Well, you know what they say: ‘April drizzles bring May frizzles.’ …That doesn’t sound right, does it? Then why is our hair frizzed-out and brittle when we blow-dry it? Our experts are here to give you advice to turn your hair from lackluster to luminous.
Let’s start at the beginning: you may be damaging your hair before you even plug in the blow-dryer. Your hair needs some TLC. Would you want to cuddle up with your standard bathroom towel? Embrace your hair gently by using a microfiber towel or use a cotton t-shirt as a thrifty substitute.
Additionally, don’t keep your hair wrapped in the ol’ towel & twist for 30 minutes while you decide what to wear or start your makeup routine. While it may seem like you’re allowing an extra 30 minutes for the towel to soak up some moisture, you’re actually preventing hair from air drying and locking a lot of wetness in your towel up-do. This keeps hair soggy up to the start of blow drying, which makes drying hair feel twice as long.
Another way to speed up the drying process is to use Aveda’s Speed of Light™. Not only does this spray make your hair smell fresh, but it can cut your blow-dry time in half. It’s also blended with coconut-derived conditioner elements to reduce breakage by 93 percent.
Other products should be tailored specifically to your hair’s needs and the desired end-product. Flat hair? Use Aveda’s volumizing tonic™paired with phomollient™style foam. Out of control fly-aways or frizziness? Introduce your hair to smooth infusion™. Trying to keep those curls? The be curly™style-prep will be your new best friend.
Your last step before it’s time to whip out the hair-dryer is to apply Aveda’s Damage Remedy™to protect your hair from heat as high as 450 degrees.
Now, it may be time to have a sit-down performance review with your blow dryer. When is the last time she had adequate cleaning? Hair dryers are supposed to be de-linted regularly. Dust, dirt, and other unidentified elements may be clogging your dryer. Another performance metric to inspect is the amount of control you have over her. Did she come sufficiently prepared with diffusers or nozzles? Those resources are essential in targeting certain areas and preventing hair from turning into a fluff ball. Is she too intense, causing singing? Is she too meek, barely blowing enough heat to dry nail polish? You need a competent blow dryer that will provide stability and specialized control over your hair, and you need to take care of that equipment.
Up next is an evaluation of your hair brush to determine its compatibility with your hair type. For ladies with coarse hair who desire smoothness, a boar bristle brush, like a Mason Pearson, is the way to go. The bristles are strong enough to smooth out any curl or kink, but gentle enough that they won’t rip your hair. Curly-haired women should use pick-combs in combination with your dryer’s diffuser attachment. Using a round brush while drying hair can add volume and bounciness.
Address the front of your hair first, especially if you have cowlicks, baby hairs, or wispies that dry faster. Continuously brush hair while you’re drying so you retain control. To adequately style and directly dry all of your hair, use alligator or crab claw clips to section it off. When you aren’t working on a particular section, clip it up and away from the current section. Using a large hand mirror can help you get an idea of what the back of your hair looks like and where you’ve missed.
Once the dryers off, preserve your hard work with a hairspray that matches the moisture level of your environment. If your hair holds style particularly well, try air control™ for a light, airy spray. If your hair has a tendency to fall, or you’ll be facing the relentless Carolina summer humidity, we recommend control force™. Not only is control force good for 18-hour humidity defense, but it works on all hair types.
Feeling a little more adventurous? Talk to your Ivy stylist about Velcro or hot rollers. Our hair gurus will point you in the direction that best suit your style!
Shout out to Rosie Maederer, our Eastside Master stylist, for helping us do the perfect at-home blowout! Be sure to follow her on Instagram at @rosie_avedagirl_.