Before digging out the spongy pink curlers or running to your stylist for a hasty perm, check out these effective alternatives for an evening of uncustomary curls!

Curling Iron

Inexpensive, relatively user-friendly and quick for minor touch-ups, this device can give you a glam look with a few minutes' investment. If you're donning only a partial head of curly locks, a curling iron could be just the tool you need for an immediate response to your need of a few well-placed curls.

Glamorize your up-do with a curling iron by emphasizing your style with a few loose spiral curls around your face or one or two seductively sweeping along the back of your neck. Creating these curls can be a quick and easy process, but don't forget to spritz them with a little hairspray, or else they may not last the entire evening!

Another common use for a curling iron is tending to your hair's ends. Tuck them under or flip them out a bit wildly, but you won't get the same results with a set of hot rollers! A curling iron is versatile enough to curl precisely the strands that you want curled, in whichever manner you wish to achieve. Even if you wish to curl more than a few small sections of hair, a curling iron is capable of curling your entire head as well.

Time Involved: Curling Iron use may take anywhere from 5 minutes or less to 45 minutes or more, depending on style's involvement.

Hot Rollers

Just a touch more expensive than the curling iron, hot rollers can achieve a full head of flawless curls, typically in under an hour. Hot rollers generally have a small amount of wax inside that is heated when the set is plugged into an electrical outlet. When the curlers are ready for use, the color may change color so that you know to begin applying them.

Forget about fighting with the curling iron and trying to decide which way you want the curl to spiral. Instead, enjoy the remarkably easy process with hot rollers-once you have fastened the curlers in your hair, your hair will all curl simultaneously!

It is still a good idea to use some styling products such as a non-sticky hairspray or gel to retain the shape of the curls. (Curls formed by hot rollers tend to last considerably longer for me than those I create with a curling iron, as my hair is typically resistant to curling in general.)

Tip for Hot Rollers: Try to wash your hair the night before you want to employ the hot rollers. Sometimes very clean, sleek hair tends to resist curling.

Time Involved: Hot Rollers may take about 10 minutes to warm up and anywhere from 10-20 minutes to apply, and about 15 minutes to set. (Color of curler will revert back to original color to indicate that the curl has set.) Add additional time as necessary for styling your locks if you intend to use barrettes, bobby pins or other adornments and styling products.

Curling Iron Versus Hot Rollers

• Both beauty appliances require time to heat up, but hot rollers may require a few extra minutes.
  
• Hot rollers are very easy to use when styling the whole head or a section, but don't count on them to curl your ends out or under. Leave that to the curling iron!
  
• Color of hot rollers indicates when they are ready to use and when your curls have set.
  
• Curling iron gives great flexibility for choosing between loose spirals and tight ringlets, but you can always brush out your curls formed by hot rollers to achieve the style you desire.
  
• Curling irons are much easier to transport when traveling and staying in a hotel or other location away from home.
  
• Hot rollers save more time if going for a full head of curls. Success rate for curls enduring the entire evening may also be better.
  
• Both devices are useful in and of themselves-the best advice for you is to try them both and see which you like the best!