Slice Combo Tip Tweezer
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Reviewed by | Sue McCarthy |
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Summary | The features of The Slice Combo Tip Tweezer combines the precision of a point-tipped tweezer with the design of the slant- tipped tweezer, plus the added bonus of an ergonomic, wide grip for maximum control. They are designed by Michael Graves, and at a retail price of around $20 are certainly not a budget item. However, the look and feel of the product is one of good quality and they promise great versatility. Overall we rated this product highly. |
Rating | 4.2 out of 5 Stars |
Product Overview
The Slice Combo Tip Tweezer is manufactered in China from stainless steel and has a matt finish coating and wide grip design to give better control.
Retailing at around $20, they are towards the more expensive end of the tweezer market, although theoretically they are designed to do the job of both slant tipped and point tipped tweezers.
Designed by famous architect and product designer Michael Graves, it is fair to say that they are both attractive and practical.
The tweezers are available in Red, Pink and Purple, as well as 100% stainless steel finish.
Shows the Slice Combo Tip in its Packaging
What you Get
As you can see, the tweezers come in a plastic package with a formed plastic insert to hold the tweezers firmly in place and prevent damage in transit.
The information provided on the back is minimal, as follows:
- Precision combination slanted and pointed tips
- Hand finished
- Professional grade stainless steel
- Soft-touch colour finish
Slice Combo Tip Tweezers - Lovely Ergonomic Design
In the small type at the end, it does go on to say that a portion of your purchase price is donated to fund Autism research.
I had a look on the Slice website to find out more - apparently a minimum of 1% of all Slice sales is donated to various autism research programs.
Sadly, no protective tip cover provided - unusual for a quality pair of tweezers.
A Look at The Slice Combo Tip
The first impression I had of these tweezers was really great. They look lovely, with a rich red colour and rubberised, soft touch finish and I particularly loved the stylised wide-grip design.
Shows the Tweezers in Relation to My Hand
Measuring just 8.7 cm they are, perhaps, a little shorter than I prefer but the wide grip and soft-touch feel kind of made up for that in my mind. (The widest point is a sturdy 2 cms).
The other great thing about the curved design is that your view is not obscured in any way by the wider grip.
So far so good but, as the saying goes, looks are not everything. So how did they actually perform?
There are three main factors affecting the performance of tweezers; alignment, sharpness of tips and tension, so I looked at each of these elements to see how they stacked up:
Shows the Tip Alignment
- Alignment - The tweezers were pretty well aligned from edge to edge, so that it was possible to grasp the hair all the way along the slant
- Tips - these tweezers have hand-finish sharp tips, so that once grasped, the hair does not slip. I was able to remove the hair cleanly from the root every time.
- Tension - I found that they had a slightly firmer tension than some other comparable tweezers that I have looked at. This is not necessarily a bad thing and more of a personal preference issue. The main thing for a good pair of tweezers is that there is a gentle resistance when squeezed.
In addition, I have to say that they are one of the most comfortable tweezers to use that I have found - the wide grip and soft finish really does make a difference. From my personal point of view, if the tension was very slightly less and the length slightly more, they would be the perfect design for me.
So overall, the slant tips work well and the points are certainly very sharp for catching the very fine hairs and removing ingrown hairs and splinters that are not too deep.
Picture shows the Tweez'em Pointed Tip next to the Slice Pointed Slant to show the difference
Having said that, I don't believe they could actually replace a good pair of pointed tips, with their needle-like quality and precision, for removing deeper ingrown hairs etc.
Why Choose Slant or Point Tipped Tweezers
The slant tipped tweezer is the most popular and is specially designed to follow the contour of your face and brow. It can be easily angled to lie parallel to the brow, making it easier to grasp the hair and pluck in the direction of growth.
When a little more precision is needed i.e. to isolated a fine hair for removal, they can be flipped over to use the pointed end.
The point-tipped tweezer has needle-sharp points for use when precision is required - specifically for tasks such as removing ingrown hairs, splinters or other foreign bodies from just under the skin e.g. glass fragments etc.
