Styling appliances can dry, tease, straighten, crimp, curl and even toast your hair.

If you groan every time you see perfectly styled hair or secretly wish you had hair that looked like Jennifer Aniston’s, you are ready to be introduced to the tools that can make your secret hair fantasies into coiffed realities. Hair styling tools are not just convenient but are actually a boon to millions of women around the world. These unassuming gadgets tease, straighten, crimp, curl and even toast your hair (if not used carefully!). So there’s an appliance out there that’s been made for you in terms of your hair or the style you require.

Take your pick from the following.

Hair dryers: Hair dryers are important gadgets that are used to quick-dry and style the hair. We would recommend a 1000 watt plus dryer. Always choose a dryer that has a thermostat. So that if it gets too hot, the dryer stops and doesn’t burn the hair. A nozzle for the dryer is also very important because the shape of the nozzle helps to concentrate the heat from the dryer at a particular spot or section. Choose a hair dryer that has a range of heat and speed settings so that the hair can be power dried on high heat, finished on lower heat and then used to set the style on a cooler temperature. Hair dryers are mostly used for blow drying.

Hair stylers: They combine the versatility of a hair dryer with the convenience of a styling tool. They operate on the same principle as that of a hair dryer, i.e., blowing warm air through the styler. Some of them come with attachments like brushes, prongs and tongs. Some also have attachments that create waves and increase volume at the roots.

Diffusers: These are used to style curly or permed hair. The basic job of a diffuser is to spread the heat and air from the dryer over a wider area of the hair, encouraging curl formation by spreading the airflow over the hair without disturbing the curls. The prongs on a diffuser also help increase volume at the roots and give the hair some lift. Diffusers with flat heads are designed for gentle drying and are more suitable for shorter styles. Some new models have long straight prongs that are designed to add volume to straight hair while giving it a sleeker finish.

The following attachments have to be heated before they can be used on the hair. You need to be very careful when using these gadgets. If you over heat them, you are likely to burn and subsequently damage your hair and the appliance.

Tongs:These are used to add curls to straight or wavy hair. The appliance consists of a barrel and a depressor groove. The hair is curled around the barrel and held in place till the heated tong sets the style. The size of the curls you get depends on the thickness of the barrel.

Crimpers: Crimpers are generally used to create special styling effects and to increase volume in the hair. Crimpers consist of two ridged metal plates that produce uniform patterned crimps in straight lines on the hair when it’s placed between the heated plates. The hair must be straightened first, either by blow drying or using flat irons for better results.

Straighteners:This attachment works similarly like the crimper accept that instead of creating ripples it flattens the hair. They are generally used to iron out frizzy or very curly hair.

Heated rollers: These are ideal for hair that has to be styled in a short time. They are very effective in adding body and curls to the hair, considering that the rollers come in different sizes, you can get tighter curls or big bouncy ones depending on your choice. These rollers have to be heated after which the hair is then curled around them. Clips that come with the rollers are used to hold the hair in place. The speed at which the rollers heat up depend on the type of rollers being used. Almost all rollers cool down in 30 minutes.

So there you go, you have a variety of choices that can add character and change the very look of your hair. One must add that you need to check the manuals for instructions and follow them to ensure that these appliances have some great styling days ahead of them.