Drying Hair

[Madeleine13]

How do you dry your hair in the winter?.I usually towel dry it and then let it dry naturally but I've got a cold and now my mum say I have to use a hair dryer. What do you guys do?

[Sarahlabyrinth]

I usually wrap it in a microfibre towel for a while (never rub it, just wrap it up) then allow it to dry naturally after combing it. In winter though I do sometimes use a hair dryer on low heat (it doesn't have a cool setting) gently. If you are gentle and don't put the heat really close to your hair it won't harm it, you can use a hair dryer.

[momschicklets]

While my hair is soaking, I use a regular towel to gently squeeze the water out....never rubbing. Then I use a t-shirt to soak up as much of the remaining water as I can, then I let the hair just air dry down my back. Takes a good 4 to 5 hours to be completely dry all the way to the root. I wouldn't be opposed to using a hair dryer on cool if I was in a hurry, but it makes my wavy hair very frizzy so I tend to avoid that. I wish it didn't take so long to dry :confused: and it's getting worse as it gets longer!

[meteor]

Since I never use heat tools and my hair takes a very long time to air-dry (it's thick and unlayered), I'm obsessed with speeding up the drying process somehow.

I have recently found a way of beginning to towel-dry my hair while I'm conditioning it!
All I do is this: right after shampooing, I condition/oil length from shoulders down, wrap this area in plastic wrap/cap (to deep condition), but leave the area from scalp to shoulders open. I wrap that top area in a cotton T-shirt or a towel, and 10-20 minutes later, it's already almost dry and I rinse the conditioner from length only (not wetting down the clean roots). After that, I only need to dry the length with another towel / T-shirt, since the roots are already pretty dry. This helps me manage the weight of wet hair, speeds up the overall process and it also allows me to use normal-sized towels (on top section and bottom section of the hair, separately).

Air-drying does take a while, and I often damp-bun my hair and go out with wet hair. But since my hair stays wet when it's contained, I try to take it down and air-dry whenever I get a chance. Air-drying always happens faster when I'm sitting next to a heater and/or a fan.

[meteor]

I forgot to add that using Madora's fanning technique (lifting strands and letting them drop to aerate the mane) and half-ups (to aerate the underlayers) can really help speed up the air-drying process, too. ;)

[Anje]

I normally wrap it in a towel, then flip the towel around so I get a dry spot at the nape after a couple minutes, and wear the towel for another 10-15 minutes. Usually I let it air dry after this, but if I'm in a rush or simply tired of the hair being damp, I'll blow dry it on warm for a few minutes just to dry the roots. I'm in a cold climate, but that's pretty much the routine year-round.

[Frankenstein]

I dry my hair the same way year-round: squeeze all the excess water I can out right after washing then keep it down until bedtime (I wash at night) Its usually not fully dry by then though so I stuff it in a satin pillowcase that I tie on my head and it's more or less dry when I wake up.

[Larki]

I used to airdry exclusively, mostly out of laziness, but the last six months I've been blow drying on cool (if I had to guess, the temp is in the 60s) and low air flow - it's like a cool breeze. I find it makes a HUGE difference in the smoothness and frizziness of my hair - there's no frizz at all, which is quite remarkable for my hair. It just looks sleek.

[goneJackal]

I usually wash my hair at night. I let it air-dry for about 2 hours, then I blow-dry for a few minutes in the 'middle' setting of the blow dryer.
If I don't, then I feel like it stays damp forever.

[Anya15]

I sort of squeeze out excess water in the shower with a towel, and then wrap it in a cotton tshirt for 10 minutes. Then I change the t shirt and keep it for another 10 minutes. Then I leave it down and let it air dry, it gets done in an hour :) But I live in a place with a very warm climate.

[Dessi]

I also squeeze out the excess water in the shower with hands first and then with a towel. After that I wrap it with the towel for about 10-15 minutes. After I let it down I headbang at least 3 times every 10 minutes and this really helps. Then I leave it alone and comb it after it's completely dry. Takes about 3 hours.

