Hair iron
Encyclopedia
A hair iron or hair tong is a tool
used to change the structure
of the hair
using heat
. There are three general kinds: curling irons, used to make the hair curl
y, straightening irons, commonly called straighteners or flat irons, used to straighten the hair, and crimping irons, used to create crimps
of the desired size in the hair. Most models have electric heating
; cordless curling irons typically use butane
.
, material, and shape of barrel and the type of handle. The barrel's diameter can be anywhere from 0.5 inches (1.3 cm) to 2 inches (5.1 cm). Smaller barrels typically create spiral curls or ringlets, and larger barrels are used to give shape and volume to a hairstyle
.
Curling irons are typically made of Teflon, ceramic
, tourmaline
, metal
, or titanium
, each of which has its pros and cons. The barrel's shape can either be a cylinder
, cone
, or reverse cone, and the iron can have brush attachments or double and triple barrels.
The curling iron can also have either a spring-loaded, Marcel, or clipless handle. Spring-loaded handles are the most popular and use a spring
to work the barrel's clamp. When using a Marcel handle, named after Marcel Grateau, one applies his or her own pressure to the clamp. Clipless wands have no clamp, and the user simply wraps hair around a rod. Most clipless curling irons come with a Kevlar
glove to avoid burns.
, work by breaking down the hair's hydrogen bond
s found in the hair's cortex, which cause hair to bend and become curly. Once the bonds are broken, hair is prevented from holding its original, natural form, though the hydrogen bonds can re-form if exposed to moisture. They can also use infrared technology.
s.
Tool
A tool is a device that can be used to produce an item or achieve a task, but that is not consumed in the process. Informally the word is also used to describe a procedure or process with a specific purpose. Tools that are used in particular fields or activities may have different designations such...
used to change the structure
Structure
Structure is a fundamental, tangible or intangible notion referring to the recognition, observation, nature, and permanence of patterns and relationships of entities. This notion may itself be an object, such as a built structure, or an attribute, such as the structure of society...
of the hair
Hair
Hair is a filamentous biomaterial, that grows from follicles found in the dermis. Found exclusively in mammals, hair is one of the defining characteristics of the mammalian class....
using heat
Heat
In physics and thermodynamics, heat is energy transferred from one body, region, or thermodynamic system to another due to thermal contact or thermal radiation when the systems are at different temperatures. It is often described as one of the fundamental processes of energy transfer between...
. There are three general kinds: curling irons, used to make the hair curl
Curl
In vector calculus, the curl is a vector operator that describes the infinitesimal rotation of a 3-dimensional vector field. At every point in the field, the curl is represented by a vector...
y, straightening irons, commonly called straighteners or flat irons, used to straighten the hair, and crimping irons, used to create crimps
Hair crimping
Hair crimping is a method of styling usually straight, long hair so that it becomes wavy, often in a sawtooth fashion. This is usually achieved by treating the hair with heat from a crimping iron or by braiding the hair, often in multiple strands, then undoing the braids.In 1972, the modern...
of the desired size in the hair. Most models have electric heating
Electric heating
Electric heating is any process in which electrical energy is converted to heat. Common applications include space heating, cooking, water heating and industrial processes. An electric heater is an electrical appliance that converts electrical energy into heat...
; cordless curling irons typically use butane
Butane
Butane is a gas with the formula C4H10 that is an alkane with four carbon atoms. The term may refer to any of two structural isomers, or to a mixture of them: in the IUPAC nomenclature, however, butane refers only to the unbranched n-butane isomer; the other one being called "methylpropane" or...
.
History
Simon Monroe patented a hair straightener in 1906 that comprised 7 metallic teeth that are combed through the hair, while in 1909 Isaac K. Shero patented a hair straightener composed of two flat irons that are heated and pressed together.Curling iron
Curling irons, also known as curling tongs, create waves or curls in the hair. There are many different types of modern curling irons, which can vary by diameterDiameter
In geometry, a diameter of a circle is any straight line segment that passes through the center of the circle and whose endpoints are on the circle. The diameters are the longest chords of the circle...
