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Once used for just brushing, now hair brushes are one of the quickest, easiest tools to use for styling your hair. When using a round brush for styling your hair, the size of the brush determines the size of the curlThe size of the brush determines the size of the curl. It’s a good idea to use a thermal styling product, which is a protectant from heat and a product to help lock in the curl.

Thick, coarse, medium or frizzy hair needs a brush that has firm enough bristles to grab the hair and hold it. The bristles must have some flexability to them, however, or they can break and damage the hair.

Fine and thin hair should use a more dense and softer bristled brush. This kind of bristle will grab and hold your hairtype better.

• Round hair brush with metal cylinder — These are my favorites and are used with a blow dryer to encourage lift, volume, smoothness and to create soft curls. The metal cylinder heats up with using your blow-dryer to lock in the curl. The cylinder is perforated so it saves drying time as it heats all sides of the hair brush at once.

• Round hair brush with boar bristles — This hair brush has more bristles that are more flexible than plastic bristles. It creates the most tension on the hair and results in a smoother look. You can also create volume, lift and achieve soft curls with this hair brush. There are two kinds of bristle hair brushes: medium length, which is good for medium length hair and long hair, and short bristles, which is better for short hair. The short bristle hair brush has more compacted bristles which can get tangled easily in long hair.
• Oval hair brush–The oval hair brush is good for drying medium length hair and long hair and for finishing the ends. It cannot create as much volume at the roots as a round hair brush, and you cannot create the tension to straighten as smoothly as a bristle hair brush.
• Vent hair brush–A vent hair brush is good for brushing through wet or semi-dry hair without the tugging of other style hair brushes. The vents allow air to flow through the brush so the hair can be dried quicker. This can also cause static hair buildup. Straightening is more difficult as the plastic teeth are wider apart and therefore don’t create much tension.
• Flat or paddle hair brush–The flat brush can be used for creating straight looks with long hair and is good for smoothing out wavy hair or curly hair. It can’t be used to create volume easily and will only finish ends straight or with a slight bend. They come with metal or nylon bristle teeth. The bristle teeth are easier on your hair and create more tension for a smoother look.
• Hot air hair brush — This is one of the easiest tools for non-professionals to use. It blows hot or cool air on the hair as it dries it to the size of the barrel used. The barrel is metal so it will heat up and lock in the hair curl. It also takes away the need for sectioning the hair. Hair should be pre-dried about 80-90% before using the hot air hair brush. It will not only save hair styling time, but will also save wear and tear on your hair.

Compare prices on hair brushes at Amazon, eBay or my favorite, Folica. Enter the type of brush in the search box. Got a question, war story or comment about this topic? Click on the comment/trackback link at the bottom of this article, I’d love to hear from you!Technorati Tags: curly hair, hair styling tools, styling tools