Hi babes! I have another beauty review post for you. But not just a review, nay, I will provide irrefutable proof that investing in hair styling tools is worth it.
But first things first: I was sent over the NuMe Octowand 8-in-1 curling iron to review. I used to own a practically identical curling wand but it broke down on me after a couple of uses. This was quite the disappointment to me because I had grown to love the wand, pretty much instantly. The versatility of the different shapes and sizes is great in itself, but the reason why I loved that wand (and, as it turns out, the NuMe Octowand as well) is because my curls lasted SO much longer than with a cheaper styling tool.
I have tried to research why these more expensive, higher quality curling tools provide that superior performance, and I haven't fully figured it out but I suspect it has something to do with the heat being distributed mor equally throughout the wand. Also, the heat being more consistent. This decreases the risk of damaging your locks, and makes sure your curls will have a better (more even) shape. Maybe because the barrels are 100% tourmaline or because they work with infrared heat and negative ions - I just know that the result is top notch.
I'm providing proof of the lasting power of my curls when using the NuMe Octowand, but let me first show you the tool itself.
The Octowand comes in this neat little heatproof beautycase, ideal to travel with. Every wand is neatly secured with elastic band, and there's a protective glove in there as well. I generally don't use it because I rarely burn myself using styling tools, but if you're prone to singeing those fingertips, the glove will sort you out.
Now, let's look at the different wands and what kind of curl you can achieve with these!
The pearl wand is perfect if you want more natural looking, irregular curls. The 32mm wand is more about bounce and volume than about curls, and this one won't really work if you have shorter hair. The 13mm wand will give you big disco hair, but you have to make sure you curl your locks neatly all the way to your roots or it will look weird. The 25mm or the 19mm wand is the most versatile ones, somewhere around that diameter is the width I always recommend to people who want just one curling iron. It can give you beachy waves or glamorous Veronice Lake hair.
The 25/13 and 18/9 mm ones are great because the way the curl becomes tighter towards the ends is a bit more natural and realistic compared to non-tapered curling wands. The 13/25mm wand is a weird one I have to experiment some more with, but I think it should work well if you want more volume on top than on the bottom.
Now, just to benchmark the results I'll be showing you next: if I curl my hair with my 30€ 25/13mm wand, I have a nice amount of curls on day one, on day 2 I have waves, and on day 3 I just have volume and some (frizzy) structure left.
However, if I use one of the medium to narrow Octowand barrels, I have good hair right up until I wash my hair again, on day five. The curls drop a bit from day to day but they remain defined. But don't take my word for it, pictures speak louder than words!
This is after using the 18/9mm wand:
And this is after using the pearl wand:
To say I love this wand is an understatement. And I have owned multiple more affordable curling irons, but they honestly never get me long lasting curls like the upscale styling tools do. $200 isn't cheap, but if you use heat-tools often and you're looking to invest: look no further.
PS: if you don't know what to do with your bangs if you put in some tighter curls all over (tightly curled bangs are hard to get right): I curl my bangs with a 25mm barrel, curling them sideways/up and away from my face, to create that Farrah Fawcett effect. Kind of like this:
(source)
If you have any curl/wand/bang styling questions, shoot!
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