Can you straighten your hair with a curling iron?
When you visit your hairstylist, you must’ve witnessed them using flat irons to curl straight hair, right?
Even you must’ve used curling irons at home to prep yourself.
Hold on to these thoughts as you review this article and find the real answer to your question!
Table of Contents
Key Takeaways
- Use a flat wrap technique, gliding the iron down the hair.
- Ensure the curling iron is fully heated for consistent results.
- Apply a heat protectant before straightening to prevent damage.
Can You Straighten Hair With A Curling Iron?
To answer that in simple and plain terms, YES, you can use a curling iron to make soft, loose curls/beachy waves out of your straight hair.
Now, the big question: How to straighten your hair with a curling iron?
Well, my friends, you only need a little finesse and lateral thinking, and (drumrolls..) voila! You’ve got a hair straightener in the form of a curling iron.
It very much comes in handy, especially when you don’t have professional straighteners lying around in the house.
Why deal with frizzy and unruly hair when you can put your curling irons to work and achieve the same results?
Say goodbye to inefficient and time-consuming hair curlers and embrace these versatile curling irons.
Here’s what Toni Sevdalis, a famous YouTuber, has to say:
“A curling iron gives the look of straight hair with more volume and that’s something I can never achieve with a regular straightener.”
How To Straighten Hair With Curling Iron: DETAILED GUIDE
Now you must be wondering how exactly you use a curling iron to straighten your hairstyle. Fret not! To answer that, I’m going to take you through every step in detail.
Step 1: Hair Preparation.
Before we start with the straightening process, you must prepare your hair for what’s to come. So wash your hair properly with an amazing shampoo. Remember to condition it too.
The process will only be effective without hair repair products and clean and detangled healthy hair.
Also, avoid weighing down your hair. To do that, focus on conditioning only the ends of your hair.
Step 2: Heat Protectants.
Continuous exposure to heat is extremely damaging to your hair fibers. Thus, to shield each strand of hair from the hot styling equipment, apply ample heat protectant.
Heat protectant spray efficiently reduces heat damage. It does that by absorbing the incoming and also by forming a protective layer between the hot tool and your hair.
Step 3: Curling Iron Preparation.
You’ll require a large barrel curling iron set to straighten hair with a curling iron. Compared to small barrel irons, larger barrels consume less time and do a better job of straightening your hair.
When you’re ready with the iron, please switch it on, and let it be until it reaches the temperature you desire.
Step 4: Ensuring That Your Hair Is Dry Completely.
Blow drying hair is an extra step and adds more prep time. But straightening your wet hair to save time can cause real damage to your hair.
On top of that, straightening damp hair isn’t even effective. So ensure your hair dries out completely before you begin the straightening process.
Step 5: Straightening Process.
Before you begin straightening your hair, make sure to divide your hair into small sections.
Begin by placing your hair, right from the roots, between the clamp and the barrel of the curling iron. Move the iron continuously through the hair shaft in a smooth manner.
If you pause midway, it’ll leave a dent in the shaft. So you need to run the curling iron in one continuous motion.
Step 6: Finishing Touches.
Cooling your hair is yet another crucial step you must heed. Let your fingers run through your hair lightly to achieve volume and body.
To finish it off, use a non-aggressive hairstyle to hold the hair in position:
3 Tips For Straightening Hair With Flat Iron
In this section, I’ve listed a few tips that will assist you in straightening your hair with a flat iron.
1. Make Use of High-Quality Ceramic Curling Irons.
Ceramic barrel curling irons are among the best hot styling tools for straightening extremely curly hair.
The ceramic iron cause less damage to your hair and efficiently distributes the heat from the iron evenly across the hair shaft. So you get better and more effective results with a ceramic barrel.
2. Select A Versatile Curling Iron.
There is one simple way to know whether a curling iron is good.
What to look for in flat iron? Check whether or not it offers multiple heat settings.
Hair fibers are delicate, and high temperatures will damage them. So it would be best to use the hair irons at minimum temperatures.
At the same time, it should be able to fulfill its purpose, depending on whether you’re employing it as a straightener or a curler.
3. Dividing Your Hair Into Small Sections Is Extremely Crucial.
Avoid huddling up large segments of hair and straightening them at once. This won’t be at the recommended low heat settings.
Also, I would advise against increasing the temperature to make it work since that will damage your hair. The most effective way is to work through one section at once.
For a wealth of hair-related insights, explore our articles on how long does ironed hair last, can a hair straightener kill lice, and the different types of flat irons.
FAQs
What’s the ideal temperature for hair straightening?
But I would recommend using the minimum heat settings.
Also, you must heed certain factors before you go on setting the temperature for your curling iron. That includes the plate size, hair section, and hair type.
Can you still make use of hot styling tools if you have damaged hair?
Rather than using a hot curling iron, you can opt for natural methods to straighten your hair, such as hair masks.
Conclusion
The bottom line is that it is possible for you to straighten your hair with a curling iron.
At the same time, select a versatile curling iron with various heat settings for straightening.
Also, large barrel curling irons made of ceramic with a clamp or plates are much more efficient.
With that, I’ve answered your answers and, thus, closed this article on “Can You Straighten Your Hair With A Curling Iron?”
Have you tried straightening your hair using a curling iron? Let us know in the comments below!
References
- Picardi, Phillip. 2014. “How to Straighten Hair: 11 Flat Iron Tips for Perfectly Straight Hair.” Teen Vogue. Teen Vogue. July 11, 2014. https://www.teenvogue.com/story/top-ten-flat-iron-mistakes.
- Watson, Kathyrn. 2018. “How to Straighten Your Hair without Heat.” Healthline. Healthline Media. May 22, 2018. https://www.healthline.com/health/how-to-get-straight-hair.