[DeadlyUnicorn]

I let it air dry. I have a nice towel material bathrobe so I just sit around in that and let the hair hang behind me :) Then it isn't so cold and wet on me

Edit: I also do this year round

[parkmikii]

I also squeeze out the excess water in the shower with hands first and then with a towel. After that I wrap it with the towel for about 10-15 minutes. After I let it down I headbang at least 3 times every 10 minutes and this really helps. Then I leave it alone and comb it after it's completely dry. Takes about 3 hours.

High five for headbanging! This is the metod I use as well.

[Jupiter Jones]

Similar here. I always let my hair air dry.
I squeeze it tightly with my hands and maybe help with a shirt if needed. Never any rubbing though. Like Dessi, I gently headbang a few times (gently means no uncoordinated actions but back and forth, back and forth, to avoid tangling). I find that headbanging helps detangle the strands that are stuck together by the moisture which helps the drying process tremendously (since they're now separated, resembling dried hair more). If I observed correctly. I am a little over BSL and it takes about 2 hrs to dry.

I mean, in the winter you just can't go outside with wet hair. At least you really shouldn't. If you really want to let it airdry, you should plan ahead of time how long it will take to dry and hence, when you are going to wash it. E.g. the night before, earlier in the morning. Maybe that's easier for me to say though, since I wash once a week (twice maximum).

:)

[Sunny_side_up]

In spring/summer i like air drying, just leaving my hair loose. This winter i turned to the blow dryer often. Like another poster said it gives a sleekness(but mostly because i have been feeling the chill lately). love the warmed up feeling i get, so have ended up drying my hair completely, i think next time half dry then mineral oil on it! Works a treat for me, shiney and maneagable.. :sun:

[bunneh.]

I use blow dryer on warm to cool setting (not hot) on my scalp all the time in winter and on cold days in spring and fall and let the ends air dry but on warm days and in summer I let it air dry completely.

[Arctic]

Wet hair doesn't bother me in the winter for physical feeling -reasons (I would wear hat outdoors and my hair and head stays warm under it even if it's wet/damp), but it has started to bother me in the recent years, year around, for aesthetic reasons. I just feel more put together with dry hair.

I have currently an inconsistent showering routine, sometimes I shower in the evenings, sometimes in the morning, sometimes in the afternoons. (I try to tweak it towards regular evening shower, to make mornings easier, but my mind resists it for some reason and I haven't been very successful.)

Anyway, if I shower at night, or if I'm not going anywhere, I usually air dry. If I am going somewhere and have showered during daytime, and don't have time to air dry, I use a hair dryer.

Whether I air dry or use a dryer, I started doing some headbanging with wet hair last autumn. I have toned it down over the months, but I still do a gentle, upside down hair "airing". I have noticed it doesn't have to be full blown headbanging to get the effects, and the gentler version is more hair friendly too. This gentle headbanging - I still call it that - speeds up the drying time so much, that my hair is practically dry in less than hour. I do my first head banging right after I take my hair down from t-shirt towel. I do it for half a minute. Then I repeat it ever so often but in shorter bursts until it's dry. When I start the process with soaking wet hair it helps my cowlicks to dry in a controlled way. If I wait untill my hair has started to air dry on its own, the cowlicks have already had time to set, and I'll have a bad hair day :D

But to back in time a little more, right after shower I squeeze off as much water as I can from my hair (no wringing, just gentle squeezing). Then I add leave in. Then I step out of the shower and bend forward and coil my lengths at the back of my head - no twisting or anything tight, just a coil that is resting on the back of my head (I have now APL hair but I have used the same method with BSL hair too, not sure with how long lengths after BSL I would be able to still do it this way). Then I grap my t-shirt towel (old, very soft men's t) and arrange it as a turban, not disturbing my coiled hair. I leave it on for 5-10 minutes, after which my hair doesn't drip anymore.

And when I release my hair, I do that gentle headbanging.

