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View Full Version : I tried straw curls...



endlessly
January 16th, 2016, 06:34 PM
If you don't know what "straw curls" are, they're basically when you create a "curl" using a regular drinking straw - the words in quotations are meant to be read sarcastically, by the way.

So, I had the brilliant idea to try it after seeing pins on Pinterest, posts on Facebook, and different YouTube videos claiming how "amazing" they were and that they "really worked". Again, sarcasm.

Since I'm relatively new to YouTube and overflowing with sarcasm, I decided to try it out and film the entire process - everything from the "I don't know what I'm doing" to the "Oh god, what have I done?!" as well as everything in between. And, let's just say, it went a bit awry...and that's the nicest thing I could say without having to censor out a bunch of expletives.

Firstly, I learned that "straw curls" are essentially just tiny curled dreadlocks that will result in the unholiest of all tangles. Secondly, I learned that it would take a lot of olive oil to work through said tangles. And lastly, that I would never, EVER attempt it again. So, for all those curious about whether or not "straw curls" work for us longer haired girls (or guys), just trust me on this: it doesn't.

If you're curious to see the entire nightmare unfold before your very eyes, I did post a 3-part series. I'm not trying to be all "self promoting", I just thought some of you might enjoy this! Get ready for some laughs and lots of swearing. Seriously, there's a lot even though I tried my best to edit out most of it...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r4oVuJ8-qcw

Chocowalnut
January 16th, 2016, 07:09 PM
Lol I actually think they look rashly cute on you, you have really pretty hair. I can imagine they probably do tangle really easily though.

Llama
January 16th, 2016, 08:05 PM
They look really cute but yeah definitely not worth the tangles! I'm glad I saw this before attempting them on myself so thanks for the warning :)

Nadine <3
January 16th, 2016, 08:13 PM
LOL you're really cute! I'm glad I saw thing before attempting these curls. I'm always looking for heatless curling methods, now I can strike this off my list.

endlessly
January 16th, 2016, 09:02 PM
LOL you're really cute! I'm glad I saw thing before attempting these curls. I'm always looking for heatless curling methods, now I can strike this off my list.

Yeah, I definitely do not recommend these! But, I'm glad I tried it out. Thankfully, my hair is 100% okay after this and I did get a really great oiling treatment afterwards, so that's a plus :)

yahirwaO.o
January 16th, 2016, 10:11 PM
It looks completely awesome!!!! :applause

CurlyCap
January 17th, 2016, 12:06 AM
I'm always so surprised when people put tight curls in their hair and then are surprised that they can't easily detangle it, and that running their fingers through it is absolutely not going to happen. Has there ever been a post by a curly that is essentially "Omg, my hair is the easiest thing ever to maintain"?

Curly hair is a beast, and there is a reason there is an almost science to managing it. I saw a pretty believable head of 3b faux curls....and then the appropriate despair over the lack of 2nd day hair and then the lightbulb come on when she realized detangling was going to need to happen.

They are not curled dreadlocks, btw. Dreadlocks, good ones, are meticulously maintained and a gorgeous style. I do believe you probably experienced the joy of matting....which is again par for the course with tightly curly hair.

KittyBird
January 17th, 2016, 01:50 AM
I'm always so surprised when people put tight curls in their hair and then are surprised that they can't easily detangle it, and that running their fingers through it is absolutely not going to happen. Has there ever been a post by a curly that is essentially "Omg, my hair is the easiest thing ever to maintain"?

Curly hair is a beast, and there is a reason there is an almost science to managing it. I saw a pretty believable head of 3b faux curls....and then the appropriate despair over the lack of 2nd day hair and then the lightbulb come on when she realized detangling was going to need to happen.

They are not curled dreadlocks, btw. Dreadlocks, good ones, are meticulously maintained and a gorgeous style. I do believe you probably experienced the joy of matting....which is again par for the course with tightly curly hair.
Been there, done that.. That's the reason why I don't do heatless curls anymore, the tangles and matting on day 2 was too much for me to deal with. Spending hours putting my hair into rag curls, sleeping uncomfortably, getting an uneven result that mostly fell out again after a few hours, and then spending 4-5 hours crying and detangling a matted mess the day after just didn't seem worth it to me. If I want curly hair these days, I use a curling wand. For some reason those curls don't tangle much, and I can have nice wavy 2nd day hair with curly ends.

I remember someone on here tried to do straw curls with pipe cleaners. It was a disaster, to put it mildly. shudder:

Arctic
January 17th, 2016, 03:56 AM
Do you want feedback on the videos?

Hairkay
January 17th, 2016, 04:11 AM
Lol, I thought it turned out okay for a first attempt. Yes curls do require careful managing because they will tangle. Those look nothing like dreadlocks.

lapushka
January 17th, 2016, 04:21 AM
There's straw curls and there's milkshake straws; they are a bit wider if you feel more comfortable with a wider curl, maybe. It is amazing how you just left them in for a short while - and look! They are cute!!!

