best way to curl straight hair?

[wapiti]

I feel kinda dumb asking this but the Hive knows best :)

 

Dd12 has long straight hair.  It's very thick and occasionally has a bit of a wave underneath in the back.  It gets tangled frequently (i.e., maybe I'm hoping she has a bit of my curl genes, lol).  She'd like me to style it curly for her tomorrow for an event tomorrow afternoon.

 

I, meanwhile, have curly hair and have gone fully Curly Girl (lots of natural conditioner and gel and then air dry and scrunch out).  I'm confused on the best ways to curl dd's straight hair, as I have never had hair like hers (oh I wish :)).  Should I (1) use a curling iron?  or (2) put gel in it (e.g., I have various Deva Curl varieties available) and put it in rollers and let it dry?  Or (3) maybe try with the Shea Moisture curling souffle?  Kinky curly gel?  (LOL, I have it all...)

 

Maybe I should try this afternoon as an experiment - she has a birthday party to attend around dinner time though and if we air-dry it might take 2 hrs (then again, the air is super dry thanks to the cold; plus I also have a diffuser).

 

Suggestions?

[jmama]

I wouldn't put any product made for curly hair, they are made to soften and relax the curl.  I would probably use good old fashioned hair spray or maybe regular gel.  You don't want to condition it too much, or the curl will slide right out.  Good luck!

[Chris in VA]

I'd put it dry into sponge rollers. My dd has similar-sounding hair. 

[Ali in OR]

My dds sleep in foam curlers when they want curly hair. One needed ringlets for The Nutcracker. We experimented with the foam curlers and found gel actually made it harder for the hair to dry and form a curl. And her hair held too much water if we tried to roll her hair from straight out of the shower. What worked best was using a spray bottle of water on dry hair, then roll up in curlers. We had to use a lot because she has  a lot of hair. Her sister's thin hair holds curl easily. She can get by on 1 package of curlers. Nutcracker girl needed close to 50 curlers! Now ringlets aren't really that attractive if you're not going for the Victorian party child look, so just use a wide tooth comb to comb out the curls a bit and then spray away with hairspray if needed.

 

My thin-haired girl with shoulder length hair can get nice curls from a curling iron. Older sister with long thick hair--not so much.

[Dory]

I've been ragging my dd's hair for a few years now. My mom ragged mine when I was younger, I used foam rollers when I was a little older. Hair spray or gel, no curly hair products. Putting it into the rags or curlers when the hair is wet is a must. Keep a spray bottle on hand to keep the hair moist while you are working and put a movie on to watch cause it can get boring sitting there.

[Starr]

If it's totally straight some dippity do gel and leave it in the curlers until dry. I have used many electric culers in dd's hair with a little spray on each strand before putting the curler in. This works well if she doesn't mind the curl pretty much falling out but the hair still having nice body.

[plansrme]

Oooh, I knew my years as a daughter of the 80s was going to come in handy one of these days!  Does she need soft curls or ringlets?  If ringlets, you need someone with experience with cheerleader hair.  That's not me.  If you need soft curls, your best bet is to scare up some hot rollers.  They will give her the longest lasting curl, much longer than a curling iron.  Just roll it up and let it cool.  Spray lightly with hair spray after you remove the rollers and brush out with your fingers for maximum oomph.  

[Berta]

I'd say a curling iron and lots of hair spray. I'm another full Curly Girl, so I don't really have experience with curling straight hair.. yet. My 8 yr old has very straight hair but she hasn't asked for curls yet.

[wapiti]

This is going to require some experimentation.  I tried rollers this afternoon but I made the hair too damp and we didn't have enough time to let it dry.  So, we took them out and she twisted three sections of hair into a pony tail and out the door she went, LOL.

 

Tomorrow we will try a curling iron.  I can't find the one I thought I had so I'll have to buy one...

 

Hot rollers are another idea I hadn't thought of before - when I was in college, I used hot rollers to straighten my hair  :lol:.  Hey, maybe there are some in the basement or something...

[texasmama]

Light hair spray, then curl, more light hair spray and shake out curls if you want well-defined curls. Don't brush for well-defined curls after using the iron. Put the iron in at the top of hair near the scalp, curl, slide the iron down and keep curling as you go. This gives even curls all the way down. Don't overdo the hair spray. Since she has natural wave/texture, you can probably skip the hair spray prior to curling and just use it to cement the curl. Good luck!

[blondeviolin]

You can curl with a flat iron too. I use ours to spiral curl often enough.

[Dandelion]

I have long, straight, very thick hair. I curl it regularly with a very fat curling iron. I like bigger curls, plus thin curls would take forever. The only product I use is a very light misting with hair spray at the end to give it some hold.

[busymama7]

I love love love my curling wand. Much nicer looking curls than a regular iron. Just MHO.

[PinkyandtheBrains.]

Depends on how curly or wavy you want.  You can divide it when damp (not wet) braid it into four large braids, pin/clip them to the top of her head for sleeping. Take them out when dry and she'll have wavy/curly hair until you wash it next.  You can tidy it up with a curling iron.

[Susan in TN]

Sock curls - look it up on youtube.