Hair Tutorial: Soft Romantic Beach Waves w/ Tapered Ceramic Iron

A few weeks ago my trusty 1″ Hot Tools curling iron finally called it quits. I think I bought it in or around 2003, so almost ten years of soft waving and amazing curls makes for a good buy, in my opinion. It remains my favorite, I must admit. But while searching for a replacement on amazon {because they’re generally less expensive there than in beauty supply stores} I decided to also try this Hot Tools Tapered Ceramic Curling Iron {$38.35} and these are my results. Again, I still prefer the regular gold rod to the ceramic but if you’re using a curling iron on the daily, a ceramic iron is better for your hair. Also, for those of you who cannot stand frizz, this iron is your best friend. For me, the ceramic happens to make my hair softer than I’d like, resulting in a flatter syle that sometimes then looks like it needs to be washed. But I like big ole HUGE hair, so if you tend to like yours sleeker and shinier, you will like this iron.

Here’s how I did it…

Tips…

I begin with the crown or top part of my hair pinned up and wave the leftover first, then lastly, I do the top. I basically just wrap my hair around the wand in a backwards motion and hold it for 20 seconds or so. Each side respectively gets wrapped back and the top gets wrapped UP & back for volume. This method ensures my curls fall the same way around my head and meet somewhere in the middle. When I’m finished waving, I usually jaw-clip half my waves up {just messily with a pouf for lift} while I finish my makeup, allowing my curls to cool and set.

I’ve brushed out my waves for a softer, beachier look in the photos you see here, but as you see in the photo tutorial above, some the waves started out much tighter. If you want your waves to start lower down, begin wrapping lower on your hair. Also, using larger sections of hair will create larger set waves and smaller sections will give you more, smaller waves.

Styling…

After my waves have cooled and set, I do a few different things to create different looks. Sometimes I just take my brush and “fluff” the top/crown section of my head and sometimes I just use my fingers to separate the waves and loosen them up. They will fall a bit eventually, but again, for the softer look you see in these photos, take a brush to all your waves AFTER THEY COOL. {and then mess it up with your hands. You can use hair spray to set your waves if needed. NOTE: I have NOT used any other products other than the curling iron in any of the photos you see here}

Again, this is a Hot Tools Tapered iron curls in 3 sizes, from 1 1/4 -3/4 inches. It comes with a glove {basically a black loofa glove} but because the tip of the iron is capped with plastic, you don’t need the glove.