5 Hair Upgrades That Are Worth the Money!

At the start of my hair journey I already had quite an arsenal of hair tools and products.  A tabletop hooded dryer, FHI platform flat iron, and an electric heating cap just to name a few.

Over the past few years as my hair has grown so has my hair hobby and knowledge. I would watch reviews on YouTube with avid interest and always research the newest, latest and greatest products and tools on popular hair forums and blogs.

However, I always felt that it was completely unjustified for me to purchase upgrades just because I wanted to when my “old” tools were still perfectly functional.

Over time though, I felt I deserved a few improvements and now only regret that I did not do it sooner! Here are five upgrades that I think are well worth the investment:

1.  Professional Hooded Hair Dryer*:  You may love the results of a roller set but if you are like me, the thought of sitting under your old table top dryer for two or three hours makes it not only dreadful but completely impractical to set your hair regularly.

After realizing that my relaxed hair prefers roller sets to air drying, I finally decided to bite the bullet and invest in a Pebco hooded dryer which is actually modeled after the very popular Pibbs Kwik Dry for a fraction of the price.

If you are natural with 3c or looser texture then straight roller sets may also be right up your street but even if you use your dryer just for deep conditioning* or curly sets, you will see a huge improvement in the thoroughness of your treatments with a better quality dryer.

I’ve done a video review to show its features, and now I am able to dry my roller sets in less than an hour. My hair and ends thank me each and every wash!

2. Titanium Flat Iron*:  To see the difference between titanium and ceramic flat irons* check out this article I wrote a few months ago.  Although I do not flat iron* my hair often, when I do I want it to be with as few passes as possible to achieve straight, sleek, shiny hair and this applies both for those who are natural and relaxed heads.

For me, titanium flat irons are a huge upgrade and give me far superior results with less heat which means healthier hair overall.

3. High Quality Seamless Combs*:  After reading a review from a transitioning blogger, I decided to purchase three combs from Hercules-Sagemann even though throughout the entire checkout process I was thinking “These combs are extremely overpriced!”

It was a splurge that I thought I would regret…but am happy to report I was completely wrong!  I see so much less breakage with these combs and detangling and styling is a breeze!

If you are not able to find these particular combs then any high quality polished seamless combs will also make a big difference in your breakage.

4. Professional Hair Shears:  I always snagged a pair of inexpensive scissors at the counter of my local BSS or the Conair ones available in Wal-Mart.

I honestly thought the most important thing was to have scissors that were designated for hair only, and that the price and quality of hair shears did not really matter.

Recently I decided to dust my hair monthly so I purchased a pair of $30 shears from Sally’s Beauty Supply. With the first cut, I noticed a huge difference!

They were so much more precise, with neater and cleaner results! I can almost guarantee that overtime, my hair will retain more length because my ends are healthier.

5. Twist Turbans:  I know this item seemed silly to me when I first saw the infomercial for the popular terrycloth hair towel. Like all infomercials it was offered at $19.95 + shipping/handling.

I laughed thinking that I could achieve the same results with a regular towel twisted around my hair. After the Twist Turban trickled down into the retail and finally the discount stores…I bought a set.

Well, this simple little invention was well worth the $5 I spent. The terrycloth is extra absorbent and because it is specifically made for wrapping hair, you don’t have the extra weight that a full sized towel gives. I’ve also bought cheap knockoffs at the dollar store and the fabric is not nearly as soft nor does it absorb as well as the real thing.

Final Thoughts

It’s quite easy to find discount versions of expensive products that may be able to do as good a job as the original. Your decisions will probably depend of whether you are natural or relaxed, heat free or a heat freak or of course how often you style your hair but all in all you have to decide for yourself what you consider to be an upgrade that is worth the extra money.