scarf on to mold the top & crown area. The rollers hang out the back.
Depending on the thickness and length of your hair, it may help to put a small scrunchie on each section to hold the hair in place as you use the roller. I do this as well because I'm rolling up so much hair on the roller and the hair tends to fall off of the roller. Don't double tie the scrunchie though as it will cause a dent.
When it airdries, the hair will (at least it should) look like a roller set. A big beautiful curl for each section. But only the bottom hair will be curled not the top because the scarf has molded the top/crown area flat.
HTH,
Simplyhair
(back from a long hibernation...hi everyone!)