<p>Is there a way to try it out myself (not have a stylist do it) before spending $$$?</p>
<p>Come to my house to visit… The mall guys will let you do some of your hair yourself.</p>
<p>My stylist’s iron goes over my hair much more smoothly and doesn’t snag and pull/break my hair like my conair does. My hair comes out smoother and softer, and straightens with fewer passes. I’m not sure what she uses, though, because when I asked her a couple weeks ago what brand she recommends she told me to go get any old thing and that it doesn’t make any difference… I don’t believe her at all. I meant to look at hers to see what it was, or ask, but I didn’t get a chance. It was a very odd conversation. </p>
<p>Looking back, I think maybe she doesn’t recommend salon quality irons to customers for fear that they’ll fry their hair with the high heat.</p>
<p>I’m sure it depends on your hair but I don’t think ‘any old thing’ will do. At least that’s not been my experience and I have been through a number of flatiron brands over the years. My hairdressers have always used high end flatirons and that’s how I realized that the high-end irons work so much better on my hair. Now, there is a technique to it. You have start near the root and pull your hair up and out as you run the iron through it (not down). I like the ones with the tourmaline plates -they run through my hair much more smoothly than ceramic so you can do one quick pass and you’re done. With the cheaper models I would often have to do multiple passes to get my hair straight. I have very thick, wavy hair.</p>
<p>I’ve had the cheapo, mid-priced and now Chi ($129 approx.?) flat irons and the minute I tried the Chi I scolded myself for being so cheap for so many years. (I also lamented my frizzy high school years that could’ve been so different had I been able to achieve gorgeous straight hair!!)</p>
<p>I have thick, wavy, frizzy hair and the less expensive models took forever to “sort of” straighten my hair. The Chi really does make it straight. I don’t mind at all that there isn’t a temp control. If I need more control I run it through a little slower. I’ve also noticed that the Chi plates grab and hold the hair much better than the cheaper plates.</p>
<p>I agree on the more expensive models tend to be better for certain types of hair. I have tried the cheap ones in years past, and they don’t really straighten my hair. It really will depend on your hair and might be trial and error to find the right one. While my daughter has the FHI Platform, she has a cheaper one for when she travels internationally for work. For some reason flatirons do not do well with the converters, and I have heard from several people how their flatirons blew out while in Europe. My daughter did not want to risk ruining hers while traveling, so just bought a European model to use just for travel. She said it isn’t near as good, but it works ok.</p>
<p>The brand my daughter uses is Corioliss. I just checked, and it doesn’t have a model number or name, but it says “Corioliss professional.” I bought it after someone demonstrated it at the mall! Obviously, these mall kiosks are very effective. Until then, I didn’t know what a flat iron was and couldn’t figure out why all the other teens had either smooth, straight hair or perfect curls. </p>
<p>We’ve had it for 5.5 years and it seems to be working fine. It has adjustable heat, heats up REALLY fast (the girl at the kiosk said six seconds–it might not be that fast), and does a nice job. It gets hot enough that I burn my hands on my daughter’s hair when I straighten it for her.</p>
<p>[InStyler</a> Rotating Hot Iron Hair Straightener](<a href=“http://www.instyler.com/]InStyler”>http://www.instyler.com/)</p>
<p>best ever</p>
<p>MomLive, is it your T3 Mane Tamer thingy that has tourmaline? I gave T3 a long look when I was looking at curling irons last year but ended up going with something more inexpensive as I only curl my hair a few times a year, but I straighten more days than not. I’m still torn on the whole tourmaline versus regular ceramic thing, and if I decide on tourmaline I can rule out the Chi which simplifies things considerably… though I am intrigued by the fhi platform and still have to research some of the other suggestions. </p>
<p>My conair does straighten my hair but I feel like I’m trying to run my hair through two pieces of tree bark, it snags SO BAD and then my hair just breaks from being snagged and it gets ten times frizzier. And I have to go over it four or five times to get it to really go straight now that it’s longer. I go for a hair cut every six to eight weeks because the damage is unbearable and once she cuts it she says I have a lot of very healthy hair underneath, and that seems to be the case, but the top layer of fried hair is making me want to scalp myself. Some amount of damage is inevitable and I can live with that but I’d like to minimize it if I can. I used to straighten my hair every day with no significant problems, but back then I had a nicer iron…</p>
<p>I also need to consider the size of my iron… I used to use a 2in and I switched to a 1in because holding the 2in above my head was difficult for me, it was too heavy-- my 2in was a jilbere or something. I have hair just past my shoulders, so maybe I need to stop being a baby and consider a wider iron? Does that make a significant difference or is it only a matter of preference?</p>
<p>I’ve got 2 conair flatirons. The thinner one, with the ceramic plates works fine, and has a temp control. The bigger/wider one has a built in comb on one edge, and my hair does get caught in it at times. But it works fast because it is wide, adn when I am in a hurry or impatient, or a combination thereof, it is handy. I also use a handheld hot air hair brush that dries my hair as I brush it, and straightens it out somewhat as I use it (again depending on how patient I am). So between the two, it works pretty well.</p>
