Hair Styling Tools

If you don’t already know about the Turbo Ion CROC Flat Iron, you will certainly know why it is a top selling flat iron  after you read this article!!

While the CROC flat irons are designed primarily for professional use, they are sold to the general public because the straighteners are so easy to use and so many stylists are recommending that their clients should purchase one.  So, why are professional hair stylists recommending the CROC flat iron?  Well, perhaps one of the key reasons is that there are so many unique features that the CROC line of hair straighteners has to offer.  There are numerous types of  CROC flat irons available in the marketplace.  This article will showcase four of the more popular models.

CROC CLASSIC (One & One half Inch)  & CROC2 (One Inch) IRONS 

The CROC Classic and CROC2 flat iron features a built-in turbo ion generator, which generates six times more negative ions than regular flat irons.  These negative ions are what seals the cuticles of the hair to prevent split ends, reduce frizz, and retain the hair’s natural moisture, oil, and color.  The end result is shiny hair, and isn’t that what we all want?

The digital temperature setting on these irons is a great feature to have.  The CROC Classic heats up to 430 degrees farenheit, while the CROC2 heats up to 450 degrees farenheit.  These setting are more than ample for straightening the hair.

The nano-silver coated dual cover of the flat iron keeps the temperature of the handle minimal so it is safe to use.

The CROC flat iron also offers the effect of infra-red heat and negative ion shower, which minimizes any damage to your hair while rejuvenating it.  There are actually infra-red heat and negative ion ventilating holes in this flat iron.  There are 10 large and 94 small holes.

CROC WET & DRY IRON - One Inch or One & One-half Inch  

For those who need to save time after shampooing their hair and trying to get out the door, the CROC Wet & Dry flat iron can be used on damp hair.  This iron helps avoid prolonged heat exposure and friction from drying and ironing back to back.  All you have to do is towel dry and comb your hair thoroughly before use.  The excess moisture extracting channels and holes of the flat iron squeezes out unwanted moisture.  You can enjoy flash quick heat up and instant heat recovery while using this iron on wet hair.  This particular flat iron is available in both the CROC Classic and CROC2.

CROC DESIGNER FLAT IRON – One Inch

This particular iron features the Auto Shut Off setting, which results in protection for not only the user, but our environment.  When the iron is left unattended for 30 minutes, the Auto shut off feature is activated.  The CROC will manually power itself off.

Another feature of the Designer flat iron is the patent pending technology, which is the innovative design of  Automatic Temperature Reserve (ATR).  This is a revolutionary design in both safety and function.  Automatic Temperature reserve will automatically reduce the working temperature to 370 degrees when unattended between uses.  When picked up, the temperature will quickly climb back to the reserve temperature.  This functional feature prevents premature iron wear while protecting your working area.

If you are looking for volume, vivacious curls, the ability to flip your hair, create a wave, and of course straighten it, then this is the one for you.  The floating plates, which spring to the touch, and the rounded barrel are the two features that will accomodate these types of styles.  

The Black Titanium plates that are featured with this iron will provide you with more intense shine, seal in the hair’s natural moisture while locking out the humidity, glide through the hair more easily, create less static and frizz, and provide a firmer pull which produces an ultra straight style.  The black titanium combats against less product build up on the plates.

The Digital temperature control provides 17 settings from 280 degrees to 450 degrees farenheit.

 CROC INFRA-RED IRON – One Inch & One & One half Inch

To keep up with the ever-changing trends and design in hair styling, Turbo Ion has also created the CROC Infra-Red Iron.  This is a retro-futuristic hair reconstructing and conditioning iron.  The infra-red heat helps prolong hair color and the dual plate technology provides a faster heat-up and recovery time than ever, as well as even heat distribution over the plate.

The infra-red ray provides faster heat penetration through the hair from the outer surface to the cortex, saving time and the integrity of the hair.  Thermal conduction creates a uniform temperature inside and out leaving less frizz and friction damage while sanitizing the hair.

