Curler help needed!

[Frenchy56]

Give it a vigorous rub with the towel before you set it, and that should do the trick. This will also solve the problem of your sets being either too tight or too loose.

C-dot, can you explain that last bit?

 

[Smumo]

Yes, basically. I usually start with dry hair and comb in a setting lotion. From what you're saying it looks like I've just been doing it far to wet - I'll let it dry half way next time and see how that works!

I do this quite a bit when I have set my hair the day before and the curls just aren't lasting for another day. I put a bit of setting lotion in and curl it up again. I can do this in the morning when I wake up and by the time I'm done with breakfast and getting dressed I can take the rollers out and I have a set again. These curls don't last more than a day though so I have to wash my hair and set it again overnight.

My hair never did hold a curl until I started using sponge rollers overnight. When I say "overnight" what I really mean is I wash my hair as soon as I get home in the evening, towel dry it, put in my product, roll it up and THEN go about my evening activities (dinner, chores, etc.) so I'm really rolling it up at about 6p and leaving it until 6a the next day. I can't roll it right before bed and expect anything out of it the next day, it just won't work.

If I wear my curls very tight the first day, brush them a bit the second day, and use a setting lotion quick set the third day I can then start over again on the fourth day. I've been doing this only for two weeks so some unknown problem may pop up at some point and I'll have to come back and say it doesn't work......but so far it's working. (I totally used to set my hair every night because I could not make a set last a day even, but new setting lotion seems to be helping, also not brushing out as much the first day.) I'll try to get pictures up of my hair after I take the rollers out (I look like a poodle!) and how I wear it the first day, second day, third day, etc. I have a poodle picture and a third day picture but not a second day one yet, and I just dyed my hair brown again so the continuity would be lost if I posted them all now.

 

[C-dot]

C-dot, can you explain that last bit?

Ever take out your set and your curls are curled so tight, you have to brush them out for a while before they look good? Or conversely, your hair didn't curl enough for whatever reason and your hair falls flat? If you towel dry your hair really well before setting, it should come out just right

 

[Vintage Rose]

Tatum, the body wave is a good idea. I have insanely healthy, undamaged hair. Always have had really healthy, shiny, board-straight hair (except for my brief stint as an appointment setter at a salon- my hair was dyed 4 times in one year- it was fun). This could be why the perms when I was a kid just went flat. I'm scared to damage it, though. Will it still be as soft and shiny?

I agree with smumo that if I want curls that last for more than one day I have to put them in around 7pm and take them out around 8am. They are REALLY curly the first day, and I wear it like my grandma did in the forties , and the second day they are soft and I could do rolls and such (must practice those). Third day, all that's left is a little body.

I'm not going to try the almost dry set because it would take another hour to roll them all up. However, I was considering hot rollers for a pinch. I almost bought a set on sale and it looked like there weren't enough rollers to go around. Do you have to buy two hot roller sets, or can you get extra rollers for them? Is there a type that work best for 40's/50's do's?

Still mainly on topic, but a little off... Is anyone terrified after all that rolling to have anything happen to your hair? I was steaming clothes at work today and was holding the steamer at arms length and blowing away the steam. How tough are these curls to everyday handling? I can't imagine 1940's women running around saying "DON'T TOUCH MY HAIR!!!". Can my kids hang on my hair? Can it survive being squished at all? Does anyone garden outside? I know the WWII ladies gardened. How to keep the curls in while in the heat and getting grubby? I know that there is the rosie scarf (thanks for the instructions C-dot), but how to keep it from sliding up on the aforementioned healthy, SLIPPERY hair (I can't even keep combs in it because they migrate south)?

Thanks everyone!

 

[Land-O-LakesGal]

Vintage Rose in response to your hot roller set question, I prefer hot sticks to hot rollers but they don't hold up was well with humidity they are best for Minnesota winters when your in a pinch. They don't have a ton in the sets and I have a lot of hair but have I have managed with just one set. Here is Fleurs hot stick tutorial [video=youtube;YwmqsRjm3lY]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YwmqsRjm3lY&feature=player_embedded[/video]

As far as the gardening etc... I will pin up hair and tie up in scarf to protect when needed. Oh I have problems with combs too even the true grips but they do work better than most if you have not tried them you may wish to look into them, I think the vermont country store sells them.

 

[Vintage Rose]

Vintage Rose in response to your hot roller set question, I prefer hot sticks to hot rollers but they don't hold up was well with humidity they are best for Minnesota winters when your in a pinch. They don't have a ton in the sets and I have a lot of hair but have I have managed with just one set. Here is Fleurs hot stick tutorial [video=youtube;YwmqsRjm3lY]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YwmqsRjm3lY&feature=player_embedded[/video]

As far as the gardening etc... I will pin up hair and tie up in scarf to protect when needed. Oh I have problems with combs too even the true grips but they do work better than most if you have not tried them you may wish to look into them, I think the vermont country store sells them.