Magalo
January 17th, 2016, 09:31 AM
Yeah I don't see any problem with it. Worked as expected and look very good. :) Sure it's going to tangle like all curly hair. There's a reason people with this hairtype don't detangle their hair other than full of conditionner in the shower with a wide tooth comb. That's just how it is! :)

MsBubbles
January 17th, 2016, 09:41 AM
I think the curls turned out very well! (And stop saying you look terrible! You don't)

Aleahcim
January 17th, 2016, 10:05 AM
I think it turned out well as well.
Expecting curly hair to not act like curly hair just wont work(even more so with tightly curly hair). The more you try to "detangle" curly hair the worst it gets. I learned this lesson the hard way when I was younger. My little sister has VERY curly hair and I don't. When I was trying to do her hair I would get frustrated that I would comb out the knots then set that strand of hair down and it would be full of tangles again all on its own. When you separate a clump of curls that hair tries to curl around itself once again creating more tangles.

A suggestion for if you want to sleep without ruining the curls once it is taken down, perhaps a rope braid would work? Might encourage clumping as well reducing the tangles? I might see if I can get my sister to try it out on her hair sometime when I visit.

lapis_lazuli
January 17th, 2016, 10:15 AM
I think they look pretty :) Very cute :p

Groovy Granny
January 17th, 2016, 10:29 AM
Loved the video...had lots of chuckles :wink:

The curls were amazing!

But yeah...any curly hair will tell you NOT to brush/comb it out.
There is a time and technique for detangling.
Maybe a gentle separating to add to the number of curls, or a change in the size/# of straws.......but the frizz balls on the ends from too much handling wasn't a good look.
That method would be great for a special occasion, but when you are not curly....it could be damaging if done too often IMHO.....and too much work (I'd use another method) :p

school of fish
January 17th, 2016, 12:05 PM
First things first - you are one funny lady! I was gigglesnorting through all three videos, your sense of humour kept making me chuckle :D

This whole operation seems to me a really valuable endeavour because it's a great illustration of walking in someone else's shoes. It's one thing for a curly to try to explain the challenge of detangling/clumping/defrizzing/defining to a straighty but it's another thing for the straighty to actually have to fight that fight for themselves. In similar fashion, I imagine a curly might be surprised at how ANY mistake can stand out on straight hair - over-oiling, uneven trimming, a couple of rogue strands sitting out of place, damage like white dots and split ends... anything that visually disrupts the flow stands out like a hang-gliding flasher and can completely distract the focus away from any of the hair's other qualities. There's nowhere to hide...

Of course I'm speaking in BROAD generalities and everyone's individual experience will be their own, but I do think it's a valuable thing to 'feel the pain' of another from time to time ;)

As far as looks go, those curls are phenomenal! That's actually the kind of hair I always wished I was born with... and so wasn't ;) And I'm glad someone else took the bullet on the fallout because I know there's no way I could have gotten those fabulous spirals out of my hair without losing great chunks of it!

I guess it goes to show that while it's possible to make your hair do something that works against its nature, it's probably not sustainable - and certainly not without consequence!

It did look SO amazing though... :D

meteor
January 17th, 2016, 12:36 PM
That looks gorgeous! :applause What a stunning mane! :thud:

If tangles are a problem, it's best to curl only huge sections (not tiny ones), keeping them uniform and going in the same direction, sectioning in the same way as your hair naturally parts/falls, *not twisting* strands before curling them (the twisting action adds extra difficulty to detangling later).
Also, it's very important not to comb out curls (and avoid brushes!), just leave it alone or finger-detangle roughly, and only if absolutely necessary.
Also, there are some curling methods that just don't seem to work safely for really long hair, for example bantu knots, pin curls, headband curls, anything that pulls up and wraps the whole length up and onto that tiny area. For example, torrinpaige posted a very useful cautionary tale about pin curls: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HV6DIWc0qj4

About the 2-nd day hair struggle after curling... what I do now is avoid the 2nd day altogether ;) by planning to curl my hair only 2 days before a wash: i.e. first day - overnight heatless curls, next day - wear said curls, the day after - wash to reset.
Sure, it means that the curl won't hold as well on greasy hair as it does on freshly washed hair, but it actually looks much better with extra oil. (My hair tends to look drier when it has some texture to it, so I always use oils and silicones to give it more shine and slip if it's curled.)

The kinds of leave-ins used and the ingredients can make a difference in terms of tangles later, I'm actually pro-cones&oils for detangling, though I have to admit that they weigh down on texture a bit and tend to smooth out, straighten texture a bit, which can be counter-productive if that's not the look you are going for...

(But honestly, I do this extremely rarely, because my hair is way too heavy and it's *a lot* of work to section and all, and I just don't see the point at the end of the day... :lol: #lazyandlonghaired)

endlessly
January 17th, 2016, 08:41 PM
Thank you for all the comments!

And yes, looking back at it, I believe my first huge mistake was trying to separate the curls the way I did. I should have just loosely pulled them apart, but being someone with mostly straight hair, I tend to have this need to force a comb to go through it - oh well, hindsight is 20/20!