Blow Dryer and Hair Straightener

Hi S.,
I have long hair, kind of straight, but not totally (kind of wavy/frizzy too). I hate blow drying, but have found that a flat iron works wonders. I will try to either wash every other day or at night so I can just brush and straighten in the mroning (about 5 minutes). My hair stylist said to get a 1" ceramic one (about $45 at Sally's) and it works good for me, not that I do it all the time though.

I like the redkin #5 striaghtener. Sometimes I'll just put this in my hair when it is wet and let it air dry and it will make it a little defined (like gel would) but not too crusty feeling. Hope this helps!
Celena

Some blow dryers come with a focusing attachment for straightening hair which I find works well. I also agree with the mom who said to find one with the "cool shot" feature. Use after your hair is straightened to seal the hair shaft from further damage and to keep it straight. It sounds like your hair type is just like mine. I find that I need to both blow dry and use a straightener or it is super frizzy. There are some really nice straighteners with ceramic plates that are supposed to be awesome, but spendy!!! I keep buying one that breaks after about a year, but it is cheap and does the job. It has variable heat but I always have it on the hottest or almost hottest setting. One product I have found that I like is Aveda - Brilliant Universal Styling Cream. It is a little expensive but a little goes a long way. If you use too much your hair comes out greasy, so watch out! Best of luck!!!

To straighten while blowdrying...you're looking for a serum, that you put in your hair after towel drying but BEFORE blow drying.

2 good ones: (not to be used together, just 2 options)

- Paul Mitchel Super Skinny Serum
- Kerastase Oleo Relax (this one comes in 3 versions, mist-light/pump-med/serum-heavy)

The paul mitchell one you used several pumps for shoulder length hair...the Kerastase just a few drops of the serum, OR a pump or two of the lighter one, or just a light mist. Kerastase is WAY expensive, but lasts for ages...so it's kind of 6 of one, half a dozen of the other. One tiny bottle of serum lasts for about 6 months. The mist and the lighter pump version last less if you should be using the heavier version...otherwise they last for ages as well. Kerastase smells spicy, Paul Mitchell is kind of watermelony. Paul Mitchell you can get at various places (including amazon), Kerastase is harder to find...but all the Gene Juarezs (including the one in Redmond) has it.

For hairdryers...it depends on your hair. I'm super super curly, so I need lots of heat and lots of air. And then I finish up with a straightening iron (3/4 inch...more on that in a minute). The curlier your hair the more heat and wind you want...because the heat denatures the protein chains that form a twist and allows you to reform the protein bonds in straight line...and the wind gets the water out. The better the dryer, the faster your hair will dry. If you don't have a lot of curl, it matters way way less what kind of dryer you use. You can buy a really really GOOD hairdryer at Sally's for between 30-60 dollars. If you drop them a lot, I drop mine at least once a month, expect to replace it every 2-3 years. Highend (1875-2000 wats) Con-aire is very good for heat+wind (apx $40). There's the GVP version of the Chi, which is okay (apx $40). At Sally's they also have a red on (forget the brand) that's $60 and fantastic. Like I said though, the less curl you have the less you have to stress about a really good dryer. ALSO the ionic ones are about the only ones you can find these days...but they DO do weird things to curly hair. Makes it feel almost brittle, versus a non-tourmaline dryer which doesn't do the brittle thing.

When you're straightening your hair with a hair dryer, make sure you have a boar-bristle (or imitation boar-bristle) round brush. Saves tons and tons and tons of time, versus a regular prong style round brush.

For straightening irons (LOVE these)...go with GVP. My 3/4" one I got for 25 bucks (ceramic and all that jazz)...versus the namebrand one of my friend's that she got for $130. OUCH. (and mines better!) Also...if you go for a smaller width...you can shape your hair as you iron it...the wider it is the less control you have. It's better to go on high heat (like 400-600) and go fast than on low heat and go over and over and over. Make sure the heating plate has rounded edges. If you have straight edges it will bend right angles into your hair from time to time, catch, and also cause a lot more breakage.

Whew! Overwhelmed yet?

Okay...here's the easy part.

1) Go to bartells or other well stocked drug store. Go to hair products (gell and the like). Grab a bright green bottle of Garnier Fructis Wave Shaper OR Curl Construct MOUSSE for $3. After the shower, shake and foam out about an orange sized ball into your hand. Work through your hair. Air Dry. Easy.

-or- for a little more money

2) Bumble & Bumble "Get Straight Gel" ... Tons of salons carry it. $20-$25
After the shower us a 50 cent sized squirt through your hair from roots to ends. It will feel really slippery. Air Dry. Easy.

Neither of these will make your hair straight...but they define curl or wave, and add a TON of control. If the mousse make your hair crunchy...scrunch the crunch out of it...sould only take a few seconds. If it's not soft almost immediately, use a little less the next time. If your waves or curls are frizzing, use more. The bumble and bumble will never make your hair crunchy, you tell by whether your hair looks oily or frizzy. If it looks oily after it's totally dry, use less...if it's frizzy, use more.

Good Luck!

I've always been able to use a generic blow dryer, one from Costco or Walmart that has multiple heat setting, because I don't like hi heat I like medium heat because I get too hot. But if you are getting a flat iron you do need to invest in a ceramic flat iron. A cheap one will still leave your hair frizzy, ceramic helps smooth it out. Don't put mousse in your hair before you blow dry and straighten, use something that will help protect it from the heat and smooth it out. I use a product called silk drops, it was cheap in comparison to other products of its kind and works great for me, but really trust it and only use a pea size amount in the palm of your hand, rub your hands together and rub down your hair, especially the ends and be careful not to get it too heavy on the top. The first time I used it I used too much because I didn't think it was enough and when I was done I had to rewash my hair and start over because it was too greasy looking.