Thanks for posting that! I'll check out the combs, too.

By the way, thanks again to C-dot for the advice it putting curls up for night-time. I used a little bit of advice from everybody here in setting the hair, and it hasn't been so humid lately. I am on day three without setting! First and second day, great down. Today I will do an up-do, and tonight I will set it. The updo is great because we are going to an old-time thresher festival. Ahhh, the tractors on parade make my heart sing! The only thing I can't seem to do, is get the sleeker type forties curls. Perhaps it is essential to pin-curl it instead of rollers? I've also noticed that if I am not careful the hair poofs out and looks a bit 70's or 80's. Usually that is at the end of the life of the set.

 

[Tatum]

Vintage Rose, yes. My hair is still soft and shiny! It will dry it out a bit, but here in SW Florida that's not a bad thing. I do take very good care of my hair, in that I almost never use heat on it. I only get it cut twice a year, no need to do it more often.

I have found that allowing my hair to dry completely then going in with the setting lotion helps. If I didn't do that at the length it is now, it will never dry (even giving it twelve hours). But I have a lion's mane

ETA: Agreed, humidity is a killer. My sets have been falling like crazy this summer. I have also had too much yard work to be able to keep up with setting it over the last few weeks!

 

[Frenchy56]

Tatum, the body wave is a good idea. I have insanely healthy, undamaged hair. Always have had really healthy, shiny, board-straight hair (except for my brief stint as an appointment setter at a salon- my hair was dyed 4 times in one year- it was fun). This could be why the perms when I was a kid just went flat. I'm scared to damage it, though. Will it still be as soft and shiny?

Thanks everyone!

Forgive me if I have already posted about this, but before I got my perm I started a thread on here called 'should I get a perm?'. I got tons of helpful replies, advice and accounts of personal experience, so if you are thinking of going down that route then check that thread, you might find some of your questions answered

The short answer from me re: perming would be: if you can put up with a bit of extra dryness, frizziness, a longer drying time and be aware of the fact that you still need to set to achieve a vintage look, it's worth it for the way it will hold your sets. Windy weather and light drizzle is no longer a killer; plus, I can sleep flat on my sets if I need to and most of the curl is still there next day. I find the curl takes quicker too; I still do overnight sets for the convenience but I could get a decent set of curls leaving the rollers in for 1-3 hours (though overnight is longer lasting).

It's worth doing your research, as this is a permanent procedure that will inevitably damage your hair in some way; however, in my experience the results definitely were worth it.

 

[Clabbergirl]

All of this talk about curlers and setting makes me wonder - does anyone know of a good site that shows which types of curlers produce which type of curl? I know it's highly individualistic as far as outcome because we all have different hair types, but I still think it would be helpful to see what types of curls others have got out of a specific curler. Kind of like swatches with makeup that are all over the internet. Anyone know of such a thing?

 

[fortworthgal]

When I do a wet set, I use foam rollers with end papers. My hair is extremely coarse and thick with a *lot* of body and natural curl. It also holds curl ridiculously well, so when I take my set out, it requires a lot of brushing or I look like this:
http://www.albinism.org/popcult/endofdays.jpg

As someone who had never previously done a wet set (or even a hot roller set... a roller set of any type, for that matter!) I found the foam rollers to be the easiest to learn on and the most comfortable to sleep in. I had an awful time trying to use the plastic "magnetic" rollers. I think it is all individual taste, but I do think that foam rollers are a great starting point. I use end papers because my hair still has some layers.

I wash my hair, put in some type of anti-frizz product, and let it air dry for a while. Then when it is still damp, but not quite dry, I roll it. I use Lottabody diluted with water for setting lotion. I throw on a hair net and sometimes a sleep cap for overnight. In the morning, I just take the set out and brush it.

For anti-frizz, I have been using Cantu shea butter leave-in. It is super cheap, around $5 for a huge tub. Best stuff *ever* for thick, coarse, dry hair! It does have some light holding power, so I may try it as a setting lotion at some point.

A good set for me will last 3-4 days without re-rolling it in between.

 

[Vintage Rose]

Tatum, that is very interesting. I will have to look through frenchy's thread on perming and think on it. I would love to not fear rain and humidity. As a gardener, I should love rain. Now I catch myself looking at the clouds and thinking about my hair. I feel like the Wicked Witch of the West... "My hair is melting, MELTING!!!!"

fortworthgal, that picture is too funny. I actually got my last set to last 4 days (!!!!!). The last day was very soft curls and mostly body, but it still had a very 40's look. I think I found a good pattern. I roll it up wet with lottabody in the early evening and leave it until late morning early afternoon the next day (I'm going to the garden in curlers this morning and I laugh at any who would look at me askance, Ha-HA!!). The first day I look REALLY curly, somewhere between the 40's and 50's, and then it smooths down from there. C-dot really helped me with how to keep the curls overnight. I'm really getting the hang of rolling with the foam curlers. I might get brave in the next couple weeks and try pin-curls. I saw this thing called a hold-bob on ebay. Anyone heard of these? They are definitely vintage. If anyone has tried one let me know.

