Amika Brush Straightener | First Impressions & A Review
I picked up this Amika Brush Straightener set back during the Sephora Friends & Family sale. I've been feeling a bit underwhelmed with my hair styling these days and wanted something a little more natural than pin straight. Since about 8th grade I've been straightening my hair almost every day. As someone of Asian descent, I almost feel like I'm supposed to have straight hair - but alas, I do not. A lot of people were actually shocked to hear I straighten as they saw my hair straight everyday (lol). It's not overly curly, but it does have a lot of waves here and there and it is definitely not silky straight smooth. It's not too big of an issue to me as I wash my hair at night and style it in the morning when I wake up. But then in came this heated brush straightener!
I had seen reviews for various types of heated brush straighteners over the last few years and was very intrigued to try one myself. For a while I was unimpressed as my mom had one way back when that I felt did nothing but fry your hair. I ended up snagging this Amika set because for the price of the large brush straightener, I also received the mini brush + travel pack and their Un.Done. Texturizing Spray and Perk-Up Dry Shampoo. It also had incredible reviews. I ended up giving the texturizing spray to a friend as I have far too many on hand to trial and I knew she could make better use of it than me! I haven't reached for the dry shampoo yet as I also have a few I'm testing out right now - but I'll keep you guys posted on that.
Onto the brush straightener! It's relatively easy to maneuver and just takes a slight amount of time to get used to. It heats up pretty quickly as I usually pre-heat it while I'm finishing up my skincare routine or makeup. There's various heat setting so you can use what you prefer, but I like using the highest setting so my hair sits on heat for less time. I still section off my hair into 2 sections (top / bottom) and brush through to straighten them that way. I find that facing the bristles outwards allows me to apply as much pressure as I want without risk of burning myself. To demonstrate how effective the heated brush is, I only have to brush through my hair once - maybe twice if it's a stubborn area. The heat is at the base of the straightener (obviously) so that you don't risk burning your face upon contact. I find that this one leaves my hair just as soft and smooth - and quite straight! Although nothing beats an actual straightener, this one does a great job. I also find that this one helps me finish my hair in a fraction of the time I spent before using a normal straightener. I have cut back the number of times I wash my hair a week (to about 2 or 3 times), and I'll probably use this brush straightener for 1-2 of those styling days. I do find that I'll need to touch up my hair on day 2 or 3 near the top of my head, but it's not a huge issue.
Random fact - do not use this on mildly wet hair at all. My boyfriend's growing his hair out (per my request) and has a slight combover. He tried using this on his semi-wet hair and it did work, but man was my brush steaming for a good few days. I actually through it had broken and when I asked him he told me what he had done -__- (..boys....). But other than that I've seen zero issues!
Onto the mini brush - that is something that I was less than impressed with. I was excited to start taking this with me on trips as it was smaller and simpler to use. But I felt like I had to go over my hair multiple times for it to actually do anything remotely effective. As someone who doesn't really have overly curly hair, I knew this one would not cut it for most women out there. I have seen some reviews that say it works for them - so to each their own! But if you're gonna invest in one, I definitely recommend the full size one.
What are your thoughts on brush straighteners? Would you use one or stick to your normal plated straightener?
