Several months ago, the beauty experts at Misikko, sent over a Hanaair Professional Hair Dryer, one of the top selling products from their Hana Salon. The people at Misikko sell all things beauty, from hair dryers to curling irons, and I've been lucky to test (and love) several of their products. I've had my eye on a fancypants hair dryer for a while, but couldn't quite fit the cost into my "why in the world did I ever decide to get a Ph.D" budget. So I considered it quite serendipitous when they contacted me to review their premiere hair dryer.
I filmed an upboxing video several months ago when I first received the product (see that video here), but rather than review it right away, I decided to use it for a while before I gave it a full review. Three months have passed, and my final verdict is in. It is simply amazing. No joke. Amazing. And rather than write a rambling review about it, (cause yall know I can ramble), I decided to list what I love most.
1. It signicantly reduces drying time. You probably expected this one, and in reality, it's one of the things I love most about the dryer. I have insanely thick hair, and if I want to go from shower to completely dry hair, I usually spend about 45 minutes with a hair dryer. But not now. My drying time has been cut in half, which gives me more time for morning snoozing. A win win for me.
2. The hair dryer doesn't get that hot. I've tried several fancypants hair dryers before, and everytime, I felt the need to keep a fire extinguisher neaby. The air and the hair dryer itself would get so hot, I could literally feel my hair burning. But not the Hanaair. The hot setting in totally manageable, which makes for more pleasant primp sessions and much healthier hair!
3. The settings are simple. Easy to read switches give me options without feeling overwhelmed. 2 fan speeds, 3 heat settings, and a cold shot. Sweet and simple, just how I like it.
4. My hair stays straighter for longer between washes. It's no secret, I've shared before that I only wash my hair twice a week (with the help of dry shampoo.) It used to be that after I slept on my "day 1 hair," I would wake up with a frizzy mess. But not anymore. It's as if the hair dryer completely dries my hair, rather than just drying the outer layers. It's amazing.
Those things said, I think Matt reviewed the hair dryer best when he said, "You don't know how awesome it is until you use it and then go back to your old dryer." You see, Matt didn't really see the point in a fancy hair dryer, so he kind of thought I will silly for getting all excited. So when I packed the hair dryer with me to take on internship, he quickly noted the difference. And I have to agree; the difference is impressive.
So if you're in the market for a new hair dryer, wanting something to help cut down your morning dry time, or looking for a way to boost the health of your hair, I'd definitely look into the Hanaair Hair Dryer. The difference is definitely noticable! PS: the dryer is super on sale right now, so if you're thinking about buying it, now is an awesome time to scoop it up!
And because the beauty team at Misikko is so incredible, they're offering to give away another Hana miracle product...the Shine Shield. I've raved about this product before, and I still swear by it. To be entered to win a 6 oz. bottle of the Shine Shield (an almost $50 value!), click on this link and sign up for the Misikko newsletter. That's it. No tweeting, no Facebook following, no extra entries. Just sign up for the newsletter and leave a comment telling me you did so. Please include your email address in the comment, so that I can verify you're on the newsletter email list. The giveaway will close on Tuesday, May 22 at 11:59 pm and is open to US residents only.
A special thanks for Misikko for my fabulous new hair dryer and for offering the Shine Shield to one lucky Smart and Sassy with Sprinkles reader!
PS: Curious about my hair routine? You can read more about in this post.
If you haven't heard of Iron and Wine, you should definitely check out their 
We packed a little picnic, found a spot along the fence, and made friends with our blanket neighbors, who happened to be responsible DePaul students. (They brought their math homework with them!)
There are few things I love more in the summer than plaid picnic blankets and armfuls of thrifted/gifted bracelets.
I literally wear 
Lol, what a stud :)
Oh how we love our city. I'm so happy we get to stay here for a long while!
Visit 
Type "smartandsassy" into the host first name spot, search, and follow the link to our private trunk show.
Once you do this, you'll see my blog name as the party host, and you're ready to start shopping!
Cheers to Matt and his new, very grown up job :)
This is what the face of long awaited stability looks like lol.
You can't go wrong with pad Thai, particularly when its spicy, steaming, and in a heap the size of my head!
Happy and proud me, raising a little toast to my main man :)
Dear banana wontons, if I would have known you were that good, I would have asked for an IV and an extra order. I heart you and miss you already.
Here is me and my hair this morning of using both the Shine Shield and the Corioless.
