The flat iron that gave me these cutes waves.

 I was going through some old pics on my phone from a couple of years back and stumbled upon these wearing one of my favorite print dresses.  That morning, I was organizing the hair product closet and, all the way in the back was a flat iron that I'd almost forgotten.  I purchased that thing years ago and, once I began my hair journey, I banished it to the back of the lower shelf because of the evils of using heat.  But, truth be told, it was one of my favorite irons of all time.

It's an iron with three interchangeable plates. Two of the three plates, I never, ever use.  One of the plates is the typical one that straighten the hair,  the other is a waffle iron plate that transforms the hair to the texture of a waffle (like....who would want that.....ever.)  I just checked the box and realized that I actually threw the waffle plates away (that's how useless they were).

But the third plate, in my mind was pure gold.  It's a mini wave plate.  And exactly what I was looking for.  Prior to that, I owned a super sized wave iron and although I really wanted it to work for me, the size of the waves were much too big and unnatural looking.  I wanted something that gave my hair texture.  The last thing I wanted was to sport manufactured looking waves. This flat iron was perfect!

In my experience, this iron gives the best results on freshly washed hair.  The final look has more volume and a bit more defined than what you see here.  In these pics, my hair needed to be washed so the it's a bit flatter than normal.

Wearing L'Oreal Greycian Goddess

 What I loved the most about this iron is how well the waves last.  On freshly washed hair, I typically can wear this look for nearly a week.   In the morning, what I typically do is refresh the hair by "crimping" some of the top, most visible layers before heading out. Then using my fingers to fluff the volume back in.   But even waves flatten, it's still wearable. Unlike a braid out which needs to be braided each day.

I prefer this look much more than a braid out for several reasons.  First, it withstands humidity much better since the heat seals the style in.  So I can go about my day and not have to worry about checking the status of my hair.  Second, the results are very consistent. Sometimes braid outs for me are hit and miss.  Third, this looks a bit more natural (if done right) than a braid out.  Fourth, although I'm using heat, it's kind of a protective style for me.  I don't touch my hair while in this state unless I'm fluffing it for volume in the morning.  But no combing, no mindless manipulation and pretty much no issues until the following wash day.

Waves flattened after a couple of days of wear.

These pics were taken a couple of years ago.  I've learned quite a bit since then and I'm a bit more comfortable using heat.  I think I'm gonna start using this baby again.  The bad news is that I've had this flat iron for over 10 years and it's no longer available on the market.  The good news is that there are a couple similar irons that don't have the waffle iron plates (lucky you).    If you're interested, you can check out various options here, here and here.