Since the invention of the heat styling tools, they have been a staple in a women’s beauty room. From the blow-dryer, to hot curlers to now an entire arsenal of products each for a different use. I’ve been using a hair straightener since my freshman year of high school. While in my memories, it may seem like that was only a couple of years go, it’s actually been 13. How wild is that? Back then the goal was to keep your hair as straight as possible because god-forbid it had any other texture. You can only imagine the shedding and the heat damage!
Since then, I’ve widened my hairstyle range into styles I feel comfortable rotating between on a weekly basis. You see, hair styling products to me are very personal. I think we develop a very deep connection with our styling tools because if you’re like me, you use them daily and you want to make sure they treat you right and their in it for the long haul. (Yes… I’m still talking about hair tools!)
All jokes aside, I had my last hair straightener for 8 years. I bought it when Jay and I first started dating and in August it finally bit the bullet and I cried when I had to throw it out. Jay even joined me as I was putting it in the trash can.
Yes … I understand that’s a bit dramatic and that I may have attachment issues but man, that little guy was the best. They don’t even make him anymore!
So needless to say, I do a LOT of research before buying hair tools. Before buying I’ll read reviews from multiple websites, going as far as checking on fakespot.com to make sure the reviews are reliable if I find the product on Sephora or Amazon. I check for things like heat settings, what the plates are made of, etc. With 13 years of heat styling under my belt, you can imagine I’ve obtained some favorites in the hair game that I thought I’d share with you today.
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Revlon One-Step Hair Dryer & Volumizer Hot Air Brush
I was interested in this from the moment I saw an add on Instagram. Jay said it just looked like a gimmicky tool that you use a couple of times and just revert back to a regular blow-dryer so I didn’t buy it but my cousin did and it inevitably ended up in my bathroom because she doesn’t know how to use it right.
The thing is, I hated blow-drying my hair. It took forever and it always came out a poofy mess. Blow-outs were non-existent because it would take SO long to hold the brush and the dryer and I’d give up because my arms got tired.
This has essentially changed the game for me. I used to go to bed with damp hair and fix the rat-nest in the morning but now I use this every time I was my hair. It makes your hair super smooth and you get a lot of natural volume and bounce like you do after you leave the hair salon. I’ve been using this for almost a year now and I’ve noticed less breakage and heat damage. My hair stylist even asked what I was doing differently because she hadn’t been having to cut off as much. You can even use it on dry hair to give it more volume when you go a day or two without washing it! I literally don’t think I could ever go back.
Revlon XL Hair Straightening Heated Styling Brush
If you like the bouncy blow-out look, all you need in your day is the hot-air dryer. If you’re like me and you want a more sleek look, this here is my go too. As I mentioned earlier, for the last 8 years, I’ve used my flat iron for everything, but it obviously causes a little more damage because you’re pressing your hair between two irons to make your hair extra straight.
As I’ve gotten older, I’ve been trying to perfect more of a natural look and this helps with that tremendously. After I blow-dry my hair, I section it off again and run this brush through it. It makes it really easy to just smooth fly-aways from blow drying and give your hair a more naturally straight appearance. It takes me all of 5 minutes to touch up my hair after sleeping on it and I’m out the door.
I’ve seen other clunkier ones like this and this on the market and we tried one once but it was a total fail so I was skeptical about trying this. The size and the thin heated bristles make all the difference. It just get in between the hair better and have more bristles to really smooth it out.
It also works really well on dry curly hair. When I do get lazy and revert back falling asleep with damp hair, I section my hair and run the brush through a bit slower and it does the trick. All in all – this saves me soooo much time getting ready.
Remington S9500PP Pearl Pro Ceramic Flat Iron, 1-inch
As you can gather, with the death of my beloved hair straightener, I inevitably had to get another one. It was a long slow process and I was hesitant to replace it but I knew it had to be done.
They no longer make that model anymore (which is a shame because it worked so well) so I had to start from scratch in researching another. I trusted the Remington brand so I looked into their many products and landed on this one.
It’s not as amazing as my old one but my judgement on it may be clouded by my grief because it truly works wonders.
I use my hair straighteners to curl my hair and just like my last one, my hair will hold a curl until my next wash. It can be anywhere from 2-4 days between washes and you won’t see a difference in the curls. It’s absolutely amazing.
Conair Double Ceramic Curling Iron Rose Gold – 1″
Now I’ve had a curling WAND before which I was slightly obsessed with for a little while before something shifted and I suddenly despised the way my hair looked with it, lol, but this is my first curling iron that I’ve owned and learned how to use properly.
I was skeptical about buying one because I’ve had them used on my hair before and my hair doesn’t really hold a curl with them. I use this strictly for that effortless beachy-wave and for that purpose this is AMAZING.
I usually turn to this on my day 2 or day 3 hair, when I don’t want to straighten it and it’s halfway a wavy mess already. Trust me, there’s a difference between my “just got out of bed” hair and my “I’m so chic, I just rolled out of bed perfectly coiffed” hair. This is the perfect tool for those effortlessly beachy, easy, waves.
If you prefer more of a tighter curl, don’t run you fingers through your hair. If you want the beach waves, comb it through with your fingers or a wide tooth comb.
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There you have it. The absolute best tools for any kind of hairstyle. As previously mentioned, I do a lot of research before buying anything I want for the long haul. There are SO many good products out there for well recognized names that I couldn’t fathom spending over $100 on a single styling tool.
I would advise you to be aware of cheaper or off-brand versions that can be found online. I know Amazon has a lot of small retailers that offer lower prices but they tend to be very sketch and the products are usually very low quality.
If you take anything away from this article it’s to DO YOUR RESEARCH! You want your tools to be around for a long time and you don’t want them to singe off your hair on the first try.
From all my experience, these are my all time favorites. The price ranges are affordable and they’ll be around to take care of you and your precious hair for the long haul!
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Let me know if there’s any that you try or hell, let me know that I’m not a total weirdo with attachment issues to non-living things!
