I first heard about the TYME iron a few months ago when it started showing up on my Facebook newsfeed. An iron that curls your hair but is easy-to-use like a straightener? Almost seemed too good to be true. For those of you who don’t know, I have a love/hate relationship with my hair. My hair is naturally wavy. And sure that might seem nice and all, but it’s also frizzy. AND it’s thin af. Curling my hair always took too long (cause I’m not coordinated enough to use a curling iron, haha), and straightening it left it super flat. But I straightened it almost on a daily basis anyway cause flat hair seemed better than bedhead. So let me just say right off the bat that this iron has changed my life!! Well, maybe not my life, but definitely my hair.
From the outside, this iron looks like a straightener with rounded edges. The inside is where it gets interesting. The plates don’t lay completely flat. They’re slanted at an angle, which is the whole reason why this concept works. They include a diagram card that shows you how to use the iron on your left/right side, as well as how to use it if you just want to straighten your hair. To be honest, when I first saw the diagram, I freaked out. They were talking about “guide lines,” arm positioning, arm movement…it seemed more involved than using a curling iron.
This iron is not as intuitive as I thought it would be. It takes time to get used to, and it took me 3 days to get comfortable with it. Patience is key. I highly recommend watching videos of people using it on YouTube. Those are much easier to follow than the diagrams. TYME also offers StyleTYME sessions (1 on 1 Skype/FaceTime/Google Hangouts) for free, so that’s another thing you guys can take advantage of. I’ve heard they’re actually very helpful. Once you get the hang of it, though, this iron is absolutely amazing. Before, when I used a curling iron, I would have to straighten my hair first to get rid of the frizz, and then use the curler afterwards. Took way too much time. That’s why I love this iron so much. The way it curls with both plates surrounding your hair makes your hair come out super sleek and shiny (and curled). Literally the best of both worlds. And I can go through all my hair in 15-20 min.
The iron heats up super fast—less than a minute. It’ll start off blinking blue when it’s heating up and it’ll stop blinking when it’s ready to use. There’s no heat setting so it always goes straight up to 400 degrees. I usually straighten my hair at 450 degrees so I think the temperature is fine (and it really gets the job done). But I can understand how it might be an issue for people who use a max heat setting of 300 or something.
Your curls will come out differently depending on the angle you hold your iron at as you slide it through your hair. The closer to vertical your iron is angled, the tighter the curl will be. I hold my iron at more of a 45-degree angle, and the curls, in my opinion, come out looser and more natural looking. Just my personal preference, but hey, at least you know you got options. Also, don’t clamp your hair down with the iron too tightly—it’ll just come out straight even if you have the positioning right.
Some general tips:

The brown strips on this side of the iron are the “guide lines” that the diagrams refer to.

The other side…the non-“guide lines” side.

If you’re right handed, you should be holding the iron like this no matter which side you’re curling. Thumb should always be underneath the power button.
Hope you guys found that helpful! This iron is definitely frustrating to use at first, and the curls may come out inconsistent, but trust me, keep trying. You’ll get the hang of it soon enough and your hair routine will be completely transformed!
You can learn more about the iron on TYME’s website.
XOXO,
great review :
NEW POST : THE COLORFUL THOUGHTS
LOVE 🙂
xx
Hadasah | http://www.styletolove.com
Thanks for reading 🙂
I love how it looks! So chic 🙂
xx
http://putitallonme.com/
Yep the quality is definitely there too! 🙂
Great review! Love it 🙂
Xx
Molly
http://www.trendychickadee.com
Thanks Molly! Glad you enjoyed.
so pretty xx, Erin – http://www.stylebythepeople.com
Thanks for reading, Erin!