How can I style my hair without straightening it?

I'm trying to make my hair grow faster by not straightening it. It's like 2-3 inches past my shoulder so I don''t know what to do with it without straightening/ curling it. Braiding it overnight to make it wavy doesn't work. Wearing it down and natural is out of the question because it dries crazy like with some wavy pieces and some straight pieces and just looks awful. So should i just wear it up every day?