Plate Material: Titanium | Cord Length: 9 ft.| Who It’s For: Everyone
Frequently Asked Questions
Are hair straighteners safe for my hair?
You may be wary of using high heat on your hair, but hair straighteners are perfectly safe for your strands when used correctly. “The key is to use them on dry hair and ideally as a finishing tool. I typically recommend smoothing with a round brush before straightening. Always apply a heat protectant before styling to shield your strands from high temperatures,” says hairstylist and founder of Trademark Beauty, Joseph Maine. “Also, it’s important to keep the flatiron clean to ensure it heats evenly and doesn’t snag your hair.”
“Use a haircare product that’s marketed as a heat protectant before straightening your hair. In general, I don’t recommend using oils because they can burn, along with your hair, when applied right before using a flat iron,” warns NYC-based hairstylist Devin Toth. “Don’t go over the same section of hair over and over again. It’s better to go over it once, slowly. People tend to have more damage in their face-framing area of hair because they hit it with the iron too many times to get them just right,” he adds.
Another key to straightening safely is to be mindful of the temperature of your flat iron. The optimal temperature to avoid burning is 365 degrees Fahrenheit.
How do hair straighteners work?
“Flatirons work by using heated plates to temporarily alter the structure of your hair, making it straight. When you apply the heated plates to your hair, the heat breaks down the hydrogen bonds in the hair’s cortex, causing it to straighten,” says Maine. “Once your hair cools down or gets wet, these bonds reform, and your hair goes back to its natural state,” Maine adds that varying materials like ceramic, titanium, or tourmaline have different effects on the heat distribution and speed of the straightening process.
How should I choose a hair straightener?
Picking a hair straightener is a personal choice and largely depends on your hair type and styling desires. “For fine or damaged hair, look for a flat iron with adjustable heat settings to prevent overheating—ceramic plates are great for even heat distribution without getting too hot,” Maine tells Allure. He adds that if your hair is on the thicker, or coarser side, a hair straightener with titanium plates is ideal because they “can handle higher heat and manage frizz more effectively.”
Toth explains that plate size and shape are key to selecting a hair straightener. “The wider the plate, the straighter the hair will look. So if you like to really bend and bevel the ends of your hair then choose a more narrow plate,” says Toth. Maine echos Toth, explaining that a “wider plate can straighten more hair at a time, which is useful for thicker hair, while a narrower plate is better for short hair, detailed styling like bangs, or achieving specialized styles like flat iron waves or curls.