best to to wrap it up in a scarf. Don't use any products (flameball!!). Once you get good though, you can probably skip the wrap, I would just suggest wrapping until you aren't hitting yourself so often and feel confidant. I spin staff and usually just pull my hair back (long wavy), but ya know, better safe than sorry, wrap that mop up!

I have really long straight hair, and i find that putting it up in a normal ponytail is dangerous because my poi are perfect length to knick the end of my ponytail if I'm spinning behind my back over my head...(actually, sometimes they even flip my tail around while practicing unlit)...and if i double it up or put it in a bun, it sticks out farther to where it's possible for the chain to wrap around it...

Sooooo...what I do is put it in pigtails (whether they be high or low) so that it's more to the sides than behind my head, and then braid them (whether one or many) and loop them up so they do not hang past my sholders. I've always gotten compliments about how "cute" it is and it seems to work just fine, so I've just stuck with that...it's quick and simple.

However, Betty is right, if you tend to still hit yourself from time to time, or get close to your head (or even if you don't and would just like to be safe), then using a scarf or a bandana works great along with tying up your hair. I've never used one, but most girls I know do...but maybe i should! After all, it's not likely you'll ever actually set yourself on fire, but if that flame touches any hair on your body, it WILL singe!!

really - really one never burns THAT much hair. However, to remain the cute goddess you are, you can put your hair up in a couple little nubby buns depending in the thickness of your hair, if it's fine, 2 will do, if it's thick, get clever with 3 or 4, then use synthetic hair falls to make your hair style. The synth falls are usually fire resistant, they are easily replaced and, aren't your hair. You can then play with colors your wouldn't dye your hair, you can add sparkily stuff and things. You can also use wool, fat yarns to make your "hair"

When I started spinning staff I noticed that everyone in Controlled Burn wore do rags, they said to protect their hair (both men and women) but no one in LA did. My staves have pretty big wicks and one good smack upside the head at the beginning of a burn could be very bad. My hair is long and I wanted to keep it that way, so I asked Michael, one of the guys with long hair how his hair never caught even though he didn't wear anything on his head. "I wet it before I spin." Simple! I spin contact, so my hair has to be up off my shoulders when the staff goes anywhere on my neck, so I wear it up in a bun.

The only time I've ever had any hair burn was at BM this year up on the Shiva Vista when I didn't take the time to wet down my hair first and the music would go in and out and throw me off. I soaked it good from then on.