Dual heating plates are  another technology that the infra-red CROC has to offer.  This technology can be found in the CROC Designer series.  This technology provides 3 times the smoothing power than other irons available today have to offer.  CROC’s patented technology features two separate heating elements that are positioned in the top plate to generate 2 times the heat, while the bottom plate hosts its own separate heating element.  This is obviously a true innovation in professional styling.

The CROC Infra-Red also comes with the Automatic Temperature Reserve (ATR) as the CROC Designer iron described above.

The digital temperature control provides heat settings from 280 degrees to 450 degrees farenheit.

All of the CROC flat irons are manufactured in Korea.

Have you ever bought a hairdryer and wondered what exactly to do with the hot air pik attachment that came with the dryer?  Many hairdryers in the marketplace now come with these attachments and there is obviously a reason why.

The hot air pik was designed to be an attachment for the hairdryer that helps shape and style your hair.  Depending on the type of hair you have, and the cut, will dictate how the pik is used.  In most cases, using the hair pik will actually give your some volume as it is lifting the hair from the roots while drying.  Some individuals use the pik to comb through their hair as they are drying it to help with the snarls.  Some individuals can’t go without one and others simply don’t feel it does a thing for their hair and choose not to use it.

If your hairdryer does not come with a hot air pik and you simply must have one, there are many in the marketplace that are considered universal hot air piks and will fit most brands of hairdryers.  A word of advice however, is to measure the barrel of your hairdryer and then see if you can find out what the diameter of the hot air pik is to see if it will fit.  Many hot air piks are made with a spring device which then helps to slide on most hairdryers.  The best thing to do, however, is to see if the brand of hairdryer that you have offers a hot air pik for that particular model and if not, then go for the universal hot air piks.

It’s summer and you are looking for a style that will work best to meet the heat of the summer, yet look stylish enough all year round.  Your hair is fine and you are just not sure what will look good or how to take care of the style.

One of the five most popular haircuts now is the bob.  It is one of those styles that is guaranteed to flatter.  You ask yourself if the cut is right for you.  Well, if you go with swingy layers you can’t go wrong as this particular cut will flatter all face shapes.  And, if you have fine hair, a shorter length bob will help plump up the hair by taking away some of the weight.

To help style those swingy layers of your bob cut, selecting the right hair product or styling accessories is a must.  Typically a spray-on product right before drying is essential to not only help protect your hair but also to give your hair soft, silky, and manageable results.  There are many varieties available in the marketplace and they average from $10.00 to $15.00 a bottle.   

Are you one of those individuals who travels often with your styling tools and after use, unplugs them and waits, and waits, and waits until you can safely place them back in your luggage?  Well, worry no more.  The newest item to hit the marketplace is the Hotty Hoody Cool Sleeve.  This smart new product is made of specially designed silicone that can withstand temperatures up to 500 degrees Farenheit. 

The Hotty Hoody is designed to fit over the hot portion of any curling iron, flat iron, crimper, waver, spiral iron, hot brush, or hot comb.    Not only does this hair styling tool cover fit nearly every standard size hair appliance, it also protects your equipment from being damaged when dropped. 

The Hotty Hoody is very easy to use.  Once you have finished using your appliance, insert the hot end inside of the Hotty Hoody and take the electrical cord and wrap it around the outside of the sleeve and tuck the end of the cord under the flap located on the outside of the sleeve.  Now you can safely transport your professional hair styling hot tools as soon as you are finished using them.  Or, even if you aren’t traveling, the item is great for home use because now you don’t have to worry about burning your counters.

When it comes to hair styling accessories, this “hot” new item is a MUST HAVE.  This hair tools transporter is great for travelers, after workouts, or anyone on the go!

Before embarking on a vacation abroad, take some time to list what you’ll need to pack. It may not be possible to lug all the luxuries of home with you overseas, but everyone requires at least a few familiar items. Luggage space is limited, so be sure to haul only the items you can’t function without.

Even in a foreign land, hair care remains one of the best ways to guarantee you look your best. You can dry your hair with a dual voltage hair dryer each morning in Europe and continue using it back home in the States. Travelers take note: These hair dryers are a secret weapon for value-seekers worldwide.

It’s summer and for those of us who have longer hair who want to get it up off of our neck, shoulders or back, it’s time to put our hair up and still try to have it look ok for going out in public and not just for staying at home.