 

[C-dot]

A good set for me will last 3-4 days without re-rolling it in between.

The first day I look REALLY curly, somewhere between the 40's and 50's, and then it smooths down from there.

This is how it should be - It's so much easier than setting it every night, and you really don't need to. I can make mine last 3-4 days also (a traditional wet set, not a hurried hot roller set the morning before I go out because I was up too late to do it the night before*).

The gross humidity here (stupid Lake Ontario) is the equivalent of medieval torture for my poor straight hair. The other day, it was so sticky in the house that a hot roller set (*) fell right out, so I just curled it with a flatiron. BAD IDEA if its humid and you haven't washed your hair immediately beforehand... I looked like a Borneo bush-woman, and smelled like burnt toast. The boyfriend was less than impressed

 

[fortworthgal]

I put in a wet set last night and it was the worst one I've ever done - even worse than my very first set ever! :eusa_doh: I hadn't done a wet set since November 2010 so clearly I am out of practice! Anyway, I was trying to get my end result slightly less curly, so I used less rollers. I think I ended up with too much hair on some of the rollers, and I also rolled a slightly different pattern that just doesn't work on my head. And last but not least, some of my curls got wet this morning even though I wore a shower cap, so my "primary area" curls on the sides didn't even take, and I was forced to resort to the curling iron. I didn't have time to re-wash it this morning, so I brushed it and used some pins and am trying to rock it out the best I can. We'll see how it looks by tomorrow morning...

I did get a compliment from a coworker though, who said I had my "50s curly hair" going on. Hehe!

 

[Retro_GI_Jane]

Please pardon me for bumping up an old thread but I've been browsing the threads talking about setting hair and while I've been rolling and pin curling my hair for as long as I can remember, I'm having issues now that I've gotten my middy with my curls in the back along my neck to stay in. Any tips from you lovely ladies to combat that? It doesn't matter if I use pin curls or rollers (and I'm doing wet sets with a setting lotion, drying my hair before rolling for the night), my hair at the nape of the neck is pretty much straight no more than halfway through the day while every other side of my head is in gorgeous curls. Years ago, I used to color my hair and they stayed in then, no problem but I'm not really considering coloring again or even highlighting so any other tips are well appreciated.

 

[C-dot]

Please pardon me for bumping up an old thread but I've been browsing the threads talking about setting hair and while I've been rolling and pin curling my hair for as long as I can remember, I'm having issues now that I've gotten my middy with my curls in the back along my neck to stay in. Any tips from you lovely ladies to combat that? It doesn't matter if I use pin curls or rollers (and I'm doing wet sets with a setting lotion, drying my hair before rolling for the night), my hair at the nape of the neck is pretty much straight no more than halfway through the day while every other side of my head is in gorgeous curls. Years ago, I used to color my hair and they stayed in then, no problem but I'm not really considering coloring again or even highlighting so any other tips are well appreciated.

Dontcha know? We like it around here when old threads are bumped

I have this problem too - It can get annoying. One solution is to use much smaller rollers on those sections when you set them. Another quick and surprisingly durable fix is to curl them with a flatiron. The way the flatiron distributes heat onto your hair makes it very effective for creating curls that stay in.

 

[Retro_GI_Jane]

Thanks for the reply, C-dot! I think I'm already using as small of a section as I can, using the smallest roller out of my sponge set (about the size of my ring finger I think?) so the flatiron might be the trick! I can't carry a flatiron with me to work so are you saying I should take it out of the roller in the morning and just curl it quick with the iron and then style as usual?

 

[crwritt]

The problem with the little section at the nape of the neck staying straight is often discussed on the Naturally
Curly boards. Even with naturally curly hair, that little piece is often straighter, as there are more oil glands there. The most common suggestion to deal with this is to trim that section a little shorter so it doesn't hang out.

 

[ginfizz]

I know this is a little old, but I've delt with that same problem a lot of times before.

If someone has dry/normal hair I'll use a sculpting gel like Aveda's flax and aloe gel just in that bottom. It doesn't brush out quite as well but it holds better.

Also try taking a blowdrier to just that section just before you take your hair out. Spray it with a light working hairspray, then hit it with the hottest setting on your blowdrier and then again with a cold shot. Make sure it's all the way cool and it should hold.

Also if it gets oily at the top and that's why it's getting straight just backcomb it and then put some baby powder in it, it'll help catch the oils and also keep it as high as the rest of your curls.