Hair-straightening Products

Living Proof, you can only buy it at Sephora. It's $24 for the 4 oz bottle but lasts longer that you'd think. I use the straight one when I want to go straight and the curly one most days when I let my hair air dry. I still have to dry my hair to get it completely straight (I have very thick hair) but it virtually eliminates the flat iron.

If you have time to blow dry it like that, you would likely have time to run a flat iron over the top at least. I have the same problem, but for me I quickly dry my hair..no round brushing etc.. which makes it much faster, and then run the flat iron over it. Honestly, it is the best way for me, and much quicker and easier on my arms and shoulders than trying to round brush it etc. You might be surprised by how easy it is if you have a decent iron. I would love a nicer one, but mine is just from Revlon and honestly does just fine. Good luck ~A.~

My 14yr old daughter and I have straight hair (thanks to my Native American heritage). Although....her dad is full Italian and she gets some curl when she hates it.

She has a Chi (pricey but worth it) and the Chi protective products you use with it to make sure her hair is straight daily.

For the most part, we both have very straight hair, however, the humidity does wonders for us and we will take to the hair with a Chi when needed. She uses it daily, I do not need to use it...mine is too straight already.

We both use the Chi silk therapy stuff for afterwards that is nice.

Good luck... We've bought our items at Ulta. Sometimes you get a special coupon in the mail or Sunday paper. The Chi iron my daughter has is about $125.

NOTE: It is the 3rd iron she has had however, it is the one that has lasted the longest. Therefore...she got her $'s worth with Chi vs buying 2-3 irons (@ $40+) to get the right one.

TIME = $$$$

The routine I use is:
shower, make up, help daughters get hair done, feed them, help set up their toothbrushes and clothes, and then I do my hair. This allows most of it to air dry. I use BioSilk to smooth my hair and help as a detangler for the girls....I tried LOTS of products before biosilk....it is not cheap but lasts a LONG time...all three of us use the same bottle for about 6 months. I blow dry it upside down for about one minute, then I use my Sedu 1" flat iron...it heats up in like 1 minute and takes all of 5 to flatten my very thick hair....The key for my hair is to let it air dry while I get everything else ready....hair is last to fix and takes less than 10 minutes total once I start on it.

I've always had very curly hair. I know you said you don't want to flat iron your hair, but this is what works best for me. The only thing that gets my super curly hair straight is a CHI flat iron. It is a little pricy (they start around $100), but so well worth it!! And it's only a one time buy. It's the only thing that will actually straighten my hair without any kinks in it. Plus, it takes half the time to straighten my hair as other flat irons, or even blow drying it with a round brush. I just blow dry it, then straighten it, and it takes about 20 minutes, if that, (it used to take me 45 min.). If your hair's not extremely curly like mine is, it won't take as long. Also, make sure you use a something to help fight frizz. I like the Garnier fructis serum, but I also love the Silk Therapy serum, but it's more expensive.

I have always had a wave in my hair. I have to use a friz contoller as well. When I blow dry I don't always have time to brush it out like you were saying and do the whole flat iron. I use Frizz-Ease --it is a creamy gel that you work through the hair before or after blow drying and sometimes I will use Biosilk finish which is a light spray that gives a nice shine and also helps with whispy ends. I have tried a straightening perm years ago. They basically use the same product as a perm only they comb the hair out and let it stay straight. Good luck.