If I want to blow dry my hair, I do it in the gentle way. I am not opposed to using actual heat every now and then, but I save that for special occasions. My everyday blow drying is done on cool to warm and with lowest speed setting. I also don't generally use brushes with every day blowdrying, at most for few finishing touches. (When I really do a proper blow drying, I use brush to keep hair taut.) I usually use a concentration nozzle, and aim it downwards, which helps cut down frizz, especially when combined with low speed setting and using my hand to keep my hair from flying around. I believe reducing or exaggarating frizz is often a matter of technique.

Sometimes I use my diffuser, but not in the curl enhancing way, because my hair isn't uniformly curly/wavy enough to get nice results. But I might use it to dry my scalp hair (gives some volume too), and if I use it on my lengths, I don't cup my hair into the bowl, but I gently press it against my hanging down length, keeping my hair in place with my other hand and slowly gliding the diffuser downwards. (In general I have given up on trying to accentuate my natural waves. They look best when I don't try to coax them.)

In general I don't use heat protectants as I don't use "heat", only warmth. My leave-in conditioner is enough.

Usually I don't blow dry my hair 100% dry, and I concentrate on the scalp hair rather than the ends. I might leave the lengths and end noticeably damp if I know I am going to put my hair up. It looks polished enough for me to have my scalp hair dry. (This is very hair type related. Some types get frizz if hair is not blowdried completely dry, some might get frizz if hair is not left a bit damp.)

Okay this turned out to be a novel. In general I don't have different routines in different seasons, I always follow the above.

If your wet hair/head feels cold and uncomfortable in the winter, then why suffer? Hair dryer, when used gently, isn't damaging and will save you from lot of unpleasantness, if you are one of those people who can't stand wet hair.

But like I said above, even if you have wet hair, if you have a warm hat on your head in the winter, it might be enough (again very YMMV). I live where the winter can be extremely cold, and never have had problems going out with wet hair under hat (wool is best, and maybe a hood over it).

[Arctic]

Cool to see so many headbangers and with such long lengths!

[lapushka]

Currently, every Sunday:

- t-shirt towel 45 min. (or microfiber/terrycloth turbie for 30 min.)
- airdry 3H
- diffuse 3/4 min.

That's it.

[Hairkay]

I'll squeeze out excess water then put a t-shirt on my head for a few minutes whilst I'm dressing. After that it's left to air dry and since it's in plaits around 8-12 plaits this makes drying quicker. Loose hair is the fastest to dry but that'll cause lots of tangles so I'll only have a few times in the year during summer when I leave it out in a wash and go (water only style with just a little coconut oil, no hair products or gel).

[Zindell]

How do you dry your hair in the winter?.I usually towel dry it and then let it dry naturally but I've got a cold and now my mum say I have to use a hair dryer. What do you guys do?

I dry my hair the same way all the year around. Gently pat it with a towel, then I'll let it dry naturally.

You do not need to use a hair dryer just because you've got a cold. The common cold is caused by a virus and not cold weather or having wet hair etc.

[catasa]

I sometimes air-dry, sometimes blow-dry on cool to warm setting, never hot. As other also have said, it makes my hair more sleek-looking and softer-feeling. I concentrate mostly on the scalp/canopy, blow-drying always from above and down the lengths, to avoid unnecessary frizz.

As far as I know (and have seen myself) blow-drying isn´t harmful as long as you avoid the hot temperatures, so if you want to humour your mom, you could do it like that. Hope it works out, and that you feel better soon! :flower:

[Deborah]

I wrap it up for a few minutes in a turbie towel, then let it hang to dry, not combing or anything until it is dry. If I do this at night, I gently separate it unto three sections, loosely braid it, put a hand towel on my pillow and go to sleep.

Completely air drying and then detangling has been very good for my hair, and, surprisingly, the tangles come out way easier than when I combed it while it was wet.

