I've been wanting to write a little article on these for a while.

a) because it's the easiest, cheapest, fastest way of doing your hair and gets the best results
b) because I want the demand on these to increase, and I want companies to make more, more kinds, larger ones, better-produced, more luxurious.

(I did try Cloud9's TheO; I'll mention that at some other time, they don't replace these, and I don't like them as much. And for a luxury-priced roller system they look cheap)

So first of all- I have naturally long, kinky hair and I don't use these to get curls, I use them to smooth out the hair, make it shiny, and get lots of volume and bouncy waves. Therefore, I choose the big ones, which are called Jumbo and Super Jumbo. (They are not as enormous as their name would imply, barely 40mm, so Decent Size from a woman's point of view)

 

Now, inexplicably, the only ones produced in those sizes come in the Travel Set by Conair which is an american product (being a travel set, it has a worldwide voltage option, thanks God). It only contains 5 rollers, and that's the minimum you'll want to use really.

Then there's the Babyliss Travel Quick Lift here in Europe, that is exactly like the Conair but contains 3 Jumbo and 2 Large ones. Not ideal. I own both, and sometimes use them both if I need more than 5 rollers. On a day to day basis, I use the 5 bigger ones, that I insert all into my Babyliss set. I know, why do they make it so complicated for us customers to use a decent set of big rollers?

PLEASE BABYLISS, MAKE A SET OF SUPER JUMBO ROLLERS ALREADY

Conair does make a set for the US market that comes with a massive roller set of big sizes, unavailable to the rest of the world, so dear US readers- I envy you and your big hair. I confess I did get those, I thought I could make them work with a voltage convertor, and almost burnt down my apartment.

I also own the Babyliss Pro version of 30 rollers, and they are all too small to get enough volume. Which is a shame because that set is the best-looking of all. If you want smaller curls, or have straight hair that doesn't curl easily, I emphatically recommend those.

Both Babyliss/Conair heat up in an instant, have an indicator light, don't tangle, don't burn fingers or head, won't give you any trouble. You think those are silly things until you try other brands.

Anyway, this is what I do:

- Wash hair, let airdry overnight, doesn't matter how unruly it airdries, it will all be smoothed out
- In the morning when I wake up, I pop the rollers in, takes all of 3 minutes
- I have breakfast
- I pop the rollers out after 10-15 minutes depending on how lethargic I'm feeling, brush each section through once
- And go

The best thing? There is NO messing around with a hairdryer at all. Plus, you look like a hair goddess. Some naked pictures to prove it:

I never attempt to "keep a hairstyle" but if you wanted to, you can at this point spray it with hairspray and shake for good measure, under, over and everywhere. I'd rather wear it au naturel.

This is after a couple of hours, front:


 

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