BLOW DRYING TIPS
You know that feeling of walking out of the hairdressers, knowing your hair looks great, smooth and straight... and you think you'll never be able to do it the same at home? Once you know the right steps, you can get a salon-perfect blow-dry at home. Just follow these tips from Myjellybean.com.
Towel Time
Towel-dry your hair - lightly - when you step out of the shower or bath, Squeeze your hair with the towel to soak up excess water (don't rub, which causes frizz).
A Step in the Right Direction
When you first turn on the blow-dryer, just to remove excess water from your hair before you begin, make sure to blow the hair in the opposite direction of how it grows.
Section City
It's really important to split your hair into sections so you can concentrate the air on each and get them really dry. Always start drying in the back, where most girls have the most hair. Clip up the top section of your hair so you have more room to dry the back of your head. When you get to the front, you'll be working with smaller, 1" thick sections.
Brush Lesson.
Here's how to use your hairbrush for the best results: Use a large round brush. Grab a 1" section of hair with the brush, pulling it straight out to the side. Roll the brush so your hair wraps around it, until it's tight at your roots. Place the blow-dryer very close to the brush, blowing in the same direction as your hair grows, and slowly unroll the hair, pulling it towards the front as you work your way down the section with the dryer. (You want to keep the brush close so you can get the hair around the face to frame your face). Repeat for the rest of your head, going section by section.
Don't Skip the Ends.
Make sure you blow-dry all the way to the very end of each section of hair, so that the ends get totally dry.
Bonus Tips for Volume.
If you want some volume or "lift" at the top of your head, especially if you have fine or stick-straight hair, you'll need to do something a little different. Follow all the steps above, but when you get to the pieces at the top of your head, growing right out from the crown, instead of lifting the hair sections forward with the brush you should lift them upward. You can also add a little bit of spray gel at the top when you're drying those pieces to help it retain volume.
Bang Basics.
If you have bangs, make sure you're pulling the roots and hair as close as possible to your forehead, so you don't get "poufy" bangs that stick out from your face.
Give Yourself a Hand.
When you are finished drying your whole head, use your hands to finger comb your hair the way you want it. The natural oils in your skin will help reduce fly-aways.
Steal a Celebrity Secret!
Borrow Jennifer Lopez's finishing trick for shiny, flat hair: an old-fashioned technique called "wrapping." First, make sure your hair is 100 percent dry before you begin (or it will back-fire and make your hair frizzy). You take a 1" section of hair from the front of your head (where your hairline begins), pull it around so it's framing your face and clip it in place tightly. Then take the next piece, pull it around and close to the head, and clip the same way. Continue doing this until your hair is all done up in clips. Leave for about 20 minutes. Your hair will be smooth and flattened when you take the clips out.
You're Done, Babe!
Go out and show off your gorgeous look!