Matt and I on a picnic last week at a park just across from our house. We have a traditional picnic basket, and I always feel so delightfully old fashioned carrying it across the park :)
We’ve only been in Chicago for six weeks and I can already tell the best part is the visitors. Lots of people come to Chicago to see family, attend conferences, take a quick vacation, etc, and we have been so lucky to see a number of special people during our short time here. Today, we were so blessed because 
I adore 
Every girl needs a fabulous travel companion, and 
Though the site has 
Norma! Hooray and congrats on your new travel accessory! Email me at 
Monday I hinted about another giveaway, and I am so excited to announce it today! CSN Stores contacted me a few weeks ago about doing a giveaway, and I am so excited that they did! Their site has everything you could imagine from 
We flew out of Houston, and I was so happy that we flew Continental because it meant we got to use The President’s Club, woo hoo! Matt and I use Hotwire to book a lot of our flights, and since we hadn’t flown Continental in a while, I toootally forgot we had this little President’s Club perk thanks to our Amex. Airports are not my favorite places in the world, but these cushy chairs and free breakfast/coffee/booze/wireless make them delightfully more bearable!
Wednesday after checking into both the hotel and the conference (we had to pick up our nerd alert badges), we explored the city and found a hot little dinner spot. 
Thursday morning Matt and I headed out for the conference bright and freaking early. (My husband has to be early to everything, which does not sit well with this always-running-late-kind-of-girl.) He insisted on wearing his badge as we walked downtown, pegging him as a total tourist. I preferred the taking pictures everywhere we go pegging method :)
After several very interesting presentations (cough, cough, not really), we headed to the 
Friday morning we sketched out on the conference, and took a double decker bus tour of the city. I know, I know, it’s a touristy thing to do, but we were tourists, so it was a must (and a good way to see the city.) Matt and I’s favorite stop on the tour was the Philadelphia Art Museum, and it had absolutely nothing to do with the art. The steps leading up to the museum are the famous Rocky steps (cue “Eye of the Tiger” please.) Here we are posing with Sylvester, who clearly needs to work on his abs a little more. 
Total sidenote: a few summers ago when we were in Rome, my brother did his best Rocky impression at the top of the Spanish Steps (shown here.) At that time, I had no idea what he was referring to because I’d never actually seen the movie Rocky. After being married to Matt for nine months, I have been forced to watch Rocky 950 times and now get the reference :)
Me at the top of the real Rocky steps. I think I injected too much of a drill team “high V” into my Rocky impression. The popped knee doesn’t look very authentic either :)
Matt and I at the top…Yo Adrian! PS: please notice that my nostrils are flared in this picture because I was so out of breath from the run up the steps. It was seriously pathetic. Half way up the steps, I had to pause for air. When we got back to the bus, a seemingly sweet, white haired man commented on my failure to make it all the way up the steps without stopping. “You didn’t even make it all the way up before stopping sweetie.” Well thanks gramps for pointing out to the whole dang bus that I’m an out-of-shape-fatty. You rock.
Speaking of fatty…we later stopped off in south Philly for an “authentic” Philly cheesesteak from Geno’s. (So “authentic” it was $8.25. Pssh, authentic my butt.) I didn’t really see the big fuss, but Matt really wanted to try one, so when in 
After the lunch disappointment, we visited Ralph’s in South Philly, which is the oldest family run Italian restaurant in the United States, for a cannolli and coffee. I’d never actually had a cannolli before, and though I despise ricotta cheese, it was pretty good. And this place was pretty authentic, so it was a legit first experience in my book. (PS: I know it looks like all we did on this trip was eat and go to our nerd conference, but just FYI, Matt and I split meals when we’re out of town. I failed to mention that in my 
Next big stop of the day, Independence Hall. I know its where our founding fathers laid the groundwork for our country (and I am forever grateful, seriously I am), but at this point in the rainy day, I hit my breaking point. I was over it. Historied out, rained out, toured out, and walked out. I proceeded to whine, complain, and be annoying till we got inside. Nooooot one of my better moments. We also saw the Liberty Bell on this stop and took a tour of the hall behind us, which was cool to see. At the end of the tour, I asked if we were going to see the Declaration of Independence. Matt laughed at me in embarrassment, and said, “No honey, it’s in Washington DC.” Oh yeah, oopsie… :)
Kate Spade Big Apple Zippered Chrissy