Your friend the Bobby Pin

The bobby pin! It's been around forever and is quite possibly the most used--and misused--hair accessory of all time. And for good reason: It's cheap and it gets the job done (sometimes). If you find yourself using a gazillion pins to secure a simple twist or you find them everywhere but your head by the end of the night, you're not using them correctly. Here, three easy tricks to finally get a hold of things.

1. Coat pins first. Dole out a fine mist of dry shampoo or hair spray before sliding them in. The spray will give the pins--and thus, your hair--something extra to hold onto.
2. Insert pins wavy side down. The grooved ridges are designed to pick up hair, while the flat side locks it all into place (and looks prettier from the outside).
3. Crisscross them. This is especially helpful for those with fine hair. Do steps one and two, then finish up by inserting the pins one on top of another to really anchor everything in.

FUN FACTS: Why is it called a bobby pin? In 1899 the bobby pin came into wide use as the hairstyle known as the "bob cut" or "bobbed hair" took hold. It was invented in Paris by Luis Marcus. In the 1920s, it became trendy for women to cut their hair short and set it tightly against the head in a wavy pattern called bobbed hair. By the end of the decade 90% of North American women adopted this new fashion trend, and the number of beauty salons in the United States had increased from 5,000 to 23,000 to keep up with demand. Until then, most people cut and set their hair at home. Bobby pins were so inexpensive that everyone could afford to buy them. A trademark on the term "bobbie pin" was held for some decades by Smith Victory Corporation of Buffalo, New York. The term is now in common usage and therefore is no longer a valid trademark