I had curly hair when I was a little, but during my adolescence my curly locks turned into unruly frizz.  Luckily by the time I entered secondary school, I had discovered hair straighteners and, though my hair care routine has evolved over the years, I have never been without some sort of model of this handy device.  After years of trial and unfortunate error, I’ve developed a criteria for hair straightener shopping.

Plates

Hair straighteners come in a large number of models and price ranges.  The price of any given model mainly depends on the type of heating plates it has.  Ceramic straighteners tend to be more expensive than metal plated ones because the ceramic material does less damage to the hair.  Ceramic plates are definitely worth the extra expense, but be sure to check that the straightener is not merely ceramic coated.  If you need a straightener merely for finishing touches or to smooth out a cow-lick, then a cheaper ceramic coated plate may be just what you need.  Some Remington straighteners are reasonably priced, but still come with a heat adjustment dial and travel pouch.  If your hair is a far more difficult to tame and you have tried ceramic coated plates with limited results, you may want to upgrade to a full ceramic model.

Features

You can get the most expensive straightener on the market with the top quality heating plates, but if it’s not easy to use, it will make your morning routine torture.  You’ll want to find a model that fits comfortably in your hand.  Those thin straighteners may look cute, but it may not be able to get a good grip on it and the plates may be too small to tackle a large amount of hair.  There are also hair straighteners that do more than straighten.  There is a ghd straightener that has specially shaped plates that give you the option to curl or flip your hair.  If you have trouble keeping strands between the plates for a complete pass, some models have comb attachment to help smooth out tangles and knots.  Most hair straighteners have an adjustable heat level and some have specific temperatures to adjust to, but odds are, you’ll be using the same level every time if your the only one using it.  Just make sure you don’t keep the straightener too hot because you may either damage your hair or the straighter, especially if it doesn’t have an automatic turn off feature.

There isn’t a perfect straightener that everyone can use because it all depends on personal preference and hair type.  So if your still not sure what you need your straightener to do, research the product and look for reviews that have come from girls with your particular type of hair.

Did you know?

A method of straightening, known as Brazilian hair straightening, also employs a hair straightener, but only after apply liquid keratin to seal the strands.

-Janel

Tweet