Where Them Curls At, Curls At?

I remember, years ago, someone telling me that teachers and hairdressers knew as children what they wanted to be 'when they grew up'. Now without any research or substantial evidence to purport this claim, I can pretty much shelve it along with the existence of the tooth fairy and flat-pack furniture assembly instructions as things that might be true - but probably aren't. However, if that were the case, I'd fall quite neatly into the first career option.

Hairdressing, as much fun as it is to learn something new, clearly isn't my thing. Until just recently, I'd only ever been to the hairdressers a handful of times in my whole life (and two of those occasions were to get my ears pierced!). My mum used to always cut my hair, and when she didn't want that responsibility any longer, I'd do it myself (there was always one wee tricky bit at the back that I couldn't reach but was able to sweet talk her into hacking it off!). I can happily spend hours putting on makeup for a night out, only to straighten my hair and leave it 'hanging' - I don't really know how to do anything else, so I'm having a great time trying out all sorts of new ideas in Elaine's class.

So to start us off, we have been working on styling, specifically wet sets - curls ahoy! The first style is known as pincurling. This involves sectioning the hair, winding it around your fingers and pinning it into place. This method is also used during wig applications to prepare the hair flat against the scalp. However, once the hair is dry and the pins removed, it results in some super springy curls! I used Double Prong Curl Clips and Osmo Thermal Defence from Sally's to create this look.

I have also tried using rollers to create a brick set - this involves sectioning the hair, curling it around the rollers and pinning it into place, using a 'brick' formation as if you were building a wall. This pattern helps eliminate any 'tram lines' (where you can clearly see the scalp between each curl) as it creates a more flexible style. The use of rollers from the scalp is also known as 'on base', root-to-point styling (see, I am learning!).

Barrel curls are created by winding the hair around your fingers, but in a much looser and more upright style than is practiced with pincurling. The end result is big, bouncy curls - a volumised and flexible look.  

This is a revelation for me - I have always been jealous of my sister's naturally curly hair, but now I can fake it with the best of them!