Hair straighteners are often criticized for the heat effects of the smoothing plates on the hair. Yet, many people cannot do without this technology. Indeed, it allows you to have straight and silky hair in no time. Other techniques like using a hair straightening brush work just as well. However, they do not provide such an immediate effect and are therefore considered less practical for daily use. Fortunately, it is entirely possible to use a hair straightener without damaging your hair! You just need to use your device properly and protect your hair before using the flat iron.
1) To avoid damaging your hair, you need a quality hair straightener
The coating of the plates is crucial in determining the quality of the product. Often, low-end straighteners have plates coated with a thin layer of ceramic that flakes off over time and with use. As a result, they quickly become unusable because once the ceramic is worn out, you end up burning your hair with what’s underneath! That’s why you should opt for at least 100% ceramic plates. In addition, ceramic distributes heat more evenly on the plates and promotes the gliding of the plates on the hair fiber. Titanium is also a good material, resistant and powerful, but should be avoided on colored and damaged hair. On the other hand, tourmaline is an effective semi-precious stone during straightening that will take better care of dry, curly, colored, and static-prone hair.
If you straighten your hair daily or, like us, are afraid of damaging them even with few uses, it’s best to turn to professional quality brands. For example, Grand-Mère uses the Nina model from MadameParis, which has ceramic and ionic plates allowing for an even faster, durable and very effective straightening in one pass. This is important to limit the time an hot appliance is used on the hair, thus minimizing damage and making hair softer and shinier. Lightweight, slim, and practical with the perfect length of its cord and accessories (comb, hair clips, heat-protective gloves, etc.), it also has a precise temperature display that heats up almost instantaneously to the selected temperature. Above all, do not choose an appliance where you cannot control the temperature!
2) Proper techniques with the hair straightener to avoid damaging your hair
Of course, using the appliance excessively can cause irreversible damage over time. Therefore, it’s best to limit excessive use of the straightening plates. Again, if you use a good appliance, it will leave your hair straighter for longer! For the same reason, it’s best not to stay too long on the same hair section. To avoid this, divide your hair into sections and straighten smaller strands. Often, we tend to take larger sections to save time. However, this requires several passes, which is where the most damage from the straightener can occur! And most importantly, comb thoroughly before straightening, neither too quickly nor too slowly, stretching each strand.
Finally, avoid automatically setting the highest temperature to save time, which may not necessarily be more effective! Choose the right temperature for proper straightening based on your hair needs:
- 180°C or less for fine, damaged, brittle, or straight hair and short hair
- Between 180°C and 210°C for normal, wavy or curly hair
- And between 210°C and 235°C for thick, curly, and kinky hair.
3) Protect your hair before using the straightener to avoid damaging them
Certainly, you can use highly nourishing masks or do oil baths on your hair to repair them. But once a hair is damaged or split, it cannot be repaired…it must be cut! Therefore, it’s better to protect them from heat damage in advance to avoid having hair like straw. To do this, you don’t need silicon-based chemical products. You can try some vegetable oils and butters alone or mixed with your homemade hair products. Here are some natural heat protectors: shea butter or cupuacu and oils like argan, grape seed, olive, coconut, macadamia nut, avocado, or sunflower oil.
4) A homemade heat protectant treatment to protect the hair cuticles
To make a homemade heat protectant, you will need:
- 90 ml of grapefruit-scented water (for dilution and fragrance)
- 2.5 ml of vegetable ceramides (protects against dehydration)
- 3.5 ml of keratin protect (heat protector that adds shine and softness)
- 0.5 ml of silk proteins (hydrates and softens)
- 18 drops of cosgard preservative
Steps:
In a spray bottle, mix the scented water with the vegetable ceramides. Then add your other ingredients and it’s ready to use! This product lasts for 3 months and allows you to straighten your hair with the straightener without damaging them or weighing them down. It can be used on dry or wet hair and therefore works for other heated appliances such as hair dryers.
The recipe video by Naturellement Lyla:
With all this, having beautiful supple hair and a smooth and silky hairstyle with often criticized straightening techniques becomes entirely possible! Unruly hair with frizz or lengths that you just want to straighten or curl for aesthetic reasons better watch out!
