How To: Curl Hair with VS Sassoon's Magic Curl

My natural hair is thick and unruly, with kinks and just plain hard to deal with in mornings. I decided to end the pain and make life easier with less styling hassles by permanently straightening it with the Shiseido Straightening system a few months back.

Lately though, the grass seems to be greener on the other side and I've been wanting to have some soft pretty curls, especially after seeing friends getting Japanese perms on their hair and looking super Kawaii.

So to curb my hair envy, I thought I'd try to recreate those soft loose curls for a temporary basis.

VS Sasson Magic Curl Styling Wand

• The newest addition to VS Sasoon's Premiere Collection, the wand-like barrel curler with no clamps in sight promises to deliver curls full of definition and shine with no crimps or kinks to hair.
• The styling wand tapers from 25mm in diameter at one end down to13mm at the other meaning you can create soft loose curls on top of hair that narrows to tighter ringlets at the other end.
• Features a SolTEC™ Ceramic barrel that provides a smoother surface to wrap hair with and make its easier to glide hair off when finished with setting the curls.
• Variable temperature control with 4 different heat settings to suit all hair types so you don't fry your hair to bits when using it.
• Comes with a heat-resistant glove to help your handle the hot wand whist styling your hair.

Magic Curl showing temperature control w On/Off button

How to use:

• Turn on the Magic curl and set it to desired heat setting to preheat it by pressing the +/- button.  The temperature light indicator will remain constant once the right heat level is achieved. I set mine at 170 degrees and found it hot enough to curl my hairs.
• Put on the protective glove on side of the hand you will be using to wrap your hair around the styler with.
• Start by working on hair at the base of your neck and work your way up to the hair at the crown. Take up all the hair and clip the top layers of hair out of the way, leaving the bottom layer free to work with.
• Curl hair from the back first and move your way towards the front.
• Section hair into 2-4cm widths (depending on whether you want loose curls or more defined ones- the smaller the section of hair, the more defined your curls will be) and starting at the thicker end of the wand, wrap hair around the barrel down towards the narrow end until your hair is fully curled around the wand. Hold the hair for 5 seconds to let the heat set it before gliding the wand out of your curled hair.
• You can also half-twist the wand during the style-setting stage to get tighter curls.
• Once the bottom layer of hair is curled, you can let out more hair from the middle layer and repeat the same steps and finally curling the the top layers of your hair until you're all finished.
• After curling hair, spray plenty of hair spray to fix the style and ensure long lasting curls.

Before and after Magic Curl - I went for the loose curls look

How it performed:

• Quick to heat up, I loved the adjustable temperature setting. It gives me peace of mind that I'm not going over-board in the heat styling department. 
• Easy to use - without reading any instruction manual, I found the Magic Curl wand very intuitive to use - it was as simple as taking hair and wrapping it around the wand. 
• The provided glove helped saved me from burning my fingers. Too bad there weren't ear hoods to save my ears which I burnt whilst curling the hair too close to the ear. Hopefully my better techniques after more practice will prevent future burns.
• The on/off button is awkwardly positioned during use. I would accidentally press it while twisting the wand to curl my hair and switch it off, resulting in having to re-switch it back on and reset the temperature again. Next time, I'll use some some tape to tape over the button area once I turn it on to prevent myself from accidental switch offs. Maybe a cover over the botton or a on/off sliding lever design in future models would be more suitable.
• The wand did indeed give soft pretty kink-free curls full of shine, body and bounce and it held its shape well. This did a better job than my GHD for curls (I've given up trying to master curling with that styler).

Styling Tips 

• To practise your curling techniques, try using the magic curl without turning the power on to get used to styling at the back of hair and familiarise the angle you will need to hold the magic curl
• Remember to spritz on some heat protectant before using the styler to prevent hair from being over-exposed and damaged by heat - try John Frieda's Heat Defeat Protective styling spray.

Verdict
VS Sassoon's Magic Curl wand certainly delivered curls that would rival those created by the professionals at any hair salon.
Rating: 9/10. It would have received full marks if the button designs were fixed to prevent accidental switch offs.
RRP A$69.95 at all leading department and electrical stores.

This product was received at the MBBE event.