While at my last hair appointment I noticed that my hairdresser had her hair up off her shoulders and she had it twisted up into what looked like a french roll with a red metal clip which actually matched a very stylish top she was wearing that had red in the print.  I asked her what this clip was and she said that these hair jaws were something she had recently bought from her product supplier.  Not only were they great to use as a beautician for sectioning and pinning up hair as she was doing cuts, but she liked using them for putting her hair up with in a style.  The fact that they came in colors such as pink, blue, white, black, and red, allowed for her to let them show and color coordinate with what she was wearing. 

Further research on this product resulted in finding out that these are the Silique Jaws Clips, which come two to a package.  They are ideal for thick and even curly hair.  These clips have a no-slip design and easily grip the hair.  These sturdy clips, however, are gentle on your hair.  They are a very inexpensive way to put your hair up since they retail at approximately $5.00 for a package.

As hairstyles come and go, it becomes even more important for us all to be more conscious of the health of our hair.  It seems that whatever type hair we were born with, we want something else.  Thus, those of us who have curly hair want to have straight hair, and those of us who have straight hair want to have curly hair.  No matter what we want, there is a hair appliance and/or product out there that will accomodate us.

So, no matter what style or type of hair we want to have, why are ionic hairdryers so popular?  The answer is because the more we blow dry our hair and especially with very high heat, the end result is dry, brittle, and damaged hair. 

Just how exactly does Ionic Technology work?  A stream of negatively charged ions is injected into the airflow and onto wet hair.  The negative ions break apart water molecules, making them smaller so they are more easily absorbed by hair or dried through evaporation.  As a result, hair cuticles stay moist and thus, less brittle, and your hair dries quicker.

There are numerous brands and types of ionic hairdryers in the marketplace.  They come in all shapes and sizes and more importantly price ranges.  If you want an ionic dryer that will last, a professional ionic dryer is the way to go.  Price ranges for a decent ionic hairdryer starting at $25.00 (usually sale price) all the way up to over $300.00.  Unless you have a surplus of money, hairdryers in the range of $50.00 to $100.00 are very decent and will be a good first time investment.

There are so many hair dryer brands in the marketplace so how does one know exactly which one to select?  You can shop online, go to beauty supply stores, buy them at hair salons, and even buy them in the discount retail stores.  With all of the available outlets to buy them from, and with so many brands to choose from, how do you know what is the most reliable? 

When you are working with a small budget, the Conair hairdryer has many options to choose from.  Conair has been around for a very long time and if you are looking for something reliable, yet inexpensive (in relation to many of the professional brands), you should be able to find something that will fit your budget.

If you want a hairdryer that is considered in the professional line of dryers, and one that has more of the features that you find on a professional dryer, it is definitely recommended that you go with a Conair Pro.

Some examples of Conair Pro dryers include the Conair Pro Blackbird,  Conair Pro Yellowbird, Conair Pro Silverbird, Conair Pro Thermal Ceramic 2000 Turbo, and the Conair Champion Pro Euro Styler Hairdryer, just to name a few. 

So what places these Conair dryers in the category of a professional dryer?  To start with, these dryers range anywhere from 1875 to 2000 watts of power.  This is more than enough power to get the job done.  Some of these models offer ceramic technology, ionic technology, the cool shot or cold shot button feature, dual voltage for international travel, etc.  While each one does not offer all of these features, it is important to read the features that each particular hairdryer has to offer so you can select the one that meets your individual needs.

The best thing to consider regarding the hairdryers mentioned previously, is that all are at affordable prices ranging on average in the low $20.00 range to low $40.00 range.  Prices vary so be sure to shop around.  Online prices are typically less.   

Whoever created diffusers for hairdryers must be a genius.  What did the general public or even hair stylists do before they appeared in the marketplace?  Well, not to worry, because whatever people did before, is no longer an issue now.  There are a multitude of hair diffusers to choose from and the only issue now is what type to use.

Gone are the days of hair plastered to the head or uniform and very neat hair styles.  It is all about adding some oomph and height to the hair.  This can all be accomplished with the use of a diffuser.  Many have thought that a diffuser was only used for people who have naturally curly hair or people with perms who did not want to blow out their curls while drying their hair.  Well, this is no longer the case as those of us who have straight, wavy, or even fine hair can benefit from the diffuser to give our hair both body and volume.

So exactly how does a diffuser work?  Think of the diffuser as an air distributor that funnels the heat from the hair dryer onto your hair and softens the airflow that the hairdryer has.  The hair diffuser minimizes the damage that can be caused due to the management of the heat.  While it may actually take a little longer to dry your hair and style it, it is well worth the additional time based on the resulting healthier hair or cutting back on any damage that your hair may already have.  Ok, we have established how a diffuser works, but how does one achieve the volume and body that a diffuser is supposed to provide?  It is actually a very simple process.   

To dry and style your hair with a diffuser you need to start at the root of your hair.  Take a section of your hair and using a circular motion start drying your hair.  Continue the same process as you work your way down to the tip of your hair.  You will find that as your hair dries the heat from the diffuser is lifting the roots of your hair from your scalp resulting in fuller looking hair. 

To achieve extra added volume you will need to bend your head over and pull the hair from the top of your head towards the front of your face.  Work  from the roots out using the same process as previously described.  This works particularly well for those of us who have fine hair.

As to the type of diffuser one should use, becomes a personal preference.  If you want the pleasure of your head being massaged while drying your hair, then the diffusers with the flexible fingers are the way to go.  If massaging your head is not important, then there are a number of diffusers that do not come with the fingers.  Many hairdryers come with diffusers, however, there are many that don’t.  When shopping for one, be sure that you have the right size diameter on the barrel of the dryer so that it will accurately match up and fit.  There are many in the marketplace that provide adjustable sizes and some are very specific to certain hairdryer brands or types.

To achieve the ultimate hairstyle that you are going for, it will still be necessary for hair product to be used.  Whether you put it on before drying your hair, or after, getting the style to hold is what is important. 

Are you planning to travel internationally?  If so, have you checked to see that wherever you are staying provides you with a hair dryer?  Unless you are staying at some of the more luxurious accomodations, you more than likely won’t find a hairdryer provided.  Therefore, you need to pack a  dual voltage hair dryer.that converts from 125 volts to 250 volts, which is the typical voltage found in most other countries outside of the United States and Canada.

So why exactly do you need a dual voltage hair dryer when you are traveling internationally?  The reason is that the voltage used internationally is different than that in the United States and Canada.  Typically, in the United States and Canada hairdryers run on either 120 or 125 volts.  The voltage in other countries is typically 220 or 225 volts.  As a result, you need to have a hairdryer that will accomodate both voltages.  However, having a hairdryer that has dual voltage is not the only thing that you will need.  You will also need an adaptor plug.  If you don’t have an adaptor plug, you will either not be able to plug in the dryer, or if you plug it in, you will damage your hairdryer to the point that it just may go up in smoke.  Not only must you have the correct adaptor plug, you need to make sure that the hair dryer has been converted to the 220 or 225 volts before plugging it in.  What this means is that either you turn a dial or use a screwdriver to change the voltage on the appliance.  All hairdryers that are dual voltage come with specific instructions to guide you in changing over the voltage.  The key is that you do it. 

When you are shopping for the right adaptor plug for your hair dryer, you need to know specifically what each countries requirements are.  This could mean that you may need to purchase more than one adaptor plug.  You should also be aware of the wattage of the dryer because this could affect what type plug you will need.  There are many travel websites that sell adaptor plugs as well as stores that specifically specialize in travel items.  You should have no trouble finding what you need.

Before you even get to the point of finding an adaptor plug you need to find the hairdryer that will best serve your individual needs.  Dual voltage hair dryers come in all sizes, types, wattages, and variety of features.  If you travel internationally often, it is best to spend a little more money to buy something that you are really comfortable with as well as the dryer having the exact features that you would be enjoying at home.  Whatever dryer you end up with, as long as you have the right equipment for use internationally, your trip should be a good one, at least from the standpoint of being happy with your hair.