[SparrowWings]

I make myself look like a complete fool, but it works pretty well. First get out as much water as possible at the end of the shower, then dry off and dress, and get out some more water that's drained down and collected at the ends. After that, drape the towel (just a normal shower towel, same one I used to dry the rest of me) over my back, with the long sides at the top and bottom, and my hair on top. Grab the bottom corners of the towel and flip the edge over my head to my forehead, letting the hair randomly clump in the towel-edge at my nape. Then twist first one side of the towel and flip it over my head, and do the same with the other, so the two towel-twists cross. It actually stays up pretty well if they cross enough, and because it's on top of my head, it doesn't pull anywhere and it's not uncomfortably heavy. I'll leave it like that for a while and let the towel catch the drips instead of the back of my shirt. Usually, I'll take it down and flip the towel over and put it back up a little longer so the dryer original top of the towel can soak up a bit more water. And then I'll either go to bed and let the blankets/pillow case soak the rest, or I'll drape the towel over my back again and just leave my hair down, again letting the towel rather than my shirt collect what few drips remain. Sometimes while it's hanging down the towel, I'll reach behind my head and hold as far down as I can reach with one hand, and use the other to shake the ends around a bit to fling off more water.

[missrandie]

I headbang fresh out of the shower to orient my hair, then put it in a microfiber Aquis head turban for 20-30 minutes, then take it out, shake it, and continue a "shake and rake" kind of fluffing technique to break up wetness clumps.

It usually takes me 2 hours until my hair is visually dry.

[Agnes Hannah]

I squeeze as much as possible out after showering, then in a tubie towel for about 10 mins then loose. I find it really hard to keep my hair contained when it is damp. Leave it for an hour or so then carefully separate it into three strands, plait it and put on my silk sleep cap. Its mostly dry by morning.

[Carolyn]

Ladies, be very careful with all that headbanging. I used to do that when I was a kid and hurt my neck quite badly. It's never been the same. I have no qualms about using the blow dryer when I feel I need to.

[missrandie]

Ladies, be very careful with all that headbanging. I used to do that when I was a kid and hurt my neck quite badly. It's never been the same. I have no qualms about using the blow dryer when I feel I need to.

For me it's just a couple of "flips" to do the orientation. When I'm feeling really frisky, I'll hang my head down and roll it in figure 8's.

[EdG]

I sit at least five feet away from an electric fan-heater. At that distance, the air is only moderately warm.

http://www.edgrochowski.com/articles/heater1.jpg

Ed

[lapushka]

Ladies, be very careful with all that headbanging. I used to do that when I was a kid and hurt my neck quite badly. It's never been the same. I have no qualms about using the blow dryer when I feel I need to.

Me neither. I cringe when I read about "headbanging". :scared: Not to mention the bathroom's got to be totally wet when you do do that with soaking wet hair!

[Sarahlabyrinth]

Eugh, I couldn't headbang. I already risk putting my neck out just moving my wet hair around in the shower, it's heavy when it's wet!

[Arctic]

My hair is short (compared to you 3), light, on the thinner side, and it doesn't grow very dense. At first when I started it I did do actual headbanging (only back and forth though), but as I've read many warnings, I have toned it down a lot, and it's more like rocking my head upside down gengtly back and forth. I still call it tongue in cheek headbanging. The effect seems to be the same on both.

Nope, bathroom is not wet after, anymore than it already was after showering. When I take my hair from t-shirt towel after 5-ish minutes my hair doesn't drip anymore.

[poli]

I put it in the cotton t-shirt for few minutes, than I shake it loose upside down. I blow dry my bangs and style them and also use blow dryer on my roots. I actually think dry scalp is happy scalp :) Blow drying roots upside down give some volume to fine hair too. Then I try to leave the rest to air dry as long as I can before I have to take the dog out or go to work. Thanks to LHC I stopped brushing while wet - just finger comb to detangle and brush only when completely dry.

[ChloeDharma]

I used to air dry back when I was growing out damaged curly hair but these days I prefer to blow dry as I can't cope with being cold so sitting around with cold wet hair or even worse going out in winter like that is a big no no for me. I put my hair up in a towel for a little while to absorb as much water as possible then detangle it and start blow drying mostly using my fingers to comb my hair and lift it to get to the roots. Then I switch to a wooden paddle brush to finish it off.
I find my hair looks much nicer this way and keeping the heat at a comfortable level seems to be working out ok. I also read that gentle blow drying reduced hygral fatigue on the hair as it's not swollen for as long as it is when it takes hours to air dry which makes sense.

