Kmart’s $4 Heatless Hair Roller Is My New Favourite Curl Cheat

As someone who watches beauty tutorials on the regular, I’d been aware of the heatless curls trend for quite some time. But it wasn’t until I heard the hype around the Kmart Heatless Hair Roller that I thought to give it a go myself. Seriously, for $4.50, how could I resist?

And let me tell you, it wasn’t easy to get my hands on. The local stores around me were all sold out but I hit the jackpot at North Rocks (Sydney, NSW) where I stumbled across a whole stack. You can always try your luck online too ($4.50 at kmart.com.au). Who knew budget haircare was so in demand?

So with the box in my hand and the hope for curly hair in my heart, I took it home to try.

How to use the Kmart Heatless Hair Roller

Before I get stuck into my review, I’ll give you a run down of how I used it. Watching videos on similar heatless curl products certainly came in handy, so here are my top tips.

#1 Start with damp hair

The instructions said the hair roller could be used on dry or damp/wet hair. But if you ask me, damp will always give you better definition. The first time I used it was straight after showering and blow-drying my hair until about 80-90% dry. Another time, I sprayed in a leave-in treatment to get it slightly damp.

#2 Put the clip on the side of your head

The kit comes with a flexible silk curling headband (to wrap your hair around), a claw clip (to secure while you wrap), and a pair of silk scrunchies (to keep it in place once you’re done).

The image on the box shows the claw clip attaching the headband to the middle of the head. But it’s actually much more secure to clip it to one side while you wrap the other. It means the roots won’t get stuck in the clip as you wrap too.

#3 Wrap like you’re braiding

When it comes to wrapping the hair on each side, employ the same method as braiding. Start with a small section of hair and slowly pick up more piece-by-piece as you wrap.

#4 Secure each end with the scrunchies

This step can be a little tricky if you don’t have very long hair. But I just tried my best to capture the tails of my wrapping in the scrunchies so it wouldn’t unravel. I also turned up the leftover ends of the headband for extra security.

#5 Pull from the top to release

After a few hours (or sleeping in your heatless hair roller), undo the scrunchies and pull the headband from the top. It should slide out without disturbing your curls.

My Kmart Heatless Hair Roller review

Despite the number of videos I’d seen ending in miraculous curls, I was very much the cynic and did not think this product would work. Or at least not work particularly well.

I’m not very skilled at hair styling and can’t actually braid but I did manage to pull off the steps outlined above. The key is definitely to pull the hair tightly around the silk headband for a) a better curl and b) so it stays secure.

I have medium-length hair (and lots of it) and was able to wrap it all the way around with plenty of the headband left over. Having my hair damp probably made it easier for the wrapping stage too as I’d imagine dry hair might slip more.

The packaging instructs that the longer you leave the heatless roller in, the better the results will be. I like my sleep way too much to sacrifice any kind of comfort, so I chose to do it in the morning while I worked from home and take it out in the afternoon.

I’m impatient, so I managed to wait 3-4 hours before taking it out. And that’s when I was pretty gobsmacked.

The results

After running my fingers through, I was left with such lovely curls. Not overly tight but defined and bouncy. I also liked where the curl started from the positioning of the headband.

My hair still felt a little damp but the curls held. I know it defeats the purpose of heatless curls but you could definitely run a hair dryer over the roller before pulling it out to make sure they’re dry.

The only downside was it didn’t do much for the back of my hair. It was left pretty much uncurled, maybe a slight wave. It could probably be rectified by positioning the headband closer to the back but then you’d be sacrificing the results of the front.

Alternatively, buying two rollers and sectioning the hair into four parts could help ensure the same quality curl from front to back.

Final verdict

I’ve used the Kmart Heatless Hair Roller a few more times since and am always left impressed. For someone who is time-poor and not great at styling their hair, it’s a game-changer.

Yes, the back doesn’t look that great. But honestly, the back of my hair never looks great! So I’m taking it as a win. For $4.50 how could I not?!

Have you tried a heatless roller before? What do you think of these results?