As the lockdown rumbles on, it appears many of us are shifting away from buying food and other essentials and are instead focusing on our beauty routine.
With hairdressers shut, data from e-commerce platform RedBrain.com has found that demand for the best hair scissors has jumped by more than 3,000%, while searches for hair curlers is up by more than 800%. We at mamabella have similarly seen an increase in the number of people clicking on our how to cut your own hair guide from celeb stylist Lee Stafford.
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And with many of us faced with manicuring our own hands and nails, demand for manicure glue, false nails, cuticle creams and nail art kit has soared by as much as 680%.
We recently asked a nail technician how to remove acrylic nails – if yours are still holding on – and a leading skin specialist recently ran through some of the reasons why your nails are so brittle and how you can strengthen them.
If you’re in the market for hair curlers, and already own a hair straightener, we also spoke to experts at Trevor Sorbie about how to curl hair with straighteners.
Other notable increases in the list were for waxing kits, hair colour accessories, skin care masks and peels and makeup tools. If you’re among the many people searching for such items, below we’ve rounded-up the best options in each category. Those which come highly rated – either by experts we’ve spoken to, people on our team or by online reviews. We’ve also gone into more detail for hair scissors because these shouldn’t be a purchase you make lightly!
We suspect that many of the people searching for hair scissors aren’t trained professionals. They’re more likely to be people like us who are in desperate need of a cut and have tried (and failed) using everyday kitchen scissors.
Hair scissors come in various shapes and sizes but they all have one thing in common – they’re sharp. This is what makes them so effective, and so precise, so if you’re investing in hair scissors, we recommend that you also invest in a sharpener.
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Beyond that, you can choose based on size and blade style and, broadly speaking, there are two types of hair scissors blade: bevelled edge or convex.
Most European scissors feature bevelled edges on their blades with micro serrations on one or both side. This design stops them from sliding over the hair and are best used on dry hair or if you have less experience because you can take your time with these hair scissors. You can also get polished bevelled-edge blades and these are used for slicing and a whole host of other cutting techniques.
Meanwhile, convex , or “Japanese-style” blades, are super sharp and, with a razor-like edge, making them perfect for slicing the hair, but this makes them better suited to the more experienced – or ambitious – among us.
Aylesbury-based hairdresser Sam Tully told mamabella that the best brand for hair scissors is Joewell. These scissors do not come cheap – far from it – but with reports that salons are going to be shut until the end of the year (😱), it may be worth investing now. You’re also saving a sum of money by not having it cut professionally!
The silver Joewell hair cutting scissors are the most affordable, although still come in at £165. If you buy them in various colours, Sam uses pink for example, these will set you back £250.
“It can be tempting to opt for cheap hair scissors but if you want to have a cleaner finish, with less damage to your hair, you absolutely need to invest in a decent pair,” said Sam. “Also avoid getting them sharpened. In my experience, scissors are never the same after they’ve been sharpened and you should look to replace your scissors every three to five years.”
Victoria is founder and editor-in-chief of mamabella, freelance journalist and Mum. She has a passion for empowering people to feel beautiful whatever their age, size, skin type and budget
