By, Shayna Teicher
don’t do a lot with my hair, but I have a handful of looks that seem to work for me. Some days though, I don’t want to deal with my crazy mane and I just twist it up. Most days it ends up that way anyway. Consequently, there are always bobby pinseverywhere. In the bottom of my purse (and in all the little pockets as well), in my makeup bag, on the nightstand, in the car’s cupholders, in my jean pockets, on the coffee table, the bathroom sink, the kitchen counter, the freezer, the back porch, in the couch, on the roof, in the mailbox…ok, a slight exaggeration perhaps, but you get the point. I’m a bobby pin slob. That’s also a LOT of bobby pins. Eco-friendly? I didn’t think it was, so I went in search of some enlightenment…and found almost none…except this one thing…
Hours online, phone calls Goody and Conair, no one seemed to have a definitive answer regarding a) what metal bobby pins are made of and b) are they recyclable? How many are sold each year in the US? No idea. I bet it’s a lot though. A few online sources (including some educational ones with experiments using a bobby pin to demonstrate the process of annealing and tempering steel) indicate that bobby pins are generally made out of steel but none of the companies I spoke with could confirm it. If, however this is the case then bobby pins should be recyclable. I also found “The Bobby Pin Revealed”- I’ll let it speak for itself. 
Brilliantly, however, Goody has just come out with something they call a “spin pin”. Made of nickel (at least the Goody rep on the phone said she “thinks” it’s nickel), this pin looks like a double helix, made to be twisted into your hair to hold it in place. They say it takes the place of 20 bobby pins- while that’s probably a subjective estimate, I can tell you that a single spin pin is all I need to hold my long hair in a bun all day. For more creative looks (or ladies with more hair), you can use the second pin and seriously lock your hair in place. Seriously. While I doubt the “spin pin” is going to replace all my bobby pin needs, it’s certainly earned a permanent (for now, at least) spot in my makeup bag! They also come in two sizes.
Note: If you have shorter hair (above the shoulders) or your hair is exceptionally fine this may not work the best for you without using a bit of texturizing product first.
Tip: When you’re placing the pin before spinning it into your hair, your goal is to get the two ends positioned with one in the bun and one in the hair at the base, so you’re “locking” the two together as you spin the pin. If you do this right where you’ve tucked the ends of your hair into the bun, you get the most hold.
Where to get ‘em: just about anywhere that sells Goody hair products- I got mine at Target.
Originally Posted on Butterfly Effect Beauty’s Official Blog
