How to get the Perfect Salon DIY Blowout!

I started this post with the best of intentions…I planned to show you a flawless blow-dry from start to finish….. But Imma be honest, I don’t even blow dry my own hair! That’s right, I NEVER round brush my hair dry. 99.1% of the time I air dry, and the other .9% of the time I just rough dry my hair with the blow dryer! When I style my hair, I prefer to use a curling iron. This is because the heat from the curling iron will allow the style to hold longer with less risk of heat damage. To be honest, it’s way easier for me! 

So….. I tried multiple times to film this, each time failing miserably. I hit myself in the head with my brush & blow dryer. I got my hair stuck in my round brush multiple times. I can’t even twirl my round brush on myself.. but guess what?! THAT’S OK! Your technique doesn’t have to be perfect! Below I’ve listed my tried and true tips and tricks for achieving a nearly salon-perfect DIY blowout!

The Basics:

Most of the time when people want to blow out their own hair, they just start going at it with the brush and blowdryer. This is NOT the best, easiest, or even safest way to do it. The biggest secret to the Hollywood blowout is the pre-dry! Most people skip this part, attempting to get their hair from wet to styled in one shot, and their blowout falls apart before lunchtime! This will happen if your roots aren’t 100% dry before you style- the moisture will slowly slip down the length of the shaft, causing all of your bonds to reform and your hair to fall flat! When you rough dry or pre dry the hair, you want to focus on the roots, getting them as dry as possible. Then you can start to use the round brush to focus on styling. 

Another VERY important aspect in getting the perfect blowdry is the quality of tools you’re using! A cheap blow dryer can literally burn your hair off and leave burns on your scalp. Personally, I think an ionic blow dryer works the best even though it is pricier! Ionic blow dryers use negative ions to expel the positively charged water molecules out of the hair without lifting the cuticle layer. This helps to prevent frizz and leaves a smooth, sleek finish. Nonionic blowdryers just heat the hair so hot that it turns the water to steam- which is also severly burning/damaging your hair in the process. I've seen broken hair from a cheap blowdryer, to me, it's just not worth it. I'd rather invest in a quality product that gives me the results I need and lasts a long time. I currently have the Sam Villa Ionic Dryer, but I’ve also used GHD’s and Paul Mitchell’s ionic dryers. Using an ionic round brush will also help. I use the Cricket round brushes- the ionic bristles will also heat up with the blow dryer, helping to dry the hair even faster!

I also NEVER go without heat protection… If you do, you’re asking for damaged hair! The J Beverly Hills 5 in 1 is the best stuff out there right now! It has heat protection, styling hold, moisture & smoothing properties- all necessary for healthy, beautiful hair from root to tip. Next I always follow with a volumizing mousse directly on my roots for volume. I promise that investing in good tools will go a lot further than even the best treatments in the long run. Without the proper tools you’ll never get healthy, luscious hair!

Tips & Tricks

• The longer your hair is, the easier this process will be.

• Make sure to pre dry or air dry the hair at least 80% of the way.
• Make sure to focus the pre dry on the roots, taking special care to avoid any heat on the ends.
• Part your hair on the opposite side you wear it on, drying flat against your scalp, to guarantee extra volume. 
• Clip the hair you are not working on out of the way, working in small sections, to keep the brush from getting tangled within your mane.

• Make sure to twist the brush as you release your hair to smooth the ends and lend some curl and body.

• The bigger the brush, the more volume you will get. The smaller the brush, the tighter curl you will get.
• If there are any places that are even slightly damp after you’re done, be sure to redo those sections to avoid your style falling flat.
• Let the hair completely cool after you are done blow drying to ensure that the style holds for days!