TODAYS HAIR HELP

ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW TO GET THE BEST BLOW DRY BEFORE EVEN TOUCHING THE BLOW DRYER.

So often we spend a precious part of our day trying to achive a great blowout; to have it not hold up to the weather or an evening on the town can be frustrating. Is the blowout the problem or what you are not doing before the blowout? The idea is to have a style that can withstand humidity, wind, salsa dancing and the super- attentive boyfriend.

Things you need to know and have:

1) Do not blow dry your hair in the shower after showering. Avoid humidity. Find a seperate area where you can comfortably do your hair without the steam.

2) Try sitting instead of standing when blow drying, sometimes you get weak in the knees and it becomes a bother.

3) When applying products, you often need more than one. Depending on your hair type, you can use a volummizing product at the top in the root area and a smoothing product through the rest of the hair. The air from the dryer is very hot so it is recommended to have at least three products in your hair before blow drying. Remember if you do not use products you will always get the same results; hair with a mind of its own. I do this everyday in the salon and it works.

4) Hair clips are extremely important, they will help you achive clean sections and not feeling overwhelmed by huge sections of hair.

5) Having a nozzle on the dryer is highly recommended to properly guide airflow to create more smoothness and shine on the hair. If you don't have a nozzle, take your dryer to the nearest beauty supply - they can get you one that fits.

6) Be sure to apply products evenly especially on the hairline, this is where some of us start frizzing shortly after blowdrying. When blowdrying you may want to also start at the hair line, especially for us curly-hair folks.

7) Always use products; it will make blow drying easy and give optimum protection.

8) The right shampoo and conditioners can make a big difference in your blow dry, for example; if you have curly hair use a shampoo to assist in fighting the frizz. Or for fine hair a volummizing shampoo is needed. Bonus tip- always rinse conditioners really well. It is important to know that only leave in conditioners are made to be left in the hair, it has scalp respect. Everything else should be rinsed off well.

Now lets talk about the dryer. The one thing about a professional dryer is that when it finally burns out ( after 2 years or so) they can be repaired. Compare that to a cheap dryer -- honey when it's done it's done! There are so many choices on the market, so here are a few of my favorites that work well and are long lasting. Solano, Elchim and Bio Ionic are just some of my faves. If you need help choosing a dryer, click on "Resources" and under tips, you'll find everything you need to know about the dryer that's right for you, and I mean everything.