Wow so it's been a while, but I've finally purchased a longtime lemming of mine and I wanted to share because I love it. I needed a new flat iron. I've recently become very serious about heat protection after years of slacking and being on and off. It seemed a bit silly to me to be so obsessive about sulfate free shampoo and moisturizing well and then frying my hair, so I started using the John Frieda Frizz-Ease Thermal Protection Hair Serum every time I used my old iron. FYI I don't blow dry. I always air dry. The thermal protection serum works even better than the original, has a thinner consistency and the added heat protection. I also like that it doesn't have water or alcohol in it, which is important if you have curly hair you don't wash everyday.
Next step for me was to get a higher quality iron and one that ideally would work on a lower temp. I have very curly AA hair, but it's quite fragile. The GHD and original CHI models were ruled out automatically for their lack of adjustable temp. Reviews and warnings from members on MUA cemented this belief. I don't buy the one temp fits all and that's a lot of money to spend on something lacking even a temp control, a very basic feature. There are other CHI models with temperature control, but the CHIs get such mixed reviews as far as longevity and quality is concerned. I didn't want shell out $100+ frequently to replace it. I saw so many reviews for different high quality straighteners but nothing stood out from the pack until I came across Cloud Nine. They are created by the original makers of the GHD.
(Picture Source: http://the6inchstilettos.blogspot.com/2011/04/review-cloud-nine-styling-iron.html)
The Cloud Nine Iron comes with:
- Temperature Control (75-225 Celsius)
- Swivel Cord
- Automatic Shut Off
- Black Ceramic Plates
- RFID Chip
- Heat Guard
- Universal Voltage
- Dual Adaptor (Either UK/Euro or US/Euro)
- Carry Pouch
- 2 year Warranty, that right ladies they stand behind their product!
I heard about these irons last year on YT...
- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_QTfuWQeyPg
- http://youtu.be/8fpgqSZ2uP4 (Pixiwoo - The O)
...and decided then that I wanted them, but they weren't available in the US so having to order them from the website, plus the price tag made me wait a while, like a whole year. By the time I purchased them they were ready to launch them in the US, so I am one of the first people to have the iron with US plugs (yay no bulky adaptors!). I didn't want to wait the extra couple months for them to be in salons here to get them, since I already been waiting a year, so I paid the £20 shipping and ordered them from the site. I emailed Cloud Nine first about the availability and that is also how I ensured I got US plugs. I'm not sure if they're automatically shipping US plugs to US orders. It was £20 + £129 = £149/$244.37. Minus the shipping and it would be cheaper than the GHD though. £20 is about the standard international registered mail cost, so they aren't extorting you if you aren't familiar with UK shipping prices.
*As far a price is concerned I don't mind splurging for quality. I don't go to the salon for any type of treatment. I trim my own hair and I don't dye or relax my hair so the way I see it I probably spend less on my hair than most. I flat iron my hair every week after I wash it and about 10 minutes everyday to touch it up. When you use your flat iron on a daily basis getting a quality iron just makes sense. I'm not well off by any stretch of the imagination. I simply saved for it.
It's a very attractive iron. It's sleek and the packaging has a minimal sophistication to it. It appeals more to me than the shiny/gaudy GHD style packaging, but that's personal preference and ultimately irrelevant The barrel has a tapered sleek shape, more so than the CHI, GHD or Sedu and that is important and functional. I normally can't do the twist the iron all the way around and pull thing that some people can do for curls because of my 3c hair type. I just twist a bit as I pull which is a bit more labor intensive, but I can do that with this iron =). It feels very smooth in the hair. I have a lot of hair and a tight natural curl, but each hair is quite fine, so it's nice to be able to use it on 175 Celsius. I could even use it on 150. My hair feels soft, but it's also shiny, that kind of shine I normally can only achieve on a higher scorching heat. It's light weight, but it feels very sturdy. Even the cord feels nice...not that that's a real reason to buy an iron, but it's worth noting =p. The automatic shut off does work and I think I'll breathe easier knowing that.
Ex. of my hair type:
My hair close up, I know scary.
And then straightened and curled close up...I add a bit of curl back in cause I look really weird with no curl or volume.
So I read some older reviews from when the iron first came out in 2009 and they said the plates snagged a bit. I didn't experience that so my guess would be that changes have been made to the iron plates since that. If a flat iron would snag in anyone's hair it would be mine =p.
I love them and it seems to have gotten even better over the week, which is odd because I thought I would be less enamored once the mental shiny newness wore off.
The only odd thing is the plug... the US plugs seem to be backwards so you have to plug it in upside down. Which isn't a problem for plugging into the wall, but is inconvenient for power strips. I emailed them about it, so hopefully they'll take that into consideration for future batch. Upside though is that I the US plug, like the UK plug, unscrews to reveal a Euro plug. Convenient for me because I travel to Germany a lot.
Yes, I hogs all zee space!!!
Plugs aside, my hair feels so nice. Assuming I'm not getting super sweaty, my hair stays freshly styled all day. It's good stuff this iron. Also I don't relax my hair. I'm "natural" and I don't even have to crank it up all the way...impressive. I probably will never or very rarely use it on the highest setting, but it's nice to know that I can and that I have options either with my own hair or if I want to straighten a friends.
Oh, I've heard bloggers complain about their fingers getting pinched in the hinge when they take of the blue heat protector...
(Picture Source: http://www.carolinexo.com/2010/02/cloud-nine-hair-straightener-review.html)
It is possible, I tested it and it doesn't feel good, but the place where I grab my flat iron is naturally towards the center of the iron handle and not the bottom. Once I stopped trying to pinch myself, I haven't. It's not a huge deal, but it's something to keep in mind. I hope this makes sense, but you'd have to be holding the iron where the shiny logo is in the pic above while you removed the heat protective cap.
Anywho, any other questions please ask!
You can visit their website here: http://www.cloudninehair.com/. They also make a micro iron, wide iron, wand type curler and a unique velcro roller system called The O.
*Pictures without sources are mine. I borrowed pictures for this review since my camera is on the fritz and I only wanted to struggle with my camera phone for unique images.
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