Are heat hair styling tools essential for your hair routine? No, but if you want to add some variety to your hairstyles, these are the best heat styling tools I recommend every woman needs in her hairstyling basket.
- A blow dryer
- A clamp curling iron
- A straightener.
I included the ones I use as well as some affordable hair styling tools that are highly recommended.
Heat Protectant
Before you use any hot tools, make sure to use a heat protectant. No matter what you might think, they do help!
Not sure? Use a blow dryer and blow the hot hair on the back of your bare hand. You will notice you can’t stand the heat very long. Now, spray your hand with the heat protectant and your hand will be able to withstand the heat a little longer. The same thing applies to your hair
**Right now I am using the Living Proof Heat Protectant. Below are ones I have used in the past and enjoy as well:
Now, let’s get into why I recommend just having these basic tools as well as some tricks when using them and tips of what to look for when buying one of these tools.
Blow Dryer
When it comes to finding the right blow dryer, honestly, it doesn’t matter. You will hear people say you need to invest in one but if you are being gentle with your hair, using good products, you will be fine. Just don’t over-dry your hair to a crisp.
Okay so here is what you need to know when you blow-dry your hair:
- Always use a heat protectant
- Let your hair air dry 80%-90% then blow-dry
- Use low heat, if you really need to tame some hair, use the high setting for only a minute for the section and lower the setting to continue the rest of your head
- If you need to detangle your hair, gently comb through with a wide-tooth comb
- Blow-dry your hair in the direction of hair growth
- Flip head upside down and blow-dry at roots to get volume
- End with a shot of cool hair to set the style
- Check my blog post about wet hair mistakes to learn more about hair health when it’s wet
You don’t have to buy a fancy blow dryer but just think about what you want its purpose to serve. Travel? Diffuser attachment? What’s your hair type?
Material
Turnamline: best for thick, frizzy hair that’s hard to dry. But not super good at creating volume.
Ceramic or porcelain: best for thin or hard to dry hair quickly. But this type is also good for all hair types. It’s less harsh with the heat so is usually less damaging.
Titanium: a good choice if you have a lot of hair as it can help cut down the drying time, it gets really hot, and is lighter weight. If you have fine or damaged hair, avoid this!
Look at the watts on the dryer. The higher the wattage, the faster the blow dryer will dry your hair. The lower the wattage the cheaper the blow dryer. Look for a wattage of 1500 for at-home use. If you have super thick hair, look for 1800-2000 watts, this is what salons typically use.
Ensure that it has different heat settings, ideally low, medium, high, and cool.
Blow Dryer Recommendations:
- Dry Bar Baby ButterCup – Ionic (This is the one I have) (Pricey but I’m a brand snob and think it works pretty good: all hair types)
- InfinitiPro By Conair – Ionic (any hair type, I would get this one out of all of them. Includes diffuser)
- BaBylissPRO Nano Titanium Travel Dryer (traveling, hard to dry hair)
Clamp Curling Iron
If you have a clamp curling iron, you don’t need a curling wand, you can do both with just one tool. This will help limit the number of hair styling tools in your bathroom drawer. I like having the clamp option because when my hair is short, using the clamp is way easier and when my hair is longer, I can use the same tool but just without the clamp.
Tips for using a clamp curling iron:
- Start in the middle of the hair shaft and slowly release the clamp as you continue to go down the hair. Check out this blog post on how to curl your hair the right way
- Don’t start with the clamp at the end of your hair
- If you want more beachy waves, keep the iron and curls below the top of your ear
- You don’t need the heat all the way up! Test out at a lower temp until you get used to your curling iron and if you need to work up.
- 1 inch barrel will work for many different curls
There are different types of curling irons with different materials for different purposes. Here is the breakdown of the materials and their purpose.
Ceramic: even heat distribution to minimize heat damage and negative ions to smooth and moisturize. Good for fine hair or wavy/thick hair.
Tourmaline: emits 6 times more negative ions to smooth hair cuticles and leave hair shiny. Great for thin hair/thin strands, damaged hair, and frequent heat stylers.
Titanium: even heat distribution and smooth surfaces that prevent snagging and sticking and heat up super quick. It will last a LONG time. Great for coarse hair and hair that doesn’t hold a curl well and doesn’t heat style hair often.
What’s the best material for a curling iron? I would recommend one with ceramic and tourmaline to keep your hair as healthy as possible and help reduce damage. And I would stay away from Chrome and Teflon in curling irons and straighteners.
Clamp Curling Iron Recommendations:
- Conair 1in Rose Ceramic Curling Iron (This is the one I have) (Any hair type, maybe not hard to curl hair)
- Hot Tools Ceramic Titanium Curling Iron (best for coarse, hard to curl hair
- Conair Tourmaline Ceramic Curling Iron (Fine, damaged hair)
Straighteners
Straighteners can also double as a waver/curling tool, win, win. When you are looking for a straightener, keep in mind the material of the plates from the curling iron section depending on your hair type and how often you use it.
Any straightener can be used on different hair types if you can adjust the heat setting. Just use lower heat if your hair is thin/fine and more heat if you have thick/coarse hair.
*Beware of just ceramic coated plates. Once the ceramic comes off it will expose the iron and no longer work.
**Tourmaline plates are sometimes called ionic plates and is the best flat iron for damaged hair
When it comes to straighteners, know what you want to use them for in order to know what you look for.
Notice the edges of the plates. If the outer edges of the iron are slightly rounded, it will be easier to transition your straightener into a curling iron. However, if they are straight, it will be better for just strictly straightening.
Wider plates help straighten the hair faster. If you travel a lot with it, have smaller plates. Also, if you have damaged hair, smaller plates will be better for you because wider plates can be too much heat at once in one area.
Straightener Recommendations:
- Dry Bar Tress Press – Ionic/Titanium (This is the one I have. I like it but don’t love it) (All Hair Types)
- HSI Ceramic Tourmaline Straightener (All Hair Types)
There definitely are other tools I use but these are the ones I use on the regular and that is the most versatile.
What are your heat hair styling tools must haves?