Shows comparison of slant, pointed and slanted point tips
So, slanted points give the best of both worlds, with slants and points that are sharper and more pointed than the standard. They are not, though, as needle-thin as the pointed tipped tweezer.
Care and Use of Tweezers
I have included here a few hints and tips for tweezer use and care to get the most from your tweezers.
Sterilize your tweezers before and after each use with a rubbing alcohol (I use Beauty Secrets Cleansing Alcohol)
Exfoliate regularly and prior to tweezing to ensure that any dead skin cells and bacteria are removed, to prevent infection and help avoid ingrown hairs.
Have a hot shower or use a hot compress against the area prior to tweezing to open the pores. This will make it easier to remove the hair from the root.
Always pluck hairs one at a time, grasping them as close to the base as possible without exerting pressure, and pull firmly out in the direction of the hair's growth.
After tweezing apply an astringent such as Witchhazel to close the pores and then apply a soothing Aloe Vera.
Avoid dropping your tweezers - it can damage the tips and put them out of alignment
If you would like more information, see our in-depth articles:
How to Pluck your Eyebrows with Tweezers
Guarantees
Slice offer a 30 day money back guarantee if you are dissatisfied with their products or if there is a manufacturing defect.
You will need to check the terms of any online supplier from whom you purchase.
So How Does the Slice Pointed Slant Compare?
I had a look at the Slice Combo Point in relation to the Tweezerman Pointed Slant to see how they compared.
Initially, I looked at the three key elements:
Alignment
I felt that the alignment on the Slice was a little better than the Tweezerman, which actually surprised me because the regular Tweezerman slant is so good.
Shows the difference in alignment - Tweezerman are shown left and Slice on the right
I found that to ensure the hair was grasped firmly with the Tweezerman it was necessary to exert extra pressure.
Sharpness
Shows Tweezerman left and Slice right - it is clear to see that the Slice Combo is the sharper and more pointed of the two
Both tweezers had sharp, hand filed edges, but when it came to the actual point of the tip the Slice Combo clearly had the edge - as is illustrated by the photo image.
Tension
With regards to tension, ideally you want a nice gentle resistance when you squeeze the two arms of the tweezers together.
Se the gaps? From these you can see why the tension on the Slice tweezer (shown right) is firmer
I found that the Slice Combo had a markedly firmer tension than the Tweezerman Pointed Slant.
My personal preference is for the less firm tension because I have mild arthritis in my fingers and so using the firmer tweezers for any length of time could become uncomfortable.
Other Considerations
As far as grip and feel are concerned, the Slice tweezer definitely comes out on top. I really appreciate the rubberised coating and wide shank.
The Tweezerman comes with a tip protector - which I think is a good thing, but hardly a deal breaker!
Tweezerman offer a free sharpening service for the lifetime of the tweezer, which is a really good added bonus.
Then there is the cost - the Tweezerman Slant Tip wins here, at around $3 - $4 less than the Slice Combo.
Things we Liked
- Quality - A good quality item with a well thought-out and executed design
- Grip and Finish - good wide grip and rubberised soft touch feel for maximum control
- Well Aligned - gripped hairs effectively with no slipping
- Tips - nice sharp points and slant for versatility
Things we didn't Like
- No Covers - No tip cover or pouch included
- Lack of Information - a bit of advice about use, care, guarantee etc. would be good
Our Final Thoughts
I am actually quite a fan of these tweezers. I love the design, both the look and feel is of a good quality product.
They are relatively pricey at $20, but when you consider that a good quality, well cared for pair of tweezers should last for several years, it seems to me that they are worth the investment.
My only thought is that I would be just as happy, if not happier, with 2 pairs of tweezers in the same design, one regular slant tipped and one regular point tipped (both of which are available).
At the end of the day though, that last is only my personal preference, and if you are in the market for a pair of combination tips, I would not hesitate to recommend the Slice Combo.
