Puffy Diamond Shape Hair

Puffy hair — Photo: Karyna Che/Shutterstock

Q: My hair is puffy and goes in a diamond shape when it's dry, ever since I got it layered. I love how my hair goes straight when it's wet, but the wetness dries out and goes back to the puffy diamond again. It's very annoying and I don't have much money to spend on hair care products. What should I do?

A: The reason your hair goes straight when it is wet is because the water adds weight to the hair, pulling it down. As the water evaporates, the hair becomes lighter and the natural wave pattern re-emerges, resulting in the puffy look.

It sounds like you want a straight hairstyle, and that you need to add some "substance" to your hair. My initial suggestion is to be sure to use a shampoo and conditioner formula for "sleek and smooth" hair, as well as using a spray-on, leave-in conditioner and either a styling gel or cream for straight hair styles.

The leave-in conditioner, and styling gel or cream should be applied to towel-dried hair, and then the hair should be blow-dried straight using a round brush. Make sure to direct the airflow away from the scalp to prevent roughing the cuticle layer of the hair. This helps to ensure a smooth looking finish on the hair.

If this doesn't give you the smoothness you desire (or doesn't give as much smoothness as you desire) you can follow up by using a flat iron to smooth the hair further. You can get a good-quality serviceable flat iron for around U.S. $20-25, and your average cost in hair products monthly would be around $15 by purchasing the lower cost brands available on the market.

A lot of people believe that you have to use "salon" products to get great hair. This isn't true. I'm not saying that the salon products aren't good, but rather that you can often find products that work equally well for you, that are much less expensive.

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See also:

Flat iron styling

How to blow dry hair

Heat styling basics

What are the physical effects of blow drying on the hair structure?