i was recently contacted by the kind folks at misikko to see if i would be interested in reviewing their hana air dryer. i don't have many high end beauty products and mostly use items from the corner drugstore, so i was interested to compare a professional level dryer to my lower priced average joe dryer.
when i received the package it was filled to the brim with other hair products and gifts. i've yet to try the paul mitchell shampoo, but the hana shield heat therapy left my hair silky and straight for the majority of the day - which is saying a lot in this southern summer humidity.
the dryer itself is very basic in design. it has a clean, sleek minimal look and only the very basic buttons and switches. the cord is also very long - much longer than my everyday dryer - i would imagine this might be for salon use reasons. it's also a bit heavier than my other dryer, but it feels like a high quality and sturdy piece of equipment.
for this test run i decided to use no product on my hair. and normally i use a fair amount of product. my hair is naturally fine thin and flat, so i need a lot of sticky goop and backcombing to make it have whatever appearance of body it can get. but i wanted to see what the dryer would do on its own and not attribute anything to it that was actually the work of whichever product. my first impression when i flicked it on at the high setting was 'wow, this thing can blow' - it was a really strong stream of air! so impressively strong that i called milty in to check it out. almost like a wind tunnel effect. kidding. but it was strong. once i was done playing around with it and found a lower setting better suited for my fine thin locks - i was really impressed with the outcome. when using my everyday hair dryer my hair usually has a sort of dry frizzy look to it that i smooth down with a shine spray or with my flat iron. my hair is naturally pretty straight, but i do have a few cowlicks in my bangs that usually need a bit of tending to and around my face one side of my hair likes to flip inward while the other side flips outward. however, with the hana air hair dryer it was like using a hair dryer, flat iron, smoothing and shine product all-in-one. there was no need to break out the flat iron and no need for any shine product. my hair looked smooth and shiny and perfectly straight, even at my problem areas, with no product whatsoever - and in half the time. the other thing about this dryer is that it works really fast. when i tested this, our ac was still broken, so less time under the heat of a dryer was highly appreciated. also - less time = less damage!
so would i recommend the hana hair dryer? definitely. is it better than your every day average big box store dryer? definitely. the only downside to the dryer is that it comes with a higher price tag. however you are getting higher quality, and if you're into hair it's certainly a nice piece. but for those of us on a budget, price is certainly always a factor and consideration. if you're a stylist or hair enthusiast - then yes, definitely save up and try it out!
misikko also sells high quality hair straighteners (which i've seen other bloggers review favorably quite recently) and other hair products. if hair is your thing - definitely take a peek.
(just a note: i wasn't paid for this review or asked to only say favorable things - everything is my own honest opinion. i was contacted by the company and the products were all sent to me by misikko free of charge)
