I Thought the Perfect '90s Blowout Was a Myth—Until I Tried This $38 Amazon Buy

Welcome to Deep Reviews—your one-stop destination to discover the absolute best products and brands the beauty industry has to offer. The Who What Wear staffers you already know and trust will research, test, and review the market's most sought-after and buzzed-about products to see which formulas (of the hundreds up for consideration) are truly worth your hard-earned money and attention. You can expect honest, completely uncensored feedback and no-BS recommendations our hard-to-please testers endorse without reservations.

The majority of our Deep Reviews will feature our editors' honest, ultra-hot takes on entire product categories or multiple products from a particular beauty brand, but every so often, we'll sprinkle in a special single-product format called Honestly, I Love It. As the name suggests, these reviews will home in on one standout beauty formula our editors quite literally can't shut up about. This week, I'm exposing the hair tools that have been flooding my TikTok feed with the bounciest, most voluminous curls I've ever seen—Conair's Jumbo and Super Jumbo Ceramic Hot Rollers ($39).

If you told me years ago that adding one quick and affordable item to my Amazon cart would be the key to unlocking the bouncy, voluminous '90s curls of my dreams, well, let's just say it would have saved me so much trial and error, countless haircuts, and a lot of heat-related hair damage. Suffice it to say, my quest for those perfect flipped-out ends and Cindy Crawford–level volume has been a journey. I've tried everything from curling wands to heatless-curl headbands, traditional round brushes to blow-dry brushes, so believe me—I've done the legwork on at-home blowout methods. After trying each of these tools and still not getting quite the results I'd hoped for, I even went in for another trim to have my hairstylist cut more dramatic layers to frame my face in the hopes that might have been the answer.

News flash: It helped a little, but after so much trial and error, I had all but lost hope in ever achieving the '90s hair of my dreams. Then I logged onto TikTok. After seeing a number of very convincing tutorials on my For You page with Conair's Jumbo and Super Jumbo Ceramic Hot Rollers ($39), I realized the answer was right there all along—and I promptly ordered a set. I rolled my eyes at myself for having overlooked the simplest option. Of course, the old-school hair tools would be more effective than any fancy blowout brush I could dish out a pretty penny for. If it's not broke, then don't fix it, right?

Before I go any further, I want to point out that I'm someone who's very low-maintenance when it comes to my hair. If I can whittle the number of steps in my routine down to one or two, then I'm game. So the idea of trying out heated hair rollers on top of using the blow-dry brush that had already been the main event of my hairstyling process was slightly annoying. When it was all said and done, though, the rollers only added a few extra minutes on top of my getting-ready routine. The most annoying part was just waiting for them to heat up. Rolling them into my hair was quick and easy, so I could get started on my makeup as I waited for them to set. Now, I consider the extra few minutes to be well worth it for the long-lasting effect the rollers have, but it's a step I'd probably skip if I were running late or otherwise save for a special event.

When I first opened up the package and saw the different roller sizes, I was confused and intimidated, to say the least. What are the different sizes for? Should I stick to one size or mix and match them? What's the best way to arrange them in my hair? These questions raced through my mind before I hopped back on TikTok (you might be sensing a theme here) and found a helpful video explaining how to place the rollers. I decided on using the four jumbo sizes on the bottom layer of my hair and then using the four slightly smaller rollers on the top layer and one more for my front pieces. Per the tutorial I watched, I rolled them all inward and then rolled only those front pieces away from my head, and I thought that strategy resulted in the flipped-in look I was going for.

I'm not even saying this to be hyperbolic, but my jaw actually dropped when I unrolled the first roller of the set. The sheer definition of the curl was enough to sell me on rollers for good, but as I kept removing them, I was in utter shock. The volume they gave! Immediately after taking them out, my hair looked big and bouncy but a bit frazzled and bent in certain spots from the clips holding the rollers. I smoothed things out by going over those sections with my blow-dry brush on low and then going in with hair oil and some dry texture spray to give it even more oomph.

Danielle Priano is one of Hollywood's most sought-after hairstylists, and her roster of celebrity clients includes Jennifer Lopez, Hailey Bieber, Madelyn Cline, and so many more.

The best hair types for hair rollers: "When using hair rollers, I like to use them on medium to fine hair since it gives the hair a lot of volume and definition without damaging it. If the hair is cut with layers, using hair rollers will also make it even more voluptuous."

The best way to use hair rollers: "First, I love to give the hair a nice blowout with a metal round brush, and as I finish each section, I will roll the hair still hot and pin it with a duck clip to let it set until completely cool. Usually, I clip the front and top of the hair away from the face, and with the bottom half, I like to roll toward the head. Though, each of these sections can be interchangeable depending on the final look you are trying to achieve."

How long you should leave them in for: "You should leave them on until completely cooled off. When using rollers on a client who is receiving full glam, I try to get them on the hair as soon as we begin and leave the rollers in for as long as possible to really set the hair. You never want to take them off if the hair is still warm."

The products to use before and after placing the rollers: "Before the blowout, I like to use the Healthy Sexy Hair Active Recovery Repairing Blow Dry Foam to prep the damp hair. Once the hair is sectioned out and put into the rollers, I give a nice spray of the Healthy Sexy Hair So Touchable Hairspray all over to help set the hair; these products are the perfect products to achieve a great hold to the desired style. Plus, it maintains beautiful movement."

The roller size to buy depending on your hairstyle: "I'm a big fan of Velcro rollers post-blowout to really give the hair a lot of volume. I find them to be effective and practical when wanting to achieve the best desired look from using hair rollers. If you want to just achieve some volume to the hair, I recommend using large- to medium-sized rollers (depending on the length of the hair). … When using hot tools, the smaller the circumference, the curlier the hair will be. So the larger the hair roller to the smallest, you will receive varying sizes of curls."

The dos and don'ts of using hair rollers: "Don't use hair rollers on wet hair. If you have curly or wavy hair, prep the hair first with a nice blowout before setting your hair with rollers. This helps achieve a smooth and well-finished look. Use a nice, light hairspray, like Healthy Sexy Hair So Touchable Hairspray."

Why hair rollers are having a comeback right now: "I think hair rollers are having their moment again because they are probably the best way to give your roots great volume, and they allow you to style your hair without the potential of damaging your hair as some hot tools can do. I highly recommend them."

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This article was originally published at an earlier date and has been updated.