[adrenaline]

Normally I wash my hair in the morning and in winter thats a big problem. The last years I was air drying anyway (of course i wore a cap when i went outside etc.), because i wanted my hair to protect from damage... but i don't recommend this ... I tried to wash every evening, but it didnt fit in my daily routine. So this year i started again blow drying, almost every time i wash, means almost every day, and yes, my hair is more damaged than it was the years before. :( But i actually like the procedure, it saves time and is comfortable. Maybe i will do this further, get used to cut the split ends after the winter months and invest in an expensive hair dryer? If somebody knows a good brand, please let me know :)

[wectmall]

I would love to know a really good blowdryer. I have to blow dry my hair when I travel for work, so it's so important that I have a good one that is the least damaging!

[lillielil]

I air dry year round in a cold climate. I wash in the morning, and put wet hair in a turbie while I get dressed. After that it is not dripping, but still definitely wet, not damp. I bun it wet so that it doesn't get caught on my coat/seatbelt/purse/child, then take down the bun when I get to work and do a little raking while it dries. It takes about 45 minutes for it to be mostly dry (perks of thin hair!), at which point I put it back up. This schedule works for me, as I get to work around 8:00 and almost never have meetings before 9:00, so I don't have to worry about showing up at a meeting with wet hair. On really cold days (below 10F or so) I wear a hat.

Sometimes I have to get out the snowblower and spend 30 minutes outside clearing the driveway in the morning. If so, I either do it before I shower or I just stick my wet, bunned hair under a wool hat. It doesn't seem to get any more dry while I'm outside (probably because it is so cold), but neither I nor my hair are any the worse for it.

[meteor]

I would love to know a really good blowdryer. I have to blow dry my hair when I travel for work, so it's so important that I have a good one that is the least damaging!

I don't know if there is such a thing as least damaging blow-dryer, but you can minimize damage but setting it on lowest temperatures and blow-drying at a good distance and moving it all the time, to avoid creating hot spots. Also, if you can blow-dry it next to a fan and a heater, it will go faster. Keep the mane moving, lift up different sections multiple times to aerate it better.

Generally speaking, the lower the temperature and the further away you keep the blow-dryer (15 cm or more), the less damaging it is to the cuticle. Here is a good study on this: Hair Shaft Damage from Heat and Drying Time of Hair Dryer - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3229938/

And from another study, The cracking of human hair cuticles by cyclical thermal stresses - http://journal.scconline.org/pdf/cc1998/cc049n03/p00141-p00153.pdf (p. 148 ):

[...]temperatures lower than 50℃ do not increase the average number of cracks already present in unexposed hair, while temperatures higher than 95℃ lead rather to hair surface and bulk distortion. It is quite plausible, thus, that temperatures lower than 65℃ do not produce the critical rate of water evaporation needed for the top part of the cuticles to contract and become rigid, while temperatures higher than 85℃ might soften the cuticle proteins, releasing, thereby, the mechanical stresses by viscous flow.

[Saldana]

I'm in damp, cool Oregon in the middle of winter, and I have a cold right now. I washed my hair this morning, and am air drying it. I did squeeze/blot as much water as I could out of it before I left it down to dry, but other than that - I just air dry, headcold or no. :)

[lapushka]

I would love to know a really good blowdryer. I have to blow dry my hair when I travel for work, so it's so important that I have a good one that is the least damaging!

Any cheap dryer will do. Just get one that has:

- a cool shot (or preferably switch, you won't have to hold it down that way)
- separate speed settings (3 at least)
- separate heat settings (3 at least)
- a diffuser head (for me that's important, might not be important for you, but it's handy to have)

[ko6kin]

I air dry my hair when it is possible, but with our lifestyles, it is more convenient to use the hair dryer...the damage not only comes from hair dryers, it is also comes from the towels- towels must be baby-soft, or best ,use an old-old tshirt, that became soft from all the washings. I also noticed that my hair doesn't have breakage and split ends anymore, after i've started to sleep on silk pillowcase instead of cotton once. Actually silk pillowcase was bought to prevent the wrinkles, and gave this side effect for my hair!