What is your Curl Set Routine for Fine/Thin Hair

[Romamor4]

Please remind me next time not to experiment with sets on a work night...

Last night I set half of my hair dry and half of my hair with a tiny bit of pomade on the end. Well, the side that had the tiny bit of pomade came out wonderfully. The other side, not so much. So what did I do? I put some Frizz Ease in it. Well, I put way too much in it and started brushing too soon and brushed the curl out of one side of my head! I didn't have time to fix it, so I threw it up in a pony tail and ran out the door. I was so mad at myself for doing that!

I still am finding, though, that I prefer the curl I am getting with perm rods. My problem is that I can't sleep on them. My hair is too short to just put them on the ends. I do think, though, that this pomade thing might work well for me. I'm going to give it a go again. This time, on my whole head of hair! :eusa_doh:

 

[Gracie Lee]

Romamor4 what pomade do you use?

 

[Romamor4]

Romamor4 what pomade do you use?

Layrite.

 

[magnolia76]

If the ends are relentless, spray it with hairspray and then you can run over the frizzy pieces with a hot curling iron to smooth it, on top of adding pomade

 

[Frenchy56]

Hey there Romanor4,

I totally recommend using the end papers, i have very lank, fine hair and using the end papers for either a pin curl or roller set has helped me immensely. You can use cigarette papers or even loo roll or kitchen roll folded into squares then wrapped round the ends of your hair. Believe me i have tried both those when i have run out of end papers and it worked just as well. It seems to help me to roll my curls up quicker too as well as just generally improving the finished set.

I second the use of endpapers, or any equivalent, for anyone who has any trouble with frizzy sets, hook ends etc! I was skeptical (being both lazy and a cheapskate ), but tried using tissues torn up last night, and WOW. Seriously, I see what all the fuss is about. Will carry on using tissues for now but will probably buy some endpapers sooner or later- I'd only be using 6 or 8 per night so a block of 500 would last me ages.

Edit: I'm not even sure if I'm using them properly- I just place the ends of my hair in the middle then fold the paper round so my hair end is completely covered, then roll up - but I love the result anyhow!

 

[Romamor4]

I second the use of endpapers, or any equivalent, for anyone who has any trouble with frizzy sets, hook ends etc! I was skeptical (being both lazy and a cheapskate ), but tried using tissues torn up last night, and WOW. Seriously, I see what all the fuss is about. Will carry on using tissues for now but will probably buy some endpapers sooner or later- I'd only be using 6 or 8 per night so a block of 500 would last me ages.

Edit: I'm not even sure if I'm using them properly- I just place the ends of my hair in the middle then fold the paper round so my hair end is completely covered, then roll up - but I love the result anyhow!

I did use the end papers with great success and little to no product when I used perming rods over the weekend. But I can't figure out for the life of me how to get them to work with pin curls. Do you wrap the paper all the way around the tip? Should I make the paper smaller? My hair kept falling out of the paper when I'd try to roll the pin curl. I just couldn't get it right!

My hair turned out pretty good this morning! I was so happy! Now I just have to figure out a way to style it. It's short and I need to perfect the Ginger Rogers short curl look. Not sure how to do it, so if anyone has any tips on directions to set, etc. I'd love to hear 'em!

 

[Frenchy56]

But I can't figure out for the life of me how to get them to work with pin curls. Do you wrap the paper all the way around the tip? Should I make the paper smaller? My hair kept falling out of the paper when I'd try to roll the pin curl. I just couldn't get it right!

I use them for standing pincurls, which I roll around a mascara brush or some other cylindrical object. This will sound a lot more technical than it actually is, but I place the hair in the middle of the paper, fold the paper round so that the hair is covered, slide down to the very ends and then roll up as normal. If you are doing flat pincurls, however, then I can't give any specific advice... I can imagine it'd be harder.

PS. not sure if I've already said this in this thread, but if your hair is fine and you want to do pincurls, I would greatly recommend the standing ones over the flat, from my own experience!

 

[AdrianLvsRocky]

I think my hair is similar to Helle's Bell's. It's very fine but not thin. My hair takes forever to dry. If I put it back when it's freshly washed for work, it'll still be damp when I get home.

When I'm doing a set, I put some mousse in it and dry it until it's barely damp (or use a water/setting lotion spray to just dampen it).

I swear by Lolita Haze's perm rod method for curling my hair. It works an absolute treat!

