Drying hair with a diffuser

[Red_Rose]

I know this is a really stupid question but when a person with curly hair dries their hair with a diffuser, do the curls look different compared to being air dried?

I had tried flaxseed gel a few days ago and I love it but it takes so long for my hair to dry with the gel in so I've thought about using a diffuser to cut back on wait time but I was just wondering if my curls would look different then they do when I let my hair dry on its own. My hair forms into spirals when I let it air dry so I didn't know if it would curl up differently if I used my hair dryer.

Thanks!

[cupcake0619]

I personally don't have any experience with this, but you could always just try it on a day that you dont have anything important to do..?

Let us know how it turns out if you decide to try it! Good Luck.

[jaine]

I have to be careful to let the gel harden before a diffuser comes anywhere near my hair, otherwise it blows individual hairs out of the clumps, and those individual hairs look like frizz once the whole thing is dry. Even if I let it harden first it usually blows some hairs out of the clumps, just less of them. I get much cleaner, smoother clumps from leaving it alone all day.

[SearMeCarefully]

I'd say the biggest difference for me is more volume and.. curlier when using a diffuser. When I let it air dry it usually ends up more wavy but when I diffuse the curls tend to come out more. I think it may because while it's drying the weight isn't pulling it down as much and allows it to dry/set.

It also depends how you style it like.. if I want thicker more clumped together curls I'll finger comb it out of the shower (no brush) and maybe even twist a few strands around my finger/scrunch. But if I want more separated all over curls I'll brush the product in and head bang for a few seconds to get it to separate all out then dry lol

[Firefox7275]

My curls go tighter when I diffuse, presumably because you are supporting the weight as they dry; plopping/ plunking (http://www.naturallycurly.com/curltalk/general-discussion-about-curly-hair/112371-techniques-links-supersoaker-spritz-condish-plopping-frizz-clipping-icequeen-etc.html) is supposed to achieve much the same. If I diffuse upside down I get volume at the roots. Apparently you can avoid having individual hairs come out of the curl using the Pixie-curl method (http://www.naturallycurly.com/curltalk/general-discussion-about-curly-hair/112371-techniques-links-supersoaker-spritz-condish-plopping-frizz-clipping-icequeen-etc.html), I find not going to fully dry and making sure the ends have enough leave-in or gel helps.

[Theobroma]

Firefox7252, thanks for the link to the pixie curl method! I need to get a diffuser as I live in a cool climate and thus can't forego partial blowdrying, but I really need to find a way to do it that doesn't result in more frizz than curl! Nice to know that people using diffusers have actually found they get tighter curls rather than looser ones.

[Red_Rose]

Thank you!

I had used my diffuser yesterday and while it didn't turn out too bad, I find that my curls were more defined when I air dried my hair but I also didn't use the Pixiecurl method either. Honestly, I don't know if that way would work for me or not because the only parts of my hair that take longer to dry is the middle section. The hair near my neck, ears and the entire top of my head dry quickly so I don't know if sectioning hair then drying each section at a time would work out for me or not.

Since I've tried the diffuser, I think I'll get an old T-shirt and try the plopping method next time. I've read that some people plop and then take the hair dryer and dry the hair a bit while everything is wrapped up in the T-shirt so the hair isn't being blown around.

[RocketDog]

I have had my stylist use a diffuser and the results were amazing - my curls were very defined and I had a lot of body at the root, something I *never* get when I air-dry. My blowdrier came with a diffuser and the one time I tried to use it at home all I got was a giant rat's nest of frizzy, tangled hair. Never again!!

[dulce]

1 air dry for an hour-then it is fairly dry so then blow dry with a diffuser for maybe 2 minutes to separate the curls and fluff them out-if 1 don't do this 1 have tight spiral curls all over- think shirley temple at 59!!using the diffuser plus holding curls in cup of my hand to prevent them moving a lot while blowdrying, prevents frizz-without the diffuser 1 get a frizzy mess-

[TrudieCat]

My curls go tighter when I diffuse, presumably because you are supporting the weight as they dry; plopping/ plunking (http://www.naturallycurly.com/curltalk/general-discussion-about-curly-hair/112371-techniques-links-supersoaker-spritz-condish-plopping-frizz-clipping-icequeen-etc.html) is supposed to achieve much the same. If I diffuse upside down I get volume at the roots. Apparently you can avoid having individual hairs come out of the curl using the Pixie-curl method (http://www.naturallycurly.com/curltalk/general-discussion-about-curly-hair/112371-techniques-links-supersoaker-spritz-condish-plopping-frizz-clipping-icequeen-etc.html), I find not going to fully dry and making sure the ends have enough leave-in or gel helps.

I love the Pixiecurl method!! It turns my waves into loose spiral curls. It's the only way I ever use a diffuser - it really does reduce frizz dramatically for me, especially if I've got gel in my hair.

[dulce]

am going to try that [pixiecurl method]! thanks..

[SearMeCarefully]

Oh I'd also like to note that the diffuser I use is one that is supposed to help with curling? Not the one that comes with my dryer blech!
Here is a picture similar:
http://blog.frisorska.se/wp-content/uploads/2008/10/diffuser.jpg

It works 3x better for curling my hair as I will take it a section at a time and place it/scrunch it all in there at once (faster drying too)

lol oh upon reading that link, yeah I guess it would be considered the pixie curl method.

I did this to recreate my all time favorite method of laying down on the heater vent :lol: best and easiest way to style my hair, all you have to do is lay there and move positions every now and then

[santie]

I've used a diffuser before and didn't really notice a difference. Perhaps I was using it incorrectly...

I find that when I airdry by putting my hair in a loose high bun or sleeping with wet hair, my curls become very defined!

[Red_Rose]

I just wanted to update by saying that I tried the Pixiecurl method. What a difference it made!

I comb my hair after it's washed and then I add the gel in while my hair is dripping wet. Then I scrunch my hair a bit with an old T-shirt so my hair isn't dripping water anymore. After that, I start diffusing sections of my hair with the Pixiecurl method. My hair is no where as frizzy as it is when I let it air dry and my curls are way more defined then when I put gel in and let air dry. Another bonus is that you don't have to wait so long for your hair to dry. If I let my hair air dry, it can take 4-5 hours(give or take) to dry whereas when I use this method, only about 20% of my hair is still damp. The rest is dry.

I'll be using the Pixiecurl method from now on!:happydance: