Hair Styling Tools

Let’s be honest, there’s not much that beats a great salon blowout.  No matter how you entered, you can always count on leaving with not only an amazing head of hair, but usually a spring in your step and a renewed feeling that all is right with the world.  With these easy tips, you can recreate the luscious locks and positive mental attitude you get with a salon blowout in the comfort of your own home!

First, don’t rough-dry: When your hair is wet, don’t shake the  hair dryer (like when using a diffuser). Instead…

Angle your dryer: Smooth out even the wildest waves by using a round brush (we love the Spornette Ultralite Brush) and pointing the blow-dryer nozzle in a perpendicular direction.  Remember to avoid blowing the air directly at your hair.

Lastly, hair has a memory: If you repeat something over and over, your hair will remember it and follow the pattern.  For instance, you can flatten a cowlick by pulling it straight a few times. Note: Hair retains information until the next time it comes into contact with humidity.

Dry hair tends to have “fuzzier” frizz…to combat the fuzz, here are a few suggestions to keep those curls calm!

Applying the right haircare products is essential in retaining your hair’s natural moisture.  So, it’s best to shampoo no more than every other day using a sulfate-free formula.  Try using Potions International Super Moist Shampoo. It is Sulfate, Paraben and Sodium Chloride free.  PI’s Super Moist Conditioner has the same qualities so use this to condition your hair as you normally would.

While hair is wet, apply a combination of gel and a very small portion of  Potions International Super Serum.

Use your fingers to twist your curls in order to help them dry in a more controlled way.  Next, attach a diffuser to your hair dryer to keep the curls in tact while drying, or simply let your hair air-dry, careful not to disturb the curl.  When you have completely dried your hair, lightly dab some more PI Super Serum to your hair using your fingertips or the palms of your hands.

With this tip of the day your curls will go from frizz to fab in no time at all!

Oh no…you sit up straight in bed and realize, you’ve overslept!  You have a meeting in 20 minutes and your hair is a tousled mess!  What do you do?  Skip the shower and do the Beat the Clock Blowout!

-Spritz the roots of your dry hair with a volumizing spray.  Flip your head upside down and blast your hair for a full minute with your hairdryer.  Then part your hair on one side. 

-Using a rounded flat iron or large barrel curling iron, begin working in about three inch sections.  Run your iron from roots to ends, making sure to gently curl the ends under.

-Finally brush your hair through to blend sections and smooth any flyaways.  If need be, dab some of your hair serum on the flyaways if brushing your hair through doesn’t do the trick.  Finish with a light mist of flexible hold hairspray.

From bed head to polished in under 10 minutes?  You may have to start sleeping in more often!

If your face shape is narrow at the jaw line and wide at the cheekbones and/or forehead, then guess what – you have a heart shaped face.  Ok, so now that it has been determined that you fall under this category, what is the right hair style for you?

For starters, it is best to consider chin-length or longer hair styles.  Some additional considerations would be to try out parting your hair on the side or sweeping forward layers around the upper part of  your face with some gentle wispy bangs.  What about a bobbed hairstyle that is chin length?  As you can see there are many options, but let’s focus on the type hair you have and what styles will work with your particular texture and length.

RELAXED, STRAIGHT, AND FINE:  Can you picture a pixie?  If so, ask your hair stylist for a short, wispy layered cut with enough length to allow for some face-framing bangs in the front and some coverage at the nape.  This pixie/shag cut on Victoria Beckham as shown in the picture on the right, can be a fabulous style for a heart shaped face with fine features.

SHORT, MEDIUM, OR LONG LENGTH CURLY:  Short: Layering is the name of the game, but don’t have short layers near the top of the head. This will give you a “top-heavy” look and defeat the goal of making the chin area look wider.  A pixie cut works, or for thosse who have looser curls a bob cut hitting just beneath the ears is great. If you have tighter curls then a bob cut above the ears will help even out the “top-heavy” look.  Medium:  Medium length curly hair styles are actually the best for heart shaped faces.  If your hair is wavy curly then try some side swept bangs and not blunt cut. Blunt will make your face look shorter.  The looser the curl the better the bangs look.  And, once again, layering works well only if the hair is tapered around the face to make those fabulous features stand out.  Long:  When your curly hair is longer, try keeping the length no more than 4 to 5 inches below the chin.  This adds width to the lower part of the face where you are trying to achieve some balance.  For extra curly long hair you can try twisting your hair back away from the face as long as the hair is not pulled too far back.  Allow the hair to frame the face and leave just a touch hanging on the sides. 

