Cloud Nine Wide Iron Review

I received these lovely straighteners from my mum yesterday, as it was my birthday! I had seen them online, particularly championed by Avia from 'Thesparkleicious' (her blog is here), and the main attraction for me was the wide iron. As someone with quite thick, long curly hair, using straighteners with the usual plate width takes too long - I mean, to fully straighten and perfect my hair with my old Nicky Clarke's or with GHD's takes 90 minutes to 2 hours. So I was excited to finally get hold of a new pair and to try the bigger size irons.

What impressed me straight away was the presentation and packaging of the irons. It's a shallow thing to admit, but first impressions really do matter. The white and black box is embossed with the logo and name of the brand in silver with the gold 'wide' markings on the side and finished with a blue ribbon (not pictured). The actual straighteners themselves also come in a heat resistant little case, to keep them safe, clean and also presentable. I also love the logo keyring as the zip pull, I think that's such a lovely touch.

When I opened them, I enjoyed the sleek black design - they look so professional and the smooth look of them minimises the chunkiness of it, being a wider plate iron. It also comes with a little blue heat resistant cap, to protect the plates when stored, and the plug can convert from a three pin UK plug to European 2 point mains - a great bonus for those of you who travel alot. 

Inside the stems of the irons are all the controls, tucked away so it looks smooth . There is a digital switch to adjust temperatures when in use while the on/off switch is opposite. When I used them last night, I was worried about the switches on the inside being a little hazardous when the irons are hot, but no injuries so far!

Now onto the actual straighteners and their use! As said above, straightening my hair usually takes an age - last night it took me just under an hour, perfecting my hair. That's half the time! What's even more amazing is that it took that amount of time... wait for it... on only 150 degree heat!!! With my previous pair, I always had them on the highest heat (230) and it would still take hours, plus the hotter heat gave my hair a frazzled, coarse feel afterwards. But these lower temperatures and wider plates gave me the look and feel I desired in under an hour. I am simply astounded!

I cannot give these irons any higher praise - they are 100%, 5 stars and 10 million GraceFaces! I cannot recommend them high enough, and for £129 RRP (cheaper in some online retailers), they cost the same as GHDs but are ten times better.

Now go and get yourself some!

xxx