If you’ve ever gone to the salon for a blow-dry, then you know the amazing, powerful feeling caused by the amount of bounce, volume and shine in your hair. The perfect blow dry is like a work of art and our Birmingham stylists make it look effortless to achieve but behind the shiny locks is a technique that takes time and practice to perfect. If you have ever tried to give yourself a proper blow dry at home you have most probably stopped half way through with frustration! Trying to recreate a professional blow-dry hairstyle at home isn’t as easy, but it’s definitely possible to achieve a great finish. Our Birmingham hairdressers are sharing their top ten tips they have learnt over their many years of experience to help you achieve salon worthy hair at home.
The tools and products you use when styling your hair at home are an important part of a successful blow dry.
The hair dryer
Our Birmingham hairdressers always recommend using a nozzle when you blow dry, this is because using a nozzle helps concentrate the airflow directly onto the section of hair your working on helping to create volume at the roots and smoothness on the ends. It also speeds up drying time! Our stylists only use hair dryers with multiple heat and air settings; use medium heat to pre dry, high heat to style and then a blast of the cold setting will set the style in place and give the hair a beautiful shine.
A round brush
When blow drying at our birmingham hairdressers we use a round brush. Using a round brush allows you to create multiple styles such a sleek and smooth or big and bouncy, it allows your to smooth and polish the hair without the use of straighteners and tongs. Our hair stylists recommend using a larger brush if you have long hair and a smaller brush for those with shorter hair.
Products
Its extremely important to use the right products when blow drying your hair, by not using products or using ones not suitable for your hair type. At our Birmingham hair salons heat protection is a must when using styling tools, you want to protect your hair as much as possible. Our stylists suggest a mousse to achieve volume and a blow drying cream or oil through the ends to eliminate frizz.
Now it’s time for the step-by-step technique.
Patience
If you have long or thick hair then you will know you it’s impossible to get the job done in 10 minutes and if you have naturally curly hair then this can take longer as you need to smooth and polish every section. However, our birmingham hairdressers think it is worth the time spent perfecting as you will be left with a beautiful blow dry that will last for days!
Step 1
For the perfect blow dry start by blasting the hair using a medium heat to get rid of excess water until the hair is 80% dry. Blow dry the hair against the direction it lays as this will encourage volume at the roots rather than the hair falling directly against the scalp. Our birmingham hair salon always recommend using a heat protection spray.
Step 2
Now you need to separate the hair into several sections depending on how thick your hair is. Doing this also helps cut down the drying time which is especially helpful for those of you with thicker hair. We recommend taking around 4 sections at our birmingham salon.
Step 3
When its comes to drying many people make the mistake of moving the dryer up and down the hair or keep the dryer in one place. Instead you should continually follow the brush with the hair dryer using the nozzle. Make sure you repeat this over and over until the section is completely dry, if you leave moisture in the hair the blow dry will fall flat later on.
Step 4
Repeat this for each section staring at your bottom section at the nape going to the top of the hair, our birmingham stylists suggest using a medium drying setting to smooth each section finishing with a cold blast giving the hair incredible shine and hold. Blow drying the front section of your hair can be difficult. Use a slightly smaller brush for this section especially if you have shorter pieces around the front, this can make blow drying a lot easier for you.
Step 5
To finish use a pea size amount of serum through the ends to eliminate any frizz and a spritz of hairspray will help hold your blow dry. However be wary you are not applying too much product or too many as applying too much will weigh your hair down.
Remember the more your practice, the quicker and easier you will find the process. Once you have done this your hair will feel healthy and glossy and your blow dry will last a good couple of days!
Our team of expert stylists across all four of our Birmingham hair salons would love to help you achieve the hairstyle of your dreams. Providing care, professionalism and attention to detail are some things we take very seriously and we will always take the time to listen to your exact requests and make you feel comfortable from beginning to end of your appointment.
The experiences stylists at James Bushell have been delivering expert hair care to the West Midlands for years. Book an appointment online or contact us on 0121 711 1100 for more details.
