How To Air Dry Your Hair

Step away from that hair dryer and find below our favourite tips, styling tricks, and recommended hair products to turn you into an air-dried hair pro. Since different hair types require different care, we’ll be suggesting curated products and routines that fit your specific needs.

To air-dry your hair or not to air-dry? For most people, the decision comes down to how well you know your hair and the products you’re using. On the one hand, it’s great to give your strands a break from constant heat styling and potential damage. But, if you don’t know how to control your strands to air-dry the right way, you may be left with dull, frizzy and lifeless-looking hair.

Curly hair needs very specific care — if you want your curls to look their best, you need to look for products that can provide adequate moisture, definition, and control. Find a curl shampoo and curl conditioner to boost the potential of your curls and waves — the Noto almond extract in our LOVE curl products are rich in proteins and vitamins that help to maintain bounce and add volume to curly hair.

Curly hair needs very specific care — if you want your curls to look their best, you need to look for products that can provide adequate moisture, definition, and control. 

Our LOVE collection, including our curl shampoo and curl conditioner, is rich in proteins and vitamins that help to maintain bounce and add volume to curly hair.

Like with wavy and curly hair, coily or textured hair needs adequate moisture to look its best. Our Love shampoo and conditioner is also best for this hair type, but consider co-washingyour hair with a curl cleansing cream to give your strands a break from frequent shampooing.

Straight hair can tend to be prone to dry ends and a dull appearance, Try MOMO, our moisturising shampoo and moisturising conditioner. The Cartucciaru melon extract is extremely hydrating and packed with Vitamins A and C, potassium, phosphorus and zinc.

If your hair is cosmetically coloured, or if you just want to illuminate your natural shades, choose colour-friendly hair products that won’t strip your strands of pigment or shine. The Salina caper extract in MINU colour shampoo and colour conditioner contains colour-protecting polyphenols, giving you long-lasting brilliance and shine.

One of the most common concerns with air-dying your hair is its potential to dry into an out-of-control, frizzy mess. Lock in moisture and lock out frizz and flyaways with our Love smoothing shampoo and smoothing conditioner. The Minuta olive extract in this range is abundant in fatty acids and Vitamin E, which are extremely nourishing, softening, and moisturising.

Ever tried brushing your hair in the shower to fight tangles? If you find yourself struggling to brush out knots after washing your hair, you can try brushing your hair in the shower with a wide-tooth comb after applying your conditioner. Not only will this help to detangle before you towel-dry, but it can also help you evenly distribute conditioner throughout your hair to keep it healthy and moisturised. Remember to be as gentle as possible, your hair is at its most fragile when wet!

After washing and conditioning your hair, finish with a cold water rinse to lock in shine and combat frizz and flyaways. Cold water helps the cuticle of your hair lie flat, leaving you with shinier hair (and a stronger foundation for successfully air-dried hair).

Even though you’re air-drying, you should still start by towel-drying to remove excess water. Use a microfibre towel on your hair to gently absorb water. Avoid using a traditional cotton towel as this can rough up your hair. A large T-shirt will also do the trick if you don't have a microfibre towel. 

Different hair types need different styling routines. Make sure the styling and leave-in prep products you’re using will help you lock in your desired look when air-drying your hair. A good sea salt spray will help your hair air dry with a beachy texture that enhances natural waves whilst a curl prep cream will lock in moisture and definition. If you’re dealing with fine hair that feels limp, you can try using a moisturising leave-in spray to keep strands detangled and happy.

• Wash and condition your hair with a frizz-fighting shampoo and conditioner.
• After towel-drying and detangling with a wide-tooth comb, apply a leave-in anti-frizz cream.
• If you have looser waves, gently scrunch up from the ends and let them air-dry. But if you have more defined waves, use the finger coiling technique to help set their shape and discourage frizz.

• Wash and condition your hair with a dedicated curl shampoo and conditioner. Curly hair can usually go unwashed for longer periods than non-curly hair as it retains less moisture.
• After towel-drying and detangling (making sure not to remove too much water), apply a primer or curl cream to encourage definition and elasticity.
• Now you can choose the air-drying method you prefer: many people with curly hair are fans of plopping and manually twirling hair around the handle of a hair brush to encourage curls to hold their shape.

• Wash and condition your hair with a volume-boosting shampoo and conditioner.
• Spray a volumising spray onto detangled and towel-dried hair.
• For additional body and texture, spray a sea salt spray and gently scrunch your hair from the roots to ends.

• Wash and condition your hair with a colour-safe shampoo and conditioner.
• After detangling with a leave-in treatment, like our OI hair milk, apply a leave-in hair serum to towel-dried hair to help illuminate your colour while keeping hair shiny and healthy.
• Continue to style your hair as desired, either by letting it fully air-dry after being brushed, or by finger coiling or gently scrunching for texture.

These hair care tips and styling tricks will help you disguise thinning hair and hair loss:

While you might be tempted to adjust your hair while it’s air-drying, your fingers have the potential to rough up the strands and cause frizz and even slow down the drying process. Once you have your set air-dry style, just trust the process and let it work!

We mentioned before that traditional cotton towels can be too rough on the cuticle of your hair, leading to potential frizz, damage, and breakage. So remember to use a microfibre towel when towel-drying your hair, or even a cotton t-shirt. This will be gentler to use on your hair and speed up drying time.

If you avoid air-drying your hair because it tends to look lifeless and limp, this is a great tip for you! Blowdry your hair at the root to boost volume (or even upside down, this works best for people with straight hair), and then let the rest air-dry as usual. Your ends dry faster than your roots, so this is also a great way to speed up the drying process in general. Just remember to use a heat protectant any time you plan on blow-drying or heat-styling your hair!

To enhance and maintain your style, consider locking it in with a light mist of hairspray for hold, a texturising spray for added volume, or a nourishing hair oil to smooth frizz and keep ends hydrated. 

Using the right products for your hair type, along with gentle styling tools like a wide-tooth comb and a microfibre towel, can make all the difference. And no matter how you choose to finish your style, you can feel good knowing that with every purchase from Davines, 1% goes toward environmental and community initiatives through our partnership with 1% for the Planet.

We know that wet hair is at its most fragile state, so some people advise against air-drying because you’re keeping your hair in a vulnerable state for longer than if you just blow-dried it. You shouldn't see any damage if you use the right protective products and avoid roughing up your hair when it’s drying.

If you’re in a rush, you can still efficiently air-dry your hair. Start by gently squeezing out as much water after you shower, then take a microfibre towel and start by absorbing water from the roots (which we know take longer to dry than ends). Detangle with a wide-tooth comb, and wrap your hair in a microfibre towel for a few minutes to absorb even more water. Then follow your air-dry routine as usual — but consider avoiding heavier leave-ins and creams if you can, since these will potentially slow down the drying process.

There are a few reasons why your hair could be “crunchy” after air-drying. Over-dryness and damage can happen from styling or chemical processing, leading to that crunchy feel, but in many cases, this feeling happens when you just use too much product in your hair.

by Lauren Hannel, staff contributor

photos by @goldandglowco