I was asked late last night if I could help on a Harlequin themed body paint shoot, and I knew immediately that this was the perfect opportunity to give them their first use!
It was a very long day, myself and the MUA Topaz Diable (what an amazing name!) worked really hard to get the right result, but I think the results are really great considering I hadn't even taken them out of the box before today!
Here is a candid photo, but there will be professional ones ready very soon...
The back of the head shot is before I seperated the curls, when I did do this I decided to keep them quite defined though I could have really broken them up to create a more afro type look.
I decided to use the smallest of the Stic's (Twisted Tallulah) as I knew I wanted the tightest curl possible, and started at the nape and worked my way up. As I got higher up the head I definately had developed a knack, after initially struggling to get the curl right to the end.
The website says to "Wrap, twiddle and slide"
Step one being to take your section of hair, and twist it round the stic, I wrapped the hair with my left hand whilst holding the stic, along with the straightening irons in my right hand round and then pushed the hair together so it was in a tight coil, and kept hold of the stic and the ends of the hair with my left hand.
Step two, twiddle, using my straighteners, I gently clamped the hair and literally just flicked my wrist up and down, which moved the twiddle stic back and forth, and made sure I heated the whole coil - now for the tricky bit, the ends - I thought on and wore a heat proof glove, but with practice I probably wouldn't need it (better safe than sorry though ouch) As you approach the end of the hair, I found rolling the stic round, like you are loosing a screw so the hair follows it, whilst still keeping the straighteners gently clamped was the best method.
Initially I was twiddling the straighteners, clamping and unclamping as I went, this was not the quickest method, created a slightly frizzy result, and gave more of a zig zag than a curled result. Twiddling the stic ensures even heat distribution and a shinier healthier curl - which when using the larger sizes would be more important.
Step Three, slide, as simple as it sounds, gently slide the hair coil off the Stic, and leave to set. The hair actually doesn't get very hot at all and the Doll website does state:
"When a straightening iron, curling wand or tong is used directly on hair, they transmit intense heat that removes moisture which can damage hair. The Doll TwiddleStic’s unique CoolCurl™ heat absorbing technology instantly absorbs the heat applied to the hair from the iron, helping to keep the moisture content and cooling the hair while it curls - creating long lasting curls in excellent condition"
Before using the Twiddle Stics, as impressed as I was with the curl, I did think that this was a bit of an exaggeration but I know when using my straighteners on their own, hair can sometimes feel too hot to hold for a few seconds, I've definately felt the burn on my neck from my own hair, so I really did notice that the coils were noticably cool.
I was picking quite small sections at a time, but actually, once I had seperated the coils into the curls I wanted, I definatly could have saved a lot of time by taking bigger sections and still achieved the same results.
All in all, after initially struggling with curling right to the end I was really impressed with the results, and more importantly so was the MUA who had organised the shoot for her own portfolio. They definately take some practice, so don't give up too quickly, but if like me you start at the bottom and work your way up, you'll be a pro by the time you get to an area that needs to be done properly!
Oh before I forget, I achieved these curls on freshly washed hair with no product used at all, at Pro hair Live, when I was given a demonstration by Gary Sunderland - the creative mind behind Doll hair care, he was very clear when he told me product would cause a build up, so on his advice I didnt use anything on it at all, and trust me, our model Sally will only be getting rid of her afro when she washes it out!
(However, I did spy that he had some top secret products on him - that he wasn't using - but I imagine he is developing some fab products to use with either the twiddlestic's or some of Dolls other range - his straighteners have a handle on, which I really need in my life, next thing on my list)
I will add the final images once the photographer has edited them, we're hoping for a "puppet-esc" haunted outlook!
*I purchased the twiddlestics with my own money and these views are my own*
