Monday 16 May 2011

My Vintage Hair Diary - Part 2b: Supplies and Tools continued...

After yesterday's post I thought it might be worth while at least looking into portable hooded hair dryers as they were listed in both "Vintage Hairstyling" and "Style Me Vintage" maybe it would be worth my while investing! 

Well she's definitely enjoying her's!

The hooded hair dryer was originally introduced in the 50s, a time when women were expected to uphold a certain chicness in their look from day to day, so this would have been a good way to achieve a salon look at home. Well if it's good enough for the 1950s lovelies! And there are still some kinds of hooded dryers available in the modern market. They may not look as pretty as the originals, but let's see what's on offer!

Firstly we have the solid hooded dryer, based on the original design from the 50s/60s. This version is the BaByliss Portable Hooded Hair Dryer, found here:

Fancy drying you hair with me? :)

All folded up and cute!

This little beauty will set you back between £30 and £50, and it certainly looks the part, what with it's sweet little white fold away self. And from it's online reviews it certainly seems to get the job done. If this is a little rich for your tastes, however, you can go for our second option:

Do you think this a good look for me?

Option two (found here) is a steal at just £8.50 and consists of a simple attachment for your hairdryer consisting of a tube and hood, that fits snuggly around your head thus drying your set quickly. The best thing about option two is I'm pretty sure my mum owned one once :) To be honest, I think if you can get over the fact that you look like a space man, option two may be the way forward, after all it's so much cheaper. Plus it also comes in pink:

There's nothing strange about this at all...

So there you have it, it may not be so crazy listing one of these bad boys as a basic tool after all. There are several options at several different price ranges out there, and I suppose if you set your hair pretty much everyday this might be a worthwhile investment as it will ultimately mean you spend less time waiting for your set to dry and more time doing something else that's more fun! Sewing perhaps, or making some cupcakes :)

What do you think? Do any of you use these clever little gadgets or do you just think they're a waste of time and/or money? As always I love to hear your thoughts! For now I think I'll leave off buying one, I want to get better at sets (or just do one!) before I invest any big bucks in equipment. My setting lotion is winging it's way to me now though, so expect updates on my progress very soon! 

Bye for now :)

9 comments:

Jemima said...

I haven't tried the blow up hood, but I have to say that they only time curls have ever really lasted on my hair, I sat under a hood in a hair salon. I didn't know you could buy them so cheaply, thank you for sharing. x

Unknown said...

See I try to stay away from drying my hair un-naturally as I think it always looks nicer when it has not been exposed to heat (mine anyway). But I hate having to soak my hair and set it and sleep on it for 7 hours, so I guess it could be useful. But, I can definitely understand your hesitation! x

Rhia said...

When I was a kid my mum used to have blow dryer with the hood (very similar to the one in the first picture). It was weird by shape and smelled plastic. It was white with little brown flowers and I don't remember seeing mum ever using it. So not so sure how practical it actually was. I never tried it myself. I usually set my curls with old Carmen hot curlers, if I wan't to make a really good and longlasting curls. Unfortunately none of my curls last till the next day.

Isis said...

My Mum had one with a soft hood when I was a kid. :) I think it worked fairly well, but you get a bit stuck and deaf while you use it.

LandGirl1980 said...

I have a blow up hood!!! i LOVE it!!!! I am just writing a post about it. Easy storage - all over even heat. L-O-V-E it!!!!

Miss Marie said...

I love the idea of having one of these (the first one, rather than the spaceman one...) but it'd just be for the novelty value, really. I just sleep on my pinned-up hair - so efficient and I guess my scalp's not too sensitive as I don't find it at all uncomfortable.

Katie said...

Lady Cherry - I know right? It's not as expensive as I thought either, perhaps investing in one is a good idea :)

Hannah - I'm exactly the same as you, my hair always looks and feels softer and soother after natural drying, but I'll see what happens with this up and coming set and then I'll take it from there!

Rhia - yes, I'd be apprehensive about buying one of the expensive models because I would have no idea how well it would work for me, which might be disheartening after spending about £50! I wish I could just use hot rollers but my hair really will fight back, it needs serious taming!

Isis - Yes I think deafness would be a big issue! But I think I'd be ok if I sat down with a good book with it on for half on hour, a bit of a relax while my hair dried :)

Land Girl 1980 - I can't wait to read your post! Maybe you'll convert me :)

Miss Marie - You lucky thing with your non-sensitive scalp and your hair looks beautiful too, I'm more than a little bit jealous... :) I'd quite like one for the novelty too, because they're so cute, but unfortunately I can't condone spending money on something I won't actually use!

lisa at twolooseteeth.com said...

A salon-style hooded dryer is great for drying regular curly-hair styles also. You don't have to wait a long time for hair to air dry, and you don't rough up the curls as much as with a hand-held dryer (and all the head flipping). One of my pet peeves with my naturally curly hair is that you can't sleep on it while it's wet (and have it be ready to go the next day) like you can with a pin-curl set.

Tyger said...

Our Cool Cap product dries hair in half the time and keeps you cool under dryer. Works GREAT with Roller Sets, Color and Bleaching process, Deep Conditioning, Drying Dread LOCS or any other process that requires a hood dryer.(works with hand held blow dryer too) www.staycoolcap.com

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...