I guess that an actual perm with the solution etc. will give a similar result but, well, permanant! Good luck for your perm!

 

[sheeplady]

This thread has been very helpful to me to read. I have very fine hair (which isn't that thin, but is very, very straight). It is also very long- right now I can almost sit on it (it is about two inches away from that).

Even when I had it much shorter (I cut 18 inches off three years ago, and had my hair shortened to maybe three inches longer than bra strap length) I couldn't get my pin curls to dry. I can get velcro rollers to dry and set, but most of the curl falls out. The only "old" way to set my hair I've had luck with is rags (wet set). Dry sets fall out, and setting lotion doesn't seem to help.

I'm glad it's not just me. Luckily, I've figured out how to roll my hair and have it look halfway decent without curling it first. But I'm glad that I'm not the only one on the planet that couldn't get my pin curls to set.

 

[Gracie Lee]

For those of you who use standing pin curls - I'd like to try it since it seems like this might actually allow my [long] hair to dry overnight. How do you keep them in, and can you sleep on them? Wouldn't that squash the curls into odd shapes? Please advise! I'd love to try an honest-to-goodness wet set, but they never dry!

 

[Frenchy56]

For those of you who use standing pin curls - I'd like to try it since it seems like this might actually allow my [long] hair to dry overnight. How do you keep them in, and can you sleep on them? Wouldn't that squash the curls into odd shapes? Please advise! I'd love to try an honest-to-goodness wet set, but they never dry!

I can help- I must apologise though, I've been ranting about standing pincurls on a number of threads- I'm fairly new to the retro/vintage world and it's totally transformed my setting routine- see my last post in the pincurls thread

Anyway, to answer your questions:

- I keep them in using pincurl/ double prong clips. Cause I tend to use sections of hair wider than the length of the clip itself, I put two clips in at either end of the curl, just to make sure it stays in. I can't post pics but try to imagine, the curl is a horizontal tube with two clips slid in at either end.

- I cover them with a hairnet (actually a cutoff pair of tights ) and a headscarf. Yes, this will squash them, but never fear- as long as the curls are fixed properly it won't be ruined in the morning.

- Yes, I can sleep on them fine, and even find them more comfortable than my sponge rollers. I think it's cause the clips lie flat, occasionally I have to adjust one that's catching my ear, or something, but I definitely find them more comfy than rollers.

- Also, whilst my hair's not long- just inbetween my shoulder blades at the longest point (it's a middy), I definitely thing standing pincurls dry faster than sponge rollers at least.

I'm definitely not an expert, but please ask if you want clarification or further help

 

[Gracie Lee]

Thanks Frenchy56! That does help quite a bit. I'll be giving it a go this weekend (I wear my hair straight during the week), and I may be back on with more questions after that!

 

[Frenchy56]

Thanks Frenchy56! That does help quite a bit. I'll be giving it a go this weekend (I wear my hair straight during the week), and I may be back on with more questions after that!

No problem! So glad to have advised someone, I always feel guilty cause I'm always the one asking questions! Hope it works out well for you!

P.S., how 'wet' is your hair before you roll it? Cause you know it doesn't have to be dripping to get a good set, mine is usually anywhere from towel-dried to lightly dampened- in fact when I re-roll at night, I do so dry, and then mist with water once they're all in. Just thought I'd check, but I guess if you have long hair it will take forever to dry anyway...

 

[AdrianLvsRocky]

I have to second Frenchy56 with the standing pin curls. I just can't get the hang of the standard flat pincurls. I cheat a bit with them though. I can't roll my own so I use the handle of my blusher brush to wrapt the hair up, then whip it out and shove in a bobby pin.

I can sleep on them quite comfortably and they give me the same effect as the few times I've tried a flat curl. It doesn't seem to affect the shape of the curl by sleeping on them either.

 

[Romamor4]

Awesome little tutorial there, Frenchy56! I don't know why, but the standing ones scare me more than the flat ones do but you've convinced me to try it.

I tried hot rollers last night and I was so disappointed. They fell within an hour or two! I don't want to have to hairspray the heck out of my do every time in order to make the curls stay. I spent about fourty bucks on these puppies too, now what to do with them?! I get a much more resilient curl with perm rods or pin curls and honestly, the curling iron gives me curls that hold better than the rollers did. Goes to show that the more expensive methods aren't always the best, I guess!

