The night before a Feis I have to have my hair done.

First of all I have it washed and partly dried with a  hairdrier. I've got so much hair that it would stay wet all night if I didn't dry it a bit at least.

Then I have to stand in front of my Mum while she rolls it all up.

We use MAGIC WANDS as these are quite effective and easy to use.

(New see our guide to using them)

I still manage a smile!

For those of you who haven't seen them, or perhaps know them by another name, they are like strips of soft foam latex that lock into themselves without the need for pins.
Mum puts end papers on them first to stop my hair getting tangled in them, making them easier to remove.

She used to apply a little Setting Lotion of some kind but she decided that it wasn't making much difference so she doesn't bother any more. She then rolls a few strands of hair around the curler.

Update! We're back to setting lotion again!

(The secret is to not roll too much at a time.)

As a guide, we use between 100 and 140 Magic Wands to do all my hair, which as you can imagine, takes about two hours!! Eventually, I look like a multi-coloured hedgehog!

The end result!

I then get to try to go to sleep in them!!!!

Next morning, we get up extra early so that I can have some breakfast
and then create the curls.

As Mum undoes each roller she splits each Big Curl into four or five smaller curls. She rubs a very little bit of Coconut wax into each ringlet which stops them tangling together and makes your hair a little bit shiny. This has the effect of creating very, very BIG hair!

To see what I mean look at the photos of me in my dress pages.

As we go on Mum grabs the top section and bundles it up with a scrunchie so that I have a mass of curls spilling over. After about an hour and a half or so we are finished!

By this time Dad is normally panicking because we have a long journey ahead and need to leave!

The finishing touches are made with a variety of sparkly scrunchies or headbands according to your own choice on the day. (These are available at most feisanna.) Try and wear something that matches up with the colours of your dress.

My own hair is finished off with some form of crown or tiara.

My Dad made my original one but we've moved on since then!!!
(with some help from mum of course, she did the actual sewing)

I've just got a new tiara especially made for me
by Contemporary Celtic Designs and I love it!

Some girls leave the wands in their hair until they get to the Feis (depends on when you are due to dance of course!). And of course some just wear wigs! (But that's another debate)

If you have any tips - PLEASE pass them on,Thanks.