Help me get to work on time

April 23, 2009 10:38 AM

Tell me about the hair dryer that changed your life.

I need a kick-ass hair dryer. I don't care about anything other than getting my hair dried as quickly as possible - ionic thingys, tourmaline, and magic crystals are not a requirement. I found this thread in which someone recommends this hair dryer, saying it will dry your hair much more quickly than a store-bought hair dryer. But it's only 1300 watts! How can that possibly dry my hair more quickly than my 1850 Conair? Am I missing something key about how hair dryers work? I don't mind paying more, I just want to know it's worth it.

I have long, straight, thick hair. It currently takes me about 20 minutes to dry it.

posted by Evangeline to Clothing, Beauty, & Fashion (12 answers total)

Elchim.

This hairdryer (Elchim 2001 1800 watts) actually did change my hair life. I always used Conair and other discount brands. Elchim is powerful and dries my hair in half the time. My hair is shinier and tremendously less frizzy. The first time I used my new hair dryer I got many compliments. A good hair dryer does make a difference in the appearance of your hair. I get that "just stepped out of a salon" look with the Elchim. The good thing about this dryer is that it's not crazy pricey as some other trendy brands that are basically the same thing or not as good.
posted by Fairchild at 10:52 AM on April 23, 2009 [1 favorite]

The Rusk Speed Freak gets very good reviews on Makeupalley and on Amazon.
posted by Houstonian at 10:57 AM on April 23, 2009

I have a BaByliss that I like very much except that the black plastic covering at the base is starting to shed, but I've had the dryer for about 3 years and it still works great. Just sometimes, I'll put it down and have these small black patches on my hand that I just wash off.
posted by spec80 at 11:10 AM on April 23, 2009 [1 favorite]

I have this one and I love it. I don't know about its magic crystals, I just know it works and doesn't weigh 10 pounds like my last dryer.

The best thing I do for quick drying is blot my hair with paper towels. After towel drying (I just use a normal terry towel because I hate those microfiber things), I comb it out, pull it back with one hand like I'm making a ponytail, then wrap and blot with 3 folded up paper towels. It totally takes out a ton of extra moisture. Then I lay the towels on the bathroom counter and they dry out by next morning. I use them over and over again.
posted by peep at 11:24 AM on April 23, 2009

I have a T3 that I love. My previous hair drier was a Conair, and it would take me for.ev.er [half an hour, at the very least] to dry my very thick, long, naturally wavy hair. After a lot of internet researching I decided on the T3, but the first time I used it I was still skeptical. It's quieter than any hair drier than I've used before, and it didn't seem to get as hot, but twenty minutes later, my hair was done, and I was sold. My hair was softer and less frizzy, and flat-ironing it afterwards took a lot less time.

This article from CBS might help you.
posted by alynnk at 11:32 AM on April 23, 2009

Response by poster: Great suggestions! Thanks all.

Peep, love the paper towel idea - I'll try it tomorrow.
posted by Evangeline at 12:22 PM on April 23, 2009

My best friend has a T3 and swears by it- it does seems to really make a difference in her hair. Her hair looks smoother and has more body than before.
posted by rmless at 12:22 PM on April 23, 2009

Seconding Elchim (model 2001 1800 watts). Mine is now 5 years old. Compared to other dryers the Elchim uses less heat but significantly more air. It makes enough of a difference for me that I bring it with me on overnight trips. Also, my stylist is always pleased when I go in for trim.
posted by poodelina at 4:49 PM on April 23, 2009

I have always used my towel to dry my hair/straighten it before and during blow drying. After trying several dryers, I settled on this Vidal Sassoon. My long, thick (wavy) hair that usually takes a while to dry, but the time to dry it has been cut down quite a bit using this dryer. And my hair ends up straight. I don't know if the ionic feature does anything or not, but I can't really ask for more. Bonuses: travel size/dual voltage, price.
posted by xiaolongbao at 6:02 PM on April 23, 2009

Since you said you just want to dry your hair as quickly as possible, here's a little tip. This is kind of hard to explain in words, but did you know that if you use a dryer over a towel (not a huge furry bath towel, but a relatively lightweight one like something you'd use in a gym), it dries your hair in about half the time as when you dry it normally (as in blowing hot air directly through your hair)? I guess it's sort of like peep's paper towel method, but the idea is to use the hair dryer to keep drying the towel that is drying your hair. It feels weird at first, but it does work.
posted by misozaki at 11:30 PM on April 23, 2009

Response by poster: Misozaki, that is very strange, and I will try it this weekend.
posted by Evangeline at 7:49 AM on April 24, 2009

If speed is your main aim use a microfibre towel for your hair - it absorbes significantly more water and leaves your hair much drier to start out with. When I use one of them (at the gym)...when I say significantly I mean that I don't actually have to dry my chin length, wavy, thick hair at all - I just spray some curl spray into the towel dried hair, scrunch and head to work. Obviously your hair style would require drying but it'd still make it a lot faster irrespective of the drier you end up with.
posted by koahiatamadl at 11:54 AM on May 2, 2009