“Your hair should be 60-to-65 percent dry before you even start to blow dry with a brush.” Cutler explains that it’s less damaging to your hair if you pre-dry. “Towel dry, then blow dry using only your hands for a bit, then use a brush—starting at the roots.”

Blow drying leaves your hair open to all kinds of damage if not done correctly, thanks to the stream of heat. Knowing how to blow dry hair properly not only keeps your hair looking good, it keeps it healthier too. Along with using a shampoo designed to care for your scalp, there are some basic tips that everyone should follow:

• Try not to use high heat settings if possible, as this can damage hair. Ideally, the air stream should feel comfortable on the back of your hand
• Blow dry your hair from at least 8 inches (20cm) away
• Keep the air flowing in one direction, from your roots to the hair’s ends. This keeps the cuticle layers on the outside of your hair smooth,  so your hair can be , shiny and protected
• Keep the dryer moving to avoid too much heat in one spot.
• Use a heat protectant to protect your hair from damage

Depending on your hair type, you may want to take these tips a step further.

For short hair, the goal of blow drying is soft texture and volume:

• Focus on the roots first, to give your hair lots of fullness and volume. Lift hair up & away from the scalp  while drying, and use styling product at roots for extra lift
• When the roots are dry, use a brush to style sections of your hair while you dry the ends
• A small amount of gel or pomade can be used in small sections to define layers, creating a polished look and giving your style hold

Like with short hair, the aim here is volume, with smooth strands from root to tip:

• Use a volumizer on the roots of wet hair, along with your protectant
• If you have bangs, use a round brush, pulling them straight out from your forehead and aiming the dryer’s flow towards the ends
• Dry the sides almost all the way through before using a brush on them, then clip your hair up and finish drying while using a brush to pull the hair taut
• Now get to work on the top section, pulling the whole lot up at once and drying straight up to give it lift

When drying long hair you’ll want to maximize the silky texture, while building body around the hairline. A shampoo that keeps your hair silky smooth will work wonders here:

• To start off, dry the roots.  Apply just a bit of tension with your fingers, lift hair up & away from the scalp while drying.   Use styling product at roots for a little extra lift.
• Next, dry your hair almost all the way through
• Pull up the top sections of your nearly-dry hair, and secure them with a clip.
• Dry the bottom layers of your hair first, using a round brush to apply even tension down the length of each section as you dry it.  Keep the hair dryer moving, and keep it a safe distance from your hair to avoid hot spots.
• When the under layers of your hair are dry, unclip the next sections, and repeat the process.