Do you remember that exciting day back at the end of June when we nicely asked our Instagram followers to vote on hairstyles they wanted to see come to life? I, for one, voted for a ’90s-inspired ‘do and beach waves, and it turns out most other people did as well, as they were the winning styles from our poll. Sure, on paper, they might sound standard, but it’s more complicated than that. How do two people with very different hair types achieve the same look? By investing in the right tool.
One of the best ways to determine a straightener’s effectiveness is to try it on different hair types, which is exactly why I tapped Who What Wear’s wavy-haired editor in chief, Kat Collings, and curly haired fashion editor Anneliese Dominguez to put the Dyson Corrale™ Hair Straightener ($500) to the test. To no one’s surprise, it lived up to the hype. Both were able to achieve the same styles on a lower heat setting all because of the flexing-plate technology and intelligent heat control, which essentially responds to the thickness, texture, and length of anyone’s hair and automatically controls the temperature for optimal styling results. “It’s like the machine is just smarter and knows how to adapt to (and make the most of) your hairstyling know-how. The technology basically transforms you into a hairdresser,” says Collings.
I know it sounds too futuristic to be true, but it is, and Dominguez and Collings prove it below. Keep scrolling to see their takes on each hairstyle and why the Dyson Corrale is worth the investment.
“I have 3b/3c curls and love them, but sometimes I like switching things up. And since I’m a ’90s baby, I was excited to do a straight style with a slight curl at the ends. I’m extremely cautious about putting heat on my curls, so really, the Dyson Corrale is a dream come true. I’m not worried about frying my hair at a temperature that’s too hot since it uses intelligent heat control. Also the flexing plates help make it so my hair doesn’t constantly fall out of the grasp of the straightener and I don’t have to go over the same section of hair multiple times. All I did for this style was clip my hair into sections, place it on the center of the plates, and slowly glide the tool down and rotate it inward at the ends of my hair. It’s easy—just look how good the style turned out! It feels polished and fun.” — Dominguez . Editor’s note: Intelligent heat control essentially responds to the thickness, texture, and length of your hair and automatically controls the temperature for optimal styling results.
“This ’90s-inspired style is sleek and straight and curled under at the ends. For my hair type, relatively straight hairstyles are pretty easy to achieve with a straightener. You just clamp and pull, right? But with the Dyson Corrale, I found that the little curl under at the ends of my hair (usually an opportunity for disaster with my old straightener) felt like it came out easily as a really pretty and natural curve. It was also exciting to see I could get really sleek results without so much heat. I was able to go about 70º lower than I normally do to get the same style, and it’s because of my favorite feature: the flexing plates. Honestly, when I first heard of the feature, I was like, sounds cool, but not sure what it actually does or means. I still probably can’t explain the mechanics of it, but I know that when using it, I felt like the straightener was shaping and gathering my hair, and voilà: impressive (for me) results. Previously, when using a hot straightener, I would often get unintended dents in my hairstyle because I didn’t have great control of the device, but I felt protected from that with the Dyson Corrale. It sounds cheesy, but I’m honestly grateful I was introduced to it. I’d definitely wear this hairstyle every day because it was quick to execute.” — Collings . Editor’s note: Flexing plates shape around the hair, gathering it neatly together on each pass for more control. This means you can achieve the same style with less heat and up to half the damage compared to conventional solid plates.
“If I’m being totally honest, I was a little nervous the beach waves were going to take me a long time to do, but to my surprise, they didn’t. I clipped my hair into sections and placed one section at a time in the center of the Dyson Corrale’s flexing plates, rotated it away from my face, and glided it down slowly. One of my favorite things about the Dyson Corrale is that I don’t have to press down hard when gliding it through my hair.” — Dominguez
“Before, when I used a straightener to get waves, it was always somewhat unpredictable. Sometimes, what I did looked pretty good, and other times, not so much! Using the Dyson Corrale definitely felt like an upgrade in terms of being able to get the look I wanted and with no real learning or skill upgrade on my part. I was so pleased with how it turned out! I felt like my waves felt uniform yet undone and effortless. My goal is to make beach waves look like an enhanced version of my natural air-dry texture (not like something I used a hot tool to achieve), and the flexing plates made it easy. My favorite tip for creating waves with a straightener is to imagine revving a motorcycle. The motion of flicking my wrist forward and backward is what I used to get my waves. I’d wear this hairstyle for occasions like attending a wedding or a big night out or, honestly, any day I want to feel extra confident.” — Collings
“It’s no secret that the Dyson Corrale is an investment, but if you use a straightener regularly or just want exceptional results when you do, I’d recommend it. My previous straightener was professional level, and not exactly affordable either, but I found that switching to the Dyson Corrale gets me better results. And the cord-free factor is huge. Besides just being convenient, it has unrestricted movement that actually helps increase control. Plus, lower heat means less damage. When you put all of these things together, the investment starts to make a lot of sense.” — Collings