MEDIUM TO LONG STRAIGHT OR WAVY:  Medium:  Medium length hair on a heart shaped face provides the most options for hair styling. Some definite don’ts,  however, are 1) do not add height at the crown of the head, 2) do not have your cut end at the chin line.  If your hair is straight and you elect a medium-length bob or longer layered bob, add a few waves by using a curling iron or some hot rollers.  If your hair is medium length and naturally wavy, add some haircare product such as mousse or curl enhancer and use a diffuser when drying your hair.  If your hair is medium to shoulder length, a cut with wispy layers that kick out can be a great option.  The most essential element in either medium or long hair is having some bangs. Stick with wispy layered bangs and definitely stay away from the choppy bangs.  Reese Witherspoon is a prime example of a heart shaped face and more times than not you will see her with bangs that complement her face shape and accents her facial features.  Long:  If you have longer hair, then there are some very specific things that will help.  Have I mentioned the word layering before?  Well, it applies here once again.  And, if you don’t want bangs, here is where a center part with face framing layers that fall forward on your face will really provide an illusion of balance.  If you add curls or waves to this cut, all the better.  Long hair can take attention away from a pointy chin when long soft layers that are wispy and graze your cheekbones.  Highlights can add depth and multi-tones into long hair. As for length, it’s best not to go any more than 4 to 5 inches below the chin so as not to elongate the chin.  When I think of long heart shaped celebrities, I think of Jennifer Anniston and Michelle Pfeiffer.

So how do you know whether or not your face is considered square shaped?  First of all you could measure your head from top to bottom and side to side and you would find that it measures about the same.   Take a good look in the mirror and if your face has a parallel width at the jaw, cheeks, and forehead, then consider yourself one of the lucky ones because you share this trait with a host of celebrities such as, Ellen Barkin, Jessica Biel, Rosario Dawson, Keira Knightley, Demi Moore, Mandy Moore, Gwyneth Paltrow, Jessica Simpson and many more  A distinguishing trait of a square shaped face is that it has strong angular features.

Ok, now that you have determined that your face is square, what type hair style is going to look the best on you?  It can depend a lot on what length hair your have as well as the texture and thickness.  Some general do’s and don’ts for square faced hair styles are as follows:

HAIRSTYLE DO’S FOR SQUARE SHAPED FACES:

 1)  Stick with a short to medium length haircut

2)  Try some long wispy bangs – make sure they are swept to the side and longer on the sides

3)  Lightly layer the hair as this helps soften the square look and adds volume to the head – the result is a rounder looking face

4)  Wear an off-center part

5)  Have your stylist incorporate some curved lines along the edges of your style to balance out the angles of the face

6)  Try some choppy ends

7)  If your hair is long have the hair layered that drapes the sides of your face ad apply some curl or wave

 If your face is square and narrow, add volume to the sides of your hair to help your face appear wider and fuller

9)  If you have curly hair, consider keeping the length of your hair below your jawbone – if too short hair tends to frizz – if cut is longer it weighs down the curls

10) If your hair is super straight spritz your hair with a spray-in hair protectant and using a curling iron, wrap two inch sections around the barrel – run your fingers through your hair and then apply hair spray

HAIRSTYLE DON’TS FOR SQUARE SHAPED FACES:

 1)  Do not wear blunt bangs or straight bangs

2)  Avoid center parts

3)  Don’t wear long straight hair styles

4)  Do not wear a chin-length style – this draws attention to the jawline

5)  Avoid any type of geometric lines in your style

6)  Do not pull your hair back as this accentuates the squareness of the face

7)   If your hair is short do not wear it all in one length – taper it

Did you know that if you have an oval shaped faced then you are the lucky one.  Why?  Well, an oval shaped face is the most versatile one to work with and you can wear almost any hairstyle while using the proper hair styling tools and some ingenuity.  You don’t even have to worry about evening out the proportions of your hair.  In fact, most oval shaped faces can afford to go short, or even super short as evidenced by the following picture of Rihanna.

