how to use heated rollers

Review: Babyliss Pro 30 Piece Ceramic Roller Set

Babyliss Pro 30 piece heated roller set

Babyliss Pro 30 piece heated roller set

Before I start this review of my new Babyliss heated rollers, I have to explain a couple of things about my hair. You see, my hair is fine. Super-fine, in fact. It’s poker straight. It’s long. It does not hold a curl AT ALL. Ever. The length and weight of my hair will drag out any curl within a few minutes of its creation, which means that my dreams of having a head of Carrie-Bradshaw style tousled curls are doomed to remain just a dream, and the most I can realistically expect from any kind of curling product is that it will give me some big, loose waves, and add a bit of body to my normally flat-as-a-pancake hair.

It was with this in mind that, after weeks of indecision, I finally succumbed to the lure of the Babyliss Pro Ceramic Roller Set I wrote about back in January, although, because I have rather a lot of hair, I decided to go for the 30 piece set rather than the 20 piece set I’d originally looked at.

Where to buy Babyliss Heated Rollers

I bought my set from Cool Blades, which was the cheapest place I could find these online, and who I can’t recommend highly enough. As well as charging just £31.45 compared to the £40 – £45 I’d seen these for elsewhere, they also arrived the day after I placed my order, which was a pleasant surprise, as I hadn’t expected (or paid for!) next day delivery.

Inside the case

how to use Babyliss heated rollers

These rollers come in a plastic case which you can stand up as shown in the image, or lie flat, and there are 30 altogether, in a range of sizes: 8 jumbo, 8 large, 8 medium and 6 small. There’s also a selection of plastic clips and metal pins to hold them on: I find that the smaller rollers work best with the metal pins, while the larger ones can be easily secured with the plastic grips. I like to use the plastic ones on the rollers closest to my neck and ears, purely because they shield the skin from the heat and stop me burning myself!

How long do Babyliss heated rollers take to heat up?

My only real criticism of these (And it’s a very minor one) is that there’s nothing to tell you when they’re ready to use. Once plugged in, you flick a switch on the bottom of the plastic case to switch them on, but unlike other rollers (or straighteners, or curling tongs) I’ve used, there’s no blinking light or beeping sound, or anything else to tell you they’re ready to use: you have to just work it out for yourself.

Again, this is a minor criticism: I find they’re hot enough to use after 10 minutes or so, and it’s not hard to work out how hot they are, although obviously you’re going to want to avoid touching the centre of the roller, or you’ll burn your finger. Not that I’ve done that, you understand. Ahem.

How to use heated rollers:

As for actually using them, well, they’re super-easy to use (See my post on how to use heated rollers here), and I’m sure no one needs me to tell them how to do it: it’s simply a matter of rolling a strand of hair around the roller, securing with your pin or grip, and continuing until you’ve covered the full head. The longer you leave them in, the better the curl, and the longer it will last, and working out which rollers to use where is a matter of trial and error.

I started out using up the largest size first, and concentrating them on the top and back of my head, while keeping the smaller sizes for the shorter strands at the front, but actually I’ve found that, for my hair, the curl will last longer if I use up the smaller sizes first, and save the jumbo rollers for the strands that are left at the bottom of my head. This gives a smaller, tighter curl, while, on me, the jumbo rollers don’t do much more than curl the ends under.

Again, I need to emphasise that this is mostly because of my hair type. If your hair is shorter, and better at holding a curl, you’ll get different results, and it’ll be a matter of trying out the different sizes to see what works best for you.

The results

What do the results actually look like, though? Well, here’s my hair right after the rollers come out:

hair curled with heated rollers

My poker-straight hair after using Babyliss Heated Rollers

Once it’s been brushed out, I end up with something like this:

tutorial: how to use heated rollers to create loose waves

All things considered, I would definitely recommend Babyliss heated rollers to anyone looking for an alternative to a curling iron: the set us fantastic value for 30 rollers, it’s quick and easy to use, and if you have the type of hair that holds a curl, the variety of roller sizes will let you create lots of different looks.

How long does it take to use heated rollers?

One warning: the curly hair gets addictive: I’d do this every day if I possibly could, but on hair like mine, it can be quite a time-consuming process – for the photos above, it took me about 25- 30 minutes to cover my whole head (I used all of the 30 rollers for this, but if I have less time and just want to give my hair a bit of body I can do it in about 15, using the larger rollers, and therefore larger strands of hair), and then another 30 or more to let them cool down. Not something I have time for every day, sadly, but worth it for a special occasion!

I bought my rollers from Cool Blades, which you’ll find here.

