Important questions: how to choose a hair straightener

The hair straightener you choose can have a significant impact on how you style your hair each day. It’s simple to get overwhelmed by the variety of options available on the market, including titanium and ceramic plates with programmable heat settings. It’s not enough to choose the most attractive model when looking for the ideal tool for your hair type and styling requirements; you also need to know what will work best for you.

Do you require a fast-heating straightener? Are you trying to find a product to shield your hair from heat damage? Alternatively, perhaps you’d prefer one that can curl and produce waves. These are just a handful of the crucial inquiries to make when choosing a straightening iron for your hair.

We’ll go over the important considerations for selecting a hair straightener in this post. Regardless of your hair type—thick, curly, fine, or color-treated—we can assist you in selecting a tool that will meet your needs and enable safer, quicker, and easier styling.

What you need to know about hair straighteners

Our shelves and cabinets in bathrooms and dressing rooms are filled with various devices that help us stay beautiful and happy with our reflection in the mirror day after day. And a hair straightener rightfully takes pride of place in the list of these useful things! Not everyone, however, knows how one hair straightener differs from another: they are almost identical in appearance. You can focus on the size, or on the manufacturer and brand, or you can just choose the most expensive model and think that it will definitely be a good purchase. Or you can understand in detail what a hair straightener is: what parts it consists of, what materials it is made of, what purposes it is intended for. But first – the whole truth about hair straighteners in the most general terms.

A hair straightener is a tool that you can use to either straighten or curl your hair. The reason for this seemingly contradictory range of uses is that the straightening and curling processes are comparable in that, at this point, high temperatures cause the hair’s structure to change, giving curls a new form. Prior to comparing various hair straighteners, it’s critical to comprehend how they operate generally, distinguish between household and professional appliances, and learn the benefits and drawbacks of using one.

The principle of operation is ironing

Not only do girls with naturally curly hair use hair straightening irons, but straight haired girls also use them. This phenomenon clarifies the iron’s basic working principle: by drawing out extra moisture from the hair, its heated plates straighten it! Naturally straight curls also experience a change in texture, becoming smoother and glossier.

Pros and cons of using a hair straightener

• convenient and relatively safe way to quickly straighten your hair;
• for those with straight hair – the ability to smooth out curls or curl curls;
• an alternative to chemical treatment on hair for straightening or curling.

Cons:

• regular thermal exposure has a negative effect on the condition of the hair;
• can quickly ruin naturally thin and brittle hair;
• not recommended use a hair straightener every day for a long time;
• dries hair due to the effect of moisture evaporation.

Professional or household hair straightener – what is the difference

Beauty salon stylists don’t always use the same equipment as us. Professional hair straighteners have a much wider temperature range, more attachments, and more functions. This does not imply, however, that in order to achieve regular styling, we must work toward acquiring a professional hair straightener.

Household devices are thought to have precisely the functions a person lacking specialized knowledge and practical skills needs. We’ll start using salon hair straighteners exactly like store-bought ones and won’t be able to appreciate their rich functionality. But ultimately, it’s always up to you.

Types of hair straighteners: what are they

Hair straighteners vary greatly from one another. It is much simpler to choose the right device type and model once you understand what they mean.

General technical characteristics

Enter straightening irons:

• ionization function
  This function provides the release of a large number of negatively charged ions, which in turn protect the hair from too intense moisture loss.
• ultrasonic
  They are not intended for curling or straightening, but… for hair treatment! Ultrasonic waves help enhance the effect of all components of care products, deal with split ends and make hair softer.
• steam
  Their operating principle is not based on heating plates, but on the release of warm steam, which is more suitable for damaged hair.
• infrared
  Like ultrasonic, they are designed to restore and treat hair, only with the help of infrared radiation.
• wireless
  Any type of hair straightener can have this configuration, and its main advantage is the ability to style anywhere, regardless of the location of the outlet.
• rotating
  One part of the curling iron in such devices is fixed, and the other rotates around its axis. This allows you to straighten and curl strands more effectively.

Coating material

The irons’ plates can be:

The least safe option, found only in the most affordable models these days.

The plates will heat up more evenly, slide more smoothly, and have a kinder effect on the hair. Cons: All styling products adhere to ceramic surfaces with ease.

Because of how hot they get, a titanium plate straightening iron calls for a certain level of expertise and professionalism.

Very gentle, short-lived coating that is suggested for people with thinning, worn-out hair.

Greatly raises the device’s cost because of its gentle hair treatment and resistance to wear.

Such a straightening iron, according to its manufacturers, has a naturally restorative effect because of the silver coating.

Sizes and shape of the plates

Straighteners for hair are separated into:

• narrow
  Suitable for owners of short or very thin hair.
• wide
  Suitable for owners of long or very thick hair.

Heating temperature

Modern hair straighteners typically come with a temperature switch, though some models have a larger temperature range.

It is not required to select the maximum spectrum; simply abide by the following guideline:

• thin damaged hair: minimum heating;
• medium normal hair: medium heating;
• thick, unruly hair: maximum heating.

How to choose a hair straightener depending on the purpose

Much also relies on the actual purpose of the hair straightener you intend to use. Naturally, practically all of them can be used to curl and straighten hair, but if you overlook this factor, you will have a much smaller selection of hairstyles to choose from.

For hair straightening

A straightening iron with regular rectangular plates will be necessary in this situation. They’ll enable you to attain unparalleled styling smoothness.

For curling small curls

A pair of narrow tongs with rounded edges is your best option if you want to quickly and easily curl small curls.

For creating curls

The width is particularly significant in this instance. The tongs should have wide plates and rounded edges! Large natural curls won’t look good otherwise.

Achieving your ideal hairstyle and maintaining the health of your hair can be greatly impacted by the hair straightener you select. Think about things like the type of plate, temperature settings, and your particular hair type when choosing the ideal one. Knowing these essential factors will help you choose a hair straightener that best meets your needs and reduces damage, regardless of whether your hair is fine, thick, curly, or damaged.

How to properly use a hair straightener

Read the SalonSecret experts’ advice carefully before using a new hair straightener for standard straightening.

1. Dry your hair 95-100%.
2. Apply heat protection spray along the entire length of the strands.
3. Start straightening from the bottom layer of strands under the back of the head.
4. Separate fairly thin strands to achieve the perfect result.
5. Move the iron from the roots to the ends – slowly, but not too slowly. Your goal is to run it over a strand only once, but to achieve the desired effect.
6. Fix the style with a finishing spray. Advice from stylists: for a smooth natural look, use a light-hold spray with reflective particles.

The best professional hair straightener according to SalonSecret