Regardless of what length cut you have, the best look is with layering near your cheekbones, lips or chin, or whatever features you want to highlight.  

Some simple rules for selecting the right hair style are:

1. Stay current with your hairstyle.
2. Stick with your natural texture of hair.  You can use a hair straightener if your hair is curly, or you can check out a new style that is strictly for curly hair. 
3. If your hair is thin, don’t try to grow it out beyond your shoulders as it will only end up looking flatter and lifeless, no matter how many haircare products you use.  Consider having your hair cut in layers while keeping the length of your hair above the shoulders.
4. If your hair is long, consider tossing gentle waves over your shoulders while pulling the sides of the hair back.  Or, pull your hair back behind your ears while the bottom half of your hair is pulled forward over the shoulders.  This can add depth to your eyes and smile.
5. If your hair is medium length try slightly teasing and tossing your hair on the sides with the right teasing brush.  If you have bangs let them hang gently upon the forehead.  This particular style will draw attention to the mouth area on the face.
6. Lastly, if you already have short hair, try a spiky look as this is the best way to bring out your best facial features.  If you can, try to keep the bangs off of your face.

Spornette has done it again!  One of the newest brushes added to their collection of awesome hairstyling tools is the Utra Lite Brush.  This Spornette hairbrush is by far one of the lightest brushes I’ve ever used.  What makes it so lightweight is that they have embedded the bristles in the barrel to save weight and material.  Pretty ingenious don’t you think?

Not only did I enjoy the lightweight feature of this brush, but even more importantly, the bristles of this brush grabbed my hair and held it in place while blow drying.  Each section of bristles have an extended ball tipped nylon bristle that adds to the penetration and holding of the hair without the hair getting tangled up in the brush.  I found that this made  it easier to unroll each section of my hair from the brush.  The bristles of the brush are evenly spaced apart, which,  allows for better airflow while drying.  

There’s even more to be said about the bristles and that is that they are natural procupine boar bristles that have been tourmaline infused.  Ok, so what does that really mean?  Plain and simple, certain natural minerals are ground up and are infused into the bristle.  When the brush is used in conjunction with your hair dryer, ions are released into the hair and this breaks the water molecules of your wet hair into smaller water molecules. Now, the smaller molecules more easily enter the hair and this results in promoting more supple, stronger, healthier, and shinier hair.  Spornette doesn’t stop there.  Nano Silver additives have also been added to the bristles, which, help eliminate odor causing bacteria.  Bottom line is that this additive will make your hair smell fresh and look cleaner.

The barrel of the Ultra Lite is tourmaline infused as well as ceramic.  The benefit of this is that  the heat from your hair dryer is distributed and retained evenly throughout the brush so that there won’t be any hot spots while styling.  And, for one last bonus feature, each Ultra Lite Brush has a removable sectioning pik at the bottom of the brush.  You really should check out this brush.  It is available in three sizes:  2 1/4″ barrel, 3″ barrel, and a 3 1/2″ barrel.

Are you tired of your straight hair and are looking to rev up some dull, flat hair?  If so, and your hair is at least an inch or more below your ears, by simply using a one inch barrel curling iron, you can create some wave or loose cascading ringlets for a new glam style.

If your hair is long, I recommend using a higher heat to get a tighter curl.  Remember that the longer your hair, the weight of the hair factors in resulting in curls falling out more easily.  However, if the end result that you want is more wavy than curly, the falling out can be a good thing.  For this style, decide what hair you want to curl.  Typically the hair around your face and at the crown will be the areas of focus.  It is not important that your entire head of hair be curled as this style is not intended to be picture perfect. 

