the lazy girl blow-dry

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i combine having very long, thick and generally unruly (is that one rain drop? frizz, frizz, frizz!) hair with a general distaste for any styling procedure that takes more than fifteen minutes. i love blow drys at my salon, but i can't usually bear to do it myself. my hair's so thick that left to it's own devices, it honestly takes about six to eight hours to be dry, so morning showers are never an option. i try to avoid going to bed with wet hair for the sake of my pillows, so over the years i've perfected the ultimate low-effort, high-impact blow dry. yes, it does take products - i used to shun anything bar hairspray, but i've been forced to admit that a balm here and a spritz there can make my hair a lot more co-operative. i start with putting some nicky clarke dry argan oil through the lengths of my hair before washing. this oil can be used on dry hair, and i often use it to tame flyaways, but it's a great moisture injection - put some in, put your hair up, and leave it to soak in. then, i smooth some of wella's flowing form balm through the lengths of my hair about half an hour after washing, and leave it down for a little while. forty five minutes to an hour after that, it's time to rock and roll. pin your head up on your head with a big grip and bring your hair down in small sections. i do this quite randomly - whatever feels comfortable and you can get around a barrel brush. placing the brush at the root of my hair, i point my dryer at the brush and slowly bring it down in an arc, tucking it ever so slightly at the ends. i can't rate my dryer, the babyliss boutique, highly enough - getting a high-powered hair dryer like this sliced my blow-drying time in half, and it gets my hair super soft and shiny. repeat all over your head - don't worry if some bits curl and others don't, it'll look undone and lovely. finally, my wonder product: bumble and bumble's brilliantine. i love, love, LOVE this. i smooth the tiniest bit through my hair in the morning, and it gives a bit of shine, shapes and defines the waves and smoothes any frizz. i'm kind of addicted - if you have long hair, you need this product. and there you have it! an undone, easy blow dry with about fifteen minutes hands-on time.