How to Curl Hair with Curling Iron

Curly hairstyles always add glamor and style to one's personality. Properly curled hair also add volume to any type of hair texture and haircut. Considering this, hair curling is mostly preferred by those who have very thin hair. If you are getting bored of your usual straight hair, you can add stylish curls to change your look. When it comes to curling hair, you can find a myriad number of ways to do so. To mention a few, there are foam rollers, rags, bobby pins and curling irons. Selecting a specific hair curling option depends on your personal preference.

Speaking about the curling iron, it is the simplest and easiest method. With a curling iron, you can sport a new curly hairstyle within 30 - 45 minutes. One thing to be taken care of while using curling iron is, the correct temperature setting. While you may not get desired results on low temperature, very high temperature may actually damage your hair. Many women do not follow proper ironing techniques which often results in damage to hair or undesirable results.

Tips on How to Curl Your Hair with Curling Iron

Curling irons are available in ceramic, ceramic tourmaline and metal types. Ceramic tourmaline curling irons are the most recent type of curling irons. Ceramic curling irons are preferred over metal irons as they do not expose your hair to direct heat. Heat is produced by radiation and hence, hair get curled in a gentle way. Moreover, the negative ions produced by ceramic irons are more desirable than positive ions produced by metal irons. Positive ions break the hair shaft and expose it directly to the heat, whereas, negative ions seal the hair shaft and trap the moisture inside. Thus, ceramic iron is far better alternative than metal one. In this article, we have provided some tips for using curling iron.

Read User Guidelines
First go through the user guidelines provided along with the equipment. Even though it is easy to handle curling iron, it is important that you understand the unit before using it for hair curling. Also take a note of the barrels and attachments, so that you can give fabulous curls of various sizes. Once you are thorough with the manual, you can proceed with styling your hair by using the curling iron.

Prepare Your Hair for Curling
It is recommended to wash your hair thoroughly before curling them. You may use a clarifying shampoo to get rid of any product build up from hair. Use a deep conditioner to retain the moisture in hair. Conditioning your hair helps them to trap the nutrients. After washing your hair, make sure you let them dry before treating with a curling iron. Otherwise, your hair will flatten upon drying. Also, comb your hair properly to loosen any tangles. For better curling, you can apply curl enhancer products that are available in the market. Some of these hair care products are formulated for using in wet hair, while you will find others that are to be applied on dry hair.

Choose Appropriate Barrel Size
A curling iron comes in barrels of different sizes. Depending upon the type of curls you wish to get, you can choose any of the following barrels.

• If you wish to go for small springy curls go for a 0.75 inch barrel.
• If you wish to go for simple, natural curls use a curling iron of barrel size 1 inch.
• If you wish to generate voluminous, cascading curls, use a curling iron with a large barrel size of 1.5 - 2 inch.

Choose Appropriate Heat Setting
Plug in the curling iron and turn on the switch. Allow the iron to heat up till the desired temperature; you can check the user manual for reference of temperature levels. Coarse, stubborn, hair need to be curled at higher temperatures than thin, soft hair. A temperature setting of 400° F is appropriate for such hair. Thin, soft hair can tolerate heat setting between 280° F to 300° F. If you have colored your hair, go for even lesser temperature settings.

Start Curling Your Hair
Divide your hair in several sections that are about 1 - 2 inch wide. You can use hair clips to hold the sections in place. Take hold of a hair section and place in the curling iron. In case you want to curl the whole length, start from the part that is near to the roots and slide the unit down. Accordingly, you can place the tip portion, if you prefer to have curls on the tips only.

Depending upon whether you like inward curls or outward curls, you can wind hair around the curling iron in a particular orientation. Continue to wrap hair till the tip (for whole length curling) and hold the curling iron for about 10 seconds. Gently unwind the hair from the curling iron. By following these similar steps, you can start curling the next section and continue, until all the hair sections are curled. Spray and comb the curled hair gently to create volume.

I hope the above information helps you understand how to curl hair with a curling iron. So, follow these tips and flaunt your gorgeous, curly locks.