People say you always want what you can’t have, whether it’s that expensive top from a boutique or the cute guy on someone else’s arm.

When it comes to hair, gals with super-straight locks often dream of sporting luscious, voluminous curls but can have trouble obtaining them.

Some women opt for perms at their favorite salon, while others turn to their trusty curling wand to create that temporary texture themselves.

But you need to invest a lot of time and money in those. Dealing with the consequent hair damage can be a headache too.

Luckily, creating gorgeous curls without burning cash and putting your hair in harm’s way is totally possible with none other than good old-fashioned foam rollers.

What are foam hair rollers, and what do they do?

Foam hair rollers are spongy cylinders made of soft yet sturdy foam. You can wrap your hair around them to help get some waves and spirals, depending on how big you want your curl pattern to be. 

These soft foam rollers absorb moisture from your freshly cleaned and conditioned hair while it’s curled up around each cylinder.

This allows your hair to adopt a new curl pattern, according to the position of the roller. When your hair is dry, the curls are set, and you can flaunt those gorgeous ringlets with pride.

Curling your hair with these foam rollers requires a lot more time than curling it up with a hot iron, the easier yet more expensive route.

It takes up to eight hours clipped in your hair to make a difference in the texture of your locks, which is why many women prefer to use it overnight. 

Ladies who are in a rush to doll up and don’t have the luxury of sleeping in rollers can put their blow-dryer on blast while wearing the rollers to get their ideal curl.

Comfort is a huge benefit you can get out of foam hair rollers. It’s quite important if you’re looking to wear them all night as you sleep.

Nowadays, rollers could be made of and by many materials.

However, foam rollers are my favorite and they are super affordable. They only cost a fraction of the cash you’ll need to burn to get a curling wand or rounded flat iron.

Plus, you can do it in the comforts of your home, unlike setting up an appointment for a perm at the parlor.

Traditional foam rollers come with slim plastic clips to secure your hair in place while it’s wrapped around each cylinder.

More modern foam rollers can be bent around in different shapes to lock your hair in place and set it up to be as comfortable as possible for you.

Both modern and traditional ones also come in different shapes and sizes.

Smaller rollers are perfect for bouncy, springy curls like little orphan Annie’s, while bigger rollers give you loose, voluminous, sexy curls that look like they were blown-out for a photoshoot.

The benefits of using foam rollers instead of heat styling your hair

Any hair care enthusiast knows that heat styling too often can cause damage to your hair, leaving it brittle, dry, and dull.

This is because continually exposing your locks to high heat levels breaks down the proteins in your hair. 

Heat damage from curling wands and flat irons causes your hair cuticles to become more porous and have a hard time retaining moisture, vitamins, and nutrients for good hair health.

If you’re serious about keeping your hair healthy in the long run, it would be a wise idea not to rely on heat styling every day.

Foam hair rollers are an excellent alternative when you want to take a break from heat styling and damaging your hair. They’re spongy and soft, almost cushion-like, so they go easy on your hair.

It doesn’t require any heat or chemical processes, so it deals no damage to the hair.

You also don’t tug on your tresses as much as you would if you use a hot tool, so there’s less snagging and breakage, leading to hair fall and split ends.

Curling your hair with foam rollers overnight will also make your curls look softer, more natural, and more effortless.

This is a sharp contrast to curling wands and irons that make your ringlets look too perfect, excessively springy, and contrived.

So if you’re used to whipping out your fave flat iron to give yourself beachy waves every day, your hair might be craving for downtime. Give your tired locks a break and switch over to foam rollers for a bit.

Leaving foam rollers in your hair overnight

Keeping your foam rollers in throughout the night is highly recommended since you need to leave them in for about eight hours to let the curls set correctly anyway.

Doing it while you’re asleep is the sensible and convenient method of foam rolling.

Leaving them in as you sleep, your hair more time to adapt to the curl pattern you want. The longer your rollers are in, the longer your curls will stay when you finally let them loose when you wake up in the morning.

What’s great about sleeping with foam rollers is that they act like small pillows for your head without being ridiculously bothersome and annoying.

