I learned a few great tricks while working as a receptionist at a salon. I got to spend a lot of my down time watching the stylists and absorbing some helpful tips. The best thing I learned? How to curl my hair correctly. I was the worst at curling my hair. Literally, the worst! My hair is naturally curly so I was always told after blow drying, my hair should be able to hold a curl. Well it never would. Not only would they not hold, I couldn’t even get a curl in my hair to begin with. I found out I was making a very common mistake that was embarrassingly easy to fix. Once I caught on, I was finally able to curl my hair like a pro. And with these helpful tips and instructions, you will be able to as well!
First, let me just tell everyone the mistake that I was making… I was holding the curling iron at the bottom of my hair, instead of at the top, towards the root. Fix this step and the rest quite literally falls into place. Let’s get started. :]
Here’s what you’ll need:
[Comb, clips, curling iron, and hair spray]
*Note: The larger the curling iron the looser your curls will be. I prefer an inch to an inch and a half iron. If the iron is too big your curls really won’t hold at all.
Start with day old blow dried hair. In this series of pictures I’m working with hair that had previously been flat-ironed. Truth be told, these curls won’t hold well or for very long. Flat ironing your hair takes most of the ability to hold a curl away. Next day blow dried hair is the best to work with for curling. It has a little grit in it and the texture is perfect for absorbing a curl. So let’s continue.
Step one: Section your hair into 2 parts; everything in front of the ear and all the hair behind the ear. Clip the front section on top of your head.
Step two: Separate the hair behind the ear into two sections as well. This time, everything from the top of the ear and up clip on top of your head. You’ll be working with all the hair from the top of the ear, down. See the image below.
Step three: From the back of your head working forward, take a one inch section and 
wrap it around the curling iron, closest to the root as possible working your way down with the iron.
Step four: As you work your way forward, alternate directions in which you hold the curling iron. In doing so your curls will be more separated and they won’t mush together and will actually have much more volume. Not sure how to alternate directions? Don’t worry, I thought of that too!
Watch this quick [literally quick] video! My hair is already curled and this curling iron isn’t actually on, but it’s all for instruction purposes.
The first step in this video is with the clippy part of the iron in the back. Hold it this way and curl it towards you. The next step; the clippy part is in the front. Hold the iron this way and curl your hair away from you. Keep doing this every time you curl a new section and viola! You are alternating directions. It’s so much easier to describe via video rather than trying to sit here and type out instructions. Mainly because I never really got it, until I actually saw it. So I hope that helps you! Let’s continue.
Repeat these steps in each section. I do the bottom section behind the ear, then the top section behind the ear. After I do the bottom section in front of the ear and the top section in front of the ear. When you get to the pieces around the crown of your face, curl your hair away from your head to create a wind-swept look.
Repeat all these steps on the other side of your head. When you’re done you’ll have a great head of curls! Be sure to spray with some hair spray. For extra volume, spray your hair with your head upside down.
Also, don’t be discouraged if as your night goes on the layer of curls on the bottom starts to fall out. The friction of your clothes against your hair basically eats away at all the hair spray and causes all the curl to loosen no matter how much you sprayed them. Literally, you could put a whole bottle of hair spray on that bottom layer of your curls and that son-of-a-bitch friction will still do its job. So no worries, you are not a curling failure! I hope these tips help you guys like they helped me! Try this on your next night out and let me know how it goes! Eventually you’ll become a pro and be able to curl your whole head in about 10 minutes, no jokin. Good luck! <3