Brushing out vs. combing out a set

[RetroMom]

Hi Ladies: Here's my question.....

When you unpin or unroll your hair after a set, do you brush it out completely first, before you attempt to style it, or do you gently comb it into place?

I read in one of my vintage hair books, that you should never attempt to style your hair until you brush it out first, then comb the waves back in. This makes sense, except with my hair which is very thin/fine and straight. I end up brushing out all the curls and end up with frizz that will in no way wave. What am I doing wrong?

 

[jitterbugdoll]

I use a medium, round metal brush with plastic bristles (the kind you normally use for blow drying), and I brush out the curls fairly vigorously, then push the hair into place. If my hair was finer though, I would still use a brush, but do so more lightly (or use a smaller, wider-bristled brush). I have styled all types of hair into vintage looks, and I always use a brush, but vary how I brush through the hair.

Are you cold setting your hair? If so, experiment with different setting lotions to see if that helps the set hold (try a gel and mousse combo, or use a tiny dab of pomade--this tricks have worked for me when working with different hair types.) If you are using hot rollers, I find that it is best to lightly spray the hair with hair spray after I have completely rolled the hair and before it cools. This adds extra texture and staying power to the hair.

 

[decodoll]

I have fine, straight hair, and I do it exactly how Jitterbugdoll recommends. I set it each morning with Hot Sticks, then brush it out using a light hand with a fairly small round brush, arrange the curls by hand, then spray. If I've slept on curlers overnight, I can brush more vigorously without worrying about loosing my curls.

My avatar picture was taken after a full day at work, so you can see they usually stay in.

 

[LizzieMaine]

When I first take the pins out in the morning, I sort of brush my fingers thru the curls to separate them out a bit.Then I start with the back part and work it with a round brush until things fall into place -- and then repeat with the front part, where I'll do my reverse rolls.

The trick, as Decodoll says, is to use a *light touch*. You don't want to be attacking the curls so much as you want to be coaxing them into the position you want.

It does take a while to get the hang of it when you first start experimenting -- but once you settle into a routine it generally only takes a few minutes to get everything the way you like it.

Good luck!

 

[mysterygal]

For now, I've been just brushing out my hair with my fingers then putting some pomade in. I like a lot of curls With growing my hair out longer though, I'm really wanting to copy how Rita Hayworth did her hair .

 

[RetroMom]

Thanks for the great advice everyone!

I usually do a pin curl cold set overnight, using Lottabody, but sometimes I use the steam rollers. I'm going to try the small round brush idea, I can't wait for my hair to grow out so I can try some of the longer styles again!

One more question, is it better to use bobbie pins to pin curl or the pin curl clips. I've been using bobbie pins, but I have heard it is easier to use the clips.