How to Roll a Zig Zag: 4 Easy Steps to Master the Art

Rolling the perfect joint or blunt is an essential skill of the weed smoker’s handbook. When the moment comes, your expertise on the matter is what will determine if you are getting roasted or praised at every smoke sesh hereafter. Fortunately for you, rolling is not only super easy to learn, you can do it in style with Zig Zags.

Not an alternative to rolling papers but the answer to a more natural option, Zig Zags are a masterpiece of rolling papers made from quality hemp fibers, making for the smoothest rolling possible. Talk about recycling, right?

What are Zig Zags?

Founded in Paris by brothers Jacques and Maurice Braunstein, Zig Zags are a brand of rolling papers that began as the leftover shreds from a French paper manufacturer. The name directly refers to the ‘zig-zag’ patterns they were cut in to get the perfect sized papers.

The Braunstein brothers would, however, go through decades on the grind before they were able to get recognition and build their own plant in the early 1900s (which goes to show you: Not everyone is an overnight success). Unfortunately, ownership would change from the OG’s after Maurice and the board sold the company in the 1950s, shortly after his brother’s death. Since the early 2000s, they have become one of the most iconic and best-selling papers on the planet.

What makes them better?

Any brand of rolling papers you find will be an excellent way to spark your strain, but some papers are bleached or contain a few chemicals that you may or may not want to inhale in large quantities: This is not the case with Zig Zags.

These are 100% organic and unbleached rolling papers made from the finest hemp fibers. Can you think of a better material to roll your weed with…than weed? This alone is so inventive, that if you were to type “hemp rolling papers” into Google, Zig Zags are the first result. Not to mention, the company also makes cones from an even thinner piece of their signature paper, making them some of the easiest joints you will ever roll.

How to Roll Zig Zags

Again, rolling the perfect Zig Zags will have you looking like a deity to your smoke circle as your friends might even bow to you if you roll it well enough (probably not, but one can dream). But a Zig Zag is just as easy to roll as any other rolling paper on the market: Maybe even easier because they are typically thinner than other papers.

The ones that are definitely easier to roll are the cones: These are literally pre-rolled, open papers where you could just funnel in your bud and close it up (or add a crutch if you need it).

Step 1: Grind your weed

Grinding your weed may seem obvious to those who know rolling, but to those who do not, this is crucial: You need all that green stuff to easily fit inside and make your paper easier to close at the end.

Perfect example: Have you ever overstuffed a burrito and then tried to roll it? Same basic principle. Grind your weed finely and ready a gram or half-gram depending on the size of your joint (Zig Zag cones and papers can usually hold up to one and a half grams).

Step 2: Load One Side

Now that you have grinded up your less-than-bite-sized bits of weed, it is time to load it into your Zig Zag. You do this by loading up almost the entire length of your paper with a tiny bit of room on one end to close the joint, and a slightly bigger gap on the other side to make room for the crutch, if you plan on using them.

Step 3: Roll it Up

You could always cheat and use a rolling machine, but if you really want to earn the title of Roller of the Zigs (not a title we just made up), you roll it by hand. One of the easiest ways you can do this is by having one end of the paper slightly raised, gently pinching the joint with your thumb and fingers like you are holding a piece of printer paper.

From there, roll the joint up and down just until one edge of the Zig Zag is lying on top of the flower. One last (careful) roll will tuck this end in and completely wrap around the weed. You definitely want this so that all that is left is to close one end completely to keep from spillage, and one end slightly opened so that you can smoke through it and add your crutch.

Step 4: Close and Take a Hit

This final step is literally where it all comes together: everything is rolled inside the paper and makes for a great skill for all smokers with a satisfying reward.

The best way to close everything up is to use a crutch: One that you would buy or make. If this is your first time rolling Zig Zags, you may or may not have crutches on standby, but you can easily fashion them out of tiny bits of stiff paper like index cards. Handmade crutches take just a little more practice than rolling papers since you have to fashion them so that they do not unfurl or let little bits of flower slip through.

Regardless of how you put the finishing touches on your Zig Zag, the very last step is the best part: light it up!

Are Zig Zags the best rolling option?

This may be controversial, but there is an argument that can be made in saying that Zig Zags are the best option for rolling your joint.

If you think in terms of the healthiest option to smoke weed, then it is actually a no-brainer: Smoking joints still has you inhale smoke but you do so quickly, cleanly and without traces of tobacco. But choosing Zig Zags for your joint, taking hits from unbleached and organic hemp fibers? Peace of mind for the health-conscious smoker (or smokers in general).

Also, things like price, ease of rolling your joints and a slow burn each put a brand of paper above the rest on their own, but Zig Zags happen to have all three, so you cannot argue that Zig Zags are not at the very least noteworthy when choosing a rolling paper.

You do, however, have many unique methods and options for smoking your weed, each with their own advantages, but that final choice for your go-to method will be whichever you think is best for you.