The best styling tool for beachy summer curls

Leighton Meester's perfect curls are actually easy to acheive. Photo by Getty Images.

I don’t usually write reviews of beauty products, but I really had to share this one. My biggest beauty wish has been for soft curls like Leighton Meester (or more specifically her character Blair Waldorf on "Gossip Girl"). I may be a beauty editor, but the truth is I’m not great at styling my thick, straight hair. I pretty much wash and go, applying serums or shine sprays to keep the frizz at bay, putting it in a ponytail when I get hot. But I’ve always been envious of ladies who are masters at hair curling. My hair always manages to get tangled or weirdly crimped under the iron clamps, and it takes too long, and the curls never stay put to make sweating it out with hot tools really worth it.


Recently a friend with perfect bouncy curls introduced me to Sedu’s Clipless Curling Iron. I was skeptical and confused as there was nothing to hold down the hair. What do you even do with this thing? But using it beyond easy. Here's a quick step by step:

• Mist your hair with a little bit of hairspray first so it locks in the style
• Next separate out a small section of hair hold the Sedu iron horizontally a few inches down from the root (or at chin level if you just want the ends curled)
• Wrap the section of hair around the iron for 10 seconds (If you're worried about burning yourself, the iron comes with a heat-resistant glove)
• Continue curling each section. I did my whole head in about five minutes and was floored with the results.

The best part about Sedu? It's ceramic which makes the curls stay put for days—yes days—and makes them ultra shiny. My hair is on the dry side, so I only wash it every three or four days, but miraculously the curls stayed in place, gradually loosening to an equally satisfying style. The iron also worked just as well, if not better, on hair that was not freshly washed.

I cannot rave enough about this Sedu Clipless Curling Iron, or clipless irons in general. You can buy the Sedu model on sale for $119 on Folica.com. It's a lot of money, but if you've ever used a ceramic iron you know they're worth the difference, plus this one comes with a two-year warranty. In fact, it's the top rated curing iron on all of Folica.com. If you're on the market for something cheaper, I've heard great things about the Conair Infiniti You Curl Tourmaline Ceramic Styler, on sale for $39.99 at Folica.com.