How To Achieve a Salon-Worthy Blowout at Home

Photo by Shannon Deuel

What’s better than strutting around, showing off your glossy locks post-blowout session? The bounce in your hair and your step gives you that extra boost of confidence to take on the day— you feel fierce and unstoppable. While we all love to pamper ourselves, Valley understands that scheduling salon visits don’t come cheap and aren’t always convenient for the busy college student. To help you achieve everyday glamour, Valley set out the formula for the at-home (or in-dorm) blowout that’ll earn you salon-grade results.

What you’ll need:

Medium/large hair clips to section hair
Heat protectant spray/balm/serum/lotion/oil (choose whichever you personally prefer to work with)
Blow-dryer with a diffuser attachment
Round ceramic brush
Large tooth comb
Flexible hold hairspray
Bobby pins

What you’ll do:

1. Start with freshly shampooed and conditioned wet hair.

2. Absorb any excess water with a towel (DO NOT rub hair, this will damage your strands and cause frizz. Instead, blot your hair with the towel).

3. IMPORTANT: work heat protectant product into your hair, then take a large toothed comb and run it through your hair to distribute the product and untangle any knots.

4. Rough-dry hair with your blow dryer making sure to concentrate on your roots (no brush necessary yet, just use your fingers to run through your hair).

5. Once hair is almost completely dry, section off your hair into three major parts: top, left, and right. Then secure with medium/large hair clips.

6. Starting at the back of the first section, take out about a two-inch subsection of hair.

7. Take the subsection and wrap it completely around your round ceramic brush, rolling it up all the way to your root and hold this position for at least a few seconds.

8. Give a cool shot of air to this subsection.

9. Repeat steps six through eight to the opposite side of the same subsection.

10. If you’re looking for extra bounce, coil the subsection of dried hair and bobby pin it to your head (do not undo until blowout is complete).

11. Continue on with steps six through nine for the rest of your head.

12. Once hair is completely dry, unpin the sections, style hair with fingers to your liking and finish off the look with some flexible hold hairspray (hold the can at least six inches away from your hair so the product is less concentrated in one spot).

To extend the lifespan of your blowout, invest in some dry shampoo— it truly works miracles. By applying the product to your roots, it absorbs excess oil, giving you more volume and your hair an overall fresher, cleaner appearance.

What the blowout process really comes down to is having all of the right products. Prepping hair and using the correct tools prevents damage and promises great results. This strategy will easily fit into your daily routine (and budget), leaving you with extra money in your wallet and totally tremendous tresses!