4 Genius Ways You Can Use Hot Rollers to Style Your Hair

Hot rollers have been around for a really long time, and most people are familiar with the image of a woman having them in her hair. And while many women have ditched them nowadays for their curling irons, there are still some hairstyles that are easier to achieve using rollers. Maybe they need more time to do the job, but they can be just as effective as irons. And there are quite a few wonderful hairstyles that you can achieve with them.

How to prepare your hair for hot rollers

• The first steps you need to take are to shampoo, condition, and dry your hair thoroughly. Before you start using your hair dryer, you might need to put a heat protectant on your hair. Then, before you start rolling, you can spray every strand of your hair with a little bit of hairspray. But make sure that it is a flexible hairspray — these are way easier to style than the usual stiff hairsprays.

How to section your hair

• This is a very important first step that will make it a lot easier for you to create any beautiful hairstyle. So first, you need to make a section at the top of your head that starts from the roots up to the crown of your scalp. Then, you should section the right and left sides up to the ears. The hair at the back of your head can be left hanging, since it’s way easier that way.

1. How to make beach waves

You will first need to section your hair right in the middle of your head and therefore create 2 sides of hair. You can start rolling from the roots and secure any strands around the rollers. This method will give you a much more secure result than if you were to start rolling from the ends of your hair and up to the roots. The side and back rollers should be parallel to the ground and all of them should be secured with the necessary pins.

It’s best to put the bigger rollers at the top of your head and the smaller ones on the rest of your hair. Leave the rollers on for about 15 minutes and then remove them with great care.

2. How to get a blowout

For this one, you will need to start from the top of your head. You will need to grab the biggest rollers and start rolling from the ends of your hair until about 2 cm from your scalp. You will probably need 3 rollers to finish this part of your hair, depending on the volume you have. Then you can move to the hair under your crown and start rolling from the ends to the scalp.

You will probably need 2 rollers for that area. Moving to the side hair, you will need to section each side into two parts and start rolling them from the roots and downward, away from your face. After securing your hair, you will need to leave the rollers on for 25 to 30 minutes.

3. How to create tight curls

This hairstyle is very similar in methodology as the beach waves. You can follow the exact same technique, with the only difference being that you need smaller hair sections. Also, you will need to use the smallest rollers that you have, preferably 0.75 to 1-inch big. Instead of rolling big portions of hair, you will need to take 1-2 inches of hair at a time and once you’re finished you can leave your curlers on for 30-35 minutes.

4. How to create big ringlets

This hairstyle is the perfect one for hot rollers, and the technique is similar to the blowout. You will also need to use the biggest rollers you have for your entire head and grab 2-4 inches of hair at a time. The difference with the blowout technique is that for your back hair, you will only need to use one roller that will go up until your neck. And you should use some holding spray since there will be too much weight on this one roller.

After you’ve finished rolling, you can secure your hair with a clamp and leave the rollers on for 20-25 minutes. After the time has passed, you can remove the rollers carefully and see the beautiful curls reveal themselves.

BONUS: Useful tips to know about

• Don’t sleep with them on: firstly, hot rollers retain heat for about 15 minutes, so leaving them for longer will have absolutely no effect on your hair. Not only that, but tossing and turning could be horribly damaging to your hair.
• It can cause hair loss: the only way you can get traction alopecia from them would be if you used them every single day. However, if you only use hot rollers a few times a month or even less, you have nothing to worry about.
• The different types of hot rollers: depending on what you want to achieve, there are different types of hot rollers: steam rollers, ceramic hair setters, wax core rollers, and rollers that use pulse technology.
• Other products that are useful to have: your rollers need some help in order to stay put, and clips and pins are the best helpers. A good hair comb is needed, similar to the ones hairdressers use. Also, styling products, like setting sprays, smoothing creams, and hair serums might be needed.

Have you ever used hot rollers, or do you prefer using a curling iron? Which one of the 2 methods do you think is easier to use?