Retro Curls Hairstyle | Foam Rollers Tutorial • The Dapper Dahlia

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Creating retro curls is easy with foam rollers. Also called sponge rollers, these affordable tools are the trick to making beautiful retro hairstyles in little time. I’m sharing how to use foam rollers to get retro curls and including some professional hair styling tips from my stylist!

You can view the full retro curls hair tutorial on my new YouTube channel, or scroll to the bottom of this post to see the video.

How to use foam hair rollers for retro curls

Using foam rollers is quick and easy once you get the hang of it. The best thing about foam rollers is you can put them in before you sleep, then take them out the next morning for soft, bouncy curls. There’s no need for heat styling tools that can damage your hair!

Here are all of the tools and products I use to get soft retro curls using foam rollers:

1. Apply a hair primer spray.

First, dampen your hair with water or with a hair primer spray. This will help ensure the curls hold their shape after they’ve dried and the rollers are taken out. I’ve been using the Drybar Prep Rally Prime & Prep Detangler. It smells magnificent and helps prevent frizzy hair!

2. Put in the foam hair rollers.

Now it’s time to put in the foam hair rollers. Once your hair is damp, divide hair into 1- to 2-inch wide sections and start rolling! How many rollers you’ll need will depend on how long and/or thick your hair is. I’ve been using Hot Tools Soft Foam Rollers that I purchased at Ulta and this package comes with 16 rollers, which is the perfect amount for me. To be on the safe side, the Conair 48-pack of foam rollers is just a few dollars more!

3. How to put in foam rollers:

The package of foam rollers often come with different sizes; use the wider size for the front sections of hair to get more volume and switch to the small rollers for the back of your hair.
First, part your hair. On the side of the part with more hair, grab a small section and wrap the ends of your hair downward around the roller, then start to roll up toward your head. Once you’ve reached your scalp, clip the roller into place.
Now for the shorter side of the part: for the front sections of hair nearest your face, wrap the ends of the hair in a downward direction around the roller and start to roll toward your face. Position the roller so it’s vertical with the ends of the roller pointing to the ceiling and floor; roll inward toward your face. Once you’ve reached your scalp, clip the roller into place.
For the remaining sections, wrap the ends of your hair downward around the roller and then start to roll up toward your head. Once you’ve reached your scalp, clip the roller into place.

4. Cover hair with a scarf.

Next, tie on a square scarf to cover your hair. This will keep the rollers from moving around or falling out while you sleep (especially if you move around as much as I do).

A silk scarf will help prevent hair from becoming frizzy but any large square scarf will work. Use a few bobby pins in the front and back to secure the scarf. My YouTube hair tutorial will show you how to tie on the scarf.

5. Go to sleep!

The easiest way to use the foam rollers is to put them on before you go to bed and sleep in them overnight. Then, take them out in the morning, brush through your hair and style.

The foam rollers are soft, but if you’re not comfortable sleeping in them, you can set your style in the morning and then remove the rollers in the evening for your special event. Of course, this requires you to run errands with your rollers and scarf on, if necessary.

6. Remove the foam rollers.

In the morning, remove your scarf and the foam hair rollers. Carefully unroll each piece of hair as it can become tangled around the roller.

7. Brush through curls with a paddle brush.

To break up those Shirley Temple strands, carefully brush through each curl with a paddle brush. I use the EcoTools Smooth Detangler Paddle Brush. My hairstylist explained to me that this kind of brush is best at brushing curls without totally brushing them out and ruining all that hard work we did! She recommends the Wet Brush Paddle Brush, which can also be used on wet hair without causing damage.

8. Smooth and shape hair with a round brush.

After brushing the curls with the paddle brush, use a medium round brush to shape and smooth your hair. Beginning with the front sections underneath the hair, brush hair down and inward toward your face. Start with one curl and add more curls into the section with each brushstroke until sections are blended together. Then brush the top of the hair to help smooth flyaways.

Another tip I learned from my hairstylist is that a round brush that is too large will just smooth hair instead of giving you the curl that the small to medium brushes will, so make sure you use a medium-sized one!

9. Apply a pomade.

To smooth flyaways and help keep everything in place, rub a small amount of pomade between your palms and run over hair. I’ve been using Roldan’s Water Based Pomade for the Classic Woman, which I purchased after seeing many of my favorite vintage and retro bloggers on Instagram post about it. They all have amazing hair so I had to give it a try and I’m so glad I did! It smells like freshly cut flowers and isn’t too thick or greasy. It also washes out easily in the shower.

10. Set it with a strong hold hairspray.

Lastly, you need a good strong hold hairspray to keep everything in place. I’ve been using Kevin Murphy Session Spray Strong Hold that I got from my hairstylist and it is a good hair spray; however, it is on the pricier side so I typically buy the small bottle since I don’t use much of it anyway. Any of your favorite strong hold hairsprays will work. I also like Kenra Volume Spray Hair Spray.

Voilà! The finished look.