Having a great hair day usually means you’ve got clean, fresh hair that smells good and looks shiny. But what happens when you end up with greasy-looking strands? If your hair is oily, chances are it’s taking a little longer to dry because of excess sebum oil production.
The secret to drying your hair faster is simple: Clean it less often. Yeah, we know that sounds counterintuitive, but hear us out — washing your hair too often can cause oil production to speed up, creating the need to wash your hair even more frequently to get rid of the excess dirt and oil.
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3 ways you can dry hair faster
Here are the 3 proven ways of drying hair faster:
1) Let Your Hair Air-Dry
According to celebrity hairstylist Ryan Richman, “Hair actually takes less time to dry if you let it air-dry versus the use of a blow-dryer.” It is because hair naturally gets rid of excess oil by pushing it up to the scalp. If you remove this process by drying your hair with a blow-dryer, you’re forcing your hair to produce more oil.
The best way to take advantage of the natural push is by allowing your hair to air-dry completely before using a hairdryer. Not only will this minimize how much excess oil is produced, but it will also cut down on frizz and damage caused by heat styling.
2) Shampoo Less Often
Believe it or not, the more often you shampoo your hair, the more oil it will produce. It is because the sebum oil that creates grease is being stripped away each time you wash your hair. Just like our skin produces more oils when we wash too often, so does our scalp.
3) Rinse with Cold Water
Turning the heat on your showers and baths can be a great way to speed up hair drying time, but you can also rinse your hair with cold water. Rinsing your hair with cold water will help close hair cuticles and minimize frizz, giving your hair a sleeker appearance. It will also help your hair dry faster, although the effects only last for a minute or two before your hair starts to heat up again.
You can also give blow-drying a shot. Since it cuts down on the amount of oil your hair produces, you won’t have to shampoo as often and reduce frizz and damage caused by heat styling.
5 tips to make your hair dry faster
Check out our 5 proven tips to make your hair dry faster:
1. Brush your hair
If you have naturally wavy or very curly hair, brushing it before you dry it will cut down on the amount of time you need to blow-dry. Using a round brush will speed up the process even more by catching more volume in each stroke. If you want to go even faster, a good old fashioned blow-dryer can certainly help, but a round brush will certainly cut down the time it takes to dry your hair fully.
2. Plug in your blow-dryer
We know, we just said that using a blow-dryer will only cause even more oil production because of the excess sebum that is being stripped away. The thing is, the heat of a blow-dryer also helps dry hair faster. Since it’s winter and you’re not going anywhere without your coat on anyway, using a hot blow-dryer to dry hair faster won’t cause as much damage as it would in warmer months.
3. Turn down the heat
We said hot, not scalding. Using a medium heat setting on your blow-dryer is going to be far less damaging than using it on the highest setting. It will also dry hair faster without exacerbating the oiliness in your hair.
4. Try a ceramic ionic hairdryer
Technology has come a long way since 2000 B.C. when drying hair took hours (we can only assume). These days, ionic hairdryers are designed to dry your hair quickly while maintaining the health of your locks. Just like ceramic flat irons lock in moisture and protect against heat damage, ceramic ionic hairdryers help speed up the process of drying hair by emitting negative ions that are small enough to penetrate the hair shaft.
5. Hit your roots
The only place you should focus on with your blow-dryer is the roots, or where you first applied your volumizing powder or mousse. It will help lift hair and dry it faster since most of the oil is produced. It doesn’t matter whether you’re going for a sleek look, a messy effect, or want to dry up the grease on your crown; everything else should be left alone as it will dry naturally as long as you brush through it and don’t pile it all on top of your head.
What is the best way to make your hair dry faster
Of course, there is a secret that people who have beautifully styled, sleek hair use to make it look like they spent hours in the bathroom. They use a blow-dryer and a brush! It works particularly well on straight, flat locks because it’s going to be rather difficult to give volume without simultaneously drying your hair. Here’s how it works:
1. Section out your hair and spray each section with a heat protectant
2. Using a round bristle brush, start at the ends of your hair and move up towards the roots as you blow-dry. Use your fingers to hold the top sections and give them some lift at the root. You should follow the brush with your blow-dryer for the best results.
3. Once you’re done drying all of your hair, use a flat iron to straighten out the top sections and give them some nice, natural-looking waves while leaving the bottom section just slightly wavy or curly (depending on how much time you have). Finish off by spraying each section with hairspray to lock the style in place.
How do you dry your hair fast without a hairdryer?
As you can see, using a hairdryer isn’t necessarily the best way to dry one’s hair. It is rather time-consuming and damaging to your hair in the long run. However, there are some alternatives to drying your locks if you don’t have access to a blow-dryer:
The old fashioned towel
- Take an old, clean towel and get it wet.
- Then ring out the excess water until the towel is only damp.
- Wrap your hair in the towel by placing it under your neck and pulling it back over your ears.
- Then repeat for the next section of hair until all of your hair has been wrapped up in a damp towel.
- Leave this on for about 20 minutes.
- The hot air method: Using your hand, scrunch up all of your hair until you feel that it has contracted (you will notice that it is curly at this point).
- Then take a blow-dryer and set it to the lowest setting.
- Hold the dryer about 6 inches away from your head and let each section dry naturally.
- Be sure to hold the dryer in one place for around 10 seconds or so before moving on.
- Once you are done with all of your hair, brush through it and use hairspray to finish the look off.
The sauna method
- Get into a bathtub filled with really hot water (as hot as you can stand) and soak up the heat for about 20 minutes.
- Make sure that your hair is soaking wet.
- Then take a towel and dry off as much excess water as possible (don’t rub your hair).
- Wrap your hair in the towel like you would with the old fashioned towel method, but leave this on for about 30 to 45 minutes.
The oven method
- It isn’t as dangerous as it sounds.
- Turn on your oven to the lowest possible setting (usually around 150 degrees F).
- Then turn around and bend over at a 90-degree angle so that you’re facing downwards towards the floor.
- Wrap your hair in a towel like normal, but this time place the towel on the back of your neck and pull it down over your head so that it hangs in front of you.
- Then turn around so that you’re facing the oven and place your head about 12 inches away from it, but don’t let it touch the hot metal!
- Let your hair dry naturally for a few minutes, and then use a hairdryer to finish off. This method will take 5-10 minutes.
The good old sun method
- It is the only natural way to dry your hair quickly.
- Take some time on a nice sunny day and go outside.
- Spray your hair with water, scrunch it up in the towel, and then let it sit for around 15 minutes.
- Then take out the blow-dryer or straightener (whatever you’re using) and let your hair dry naturally.
The quick method
- There are many products out there that promise fast-drying hair, but most of them don’t work as quickly as their ads suggest.
- The only product that I’ve seen that works are L’Oreal’s ElnetHair Instant Hair-Dry.
- It will dry your hair in around 35 seconds.
- However, this product is expensive, and you can only use it once a day.
The blow-dryer method
If all else fails, you can always take out the blow-dryer and let your hair get nice and crispy. Then brush through it quickly before heading out the door.
Warning: Never EVER use a hairdryer to dry your hair while you’re out in the sun! It is extremely dangerous to your skin and can cause painful burns. If you don’t have time for this whole process, grab an ice-cold Coke or something and drink it outside- trust me, this is a lot better than having fried hair or getting burned!