New Hair & My Air-Drying Technique

There is something so liberating about chopping your hair.

I haven’t even done a big chop, but those extra inches that have been taken off has totally changed my routine. Faster showers, faster drying time, a more laid back look to play with. I’m into it.

I have chopped my hair many times. The first time I went short after having long hair for years was when I was nineteen. That was also my most dramatic chop. I had a really short bob. Well above my shoulder short. I don’t think I’ll go that short again. It was great to do, but I don’t think it suited me as much as this type of midi hair does.

Since then, over the past ten years, I’ve gone for the chop I’d say every eighteen months or two years. I actually did a post one time I did a chop, advocating for more people to try out the midi (my posts were dramatically short back then!).

Now that my hair is shorter, my air-drying technique is even faster. I have been air-drying my hair every summer, or every time I’m in a hot climate, for about three summers now. When I say it has made a incredible difference to my hair, I’m not being dramatic. The texture, the ends, the shine, it all gets better. No hot tools means that my hair isn’t getting damaged daily. Even now with dyed hair, it still hasn’t dried out. It still feels and looks healthy. If you’re unsure about trying out air-drying, I’m here to show you to tools and techniques that I use to make sure my hair looks how I want.

Wash and dry your hair as normal. Wrap in a towel for a little while while you dry, moisturise, get dressed etc
Brush through your hair using a paddle brush. Take care here and don’t be too rough with your hair
Spray Ouai Wave Spray, or Bumble & Bumble Surf Spray into your hair. Make sure to get into the roots, the ends, and into the layers
Work the spray into your hair by scrunching your hair, ensuring that the spray is dispersed evenly
Leave your hair to dry more. This is where I like to do my make up, make my bed, get through some emails, or if it’s a weekday, this is when I walk to work. In this humidity, my hair drys super fast, even when it was long. Basically go about your day until your hair is 85% dry.
This is where you can spray Ouai Texturising Hairspray into your hair. I only do this if I’ve dried my hair at home. If I’ve walked into work I find that my hair has quite a bit of texture from the breeze, so it’s not essential.
Rub the spray into your hair, making the sections of your hair a little more piecey looking. I like a bed head, effortless look, so this works really well for that
That’s it! You’re good to go!

This has worked for my hair at all lengths – long, short, midi. It’s a really easy technique. There’s two things that you should know when it comes to air-drying your hair. It will take time for your hair to adjust to air-drying. At first, my hair looked oily. It just didn’t look right for about two weeks. I dealt with that by leaning into the ‘slicked back low pony’ and persevered. It’s important to persevere with this. Your hair won’t be the way you want right away, but it will adjust. So be patient.

Secondly, the cut is important. For anyone with midi length hair like mine, if your hair is thick, you will need to get the ends thinned out. Otherwise you will look like a triangle head. Trust me on this one. Ask your hairdresser to cut into your ends to thin them out. It won’t take away from your cut, it will just mean you’re not carrying heaviness in the ends and making air-drying more difficult for you.

I hope you found this helpful, I know air-drying can be intimidating, but once you get the hang of it, it’s the best thing ever! I have saved so much time and effort, and I’m actually happier with my hair. We should all try to embrace our natural hair, in all forms, and not feel like we need to have perfect, Victoria’s Secret glossy locks all the time. It’s exhausting!

Let me know if you give this technique a try, or if you go for a midi cut. I’d love to see it!

okaybee