Wednesday, April 20, 2011

Curling Your Hair


Hello all you straight-hair beauties! My name is Lina, and I'm here to save the day! I'll take you step by step on how to curl straight hair so you never feel frustrated again. I'll show you the right products to use for your limp locks, in order to add volume and shine. Protecting your hair from damage is also essential, especially if it is fine in texture. Want to curl your straight hair now? Simply follow my easy instructions and have beautiful curls in no time:
Step 1-Wash your hair with a sulfate free shampoo. If your hair is fine in texture, wash it with a volume enhancing shampoo, and a lightweight hydrating conditioner. Apply the conditioner from the ears and down, and avoid the root area as to not weigh down the hair. Apply a heat protecting leave-in conditioner into damp hair to protect it from the curling iron. Follow by a non-drying root lifter, and a non-drying volume mouse. Apply the root lifter specifically to the root area, and the mouse onto the entire hair area. Curling your hair with a mouse gives it a lot of body, shape, and a bit of hold.
Products I recommend for step one: For added volume, try Pureology's pure volume shampoo with the hydrating conditioner (towards the ends). Curling your hair might be a bit damaging if the proper steps are not taken. For example, using a leave-in conditioner is extremely important while using heat. My favorite leave-in conditioner is Rene Furterer's Okara two-phase leave-in conditioner: lots of heat/sun protection, without added weight. KMS add volume root lifter works great and isn't too drying, and Enjoy's alcohol free mouse is wonderful as well.
Step 2- Comb hair through with a wide-tooth comb, or try "The Wet Brush" to help detangle hair. Blow dry hair until it is completely dry, preferably with a ceramic or tourmaline blow dryer as to not cause damage to the hair, and to also fight frizz. Use a round brush for added volume. The larger the rounded brush, the better the volume (but of course the size of the brush is also according to hair length/layers).
Products I recommend for step two: The reason I recommend ceramic and tourmaline tools is because of the way it heats the hair. Classic blow dryers often fry the hair. If you are going to invest time into styling your hair often, you obviously care about the way it looks. I would therefore strongly advice you to use the right tools, and to keep it protected from the damage of heat. This tip will be the same for when you are curling your hair as well: your curling irons should never be metal.
Step 3- So now your hair is completely dry and tangle free. Your ceramic or tourmaline curling iron is on, and you have chosen a barrel suitable for your hair type and curl goal. (For example a ¾ in curling iron will give you tight curlers, while a 1 ¼ curling iron will give you the loose curls you see all over TV these days. ) Please also look at your curling iron and adjust the heat. Some curling irons go up to 400 degrees, which is not necessary. The general rule of thumb is: the finer the hair texture, the lower the heat. This will take practice, and you will eventually adjust the heat that is suitable for you.
Step 4: You will want want to section out your hair into smaller sections going horizontally (for example: when curling your hair, your sections shouldn't be too thick from your roots going DOWN towards your ears, but rather going in sections directly ACROSS your head). Making your sections too thick from the top to the bottom (vertically) will cause it to loose a lot of curl and volume. *Pinning*your hair in sections is your choice. If you are new and want it to be very easy, you can invest the time to literally pin your hair up in sections and take one section out at a time to curl. (If you use pins in this step, you are going to start curling your hair from the bottom sections up) If you are a little move advanced, or are comfortable making these sections in your mind and as you go, that is okay too. You can follow my major steps, but in the end you will also add your own personal twist.
Step 5: I highly recommend using a thermal styling spray at this point. I've used many of them, and my favorite by far is still Kenra's thermal styling spray. It protects from heat, and really helps keep the curl. When you start curling your hair, take a small section of hair one at a time, and lightly spray it with the thermal spray. The strand is not to be soaked. Then take the same section, and wrap the hair around the barrel starting at the root of your hair. You are to be placing your roots at the base of the barrel, underneath the clamp. Keep wrapping your hair UNDER the clamp and then close the clamp to heat the hair and receive the style. You should not be holding the hair near the heat for too long, I'd approximate about 10 seconds or less. Again, if your hair is thicker, this approximation might change. Release the clamp, and slide the curl out carefully, as to not pull on your hair. When you release the curl, either pin it back onto your head to keep the curl style, or hold it in your closed hand for a couple seconds to enhance its shape. Regardless, mist with light hairspray (again I love Kenra's firm holding hairspray). Repeat step five until all hair is curled. When curling your hair, you can also alternate the direction of your sections to give your hair some added texture and bounce.
Step 6: Your hair should be curled and sprayed. If if is still pinned, release all the curls. At this point, I always run my hands through the curls to release them a little, and give it a more natural look. I then flip my hair over, and spray my hair through again with Kenra's firm/flexible volume hairspray. I flip it back and have a head full of beautiful curls.
Additional option for step six: If your hair is straight but not fine, you will love Osis's "dust it". It's by a german brand called Schwarzkopf. It's the weirdest little product.. a powder that turns a bit tacky when it contact with hair or if you rub it between your fingers. This product works AMAZING for thicker hair types. You simply rub it into the roots of your hair and it adds immense volume. Some people tease with it (lightly as to not cause damage to the hair). But unfortunately I have found it does not work very well for fine hair. So if your hair is too thin, simply skip this step and you are done



No comments:

Post a Comment