Well the image above kinda says it all, haha. I have a tough time writing about products I feel ‘meh’ about. It’s been a long time since I’ve tried a product I flat out hated, and because I am pretty good at picking stuff usually, I don’t have too many bad experiences. This wasn’t a bad experience per se, but… well let me get into it. [Read more…]
Rusk W8less Multi 12-in-1 Miracle Treatment Review
This product has possibly one of the longest product names ever. Its official name is Rusk Designer Series W8less Multi 12-in-1 Miracle Treatment. Yikes! What a name! But how does it perform? Find out by hitting ‘read more’. ;)
October Favorites
So what it’s a week into November already…I’m doing my October favorites and you’re gonna LIKE IT. :) As usual I don’t know what to use as a picture for my ‘favorites’ post so in keeping with tradition, here’s a random fun picture. This time it’s Barack Obama holding a book. :D My favorites for October are pretty simple, because I was SICK during October. That means my favorites all kind of go along with that…read on to find out more!
HANA Air Dryer Review
Recently I was contacted by Misikko about reviewing the HANA Air Dryer. I’ve been using it for a little while and I’m ready to share my thoughts with you!
First let me just tell you a little about the dryer itself. This is a premium, top of the line salon tool! It has 2 speeds and 3 heat settings plus cold shot. They claim the tourmaline-lined ceramic heater will dry your hair up to 60% faster, and that the antibacterial ion technology conditions your hair and adds shine. The motor is extremely powerful– producing the equivalent of 2300 watts, and low noise. It comes with a fiberglass concentrator attachment, but I don’t see a diffuser that is made for it. That’s not a huge deal for me, but for you curly girls out there or for those of you who like to use one, that is something to consider. Here are my thoughts on the dryer itself up against what I expect/desire from a hair dryer:
Weight/Feel
I definitely don’t want a tool to feel cheap in my hand, but I don’t want it to feel like I’m holding a brick either. Let’s be honest, your arms can get tired if you’re stuck drying your hair with a massive beast of a hair dryer! This dryer is definitely bigger and heavier than my T3, but it’s not so heavy that it causes problems or discomfort. According to HANA it’s “gyroscopically balanced” – no idea what that means, but apparently it makes it easier to work with. It also has a very long (12′) cord that swivels.
Settings
This dryer has one of the coolest features of any dryer I’ve used – the cold shot button can be turned on and off without having to hold it down. I LOVE that. The speeds are good, nothing out of the ordinary, and the heat settings are perfect. The warm setting is a true warm. It’s not too hot. I’m kind of a sissy; if it’s too hot I won’t use it. This is comfortable. :)
Performance
This dryer is insane. It dries my hair really fast. Now I freaking love my T3 Pro, but this dryer is more powerful and dries my hair faster. However, it’s heavier and much louder than my T3. The product description for the HANA Air says it’s quiet, and that’s just not true. It’s loud. It’s very loud. Quiet compared to what I wonder?? The good qualities far outweigh the loudness for me, but your priorities may be different.
Bottom line is this is a BAMF hair dryer. It’s pretty amazeballs. I’m a fan. I’d never heard of HANA before being contacted by Misikko, but this is a great dryer and if their flat irons are anything like the dryer they’re probably wonderful too. I also received the HANA ShineShield serum, but I’ve decided I actually want to review that separately so that will be upcoming. I’m not completely sold on it yet so I want to play around with using it before I do a review. ;)
The price of this dryer is going to be a deal-breaker for some. Retail price is $334.99. It’s currently on sale for $194.99, but even at the sale price that’s still a large chunk of change. The HANA Air dryer is not out of the realm of normal prices for a high-end hair dryer, and performs well enough to stand up to the high price, however.
Misikko
My experience with Misikko has been great! My dryer arrived packaged very nicely with some sweet extra goodies. They generously included the Paul Mitchell Awapuhi shampoo & conditioner. I don’t know if this product line was handpicked exactly for me or if it was just selected at random, but after reading up on it I think I will really like it! *fingers crossed* According to the website these products are ideal for adding body to fine hair, safe for color-treated hair, and moisturizing. I have dry, fine, color-treated hair. So if these were picked at random, lucky me! And if they weren’t, well then Misikko gets big hugs from me, because that’s really thoughtful. Either way I’m super appreciative and look forward to trying it out when I finish my Redken Smooth Down, which will be pretty soon!
This experience with Misikko has definitely made a good impression with me, but it did not in any way affect my review of the dryer. If your aim is to invest in the best professional hair dryer, this one would be a great choice.
February Favorites
Hello hello everyone! It’s MARCH, so that means it’s time to talk about FEBRUARY. Err, in other words, my favorites from February. Woot!
Favorite Hair Products
Um realistically my favorite hair product in February was my beloved Stephanie, aka Awesome Colorist, but since calling her a product is kind of rude, I’ll go with the kind that are in bottles!
I’m still learning how to deal with my dry skin. For years I had oily skin, and I’ve really only had dry skin for the past year or so. It’s a whole new experience! I took for granted that I never had the problem of my skin looking too matte. Now, even on days where I’m not wearing any makeup, I like to go over my whole face with MAC Strobe Liquid. It’s just a thin, slightly hydrating lotion that has a very pretty pearly pink luminescent quality. It gives my face that natural glow that has since left me along with my overactive oil producing skin, lol. I’ve also been using my MAC Fix+ more, as it takes down the powderiness of face powders. (Strobe Liquid and Fix+ are available from MAC for $30 and $20 respectively.)
All opinions are my own, and not sponsored by any brand/company.
No compensation was received for including these products as favorites.
Disclaimers are fun to type because they are super tiny and stuff. xoxo <3
It’s a 10 Miracle Leave-In Product First Impressions
– Adds shine
– Smooths & controls frizz
– Seals & protects hair color
Review – GVP Smoothing Serum
A couple of my friends swear by Paul Mitchell Super Skinny Serum. It sounded like a great product, so I got excited when I found out Sally Beauty Supply has a generic for only $7.99!
– Improves manageability
– Smoothes and conditions
– Reduces frizz and flyaways
– Thermal protectant
Review – Nature’s Gate Hair Products
Nature’s Gate Tea Tree Oil Shampoo
3 out of 5 – would not purchase again
I liked the idea of this shampoo– silicone free, tea tree oil for the scalp, inexpensive, and easily accessible (they have it at my grocery store super close to where I live). However, it didn’t really work out. It was great for my sensitive scalp (no flakes, no irritation, etc), but not so much for my hair. It left my hair feeling DRY (and I’m normally oily), straw-like, frizzy, and very hard to detangle without breaking the hair. I have fine, damage-prone hair to begin with so, that was unacceptable. I ended up returning it.
Nature’s Gate Chamomile Replenishing Conditioner for Color-Treated Hair
4 out of 5 – would not purchase again
Nature’s Gate describes this conditioner as deeply moisturizing, and that’s certainly the case! It smells good and leaves my hair feeling very soft, but somewhat weighed down. It would be great for damaged hair, I’m sure. My hair is fine, though, and this is too heavy. I returned this one too.