Pin Curls...Bit of a mess..

[BritishBraider]

Since my sister realised I was irritatingly persistent she has begun to allow me to style her hair, so I started off with pin curls...

http://pics.livejournal.com/britishbraider/pic/000ayryahttp://pics.livejournal.com/britishbraider/pic/000ax63x

And it was a bit of a mess. She has quite slippery hair...

This is about twenty minutes after we took them out, after three hours(ish) of being in:

http://pics.livejournal.com/britishbraider/pic/000azqf6

She normally has pin-straight hair, so an interesting result, but not very neat. Any tips for future pin curls? Smaller sections perhaps? She has layers which makes it a wee bit difficult too....

[cheetahfast]

I don't have any tips...just wanted to say that her hair looks very beautiful! Nice shine!

[Anje]

Did you start with her hair damp? That makes a big difference.

[lapispimpernel]

Hmm. Wet hair & smaller, well defined sections will help. Duck clips are easier than bobby pins, too.

[spidermom]

Did you look at YouTube? There's definitely a technique to it. It might take some practice.

I can do it, but I'm slow with all this hair.

[MychelleC]

I love it! So pretty. Not-so-neat makes it look modern. :)

[CurlyCap]

Pin curls work best for me if I pin them while damp. Get out of the shower, turban for ~5minutes, and start pin curling.

Then I sleep with them in with a handerkerchief around my head to protect the curls.

In the morning, the curls are formed and almost in destructible.

I do have naturally curly hair, but pin curls adds a uniformity that I never have naturally. However, I have done this on friends that have stick straight hair, and it always is the only thing that gives them lasting curls.

[CurlyCap]

Also, I can't quite tell from the photos, but I think you are using too much hair for a curl. Try taking a pencil sized lock of hair and rolling it into a curl that is very tight (almost cinnamon bun tight) against the scalp. Pin in place.

[bluesnowflake]

I usually do them when my hair is about 75% dry. I put them in, using between 1 1/2 and 3 inch sections depending on the size of curls. I tie my head in a scarf, sleep on it, take them out in the morning and comb them with a VERY wide-tooth comb. No brushing, no finer-tooth combing or it floofs, but it might not with her hair- it looks pretty sleek. Her color is beautiful, by the way. Is it natural?

[lacefrost]

Damp hair in small neat sections. Pin curls are nothing more than tiny cinnabuns.

I actually really like what you did. It was cute as an updo and sort of sexy bedhead when it was down.

[Jimothea]

I thought the look came out very pretty! I can't wait till my hair can look like that *sigh*. But yeah, if you want to go for the more true-and-blue pin curl looks, wet set is the way to go; CurlyCap is right; they're practically indestructible. Few tips:


All sections should be about the same size. Inch by inch, give or take, for most bobby pins and most hair.
All sections should be oriented the same way--OR--if she has a lot of cowlicks, all sections should flow the way the natural cowlick pattern wants the hair to go; just makes it look more *right* when dry, plus if they get messed up by wind or rain or whatnot, it's easier to figure out how to mush them back into their spots..but looks like she doesn't have a cowlick issue (lucky!).
Always pin from the same direction
Wet set--6 hours minimum. Dry set--wayyyyy longer, since the only thing forcing the hair into position is time. With both, the longer left in, the better.
Upright pin curls give volume; flattened-to-the-head pin curls help define the skull shape. You might want some upright, say, on the crown, and then some, say, by the ears, close to the head. That's just an example. Just make sure they're all oriented correctly.HTH! Please post future hair experiment pictures!

[BritishBraider]

Wow, thanks for all the responses! I shall try them out with wet hair and in much smaller sections, thank you!