Choosing The Best Hair Dryer For Your Hair
If you’re anything like me where you have just stuck to the same old hair dryer for your whole life, you probably have no idea how to buy a hair dryer. In this day and age with the Internet offering countless options to choose from, you have the luxury to find a hair dryer that works with your specific hair type, and it’s just about time that you do! Besides, hair dryers have come a long way, and you should treat yourself to an upgrade. So, what should you be looking for in a perfect hair dryer? Well, it all depends on your hair type, as not all hair dryers work for everyone. Below we have some tips on choosing the best hair dryer for your hair.
1. Wattage
A rule of thumb to keep in mind is that the higher the wattage, the more powerful your hair dryer. That means high wattage offers a lot of hair power and not much heat, while low wattage is vice versa. If you have thick hair, high wattage will work to lower the amount of time spent drying your hair while lower wattage is best for damaged, frizzy, and fine hair. However, do keep in mind that higher wattage hair dryers burn out faster due to all that air power, so take that into consideration.
2. Material
Often hair dryers boast some sort of technology, whether it be tourmaline, ionic, etc. It’s easy to be swayed by fancy, scientific words, but what do they mean, and what do they do for your hair?
Ceramic/Porcelain - these dryers have their heating modules covered in this material, allowing for heat to come out more evenly and consistently, similar to ionic dryers in which they cut the drying time. Honestly, all hair types can benefit from having this kind of dryer, but hair types that would benefit the most are damaged, dry, and/or fine hair, as the heat control means that it will be more gentle with these hair types, which is what they need.
Ionic - this one is a very popular technology in hair dryers. If a hair dryer says that it has “ionic technology”, that means that the air it shoots out has negative combats, which combats the positive ions in water, thus speeding up the drying process.
Effectively removing the moisture from hair like this allows for the cuticles of your hair to close properly, preventing frizz. So for those with frizzy or thick hair, be on the look out for this kind of hair dryer.
Titanium - it works similar to ceramic/porcelain in that it controls heat distribution, though it’s a much lighter material and actually often has more heat if the internal parts are covered in it. If you have thick hair, this may be the kind of material in a hair dryer you need, but if you have damaged hair, you’re going to want to avoid this type of material.
Tourmaline - this material works similarly like ionic technology. Tourmaline is either coated over the internal parts or the dryer as a whole, increasing the amount of negative ions that go into your hair. This means that these dryers are usually a bit pricier, but it’s worth the cost, especially if you have frizzy/thick hair that is especially difficult to deal with.
3. Heat & Speed Settings
No matter your hair type, it’s nice to be able to have a variety of heat and speed settings and a cool shot button, which adds shine and closes your hair cuticles. It’s especially best to have a good variety of these settings in hair dryers for thin/fine hair because this hair type doesn’t fare so well unless the hair dryer allows for a low heat setting, because high heat can cause more damage. 4. Comfort The question I’m asking when I talk about comfort is, “Is your hair dryer comfortable in your hand as you dry your hair?” Comfort can be considered with several factors:
Weight - weight doesn’t necessarily affect how your hair dries, but it does affect the experience as a whole. If you have long/thick hair, drying your hair can take a while, plus you might be holding a brush in the other hand which already adds more strain to your body, so avoid heavy dryers and look for something that’s lightweight. Ergonomics - hair dryers don’t usually outright say that they’re ergonomic, so you’ll have to be on the lookout for specific things, such as an easy-to-hold handle, button placement, and travel-friendly features such as a retractable cord.5. Accessories Hair dryers come with detachable nozzles that help change the way you dry your hair. When choosing the best hair dryer for your hair, the type of attachment that it comes with matters on your hair type. If you have curly hair, diffusers help keep those spirals intact and natural looking. Diffusers are also great for thin hair, because it also has a volumizing effect as well. It also works well with frizzy hair because it disperses the air flow. There’s also concentrator nozzles, which is much narrower and is great for those wanting a sleek and straight hairstyle. This can also work with frizzy hair because the air flow is much more concentrated, but it really depends on the type of frizzy hair you have.