, material, and shape of barrel and the type of handle. The barrel's diameter can be anywhere from 0.5 inches (1.3 cm) to 2 inches (5.1 cm). Smaller barrels typically create spiral curls or ringlets, and larger barrels are used to give shape and volume to a hairstyle
Hairstyle
A hairstyle, hairdo, or haircut refers to the styling of hair, usually on the human head. The fashioning of hair can be considered an aspect of personal grooming, fashion, and cosmetics, although practical, cultural, and popular considerations also influence some hairstyles.-History of...
.
Curling irons are typically made of Teflon, ceramic
Ceramic
A ceramic is an inorganic, nonmetallic solid prepared by the action of heat and subsequent cooling. Ceramic materials may have a crystalline or partly crystalline structure, or may be amorphous...
, tourmaline
Tourmaline
Tourmaline is a crystal boron silicate mineral compounded with elements such as aluminium, iron, magnesium, sodium, lithium, or potassium. Tourmaline is classified as a semi-precious stone and the gem comes in a wide variety of colors...
, metal
Metal
A metal , is an element, compound, or alloy that is a good conductor of both electricity and heat. Metals are usually malleable and shiny, that is they reflect most of incident light...
, or titanium
Titanium
Titanium is a chemical element with the symbol Ti and atomic number 22. It has a low density and is a strong, lustrous, corrosion-resistant transition metal with a silver color....
, each of which has its pros and cons. The barrel's shape can either be a cylinder
Cylinder (geometry)
A cylinder is one of the most basic curvilinear geometric shapes, the surface formed by the points at a fixed distance from a given line segment, the axis of the cylinder. The solid enclosed by this surface and by two planes perpendicular to the axis is also called a cylinder...
, cone
Cone (geometry)
A cone is an n-dimensional geometric shape that tapers smoothly from a base to a point called the apex or vertex. Formally, it is the solid figure formed by the locus of all straight line segments that join the apex to the base...
, or reverse cone, and the iron can have brush attachments or double and triple barrels.
The curling iron can also have either a spring-loaded, Marcel, or clipless handle. Spring-loaded handles are the most popular and use a spring
Spring (device)
A spring is an elastic object used to store mechanical energy. Springs are usually made out of spring steel. Small springs can be wound from pre-hardened stock, while larger ones are made from annealed steel and hardened after fabrication...
to work the barrel's clamp. When using a Marcel handle, named after Marcel Grateau, one applies his or her own pressure to the clamp. Clipless wands have no clamp, and the user simply wraps hair around a rod. Most clipless curling irons come with a Kevlar
Kevlar
Kevlar is the registered trademark for a para-aramid synthetic fiber, related to other aramids such as Nomex and Technora. Developed at DuPont in 1965, this high strength material was first commercially used in the early 1970s as a replacement for steel in racing tires...
glove to avoid burns.
Straightening irons
Straightening irons, straighteners, or flat irons, not to be confused with clothing ironsIron (appliance)
A clothes iron, also referred to as simply an iron, is a small appliance used in ironing to remove wrinkles from fabric.Ironing works by loosening the ties between the long chains of molecules that exist in polymer fiber materials. With the heat and the weight of the ironing plate, the fibers are...
, work by breaking down the hair's hydrogen bond
Hydrogen bond
A hydrogen bond is the attractive interaction of a hydrogen atom with an electronegative atom, such as nitrogen, oxygen or fluorine, that comes from another molecule or chemical group. The hydrogen must be covalently bonded to another electronegative atom to create the bond...
s found in the hair's cortex, which cause hair to bend and become curly. Once the bonds are broken, hair is prevented from holding its original, natural form, though the hydrogen bonds can re-form if exposed to moisture. They can also use infrared technology.
Crimping irons
Crimping irons or crimpers work by crimping hair in sawtooth style. The look is similar to the crimps left after taking out small braidBraid
A braid is a complex structure or pattern formed by intertwining three or more strands of flexible material such as textile fibres, wire, or human hair...
s.