How to Use a Flat Iron 

1: Use the Right Shampoo and Conditioner

For best results, your hair straightening ritual shouldn’t start when you get to the flat iron, but in the shower. And what you need are straightening shampoo and conditioner. These products are not powerful enough to give you that perfect glossy finish on their own. But combined with a flat iron, they can significantly improve the results.

2: Your Hair Needs To Be 100% Dry

You know how sometimes you catch a section of hair with your flat iron and a cloud of mist quickly evaporates? I used to think that the sound it makes feels kind of satisfying. Like when you pop an acne. Little did I know that that was the sound of my hair getting fried. While wet, hair is so fragile, it should be treated with heat as little as possible. Even only slightly damp hair can get much more damaged than if it was completely dry.

3: Apply a Heat Protectant

Heat protectant sprays and lotions are products meant to be applied before exposing your hair to high heats in order to protect it as much as possible and reduce the damage. They are not all mighty, but they do help.

4: Make Sure the Temperature Is Right

Just because the temperature on your flat iron can go up to 450F doesn’t mean you have to turn it all the way up. The more heat you apply to your hair, the more damaged it gets.

5. Separate Your Hair into Thin Sections

You can use a clip to pick up the upper layer of your hair. Then separate the hair that’s left down into smaller sections. The exact thickness of the sections would depend on your hair and on the tool you are using. The sections shouldn’t be too thin or it will take you ages to straighten your whole hair.

6 Apply a Serum or Oil

Now that you’ve got your hair looking exactly as you wanted it to, even though you’ve tried to be as gentle as possible, your strands have still gone through a lot. Use a hair serum or oil to replenish some of the lost moisture and help your hair stay silky and smooth.