Blew out my favorite flat iron mid-client and had to improvise the whole style

Honestly, I was doing a blowout on a regular last Thursday and about halfway through my trusty flat iron just died. No warning, no weird smell, just stopped heating up. I had this client's hair halfway pin straight and the other half still wavy from the blow dry. I panicked for a second but then grabbed my hot rollers from the back and used those to smooth out the rest of her ends. It actually gave her this soft, bouncy finish she ended up loving more than the pin-straight look. Tbh I should have checked my tools before starting but now I'm thinking about keeping a backup iron on hand. Has anyone else had a tool die on them in the middle of a service? What did you do?

3 comments

3 Comments

olivia_moore1mo ago

Wait, you really pulled that off with hot rollers mid-service?

the_taylor1mo agoOG Member

Actually I think you meant 'hot rods' not 'rollers' in your story. Hot rollers are those big plastic things with clips that you leave in for 20 minutes, not something you'd use mid-service to smooth ends real quick. You're probably talking about a curling rod or wand, right? I've done the same thing though, had my flat iron give out during a wedding party once. I ended up using a straightening brush I had in my kit and it honestly saved me, those things work surprisingly well for touch ups when you're in a pinch. Definitely grab a backup iron though, I keep a cheap $30 one in my drawer just for emergencies now and it's paid for itself ten times over.

torres.thea1mo ago

Your story about the flat iron dying at a wedding party hit SO close to home. I had my curling wand literally snap in half while I was mid-wrap on a bridesmaid's hair a few months ago. I ended up using a pair of old school marcel irons I found buried in my kit from cosmetology school, and honestly it gave her this chunky 90s spiral that the bride ended up loving way more than the original plan. Now I keep a whole emergency bin of crappy but functional tools under my station, it's like a graveyard of backup saviors.