MERMAID waves are making a splash this season – rippling our go-to beach waves out of favour.

Already landing on the locks of Molly-Mae, JLO and Zendaya, the trend has amassed over nine million tags on TikTok – and is set to be hot hair news for 2022.

Here, two writers try three different stylers and find out which one you should be buying.

We've compared budget option Mark Hill, Molly Mae's Beauty Works kit and the viral Mermade Waver.

So if you're not sure who to spend your hard earned cash on, here's the lowdown.

Mark Hill Mermaid Waver

Siobhan: Usually the only heat tool that touches my hair is a tong, as I love a loose wave that is quick, easy and looks as though I've just brushed out a blow-dry.

So when I saw this trend swooping Tiktok, my initial thoughts were; that looks like effort. Especially when you have long, thick hair.

But as a sucker to viral trends, I was eventually convinced and opted for the Mark Hill Mermaid Waver called Style Addict, £16.99.

I love this device – I already have the Mark Hill handle, £17.99, and the attachable barrels from their 'Pick 'n' Mix' collection mean you can constantly try new hairstyles – they have 19 you can choose from.

The 3 x 21mm barrel is easy to lock in place, heats up to 185 degrees and has a clamp to hold your hair in place.

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I began by sectioning my hair and spritzing with a heat protector. Starting with the bottom layers, I took sections that were no wider than the barrel and placed them along the prongs holding it with the clamp underneath.

Normally, I don't style my hair using sections – as I'm lazy – so this took a bit of time, a good half an hour. By the end, my hair was massive – the crimped curls made my hair look even thicker.

As you start from the roots, it immediately adds more body to limp locks.Great for the back of your hair, but it looks weird at the front as it sticks out in weird directions.

Unlike the Tiktok tryers that have gained sleek, defined waves – I also resembled Monica from Friends with her humidity frizz.

While I loved the volume it gave my tresses, I was disappointed with the top layer – it looked more static and messy rather than smooth and neat. 

For best results, I would recommend trying either day two or three after washing your hair.

Fresh tresses mean they are less likely to hold – and for me, by the end of the day, the cool mermaid waves had dropped completely.But for value, I could not recommend more – even if you don't like the results, you can still use the handle with another barrel.

As for the trend, I think I need more practice… and possibly a helping hand from Molly-Mae.

It does make for a nice full ponytail though, which is how I ended up wearing mine.

• Mark Hill Mermaid Waver, £16.99, Boots – buy here

Molly Mae Beauty Works Waver

Harriet: Molly Mae's Beauty Works Waver has been a hit with shoppers since it's launch last year.

And well, Molly is such a huge fan of the style – it just makes sense she would release her own.

Its's sold out a number of times, so that's testament to it's popularity but is it any good.

It's priced at £72; so it's the not the cheapest option in this list but it is packed with extras which i liked.

The pretty pink waver comes with eight flat clips, and a Molly-Mae Pink Beach Wave Comb to glide through your waves for a softer finish; and of course, a glamourous travel case.

I found the clips were helpful when it came to setting waves around my face where I wanted a more defined look, and the wave comb was wide enough to give me that soft look, and not brush out my waves to frizz.

It's not too heavy in your hand, and I liked the waves it gave you, however I would prefer the wave barrell itself to be wider.

I found i ended up with a slightly more crimped look than i wanted, and because my hair is so thick, it didn't really give me as much of a defined wave as I wanted.

You can adjust the heat which is good, as you're less likely to damage your hair, and the waves do last.

It's a good waver, and if your looking for long lasting waves it's a great choice – personally I just wanted mine bigger for more of a beachy look.

But at £72, you can definitely find cheaper.

It's also available at Beauty Works for £89, but is currently on offer at Lookfantastic for £72.

• Molly-Mae X Beauty Works Waver Kit, £72, Lookfantastic – buy here

Mermade PRO Waver

Harriet: The Mermade Pro Waver has been a huge hit online and is currently all over Tiktok.

What's more, it's beloved by celebs and has been used by the likes of as recently been used by Hailey Bieber and celebrities from Chrishell Stause (Selling Sunset) – high praise indeed.

But will it live up to the hype?

With a huge 32mm wave styler designed to create beachy boho waves, I was immediately impressed.

The caveat to this, it's heavy – and unless like Hailey, you've got someone styling your hair it can easily make your arm ache.

Like Siobahn, I tested this on fresh hair but i think it would work best on day two or three hair as the waves are much more likely to set.

I found that the curls near my face were much more defined, and held longer; a combination of easier to style, and longer hair.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CT5l2xFNHbz/

A post shared by Mermade Hair (@mermade.hair)

Mermade say you only need to use it for 3 seconds, and that's definitely correct – as the styler heats up fast and gets very hot, so any longer i was worried about damaging my hair.

The extra large, triple barrels made easily work of styling and they were more defined compared to the Beauty Works waver , but again as my hair is so thick I concentrated on smaller bits as I was wary of making it messy.

With these, a brush out and a silky serum for defined waves are your best friend.

I also found, due to thier size you could easily accidently create a harsh line at the top, but turning them upside down seemed to help here.

If you have less hair then me, you'll probably find these easier to use, but compared to less pricey models they are worth giving a go.

• Mermade Pro Waver, £69- buy here

Verdict

It's got to be between the Mermade and Mark Hill here.

Depending on what you're looking for, both are attractive options.

At £16.99, Mark Hill is an absolute steal, and you'll be able to use other beauty tools with the styler.

If you're looking for a standalone styler; then the Mermade has our vote.

more beauty deals

On the hunt for new beauty buys, you may want to check out Huda Beauty's latest drop.

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