I need everyone to assist me with Dominican Blowouts.  There aren't any salons that do them here and therefore, I have to do it myself. I really want to try it..without the exact same products but something similar. 

1)So I need a step by step process.

2) How big are the rollers they use on the hair.

3) Are the rollers tight...how long do they dry the hair under the drying hood.

Thanks!

Ok, here goes.

They use plastic rollers w/ holes and metal clips to secure them.  I look online for samples and post a separate follow-up link.

Roller size depends on hair length and how tight you want the curls.  Also, if you have long hair and use large rollers, your hair will dry faster than if you use smaller rollers.

I use purple rollers for longest parts of my hair and bronze & blue for shorter parts.  (Thse are not the only colors / sizes that exist/  There are larger rollers than purple available and smaller ones than blue.)  Can use one size for your whole head if you like, it's really a question of preference. My hair is @ 1 -2 " from brastrap. 

Hair must be wet & smooth when putting in rollers and pulled taught at roots when securing rollers with clips.  I do not use a setting lotion but it is probably a good idea to use one.  I use a bit of oil or a leave in on my ends.  I know Pokahontas recently had a rollerset and they used Keracare and she loved the results with these products.

I have been doing roller sets for years and the rollers never seem to be as tight as when a hairdresser does them.  I don't think you should worry about being too tight and stressing the hair.  It just helps in the end to get your roots smoother.  This does not matter so much to me though.  Also, depending on how good your technique, and how you want your hair to fall when fully styled, you can roll your hair in a specific way or pattern (i.e. shirley temple curls, you may want to roll in a certain pattern, etc..)  For a blowout, rolling in any fine.  Nothing fancy is required. In the end, you will blow your hair in the direction you want it to be styled in (curled under at ends, flipped up at ends, part on side, etc).

What I find to be most important when putting in rollers is that the ends must be smooth when rolled so that they dry smooth.  If they are not perfectly smooth, then they can dry crimped and frizzy.  If this does happen, you can alwars correct with heat afterwards (i.e. curling iron, blower).

I find that hard bonnet dryer to be more comfortable than a soft bonnet (have both). I think it gives better results. It takes my hair @ 1 1/4 - 1 1/2hr to dry completely. Or can allow rollers to partially air dry and then finish w/ hairdryer.

The blowout is done after you take the hair out of rollers, ususally w/ a very hot blower with one of those attatchments (don't know what they are called but they seem to concentrate / control the air).  Can use any blower though even those that have bristles.  Blowing is done for a couple of reasons.  One, to get rid of pouffiness at roots, 2nd to remove obvious roller lines, third for achieving desired style. 

Using a really good brush (does not have to be round although round is probably best), blow each section, roller by roller at the roots and then the length of the hair.  Blow the length less if you want to retain more curl, blow more if you want straighter look. You can go over 2nd time with the blower to style more if necessary (maybe get the hair straighter or flip at ends).  

Usually, a Dominican blowout there is more blowing (not a tiny amount of blowing).  The resulting hair is straight, smooth and shiney from roots through the length & curled under or flipped up at ends.  There is lots of body, but is not pouffy.  Hair is very shiney, bouncy and moves.  The amount of blowing is personal as some people like a lot of blowing and others do not.

Products are really up to the individual.  A deep conditioner or protein treatment + DT is probably a good idea since blowing, also, a leave in or setting lotion.  A heat protectant is a good idea when blowing.  Finish with with some sort of shine product; oil spray, cream hairdress or an oil or silicone shine spray at the end. 

Afrolatina is on point with her blowout instructions, very informative.  The only thing that i can think to add that might give you a little bit of an easier time with the blowout is to do a "doobie" wrap.  This is done right after the big rollers are taken out (I use the hard purple ones also).  Take the rollers out after the hair is fully dry, comb through and do a dry wrap.  Tie down with a scarf and sit back under the dryer for approx. 10 to 15 minutes.  Comb out the wrap and spray with a little sheen spray.  This should cut down on some of your blow drying because the hair comes out straight and has a lot of body.

Like afrolatina said, the hair has to be pulled taught and smooth onto the roller in order to get a smooth curl.  For natural hair, end papers are a big help in keeping those curly ends smooth.

I would recommend a setting lotion because it makes my hair so much smoother and it has no frizzies.  Whenever I don't use it I have frizzies.  I loved the Keracare one and I will be buying that the next time I go to the bss.  Lottabody and Creme of Nature setting lotions are good also.

Good Luck and let us know how it comes out.

afrolatina wrote: Good post Pokahantas.  I may have to try Keracare.  Also agree with the your recomendation for doobies.

Thanks.  I  hope I  have the same luck with the Keracare when I try to do my own roller set. 

OK so let me see if I understand....so much information here.

Put the big rollers in (make sure i have end papers to get them smooth) <===using a hooded dryier or is this air dried?

After the hair is dry take out the rollers and wrap the hair.

Put a scarf around it and sit under a dryer for about 10-25 minutes.

The steps you outlined sound right. 

You can airdry but this can take all day or overnight while a dryer will take maybe an hour (give or take a some time depending on how long / thick your hair is).

It sounds like you're all set.  Good luck!

Thank you so much.  I'm going to save this on my computer.Maybe i will do this for Christmas. Special holiday hair plus i know I will have a hooded drier by then.

Thanks everyone!!!

One more thing.  If you are not used to doing roller sets, I would say practice a few times to get used to putting in the rollers.  This can be tricky at first but you will get better with practice and the end result will be better overall the neater the rollers.