Good Luck!

I've had two Conair hair dryers in my life. I bought the first in my twenties. I am now in my almost sixties. They really last.

I have fine wavy hair so I have to be very careful of what I use because any product at all will make my hair look dirty and greasy within a few hours, thus,I don't use much of anything in my hair, but I do blow dry it everyday.

The best blow drier I have had is a Revlon 1875 watt with a cool shot. This is good if you want to use a round brush to help straighten your hair. The other thing I have found that I use all the time now is a blow dry brush with ions. It comes with or without the ions and has a cool shot. It is either Revlon or Conair and I love it because it is easier to use for those of us who are less coordinated than a blow drier and brush. If you use these then you usually won't actually need a straightener too. I got this at walmart for 24.99, Its pink and white and I've had it for 2 years with no problems. They have a cheaper $20 one, but it doesn't have the ions, so spend the extra money.

If you want to go the professional spendy route, then go to Sally's Beauty supply and have them help you. You should be able to get an ionic dryer or flattener for a "reasonable" price.

Good Luck!

Forget the blowdryer then, its just going to leave your hair even more frizzy. Wash your hair at night or in the morning (depending on how thick it is) to allow ample time for it to "air dry". Invest in a hair straightener,.. and the BEST kind you can! I have used many hair straighteners in my time and the PAUL MITCHELL EXPress Ion Smooth Pro Tools 1.25 is by far the best! I have very thick hair and this heats up in less then a minute and stays super hot the whole time! Regular flat irons take so much longer because they don't stay hot enough and you have to run them through your hair multiple times to get it smooth,.. But not with this one! This is going to be the BEST styling tool you have ever had! This is what they use in the salons, know how they get your hair lookin so nice and shiny? Its because they have this baby! And that is exactly what they refer to it as! http://www.paulmitchell.com/Products/PaulMichell_ProTools...
I also use other Paul Mitchell products - Smoothing Shampoo/conditioner.. Super skinny serum - you'd love this because it gives that "shine" when straightening.. and you can pair it with "Round Trip" (liquid curl definer) for a cocktail with wet or dry hair to get a easy curled/wavy look.

Seriously, get the straightener,.. it may cost you a little over $100 but it will save you precious morning minutes and give you that flawless straight style your looking for! Trust me! I have LONG THICK wavy hair,.. my straightening time went down to 20min with this puppy. It use to take an HOUR to blow dry and straighten/curl my hair. Now I air dry through the night and style for 20 minutes in the morning (or 2-3 minutes if doing the wavy cocktail thing) LOVE IT!

PS I only wash my hair every 2-3 days,..

I'm a hairstylist myself. Of course I am going to tell you what is BEST for your hair, which would mean it's pretty expensive. So, the T-3 feather weight blow dryer(Oprah's favorite hairdryer) is the BEST out there! NO JOKE! It is $200 but WELL worth it. It dries your hair 60 times faster. It's quieter. It's very lightweight! and It sends out good ions that don't damage your hair like any normal hair dryer does. It opens up your hair cuticle and drys your hair from the inside of the cuticle out, and then closing down your cuticle in the end with the cool shot air. As for a flat iron, my favorite is the CHI. I have used many different kinds and this one works the best for me. You can find them for as cheap as $100 and as expensive as $175. JCPenney's carries them for around $125 I believe. As for products, I really like the Kenra or Pureology line. Pureology is 100%vegan products. I would use a very small amount of the super straight serum when your hair is wet, and then right before you flat iron, after it is completely dry, spray each section with pureology's glossing mist. If you want to go with the Kenra line, use a very small amount of the shine drops. And as you are flat ironing, I would use the silkining mist. It's so lightweight and not greasy at all, and holds down the frizzies. It add's shine! Anymore hair questions, feel free to ask. I will be waiting!

S.

You can also use curlers to straighten your hair, just get the bigger ones. My sister used the ones that are like 2 inches in diameter to straighten her hair. Her hair is really long right now and she puts it in a ponytail on top of her head and then puts it in curlers from their. That way you aren't blow drying it every day.

I have think wave hair and know I have to use a drying that 1) get's hot and 2) blows lot of air. I think mine is a con-aire.

One really important thing that my stylist always reminds me is to NEVER use a straightener if you hair is even a bit damp. It can damage/break (as in break it off) your hair. Just thought I'd toss that out since you said you were new to this. Also, because my hair takes a long time to dry, I usually blow dry at night (every other day) - that way any dampness drys out and it flattens out since I'm sleeping on it. Then I use a straight iron in the morning.

If you want to by a brand that is not in drug stores (which I have had and work fine if I get one with enough power/heat), but if you want a salon style one keep an eye out for Ulta stores. We have them in Portland and they send out ads in the Sunday paper.

I would say one that has a diffuser attachment so if you want it curly you can, and to buy a round brush either ceramic or metal to use when blow drying your hair to keep it smooth. Also get product for both styles.

The absolute best straightening product is expensive but a little bit works, I think it's $23 at sephora but lasts me about six months. It called Frederic fekkai no iron straightening balm (I think). It rocks! The best blowdryer I've used that has lasted more than a year without burning out suddenly is a professional one by babyliss. If you go cheap on a hair dryer and use it a lot you do risk damaging your hair and making frizz worse. Definitely make sure you have a "cool shot" button for use hen your hair is dry to "seal it". Good luck!