They’re soft and super comfortable to wear even when you’re lying flat on your bed.

If you’re concerned about accidentally snagging and pulling at your hair and causing hair fall, make sure your rollers are relatively loose, so you still have room to move around. 

You can also move your rollers a couple of inches down below the hairline to ensure you don’t pull out hair strands at the root.

The little plastic clips keep your roller in place, too, so you don’t have to worry about your curls coming undone even as you toss and turn a lot at night.

When your alarm goes off eight hours later, you’ll be blessed with beautiful curls. And you didn’t even need to expose your locks to heat and damage to get there!

How to properly use foam rollers at nighttime?

Here are some “tricks” for you:

#1 Let your hair be damp and moisturized

Your foam rollers will work best if you start with clean, moisturized, slightly damp hair. So part of your prep should be washing your hair before you go to bed. 

Shampoo and condition your hair with a nourishing shampoo that will keep it moisturized and hydrated for hours. This will not only clean your hair thoroughly, but also help give your future curls more shine and bounce.

Make sure your hair is damp, not sopping wet. You can either towel-dry your hair or let it down for half an hour or so to air-dry until it loses half of the water from the shower.

If you have dry hair that is in dire need of extra moisture, you can use a hydrating mousse or leave-in to keep it plump and nourished throughout the night.

And if you want the best, most spiral-like curls you can get, work in some curl-enhancing cream in there too.

#2 Let your hair be free of knots and tangles

It’s also crucial that your hair is free of any knots and tangles, which can ruin the smooth curls you’re aiming for.

Detangle with your fingers or a wide-toothed comb to make sure your hair is sleek and smooth. It also helps distribute any hair products you had put in for nourishment.

#3 Appropriate section

Now, it’s time to section your hair. You can either use your fingers for this or a trusty sectioning comb.

Do small to medium sections of hair if you want tighter spirals, and bigger sections if you want a natural or sultry wave. 

But be careful—if you use too large sections, your foam roller might not be able to hold it in place with the plastic clips. If this happens, adjust and make your sections smaller.

Twist your hair into your rollers horizontally to give it a softer wave pattern.

Roll up each section of hair, wrapping it around a foam cylinder and locking it in place with the plastic clip or by bending your foam roller over.

You can put each section of hair into your rollers in a different direction each time so that they look effortless and not unnaturally uniform.

#4 Roll up

Don’t roll up your hair too tight, as this can result in hair breakage. You’re opting for foam rollers to keep damage at bay, not to stress out your hair even more.

When all your rollers are on, cover your head to ensure that your hair stays in place even if you roll around in bed as you sleep.

You can use any type of bonnet you’d like for this, be it silk scarves, satin caps, or even microfiber towels. And now, you’re ready to call it a night and hit the hay.

#5 Check in the morning

In the morning, check to see if your hair is completely dry. You shouldn’t take out your hair from the rollers if your hair is still damp, lest you end up with frizzy, poofy curls.

If this is the case, give it an extra hour or two longer, or speed up the drying process by blow-drying your locks on low heat.

When your hair is all dry, slowly and gently remove the rollers from each curl. Flip your head over and shake them out with your fingers. 

Be careful not to rake your hands through your hair so much, as this can ruin the curl. Just do it enough to get rid of any unnatural dents and spirals in your hair so that you can end up with sexy, tousled waves. 

Spritz on your favorite hairspray to set the curls and help them last all day long. Use one that offers light hold so that your hair is still soft and touchable without any crunchy stiffness.

This also helps keep your hair sleek and picture-perfect by controlling humidity and frizz.

And there you have it! Effortless curls without the damage, and all you need to do is that get a good night’s rest.

Conclusion

These foam cylinders may look intimidating at first, but they’re super easy to use and can help you get those glamorous curls you see in magazines.

It’s a great alternative to heat styling, which can cause a lot of damage. Plus, it’s only a fraction of the cost!

With foam hair rollers, you can transform your pin-straight, lifeless hair into majestic curls that are sure to turn heads.

And the best part is you do it all as you get some beauty sleep! Try out foam rollers and get that fab look as soon as you get up from the covers each morning.

You may also like