# Ladies, need a curling iron crash course for a man **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [April 21, 2009, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ladies-need-a-curling-iron-crash-course-for-a-man/493900 "2009-04-21T21:21:21Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Thinktank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Thinktank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thinktank)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2009, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ladies-need-a-curling-iron-crash-course-for-a-man/493900/1 "2009-04-21T21:21:21Z")
Hi, Since marrying-in more family and gaining many sisters I’ve had to consider all kinds of factors that as a man I’d probably never think to want to know about. That said my favorite sister-in-law wants a curling iron and I have no one to ask questions about this kinda thing to. So if I may ladies, I’d like to ask about curling irons. My sister-in-law is big into the pin-up girl look and I’ve already consulted one person on youtube about this who recommended a curling iron from 1" to 1.25" in diameter to achieve this look, but then I found the same brand curling iron in a 1.5" size and it doubles as a flattening iron. Yeah, I know I sound like a woman already…sigh… anyway, my question is: If I were to go outside of the recommended sizes that I’ve been told to buy, is it easier to make a big curl smaller or a small curl bigger? See what I will do for my sister-in-law? LOL:rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![Varrius](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/e9a140/32.png) [@Varrius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Varrius)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2009, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ladies-need-a-curling-iron-crash-course-for-a-man/493900/2 "2009-04-21T22:18:05Z")
I posed this to my wife. She says that any curling iron is going to curl whatever size it is, but she would have suggested 1.5" in the first place. HTH ---
**Author:** ![Thinktank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Thinktank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thinktank)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2009, 11:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ladies-need-a-curling-iron-crash-course-for-a-man/493900/3 "2009-04-21T23:00:11Z")
Oh, I understand the the curling iron will curl hair to whatever size it is made to make the curl, what I’m asking is: If I were to buy a curling iron for my sister-in-law at a specific size and she wanted to make her hair/curl a different size than what the curling iron I bought can make- would it be easier to have a small curling iron and make a curl bigger _somehow_, or to have a large curling iron and _somehow_ make the curl smaller? (Why people just don’t design a curling iron that has different sized shafts for different sized curls is beyond me) ---
**Author:** ![SylverOne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c0e974/32.png) [@SylverOne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SylverOne)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2009, 11:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ladies-need-a-curling-iron-crash-course-for-a-man/493900/4 "2009-04-21T23:16:21Z")
> [@Thinktank](#): > > (Why people just don’t design a curling iron that has different sized shafts for different sized curls is beyond me) They do… [Link to Amazon](http://www.amazon.com/HERSTYLER-3P-PROFESSIONAL-SIZE-CURLING/dp/B000S8JB68/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=hpc&qid=1240355673&sr=1-1), but they’re spendy. ---
**Author:** ![Thinktank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Thinktank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thinktank)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2009, 12:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ladies-need-a-curling-iron-crash-course-for-a-man/493900/5 "2009-04-22T00:13:45Z")
Umm, “spendy” is right, there’s no way I’m buying her something for $85 with a digital readout on it, lol. So my question stands, the one about large and small curling irons? (refer to the formal question in my above post). Wow… straightdope needs more women on here… =7 ---
**Author:** ![freckafree](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/freckafree/32/3050_2.png) [@freckafree](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/freckafree)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2009, 12:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ladies-need-a-curling-iron-crash-course-for-a-man/493900/6 "2009-04-22T00:38:31Z")
It would be very difficult to make a curl made on a larger iron smaller. But I think you might be able to make smaller curl larger by wrapping it, while the hair is still warm, around a larger curling brush. I’d err on the side of smaller iron, if I were doing the buying.