Pin curls: low tech, high style hair

Being a vintage enthusiast, I am intrigued by pin curls. I have never really gotten a grasp on executing them, but I refuse to remain a slave to my curling iron forever.

There are a couple of reasons I want to learn this outdated technique.

1. It is much gentler on my hair.
2. It requires no electricity or chemical-laden products
3. It has amazing staying power
4. It looks freaking fantastic! Or so I have seen on those in the know, I am not quite there yet.

Car show season is pretty torturous on my locks. Every weekend they are being worked into bumper bangs or victory rolls. By fall my hair has been burnt and teased into a big ol’ nasty rat’s nest. Add a couple of box colorings on top of that and my curls are crunchy, yet limp like Arby’s curly fries. I am half tempted to tell my stylist to just cut it all off and start fresh, but it has taken me years to get it back to this length. Instead I am going to take my winter hermitage as an opportunity to step away from the heating tools and hair products and hone this old school craft.

Pin curls have been around for a long time and were used to create nearly every popular hairstyle from the 30s through the 50s. They are formed by wrapping damp hair into little rolls for stand up curls (like I did) or spiral curls laid flat against the head, both secured with pins – hence the name, pin curl. Then you simply wait for them to dry, remove all the pins, brush through the curls <