Bobby Pin (Hair Accessories)

One leg is flat and the other is crimped into waves, and the pin holds because those waves press hair against the flat side. Nothing here is a spring in the mechanical sense, as the two legs are permanently sprung toward each other and friction does the rest. Thin metal disappears into hair of a matching color, which is the reason these exist rather than a bigger, better clip.

Direction is the part almost everyone gets wrong. The wavy side goes against the scalp, since the waves are what bite. The open end should point toward the section you are securing rather than away from it. Crossing two pins into an X holds several times better than two parallel pins, because each one is then loaded in a different direction. Coating matters too, as a painted or plastic-coated pin grips less than a bare matte one. A spray of hairspray onto the pin before insertion adds noticeable grip on slippery hair.

A barrette clamps a flat section and announces itself, while a bobby pin hides. Combs anchor much bigger masses using the same insert and hold idea at ten times the scale. Claw clips are the blunt instrument by comparison, good for a whole updo and useless for tucking one loose piece. Nothing else in this family is as cheap or as easy to lose.

Tucking flyaways, securing a bun, holding pinned curls and building any structured style all depend on them, and stylists use dozens at a time. Very thick or very smooth hair reduces their grip, and the answer there is more pins rather than bigger ones. Cheap variety packs are false economy on fine hair, since sloppy manufacturing leaves burrs that snag.

Squeeze a pin between finger and thumb and feel the resistance, because one that opens easily has already lost its tension and belongs in the bin. Discard any pin that has shed the small plastic bead from its tips, as bare cut wire scratches the scalp. A small tin beats a loose bag, where pins bend open against everything else they touch.