Love the look of a professional blowout, but can’t seem to blow dry your hair the right way at home? Or might you find it hard to find a stylist that understands your hair texture and knows how to achieve the desired look without all the frizz?
Tara McAdams-May, Holistic Hairapist is here to give us some hair drying tips to save you time and energy when it comes to mastering a blowout.
Tip 1. It’s All in the Prep
Beginning with freshly shampooed and conditioned locks is key to getting the best from your styling session. The next step is to decide upon whether you want to blow dry your hair curly or straight, as prep for the two slightly differs.
With straight hair, you have to squeeze out as much water as possible from your wet hair before applying a styling aid. Curly hair should be detangled in the shower with conditioner and left soaking wet and undisturbed; you can only be using a microfiber towel or a t-shirt to catch excess water dripping from the ends. My curly friends will want to apply their styling products to very wet hair in a prayer hand application method, then squeeze that product further in while pushing out excess water. I like to use the S.M.I.L.E method to remember these steps.
@tmac75
Tip 2. Bangs Get the First Blow
Ever get to the end of a style and hate the way your hairline looks? Me too. That’s why is always a good idea to start blow drying with the fringe. People, including myself, always see their face and front of the hairline when having a conversation or looking in that mirror to check themselves before heading out the door. It also happens to be the area where shorter and finer hair lives, allowing it to be able to dry out faster than the rest of our head. Blow drying your hair starting with this area rather than taking care of the back will ensure that you have as smooth of a style as possible.
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For curly hair, just diffuse the front area first (it goes without saying that you need to apply your styling aid here first). I love the way Oway Curly Potion by Simply Organic Beauty gives me plenty of hydration while defining my curls and still leaving my hair super soft to touch, unlike most gels that leave behind a casting.
Related Post: How to Use a Diffuser the Right Way
If you have straight hair, use the blow dryer in the direction of the hair growth. When the dryer’s nozzle is pointed from the base root of where the hair leaves the scalp down the hair strand, the blow dry will give you a smooth flat look. Opting to go against the natural direction will give you lots of volume, but this can also tend to frizz up hair that’s porous. Therefore, I recommend reserving this for short pixies with lots of texture.
For the perfect bump in the bang without the 80’s look, I suggest pointing the nozzle down the hair strand towards the mirror and pushing the bangs left to right and right to left consistently while blow drying. This allows the curvature of your forehead to make the bangs bump exactly right for your face shape. Of course, having a fresh bangs trim always helps.
Related Post: 5 Guides to Style Any Type of Bangs Like a Pro
Tip 3. Don’t Rough Dry Unless You Want a RUFF Look
Should hair be blow dried wet or dry? There is a popular idea that you need to air dry or rough dry your hair to 80% dry before going in with a round brush – you’ll have less work to do and get done quicker… Well, the jury is still out on that one as I wholeheartedly disagree.
For some hair types, this may actually work well. But if you have any bit of wave or texture to your hair, then you’re creating more work for yourself later. As a stylist for over two decades, I always towel dry to squeeze out any excess moisture I can and apply my products into towel-dried hair, but I never begin with a rough dry. This rough drying allows the hair to kink as it normally would during the air drying process, leaving you with a texture that later needs heat styling.
You can avoid this by sectioning your hair and blow drying your hair wet to dry, section by section, to achieve the desired style. Tension is key in creating smoothness – the hair needs to be held taut with a brush from its wet state all the way to bone dry. I love using a heat protectant during this phase to protect the hair, like glossy nectar or any hair serum of your choice. Just be sure to know your hair’s ability to absorb what you are using. Applying too much will leave your hair greasy, so you will need to have it restyled sooner.
@tmac75
How to Blow Dry Your Hair: Take Away Notes
You can definitely give yourself a salon look when you blow dry your hair at home. All you have to do is to know your hair type and avoid a few common mistakes I have told you about:
- Not starting off with an appropriate cleansing and conditioning routine;
- Having curly hair and skipping the S.M.I.L.E;
- Blow drying in the wrong direction;
- Rough drying instead of diffusing or blow drying with a round brush while hair is drenched.
If these tips and reminders were helpful to you and want to find out more about all things holistic and hair, I encourage you to follow me on my Instagram @tmac75, visit my website and YouTube channel, or book an appointment with me at @tmacshairstudio.