Since model Gisele Bündchen appeared with her waves, the curling iron has become an essential tool for women, as explained by hairdresser Nilcéia Rocha from the salon Nilcéia Rocha Coiffeur. The babyliss is a device in a circular shape of metal that serves to model the hair creating curls and waves.
Traditional models come with a tweezer that helps hold the hair in the device and make handling easier. The metal part, when the device is plugged in, heats up and, with that, the wires are molded creating beautiful effects on the hair.
“No client wants to leave the salon with their hair flat anymore. Curls and waves are on the rise”, says Ricardo Silva, hairdresser at Studio de Beleza Sonia Nesi. Women nowadays want movement and volume in their hair and the curling iron helps in this transformation.
Hair made with the curling iron is perfect for all occasions. “There is no time, place or age to use the curling iron”, declares Nilcéia. She also advises that you should choose to make looser and more natural waves with the curling iron and avoid small curls that resemble children’s hair.
For Ricardo, the babyliss is used to get out of the routine and the woman can do a hair with movement to use in parties, weddings and more powerful events.
The curling iron can be done in any hair, as mentioned by Nilcéia, but the medium to long hair size is the best to do. “The hair must be at least shoulder-length, so that the volume is not centralized, the roots must be more comfortable and the movement must be at the ends”, reinforces Ricardo.
How to make babyliss: tips and tutorial
Babylissing is not as difficult as it sounds. To help, below you can see a step-by-step guide with the tips you need to know so you don’t make a mistake and make a beautiful babyliss with lots of movement. But first, it is important to know some tricks that hairdressers have passed on to help when making the curling iron.
For Nilcéia, choosing the size of the device is essential to have the desired effect. “Choose the curling iron size according to the type of curls you want and your hair type.” For example, for softer waves, a thicker curling iron is ideal. For more defined curls, it is suggested to use a thinner curling iron. The temperature cannot be too high, as it damages the wires. “Always use thermal protector”, warns the hairdresser.
The cut hair makes the curling iron more interesting and moving. “If you have progressive hair, use a slightly stronger leave-in to maintain the curls”, guides Nilcéia. The conditioner can be dispensed when using the curling iron and remember to take a strand that does not exceed the width of a finger, the thinner the strand, the more natural the curling effect will be.
As for Ricardo, the thermal protector to protect the hair is an indispensable trick for those who make babyliss. “The fixation and volume mouse, to keep the curl and leave the hair with memory, leaving the wavy look for longer”, is another trick he reveals.
Babyliss step by step
- Wash your hair without using too much conditioner or even avoiding the product;
- Apply a thermal protector before starting to dry, it will soften the damages of the dryer and curling iron on your wires;
- If your hair doesn’t have much volume, it’s worth applying a mousse;
- Drying the hair is the next step. The tip that Nilcéia gives is to lift the root when drying and make a brush modeling the ends of the wires;
- After drying your hair completely, it’s time to do the curling iron. The first step is to separate the hair into locks and apply a leave-in that will help both to protect from heat and to fix and last longer the curls;
- Leave the babyliss at a medium temperature, this helps not to damage the wires so much and, at the same time, is ideal for modeling;
- Start curling the back of the head;
- Take a finger-sized section of hair and curl your hair from the tip to the root, leaving an inch or two of scalp hair. If you want to make waves and not curls, don’t curl the end;
- Keep the hair on the curling iron for about 10 to 15 seconds, the time varies depending on the type and amount of hair. When releasing the hair, hold the curled curl until the hair cools. If you want the curl to last longer, secure it with a bobby pin and only release it when you finish the curls all over your hair;
- Repeat the procedure on each of the strands and, to make the hair more movement, alternate the direction, making a curl to the right side and another to the left.
- At the end of the process, release the curls from the clips and arrange them the way you want. As a last step, use a setting spray to make the curls last a long time.
If you prefer to see the step-by-step video, here’s a tutorial that explains in a very complete way how to make beautiful curls:
Heads up! It is important to emphasize that the curling iron will generally “take” and last longer on hair that is already wavy and virgin. Hair with a lot of chemistry, especially with progressive, tends to have a shorter durability in the wave. In addition, for hair with “stretched” ends due to straightening, making a brush modeling the ends beforehand is practically mandatory to achieve a beautiful effect with a good finish.
3 types of beautiful waves to do with the curling iron
To make Gisele-style beach waves: use a thick curling iron, make the waves from the root and when you’re done, release the waves with your fingers and finish with a surf spray.
To make glamorous waves: use a medium curling iron, start the waves four fingers from the root and brush the locks after you’re done.
To make Beyoncé-style curls: use a thin curling iron, preferably those in a conical shape (thinner tip than the base) and make the locks from root to tip. Finish with setting spray.
10 traditional babyliss models
After learning the step by step, it’s time for you to have your curling iron. Among the various options, there are those who prefer the curling irons with tweezers and there are those who prefer the ones without tweezers because, depending on the use, the tweezers can leave the hair marked. So it’s worth trying out the models in the store before buying yours. Below, 10 models of the traditional device for you to buy and start making your own curls:
Other curling devices
After the traditional curling iron with tweezers, other devices have emerged to create more specific curls and waves or simply to facilitate the task of styling the hair. Meet:
- Babyliss without tweezers: this is a device that makes it easier, especially if you want to create waves, as it is not interesting to hold your hair in tweezers for this purpose. It is very similar to the original, except for the fact that it does not have the tweezers.
- Babyliss without tweezers and tapered: the effect of this device is a very natural wave, since, due to its tapered shape, it makes waves closer to the head larger and those below smaller.
- Ceramic curling iron: it is also very similar to the traditional curling iron, being different only because it has a curl mold on top of the metal. This makes it easier for those who have difficulties when winding their hair in the device, but prevents a variation in the type of curl.
- Flat iron: in addition to straightening, the flat iron can also make curls, just be a narrower model. The curling technique is not complicated and consists of turning the hair on the flat iron and pulling the device with the curled strands to the end of the hair.
- Modeler with bristles: it’s a mix of babyliss, flat iron and brush. It helps to style the hair making very soft waves. With it you won’t be able to create curls, but you can model your hair in different ways.
- Trionda: the trionda is a device that has three cylinders together, which allows a very curled effect, like frizzy waves. Ideal for those who want to leave their hair with plenty of volume.
- Miracurl: one of the newest technologies in curling hair, Miracurl is very practical and makes life a lot easier for those who want to leave their strands with curls and waves. He sucks the wire into the device and returns it, after a few seconds, with perfect curls.
5 easy-to-follow babyliss tutorials
Learn from the top Brazilian beauty bloggers how to babyliss in several different styles:
The wavy hair of bloggers
Below, beautiful inspiring images of the bloggers with their curly and wavy hair. Check it out and feel like curling your hair too: