What to Look for in a Hair Straightener

A hair straightener is a very useful styling tool. A hair straightener can give you perfectly straight hair, but you can also curl your hair which makes a hair straightener a great thing to have. As with most hair products, there are many different brands, each with something unique about it, of straight irons and the brand that is right for someone else may not be great for you. If you purchase a hair straightener and find that it simply is not doing the job you want, make sure you get some information before going out and spending money on a brand new one. If you have a specific flat iron in mind, do a little research on the Internet and see if you can find some product reviews. If you still don't know which hair straightener you think would be right for you, make sure you keep these questions in mind when shopping.

What kind of plates does the hair straightener have?
This is by far the most important question to ask. You absolutely have to know this before purchasing a hair straightener. There are hair straighteners with ceramic plates, titanium plates, aluminum plates, and teflon plates. Ceramic and titanium plates are the best, they will cause minimal damage to your hair, which is always a plus. Titanium plates are little more durable and little less heavy than ceramic, but they are both great. Aluminum and teflon plates are no good, they do not heat evenly and they cause breakage and lots of heat damage.

How hot does the hair straightener get?
If the hair straightener you are looking at doesn't have a heat setting, stay away. Almost all hair straighteners will have heat settings, and the ones that don't will be very cheap in price and quality. The temperatures for hair straighteners usually go from 150 degrees Fahrenheit to 450 degrees Fahrenheit. The heat that will work best for you will depend on what kind of hair you have, the finer your hair, the lower the temperature.

Does the hair straightener have a warranty?
Most hair straighteners will come with a warranty good for at least a year, sometimes even longer. A warranty usually comes with good quality hair straighteners, so it is better to pay for quality and be sure that you can count on your straightener to work well, than to keep having to purchase straightener after straightener.

Is the hair straightener ionic?
Ionic is a big technology with hair products. An ionic hair straightener will reduce the frizz and static of your hair. It will also make your hair shinier and healthier, while preventing damage. A ionic hair straightener is great, but if this is what you're looking for, be prepared to spend some money.

How much does the hair straightener cost?
As with most things in life, you have to pay for quality. If you purchase a twenty dollar hair straightener, there is a good chance that you will notice more split ends and more breakage. Cheap straighteners also have a tendency to stop working on one side and have lots of other problems. You don't have to spend a fortune on a hair straightener, but you the chance of finding a top quality hair straightener for less than fifty dollars is extremely low.