Does TikTok's Heatless "Cocoon Curls" Styling Trick Really Work?

If you want to give your hair a break from sizzling hot tools, BeautyTok is overflowing with heatless curling hacks. There’s the viral one that involves socks, as well as the famous leggings trick where you sleep with pants on your head as a way to create soft spirals — both of which can give you pretty curls without the heat damage you’d get from using a curling iron or blow dryer.

“Cocoon curls” is the latest heatless curling method making the rounds, now with over 68.5 million views on TikTok. Instead of wrapping your hair around a piece of laundry, you roll up and tie your hair into a multitude of tiny knots — and the knots end up looking like little butterfly cocoons, hence the name.

What Are “Cocoon Curls?”

This special knotting technique keeps your strands in place without any heat, clips, or ties, and when you take them out, your hair is supposed to unfurl to reveal gentle curls, just like the kind you’d get with hot rollers. You can get gentle waves or full-on ringlets, depending on how tightly you wrap your hair.

While anyone can try it, hairstylist Lindsay Johnson says cocoon curls work best on medium to long hair, since you need enough length to loop and tie your strands into a knot. They also work on a variety of hair types of textures, though smooth hair may be too sleek to hold the knots.

That said, while there are plenty of success stories on TikTok of folks using the method, there are just as many fails; “I tried this one time overnight and I woke up looking like a founding father,” wrote one TikToker.

How To Do Cocoon Curls Properly

As with any curling technique, getting your cocoons right can take some finesse. You also might have to experiment to find out what your specific hair type needs in order to hold a curl. “I’ve tried this heatless curling method on both dry, second-day hair and 90% dry hair with some mousse scrunched in,” Johnson tells Bustle.

She’s found that it’s easier to get longer-lasting curls when your hair has just a touch of dampness. Here’s her go-to technique:

1. Start a cocoon curl by taking a small(ish) section of hair.
2. Grab the hair at the midpoint between two fingers and your thumb, and use your other hand to bend the strand back on itself to create a loop around your two fingers.
3. Tightly wrap the remaining length around the top of the loop.
4. Once your hair is almost completely coiled around the top of the loop, take the last two to three inches and pull it down through the loop, grasping the end between the two fingers forming the loop.
5. Push the coil you’ve created down on the loop, slipping the two fingers that are holding the end of the hair out as you tighten the coil around the end of the loop. This creates a knot that resembles a cocoon, and it holds the curl in place.
6. Repeat this process around your entire head.
7. Leave the curls in for about 30 to 60 minutes. The longer you leave it in, the more curled your hair should be.

Is This Curling Technique Safe, Though?

Johnson notes that she’s all for an effective shortcut to achieving voluminous curls — but the cocoon method might not be it. “Yes, they’re heatless, which is great, but they require a lot of pulling, tugging, and tension, which isn’t the best for your hair, especially when it’s wet,” she tells Bustle.

Since wet hair is extra stretchy, the tension of the knot could result in breakage, she says, which is ultimately what you’re trying to prevent by avoiding hot tools in the first place. “I would also warn against sleeping in this style unless you sleep on a silk pillowcase or in a silk bonnet,” she adds. “These cocoon knots, combined with a night of tossing and turning on a cotton pillowcase, will result in a tangled mess come morning.”

The biggest issue, though, is an inconsistent curl pattern, which is a huge complaint on TikTok. “Curl pattern, shape, and longevity can change depending on how damp or dry your hair is, how big or small your sections are, what product you use if any, how long you leave the knots in, or if you sleep on them,” says Johnson.

The Bottom Line

While Johnson says cocoon curls are inventive and novel — and they can give you pretty ringlets, if you do them right — they ultimately don’t save you much time, and they don’t fully prevent damage.

Her take? You’ll get a better outcome if you go in with a hot tool and a heat protectant, and it will spare your hair from knotting, breaking, or tangling.

“If you’re determined to go heatless, throw some braids into 80-90% dry hair,” says Johnson. “Or, use a salt spray on wet hair and let it air dry.” If you’re down to experiment with BeautyTok’s latest hack, however, you do you.

Source:

Lindsay Johnson, hairstylist