Trials and errors aside, now might be the time to consider honing the art of the air-dry. Just as you might be going au naturel with your makeup and skin care (and there are major benefits to both), air-drying can also offer benefits. Here, experts offer sage advice on air-drying hair, from coarse coils to stick-straight strands. From there, you should evaluate hair both on overall type (straight to kinky) and individual strand texture (fine to thick), says hairstylist Clay Nielsen, who works at the salon Spoke&Weal. Someone with fine, limp hair might gravitate toward a product that supports fullness, no matter whether their hair is curly or stick-straight. And someone with thick, dense strands might need to use smoothing products, even if their hair dries relatively straight as is. No matter your natural pattern, try not to get too worked up about product labels marketing to certain types. Rather, “feel the products in your hands,” he says. “Things that dry tacky are best for fine hair, while products that are slick and oily are best for coarse hair.” Hairstylist Alicia Miller, national master trainer for Davines North America, says you should also resist the urge to over towel dry. If you simply must twist your hair into a towel wrap, make sure to, “use a towel that is soft and less likely to activate frizz,” she says, like a microfiber wrap. After you rake product into your hair, be sure to leave it alone. Trust that the product is doing its job; while you might be itching to run your fingers through those soft strands, try to resist the urge: “The more you touch your curls, the more likely your hair will frizz,” Miller notes. And again, you want to refrain from touching your hair: “Too much movement will reduce the product’s efficiency, and your result will not be as good,” celebrity colorist Rita Hazan says. Enter your volumizers, dry mousse, and sea salt sprays: Make these texturizing products your new best friends. Instead of facing flat, dull hair, your strands will have a little tousled body to hold you over until your next wash cycle. “Adding a little texture will likely give you more time between shampoos,” Miller mentions.