 

[Gracie Lee]

Ok, n00b report on standing pin curls, from the beginning: I stopped at Sally's to buy more double prong clips last night so I'd have enough. While there, I spoke to the assistant manager, an older woman who really knew her stuff. She recommended that, for hair like mine (to clarify: long, pin straight, never holds a curl, baby fine, but average thickness) I should use Lotta Body FULL strength. This, of course, made me nervous, but since she's the expert, I decided to give it a go. I started with hair that I'd washed that morning, let air dry, and used no product on. I did my set quite late at night, so I guess this counts as day old dry hair to start. I made standing pin curls all over my head, spraying each section as I went til it was just short of soaked with the full strength Lotta Body, using a nail polish paint pen (roughly a half inch or so diameter) to roll them evenly, end papers on each one, two clips (one on either side) to hold them in. I wouldn't say it's a *complete* fail - my hair did dry, which is tough enough to start with, but the clips were too big relative to curl size, I think, and each curl flattened, so when I took everything out, I had *triangular* spirals. I've combed it out and made the best of it, but I didn't want to wash and start over just so I could see if the curls (triangles?) hold all day with this method. If they do, tonight I'll mist with water only to reactivate the setting lotion and do the standing pin curls again, this time with bobby pins to hold them in. Will update with end of day results!

 

[Romamor4]

I think I've figured out my problem. I'm getting so discouraged. I think that I am unsatisfied with the way the curls are turning out because, a) I need my hair to be a bit longer, and b) I actually am struggling with the front of it because (gulp, this is hard to admit) I actually have a scalp disease called alopecia areata where I lose hair in patches. I lose it in the front. And finally, c) I believe I need to try it with a middy cut.

I've tried sponge curlers, thicker pin curls, brushing the hell out of it, perm rods(which are still my fave), hot curlers, etc. (sigh) I'm going to try the tutorial that C-dot posted earlier to cut me a middy. Wish me luck, I am so hoping that will at least improve the look!

 

[Hell's Belle]

I think my hair texture is similar to yours- fine, but a lot of it. I had the same trouble as you- flat pincurls would always come out, well, flat. I have since switched to using elevated or standing pincurls and they give great volume, just like using rollers really. In fact I have more or less stopped using sponge rollers now! Do you know how to do standing pincurls?

I have not tried them, but I may! Still sponge and hot rollering nowadays.

 

[Romamor4]

I can help- I must apologise though, I've been ranting about standing pincurls on a number of threads- I'm fairly new to the retro/vintage world and it's totally transformed my setting routine- see my last post in the pincurls thread

Anyway, to answer your questions:

- I keep them in using pincurl/ double prong clips. Cause I tend to use sections of hair wider than the length of the clip itself, I put two clips in at either end of the curl, just to make sure it stays in. I can't post pics but try to imagine, the curl is a horizontal tube with two clips slid in at either end.

- I cover them with a hairnet (actually a cutoff pair of tights ) and a headscarf. Yes, this will squash them, but never fear- as long as the curls are fixed properly it won't be ruined in the morning.

- Yes, I can sleep on them fine, and even find them more comfortable than my sponge rollers. I think it's cause the clips lie flat, occasionally I have to adjust one that's catching my ear, or something, but I definitely find them more comfy than rollers.

- Also, whilst my hair's not long- just inbetween my shoulder blades at the longest point (it's a middy), I definitely thing standing pincurls dry faster than sponge rollers at least.

I'm definitely not an expert, but please ask if you want clarification or further help

Thank you soooo much, Frenchy!! The standing pin curls were wonderful!!

I have to share a trick I recently learned though. The strands of my hair are very uneven and so it is hard to get all of the hairs into a strand big enough to roll. I found an article on a blog recently http://beautyisathingofthepast.blogspot.com/search/label/Fine Hair

It suggested for fine hair to roll with a Marcel curling iron. So I bought a vintage one from Etsy.com and tried it out last night. Let me tell you, I was ready to give up on pin curls until this! They turned out WONDERFUL!!! I am sooo happy!! Only thing is I have to find a sturdier one now because I kind of used too much force and broke the rod... whoops!

 

[Feronea]

I know this is an old thread but just wanted to say there is some fantastic ideas throughout it and thank you ladies for sharing your experiences and tips. I found these forums through searching for suggestions and tips for ultra fine/thin hair so I'll be following these suggestions to find what works for me.