It is necessary to straighten your hair before curling it if you have wavy hair or natural tight curls, but desire to have long soft curls that hang gently down your back. It is easy to do but it can be time consuming, however, the look is worth it. Here are a few hair styling hints to get you exactly what you want.

It is important that you begin with clean hair so that the curls you do desire will hold. Wash your hair and, while using a large round brush, blow dry the natural curl that you have out of it. If your hair is extremely long and thick, begin to blow dry it without using the round brush until the hair is just damp. Then pin up the top layer of the hair and focus round brushing only your underneath hair. Once that is straight and dry, round brush the top layers until they are dry and straight. If your hair still has some frizz in it, use a hot iron straightener to get your hair smooth.

In order to help your clean hair hold the curl, it is necessary to add styling products such as gel and hairspray. After the product has been applied to the hair, it is time to add the curls. There are a few ways to do this and one way is not better than another; it is simply personal preference. One way to add the curls is to use velcro rollers. Heat sections of your hair with a curling iron then roll your hair with a Velcro roller. The smaller the roller, the tighter tighter the curl. Once all the rollers are in, spray the hair and allow the rollers to sit for a half hour. Another way to add curl is to use hot rollers. They are applied similarly to the Velcro rollers, only the hot rollers are heated and therefore you do not need to preheat the hair. Hot rollers will curl your hair faster than the Velcro rollers, so for soft loose curls do not leave the rollers in for longer than 10 minutes. There also are different sizes of curling irons available. If you choose to curl your hair this way, use a 1/2-inch or 1-inch barrel. Lightly spritz each section of hair with hairspray and then wrap the hair tightly around the barrel and leave in for 10 to 15 seconds. Do not touch the curls until you have curled all of your hair.

Regardless of how you choose to curl your hair, it is important that you do not use a bristle brush to style them. This will frizz the curls and add static. Instead, tip your head upside down and run your fingers through your hair. Use gel and hairspray to keep the curls in place. If you need to add volume, use a pick or comb to rat the hair on top of your head but avoid combing through the curls.