As with any use of a hairstyling tool, be sure to use the appropriate haircare products prior to use.  You are now ready to follow the easy steps below:

1. 1.  Take a two inch section of your hair and open the curling iron and grip the hair at the ends. 
2. 2.  Turn the curling iron clockwise toward your face, stopping about an inch away from your roots. 
3. 3.  Wait five seconds and release the curl from the iron. 
4. 4.  Repeat this process with other selected sections of your hair.

After continuous use of your curling iron, haircare products tend to build up on the surface of the barrel.  This can possibly damage your iron and ultimately result in your hair snagging and pulling due to the product build-up.

To extend the life of your hair styling tool, and for ultimate styling results, you should make a point of regularly cleaning it.  There are several solutions that can be used in the cleaning process but it is important to know what kind of cleaning solution to use based on the barrel type.  And most importantly, make sure the curling iron has been unplugged and has cooled down before cleaning.

The safest chice for all curling iron barrel types is to use a soft towel that is dampened with warm water.  If you are religious about cleaning it after each use, this is probably all that will be needed.  If the barrel is teflon coated, this is definitely all that is needed and advised.   However, not all curling irons have teflon barrels so other resources come into play.  Rubbing alcohol, household ammonia, and nail polish remover are other choices when used by applying a small amount to a soft damp cloth or cotton ball and then rubbing them gently on the curling iron barrel.  I always suggest that you try a small section of the iron to make sure that these cleaning solutions work before I continue to clean the entire barrel.   For extremely stubborn build-up try using “Dissolve”.  This is an all-purpose  cleaner that is formulated to remove the sticky residue left by your hair styling products.  It is great for most hair styling tools.  Again, just to be sure, apply a small amount to a small area before applying to the entire tool.  After you have cleaned the curling iron or hair styling tool it is also recommended to give it one last wipe down with a dry soft cloth.

If there are crevices on the curling iron such as underneath the clamp of the curling iron, a damp cotton tip swab or soft toothbrush can be used.   Now that your curling iron is clean, make sure it is completely dry before plugging it back in for use.  Happy cleaning!

Regardless of what type flat iron you have in your hair styling tool arsenal, it is always important to take the time to consider the  following steps and tips in caring for and maintaining your flat iron.  After all, flat irons were designed to aid you in creating a flattering and stylish look that you can be proud to wear.

1.  To achieve certain styles, it becomes necessary to use haircare products in your hair, before and after using your flat iron.  Thus, it goes without saying that whatever is on your hair is going to end up baking on your iron.  The end result is that after multiple uses and no cleaning of the iron, there is this sticky build-up of gel or whatever else you have used.  If you don’t clean the iron on a regular basis you will start to experience difficulty in the straightening process because your hair is going to start sticking to the residue and this causes stress to the hair in the way of snags, breakage, and split ends.  SOLUTION: Purchase a professional iron cleaner (be sure to follow specific instructions on the label) or wipe with a soft damp cloth.  AND, always clean your iron after it has cooled down.

2.  How you store you hair straightener can make a big difference in its durability.  If you are wrapping the cord around the straightener you are causing stress to the cord, resulting in a loose connection.  SOLUTION: Coil the cord in a loose fashion with some type of twist tie or rubber band.  When putting the iron away, make sure that the cord is laying next to the iron and free of any clutter that might be in the same area so as to avoid other items resting on top of it.

3.  As we all know, flat irons heat up and maintain that heat even right after you have turned it off.  This leads to a couple of problems that can occur.  The first is that if you are not laying the iron on a heatproof mat or bag, you risk the chance of the iron burning or damaging the surface where it is cooling down.  SOLUTION: First be sure to unplug the iron.  While the iron is cooling down, place it on a heat proof mat or bag.  Many of these are designed for storage and travel purposes so it can be a bonus to have one.

4.  Lastly, over time, the handles of your flat iron may start to loosen up.  It could be a simple fix of merely tightening the loose screws or nuts that hold it together.  SOLUTION:  My recommendation is that you only do this if you can visibly see where the screws are and have the right tools for tightening.  If you are the least bit leery of what to tighten, seek help from a professional.  The first person to check with is your hair stylist.  Stylists are using tools day in and day out and are extremely knowledgable in this area.  If not your stylist, contact the manufacturer for advice.