Don't Get Fired by Your Flat Iron!

Information courtesy of Barbara Abbasi, founder of the Ferrum Professional Styler (www.ferrumiron.com) and owner of American Beauty Hair Salon in California www.abhairla.com.

A flat iron is the fastest and, if used incorrectly, the most damaging way to straighten hair. It allows women who have super curly corkscrew curls or those with just wavy hair to get the stick-straight style that they want. Barbara Abbasi, the founder of the Ferrum Professional Styler (www.ferrumiron.com) and owner of American Beauty Hair Salon in California offers some useful tips for clients before they run to their local drug store and begin straightening away.

The Heat Factor
Flat irons expose the hair to a significant amount of heat . Barbara cautions that, “If flat irons are not used properly, you can severely damage your hair. When you start straightening your hair, especially if you do it everyday, you should switch to a thermal protection shampoo, like Thermasilk. This will help protect your hair from excessive heat damage.”

What To Do Before You Use Any Flat Iron

•First of all, wash your hair properly. Flat irons are less effective on dirty and oily hair.
•Do not use any hair spray or gel on your hair after washing.
•Dry your hair completely, right from the roots to the tips.
•After you hair has been dried, apply a straightening balm to it. This will help eliminate any frizz and also protect your hair.
•Since an iron subjects your hair to high heat, it is advisable to use a heat protection spray beforehand.
•Heat your flat iron. In most cases, it will reach the desired temperature in a matter of minutes.
•Comb your hair properly and remove any tangles.
•Divide your hair into four sections, two in the front and two in the back, and hold them together with hair clips.
•Straighten sections of hair no more than 1 inch wide.
•Once your hair is completely dry, draw thin sections of you hair through the flat iron slowly all the while keeping the iron moving. Be sure to straighten slowly from the root of the hair to the tip. Never keep the flat iron a piece of hair for too long. This can cause severe damage to the hair.
•Comb hair smooth after each section of hair is straightened.
•Try not to flat iron your hair every day. If you do, before long your hair will start looking fried and your hair will start breaking off easily.
•Repeat the procedure with the other sections of your hair.

How to Use a Flat Iron
Many people end up damaging their hair because they do not know how to use their flat iron properly. Barbara Abbassi offers a few simple tips that will help you to use your flat iron correctly:

• Flat irons have been known to cause major drying and frizzing to the hair. Before you blow dry your hair and straighten it, make sure that you apply a frizz control product..
•Before you straighten your hair, make sure that your hair is completely dry. Even slight moisture can result in damaged hair and a damaged flat iron .
•Remember that flat irons are very hot and that they should be handled with care.
•Once your hair is completely dry, draw thin sections of you hair through the flat iron slowly all the while keeping the iron moving. Never keep the flat iron a piece of hair for too long.
•Comb hair smooth after each section of hair is straightened.

Here are some items Barbara suggests to achieve optimal results with your flat iron

•Straightening balm
•Heat protection spray
•Comb
•Hair clip

Barbara Abbasi developed the Ferrum Styler because she was not entirely happy with the results she saw with other flat irons on the market. What Makes Ferrum Different? The answer lies in the technology of the VSS System which is a combination of a non-heated padded fabric element and a tourmaline coated ceramic plate. The real distinction of this tool is the fabric padded side. The fabric is a combination of lightweight, anti-static polymers that allows the hair to "breathe" while straightening. In combination with the pad, the styling result most closely resembles blow-drying; which tends to give hair exponentially more volume than flat-ironing. Since the fabric padded side is non-heated, the Ferrum styler doesn't burn all the moisture out of the root of the hair giving it a much more vibrant, "bouncy" look.

A typical flatiron will fry and dry out your hair between two solid hot plates. The Ferrum styler will allow your hair to rest on glide on a soft surface, allowing hair to breathe and retain more of its natural moisture, shine and volume. Think of a flatiron as "frying" and drying out your hair between two solid hot plates. Allowing your hair to breathe and rest on a softer surface allows for a much healthier styling experience.  With the Ferrum Professional Style, women do not have to merely make the choice between frizzy and flat. Although Ferrum is not to be used to make wet hair dry, once hair is dry the tool can be used to achieve a pin straight look without losing volume. It can also curl the hair or give it gentle waves. For those who want or need to use a heated styling tool daily, the best news is that the Ferrum will not break the hair. You can read more about Barbara here.

Thanks to our friends over at KMR Communications for sharing this with us!

*hugs*
Denice

*NOTE: I have not tried/reviewed this product. This post is informational only