Pre-heat your flat iron to no higher than 300 degrees Fahrenheit..How to Flat Iron Coils Effectively
The method by which you flat iron your hair is key to its longevity and your hair’s reversion. If done improperly your hair could end up frizzy, revert quickly or become damaged.
Heating Instructions
To start, pre-heat your flat iron to no higher than 300 degrees Fahrenheit. At 300 degrees and under, it’s almost guaranteed that the hair will revert, but anything over that and it’s a guessing game. I know many of you are probably wondering how you’ll get your coils to straighten with such little heat, but it really does work. With this regimen, very little heat is needed. And if you have roller set your hair correctly, it should be pretty much straight anyway.
Also, very little heat is needed as you will flat iron very small sections of hair. By using small sections, you ensure that the heat is distributed to all the strands in between the plates which will help to get your hair perfectly straight and ensure it remains that way right up until you wash it out.
Sectioning and Detangling
Once you’ve sectioned off your small piece and secured the rest of your hair, grab a small toothed comb and gently comb through that section of hair from tip to root to smooth it out. Then, when you go to pass the comb through your hair once more, use your other hand to gently pass the flat iron over the hair on top of the comb so that your flat iron goes over freshly detangled hair. This method is called the “comb-chase method” and should be YouTubed for better understanding. This method smoothes out the hair to ensure that the heat is distributed properly and doesn’t set the hair in a frizzy state, but a smooth one. It also helps to straighten those pesky ends. Lastly, if your hair is really hard to straighten, try using a boar bristle brush to really smooth it out.
Direction Matters
To ensure your hair lays how you want it to, straighten it in a downward direction and not straight out at a 90 degree angle like you may be tempted to.
If you are a fine haired coily girl, an easy trick for more volume is to flat iron the hair at the crown at a 90 degree angle from your scalp to give your roots more lift. Once each section is flat ironed you could mist the roots lightly with a spritz for hold to keep them lifted. Just don’t overdo it with the spritz because you want light volume not a beehive a la Snookie and Amy Winehouse.
Flat Ironing Coils: Dos and Donts
- Moisturize thoroughly before flat ironing.
- Rollerset instead of flat ironing.
- Purchase a good ceramic or tourmaline plated flat iron for good heat distribution and shiny hair because of complicated science stuff.
- DON’T crank up your flat iron to max– we want to straighten not burn to a crisp.
- DON’T flat iron when tired to avoid sloppiness and cranking up the flat iron to max to get it over and done with.
- DON’T skip or be skimpy with the heat protectant.
- DON’T clamp the flat iron down on the hair to avoid snagging. Allow it to glide over your hair.