<p>I think the one I have is the conair infiniti… It’s the 1in ceramic with the other curved metal piece on the side. My roommate had it one year and I borrowed it once and it was so much easier to hold and to maneuver than my 2in jilbere that I bought one and never looked back, until now.</p>
<p>I’m not too concerned about how long it takes me to straighten my hair, even with my crappy conair it only takes me about ten minutes, I’m pretty adept with a straightening iron. But if a slightly bigger iron would straighten my hair better with fewer passes, it might be worth considering.</p>
<p>A “bigger” flat iron will mean that each piece is WIDER…but not longer. It takes me exactly the same amount of time to do my hair with my 1 inch as my 2 inch.</p>
<p>Correct. With a wider iron you can get more hair in and straightened in each “swipe”.</p>
<ul>
<li>Fewer “swipes” were/are faster for me.</li>
</ul>
<p>Hmmm… it would stand to reason then that a wider iron would cut damage. I know I probably overlap my “sections” somewhat when I straighten so wider sections and fewer swipes would probably lessen that. My 2in jilbere was SO HEAVY, though, it isn’t as though I couldn’t lift it but my arms got so tired and I was just not as coordinated with it as with my 1in. Are the higher end brands in these larger widths very heavy? I have no idea where jilbere falls on this spectrum, that straightener was a gift from my parents as a teenager. Do many of them even come in wider widths? I think I’ve only seen the Chi in 1in. That’s the only one I’ve actually seen in stores so far… our ulta seems to have two or three Chi models to choose from, a sedu, and all the rest brands I’ve never heard of…</p>
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<p>Yes and I’m so glad you started this thread. I looked the Mane Tamer up and apparently it’s being discontinued. I found it on Amazon for $85 and went ahead and ordered a second one. I paid $200 for my last one. I love, love, love this flatiron so I’m happy to have a spare just in case.</p>
<p>BTW - I did fry my first Mane Tamer in Japan. I had a converter but apparently flatirons don’t ‘convert’ well. Be careful taking expensive flatirons out of the country.</p>
<p>I tend to do this thing where, the longer I spend agonizing over a decision, the more utterly impulsive and reckless I am when I finally cave and make a choice. I just ordered the $85 mane tamer on amazon, too, with about four seconds of forethought. lol</p>
<p>I figure for that price I can go back and get the Chi or the FHI if I’m not satisfied without feeling TOO terribly guilty, and then I’ll know if tourmaline and a wider iron are THAT big of a deal. It says it’s 1.74in… is it terribly heavy? Wish me luck when I open the box. O_O</p>
<p>I’ve had my FHI Platform for a few years and didn’t know there was a more advanced version now. Looking at their website, the main difference between Runway and Platform seems to be the number of layers of ceramic. I assume that’s supposed to make it more durable and provide the most even heat retention and distribution. My Platform still works like it did when it was new, heats up in seconds and seems pretty durable. But none of these lasts forever. </p>
<p>I find the one inch most versatile for long layered, below shoulder length hair. It works so quickly I really don’t need anything wider. Plus, this size is really two tools in one. The beveled edges mean it can also function as a curling iron. I actually like the way it curls as much or more than when I use the curling iron -I think it gives a more natural , less “rounded” look. It’s a easier to use the curling iron, though. </p>
<p>For people with thick, curly, hard to straighten hair, the wider temperature range of the FHI makes a huge difference. For me, I now find even the CHI, which I used to use, practically unusable by comparison (forget the drugstore brands ). With the FHI, I only have to pull it through a section of hair once or at most twice. I can do what used to take a half an hour with the CHI in about ten minutes. I also find my hair gets far less split ends and I don’t need a trim as frequently as I used to. </p>
<p>A flat iron can also help give extra shape, style and volume to people with straight hair. It can be used to get the ends to go under, flip, give some lift at the top etc. </p>
<p>There are other popular brands - have also heard good things about GHD, but not sure if it has the same temperature range. I would recommend trying out different irons at a beauty supply store to see what you like and what works best on your hair.</p>
<p>Just kidding, canceled my order and am still deciding. I am really ripping myself in half over this decision.</p>
<p>Now (and probably for the next five minutes until I change my mind again) I am leaning towards an FHI… the platform is within budget, and since I got a hefty tax return today I could actually even get the runway if it would make this terrible decision GO AWAY. Any insights on what the primary differences are between the two? I am going back to reread the posts that have been made already about the platform… the only difference I really see is that the runway has floating plates and the platform seemingly doesn’t, but I’m not sure that that matters-- I liked the floating plates on my jilbere but maybe they’re not important. It looks like the runway also has more layers of ceramic… does that even matter?</p>
<p>Would you believe it was a billion times easier for me to choose my college, my major, my car, and every other mega important choice I’ve ever had to make? Talk about first world problems… haha.</p>
<p>I’m going to be a minority here, but I have a Conair Infiniti that works really well. It has four temperature settings, and my hair doesn’t dry out unlike when I use my cousin’s Chi.</p>
<p>I don’t normally straighten my hair- however I have used a large barrel curling iron to smooth it. ( just pull it through hair, don’t twirl it.)</p>