For me, there’s nothing better than stepping out of a hair salon with a beautiful, bouncy blow-dry. It can be so hard to recreate the softness and volume the pros achieve with a barrel brush and blow-dryer. But sometimes I just don’t have an hour spare to get to the hairdresser or I’m literally running from work to an evening event and my office-weary hair needs to look fresh in a flash.
Enter the smart new VS Sassoon Digital Sensor Hot Air Styler. This clever one-handed multi-functional hair tool is able to dry and boost volume (hello bounce!) in one easy step, plus it helps reduce hair damage and dullness thanks to its smart hair protection technology which is made possible by the intelligent digital sensor. The digital sensor works to maintain a uniform and consistent airflow, while eliminating hot spots that cause damage to the hair fibre, for high shine and silky smooth results – clever! It comes with three different styling attachments so you can create both heavenly bounce and sleek smoothness. The two motorised, rotating round brush attachments come in 50mm or 40mm barrel sizes to give you plenty of volume and sexy waves with ultimate smoothness and shine for short or long hair; or you can use the 3D styling paddle brush for smooth sleekness with volume and natural drying, while the ceramic coating smoothes out even the frizziest of hair, making it perfect if you have 10 minutes to be out the door.
After getting a few tips from VS Sassoon’s Stylist, Rob Reeves, I found out that adding plenty of salon-worthy va-va voom to my limp work locks is not as difficult as I once thought. Here’s how it went.
Step 1
Start with clean, damp, towel-dried hair. If you are coming from the office as I often am, you can dampen your hair before you start. Apply a lightweight heat-protecting and volumising product to prep hair before styling. Use your fingers to comb product through mid-lengths and ends.
Step 2
Rough dry hair with a hairdryer to approx. 80 per cent dry. You can use a brush or your fingers to help speed up the process. Or you can use the 3D styling paddle brush on the Digital Sensor Hot Air Styler to help pre-dry hair.
Step 3
Section off hair horizontally ear to ear, then in half from the part so you have four sections. Clip each section into place.
Step 4
Using the VS Sassoon Digital Sensor Hot Air Styler, select either the 40mm or 50mm barrel brush. I chose the 50mm barrel; it’s great if you have thicker hair or if you want big bouncy waves. If you have fine hair or want slightly tighter waves, opt for the 40mm.
Step 5
Undo one of the sections then divide your hair into smaller sections 2.5 – 5cm wide – too big and you risk tangling. Place the styler under the section of hair you want to curl to give amazing root lift, then, starting close to the root, brush the tool through hair to detangle and smooth the hair section.
Step 6
Switch on tool and move towards the ends, as you reach the ends press and hold the rotation direction switch (left or right, depending on which side of the head you’re styling) and rotate the brush away from your head. PRO TIP: Remember to keep hair taut so that the tool can create a brushing effect. To release the section of hair, press and hold the opposite rotation button to unwind hair.
Step 7
PRO TIP: Another great volumising tip is to wind the entire section of hair around the barrel. Once you release the rotation switch, flick the switch to the cool air setting and leave the tool in your hair for a few moments to help style your style, then unwind the hair section.
Repeat this process on all sections of hair.
Step 8
Finish with a light spray of hairspray (pros love L’Oréal Paris Elnett Satin Normal Strength Hairspray) to hold the look all day (or night) long.