6 Alternatives to Babyliss Heated Rollers

  1. T3 Micro Voluminous Hot Rollers: This set comes with 8 rollers in two different sizes and features a ceramic PTC heater that heats up the rollers in just 3 minutes.
  2. Remington H9100S PROluxe Ceramic Heated Rollers: With 20 velvet flocked rollers that heat up in 90 seconds and a ceramic technology that helps reduce frizz, this heated roller set is perfect for achieving salon-worthy curls.
  3. Conair InfinitiPRO Instant Heat Ceramic Flocked Rollers: This set features 20 ceramic flocked rollers that heat up in just 2 minutes and come with a unique clip design that holds the rollers in place while creating a secure and tight curl.
  4. Calista Tools Ion Hot Rollers Short Style Set: This heated roller set is perfect for short hair and features 12 rollers that heat up in just 3 minutes and release ions to help reduce frizz and static.
  5. Caruso C97953 30 Molecular Steam Hairsetter with 30 Rollers: This unique heated roller set uses steam to create long-lasting curls without damaging your hair. It includes 30 rollers in various sizes and heats up in just 6 minutes.
  6. Remington H1016 Compact Ceramic Worldwide Voltage Hair Setter: This compact heated roller set is perfect for travel and features 10 rollers in two different sizes that heat up in just 90 seconds.

Related: Babyliss Curl Secret

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COMMENTS
  • rachel

    REPLY

    oooooohhhhh I am so so jealous!!! It looks so lovely! my hair is super super super fine and wont hold a curl, i’d love it too look like that!!

    May 11, 2010
  • Sarah

    REPLY

    Wow! I love how it looks after it’s brushed out!

    I can only get my hair to hold a curl if I use a wet-set overnight with some Amami (which I just gound out is discontinued! Argh!). Yes, just like Granny used to.

    How long did the curl hold for?

    May 11, 2010
  • Fozzie

    REPLY

    That is fabulously amazing looking hair. I love it on you.

    I curl my fine, midlength hair using shockwaves curling mouse on damp hair, bendy rollers (poundshop find) and a good long blast from the hair dryer.

    The only lesson I can teach of curling is to avoid Pantene’s curl gel spray. You egt horribly crunchy curls and the weight of the gel makes them drop.

    May 11, 2010
  • I’ve had these exact rollers since Xmas – they really are fantastic. However, in my set I have enough pins for all the rollers? I prefer the pins to the clips because they’re less likely to leave a dent.

    As for how long to heat them up for, I’ve stuck to the rule of switch them on, get breackfast and cup of tea, eat said breakfast and do my hair as I sip my tea! I leave the rollers in until they are back to room temperature for the best, long lasting curl – about half an hour.

    Also, I put the bigger rollers in the shorter lengths of hair at the top, as they tend to hold curls better, and then use the smaller rollers as I work to the longer and longer layers as they tend to be heavey and drop (I have very long hair!)

    Hope my experience helps! I love them.
    .-= Lauren´s last blog ..Lauren reviews Benefit Brows a-go-go =-.

    May 11, 2010
  • My hair is somewhere between wavy and curly, but natural curls are never as glam-looking as these, so I do often use a curling iron, rollers, or a brush to get a neater, less wild look. I have the exact opposite problem to yours: my hair holds curls so well, I often look like a poodle for the first couple of hours, until the curls loosen up a little bit. Being quite clumsy, using the curling iron usually leaves me with a few minor burns 🙁
    I’ve never had ceramic rollers – do you think they would be less dangerous?

    May 12, 2010
  • Rebecca

    REPLY

    I’ve been looking into getting a set of these. Not that it really makes any sense, as I have curly hair and a curling iron and more curl-orientated products than you can point a… curling iron at.

    But I love curls so much that I just can’t stop, and I don’t feel like the curling iron has ever performed the way I would have liked it to. Not to mention the fact that with the amount of hair I have, curling it with an iron takes way to long. I somehow imagine rollers might be better, with less taking hair up and down. And I love the look it creates (your hair looks amazing incidentally).

    Anywho, they sell that model where I work, but that’s a pretty good price- might even be cheaper for me. Nice little incentive!

    May 12, 2010
  • Wow absolutely gorgeous. I’d have to straighten then re-curl my hair for anything close, and even then it would probably be frizzy, as per usual.

    Also, you have a beautiful colour of hair! 🙂
    .-= LS´s last blog ..Recent purchases =-.

    May 12, 2010
  • Mara

    REPLY

    I would kill for dead straight hair like yours Amber ):
    Your more then welcome to take my curls

    May 27, 2010
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