Way back last January, in a post on my current favorite beauty products, a conversation about diffusers came up in the comments. Now, I've never used a diffuser in my life so I couldn't speak to it. But Erin, a friend from my hometown, has a method. And I knew you would be interested.
I am a Hair Product Snob. With that being said, I have the weirdest hair ever. My youngest sister has "doll hair" and my mom and I are famously jealous of it. She can wash it with White Rain, put some dollar store gel in it, forget the hairspray and it looks fabulous. I'm not that lucky.
My hair is fine, but I have a lot of it. Still, it requires me to wrap the ponytail holder 4 times around my hair to make a ponytail stay...using the non-slip holders and a massive amount of hairspray. I've been on a quest for the perfect combination of shampoo/conditioner/foam/gel/hairspray for years now, and I think I've almost hit the jackpot. Let's begin, shall we?
I LOVE the Bumble & Bumble thickening shampoo, especially since I have fine hair. I tend to stay away from shampoos that make my hair feel too soft, like Pantene or Herbal Essences. I rarely use a conditioner, but if I do, I only put it on the ends of my hair, leave it on for no more than 30 seconds, and rinse.
These are the products I use and swear by. Ouidad (wee-dodd) makes a wonderful line of hair products, specifically for curly hair. Now, I don’t have curly hair. I used to have “wavy” hair, but then I got pregnant and now it’s stick straight, with a weird cowlick in the middle of my bangs and the back of my neck. The Ouidad products I use on a regular basis are Styling Mist (hairspray), Climate Control (gel) and Playcurl (foam). I use this incredibly old Conair hairbrush that my hubby has had for YEARS (and I won’t let him throw it out because it works wonders on my bangs.)
Okay, when you dry your hair, use a scrunching motion and use a towel. Also, use a towel that you have dried without a dryer sheet in the dryer. The least amount of times you can touch your hair with your hands, the better. Even if you scrunch your hair and want to keep it wavy, scrunch with a towel, even if you apply hair products. Just FYI.
Above is 2 pumps of the Playcurl. I applied this amount of the back of my hair, near my neck, from the crown of my head down. After I work this in (I use a raking motion), I get another 2 pumps and apply to the sides (above my ears) and top of head. I apply a LITTLE to my bangs, mainly because I have naturally oily hair, and don’t want to have too-piecey bangs by lunch time. Not attractive.
This is my hair dryer. I love it. I’ve had it for years and am sure I’ll cry the day it finally gives out. Notice the white sticky stuff at the top of the handle? Owen had colic when he was a baby, and we taped the Cool Shot button down and left it on near him so he’d sleep. Seriously, this hair dryer has saved my buns on more than one occasion. I got this beauty at Target about 6 years ago. It’s the Conair Infiniti with a diffuser attached to the end. The diffuser is key in not having flat hair. Don’t throw this attachment out!
For drying my bangs, I use the low setting on low heat. I dry blowing the air down, and while doing this I brush my bangs to the right, then to the left, then to the right, then to the left. This prevents them from being stuck to my forehead or laying weird.
When I dry the rest of my hair, I use the medium setting and low heat. If I’m drying the right side of my hair, I lean to the right, so my hair isn’t lying flat to my head. I do the same with the left side, too. I dry my hair in sections, usually doing the sides first, then the top of my hair, then the back of my hair (where a ponytail would be.)
See how poofy my hair is on my right side? :)
When drying the top of my hair, I gather it up into a mini-bun and dry it, usually moving the diffuser back and forth a bit.
For the back of my hair, I gather that into a little mini-bun also, and lean backwards to dry it, keeping the hair away from my head.
This is what my hair looks like when I’m done drying. Don’t try to fix it just yet! You may lose some of the poof! Just embrace how insane your hair looks.
Now, take the Styling Mist and spray the heck out of your hair! The best thing about this product is that if you do spray too much, and your hair gets a little crunchy in some spots, you can just ruffle your hair and it will un-crunch it. (Clearly, I don’t use technical terms when I describe what I do to my hair. I’m sure there are better words to use…)
After you spray your hair, let the Styling Mist set for a couple of seconds. Then, you can style your hair how you like it. I usually just go for the crazed look, and let my hair fall where it wants. If I try to fight with my hair too much, it just ends up being a disaster.
I hope this is clear. I mean, it’s clear to me, but when hubby read it, he just smiled and said he liked the font I picked. :)
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I think it was clear, Erin! Thank you so much for teaching me something I didn't know. I may have to get up the nerve to try a diffuser. -HH
