Remington PROluxe Salon Dryer and Straightener Review

23 September 2016

Remington have released two styling products that promise to give salon quality results at budget-friendly prices: the PROluxe Salon Straightener and Dryer. I was lucky enough to try both of them.

Both PROluxe products have what Remington call “PROheat technology”, which improves even heat distribution for more effective and less damaging styling. In straighteners, the heat of the plates drop as you glide it along cold hair, so even if the temperature is set right, you’ll still have to go over your hair a few times, causing possible uneven heating and spots with increased damage. The PROLuxe straightener uses a digital sensor to monitor the heat and immediately boost it back up when it drops for “one pass” straightening. The ceramic coating has 15 times more ceramic than a regular straightener as well to promote even heating, and is extra smooth to limit snagging. There’s also a handy switch to lock the plates closed for easier storage.

I had a wave put in my hair at Edwards and Co salon using the PROLuxe straightener – I was impressed by how quick it was, and how long it lasted (3 days with a metric truckload of dry shampoo, including 2 dance classes!). If only the straightener came with a stylist who actually knows what they’re doing and can see the back…

My Lazy Hair Routine

30 June 2016

My Lazy Haircare Routine - Luxcurly Hair Curler

My poor neglected hair. I’ve really tried to look after it, but unfortunately I have no willpower so I’ve been pretty slack. Luckily, I’ve found a few lazy ways to try to keep my hair OK with a minimum of effort!

Luxcurly Rotating Curling Iron

I’m still in love with the Luxcurly line of rotating curling irons for when I want curly hair but I also don’t want to burn my fingers or get DOMS from manipulating a wand around my head for an hour. The barrel spins with a touch of a button, so you can just clip your hair in, spin and it does the hard work for you! (You will still need to comb your hair and clip it and all that unfortunately – it’s not quite as good as a human hairdresser, but it’s pretty close!). Amazingly, it manages to make my stubbornly straight Asian hair hold a curl for hours, with the help of a ton of hairspray.

Nape Undercut

I’ve been using this Remington Barber’s Best Hair Clippers to give the boyfriend haircuts that are both cheap and don’t look weird. I think he got sick of me demanding a backrub for each haircut, so he convinced me to let him give me a nape undercut…just in time for winter. Oops! It’s a bit cold when I put my hair up, but it’s made my hair dry faster and feel lighter, plus it looks the same when I have my hair down or in a low ponytail.

Remington i-LIGHT Pro+ Face & Body IPL 5 month review

15 May 20169 April 2016

Quite a few readers have asked me to update on how effective the Remington i-LIGHT Pro+ Face & Body IPL machine (model IPL6500AU) is, long(ish) term. So here’s a review of the results 5 months later! Check out my earlier posts for an overview of the Remington i-LIGHT IPL machine and how it to use it.

Overview of the Remington i-LIGHT Pro+ Face & Body IPL Machine

The i-LIGHT Pro+ is a compact unit, featuring:

An infinity bulb which (theoretically) never needs replacing
Face and body attachments for treating different areas
A skin sensor to check if your skin is suitable for IPL
5 energy settings, to ensure comfort

A full treatment regimen is 3 sets of treatments, 2 weeks apart – top up treatments may be necessary.

5 Month IPL Update

I originally did three areas (right armpit, right bikini line, left forearm). The area I wanted to reduce hair in most was my armpit. Unfortunately, I managed to get an ingrown hair in the armpit that I was treating, which then turned into a minor cyst (gross, I know – sorry!), so I couldn’t continue after the 3rd treatment, which was annoying because that’s where I was seeing the most improvement. I also stopped treating the other areas as well around this time (early November).

Guest Post: Remington Barber’s Best (Virtually Indestructible) Beard Trimmer review

6 February 2016

This is a guest post from our esteemed nail art guru. He’s also apparently a male grooming appliance connoisseur. Here are his musings on the Remington Barber’s Best (aka. the Virtually Indestructible) Beard Trimmer.

I’m normally the kind of person who wonders why anyone would spend extra money when they can get something cheaper that does the same job. But I was given one of these Barber’s Best Beard Trimmers from Remington ($79.95) to review, so I took it for a spin.

The Barber’s Best Beard Trimmer is called the Virtually Indestructible Beard Trimmer overseas. They must have changed the name for Australia because Australians would see it as a challenge.

The trimmer uses a lithium battery, which gives you ample power and good runtime (120 h) from a 4 h charge. The power of this trimmer is fucking good. My last few trimmers I’ve tried made me feel like I was trying to fell a forest with a handsaw, going back and forth over the same spot, but with the Remington trimmer I’ve got a bulldozer, and the forest is gone in no time.

The runtime is also a step up from some other trimmers, which seem to last for about 15 minutes, especially after a couple of years’ usage. Also, it can be used while it’s charging, which is important in case your battery runs out and you’re left with just a Hitler moustache. Unless that’s what you’re after?

Remington Revitalise Facial Cleansing Brush Review

21 November 20188 December 2015

I’ve used a cheapie vibrating cleansing brush for a while for physical exfoliation and hardcore make-up removal purposes, but Remington’s Revitalise Facial Cleansing Brush is the first rotating brush I’ve tried – it actually both rotates AND vibrates.

It has a stylish pale green handle and comes with three brush heads – normal, sensitive and massage.

The normal head has bristles similar to those on a very soft toothbrush. The sensitive head is softer still, and the massage head has little silicone nubbins. Changing the heads is easy – you pull the first head off the handle firmly, the new head will click into place easily. The heads come with clear protectors with drainage holes.

Remington i-LIGHT Pro+ Face & Body IPL review – in action!

22 October 2015

I’ve now used the Remington i-LIGHT Pro+ Face & Body IPL6500AU IPL machine twice, on several areas (armpit, arm, bikini line). Here’s a step-by-step guide on how to use it, and how it went (you can check out my earlier post for how it works and how cost effective it is). Step 1 – Check your skin There’s a cool …

Remington i-LIGHT Pro+ Face & Body IPL review Pt 1

24 May 20166 October 2015

Remington have just released the i-LIGHT Pro+ Face & Body IPL6500AU, a new home IPL machine for permanent hair removal. I’m getting to the point where I’m sick of itchy shaving stubble and waxing takes too much effort, so IPL and lasers have been on my mind for a while! Remington kindly gave me a machine to trial.

How does IPL hair removal work?

There’s a full breakdown of the science behind IPL and laser hair removal in this post, but here’s a quick summary.

The basis of laser and IPL hair removal is that dark coloured objects absorb light more than light coloured objects. A strong pulse of light is shone on the hair. The melanin in the hair absorbs the light and turns it into heat, which kills the hair at the root, or makes it produce finer, lighter hair. The fancy term for this is selective thermolysis. Since skin also contains melanin, there’s a possibility that dark skin can also be damaged by light treatment, so IPL works best with dark coarse hair on light skin.

There’s a catch though – only hairs in a certain stage of the hair life cycle (the anagen phase – stage 1 below, when the hair is actively growing) will be affected. This means you’ll have to make a few visits to zap all the hair. Hair can also repair itself after a while, so maintenance treatments are needed too.