So, who doesn’t like a full head of soft, bouncy, springy curls? Honestly, what is more romantic or ladylike or fun than curls? This very, very straight-haired gal has always like the look of curly hair, but I dislike the amount of time hot curling takes and the damage it does to my hair and, in the summer, how hot it is on already hot days. Therefore, when I want that curly look, I plan ahead a little and do a little vintage technique like so:
The night before, start with damp but not wet hair; for people with really thick hair, you might even start with dry hair (as my friend Kate does) and then just spritz it with a little water once it’s all wrapped up. You’re going to sleep in this, so think ahead time-wise or else you’ll get a wet pillow. Day-old hair is better, for me, because it has more oil and holds its shape, but I think this technique should work for any hair type as long as you work with it and are willing to experiment with it.
After you’ve brushed your hair, pop a headband on your head. I use a thicker one because all other styles tend to fall off my weirdly shaped head, but I think a thinner one would work well as long as it’s not rubberized in that way that damages hair and leaves lots of slit ends. So, once you’ve worked things out headband-wise, part your hair wherever you want and start taking individual chunks of hair and wrapping them up and over the band. The size of the curl will depend on the size of these strands, so it’s up to you whether to have tight pin-curls or loose waves (though I went with the latter this time and used big pieces of hair, as the after shots will show).
Keep wrapping, alternating sides, until you’ve wrapped all your hair up in the band. Then: done! Easy, peasy, right? Get a nice night of sleep now.
Here’s the morning after. It all holds pretty well at night, even though I am an active sleeper (as El Boyfriend can attest to). It’s a pretty wacky look, I know, but fortunately you’re going to take it all down in a moment. Depending on your hair type, you might want to give it a little spritz with the hairspray now, because next…
… you’ll just slowly take the headband off! Be gentle, because it can get a little tangled (particularly at the very back of the head). When it’s all out, give a little shake, spray if you need to, and style it however you like.
Yay! Done and done. Any questions?
Wow that is really easy! I just hope my hair is long enough in the back for me to try it. I’m still attempting to grow out my horrible a-line.
Oh my, I’ve never seen this before! This is a thousand times easier than rag curls, and I like the result much better! I already have curly hair, so I don’t know if it would really work on me, but I might give it a try. Maybe I can get tight little ringlets this way!
Thanks for the tip!