When it comes to hair products, I have to say I consider myself something of an expert. Or maybe ‘expert amateur’ would be a better way to put it… I’ve got what you might call difficult hair. Dry, thick, curly, prone to lots of poof. If there’s a product out there claiming to help me gain control, there’s a good chance I’ve tried it. This makes me adventurous, flexible and a huge skeptic. As you might imagine, when there came a chance to try a product that claimed to dry and straighten my hair in one step, in a fraction of the time, with minimal heat and less damage to my hair, I perked up. Would this really work? Could there possibly be something that would give me lovely, straight tresses without the damage, and in half the time? I approached the product with a healthy dose of skepticism, hopeful but not too convinced. When I finally received my RevAir, knowing only that it was a reverse air hair dryer, I was startled by the sheer size of the package. I did NOT anticipate receiving a hair dryer that was the size of a small vacuum cleaner. My friends were equally startled, and we had quite a bit of fun examining the nearly 5 feet of tubing involved, plus the heavy base and large and oddly shaped nozzle.
Before I explain how well this worked and what the result was, I should tell you the normal time commitment I sign on for when I blow dry and straighten my hair. This is something I almost never do now, preferring to air dry my hair and let it be, because I simply don’t have the time or energy to deal with straightening. I’m usually very hot and sweaty by the end of this procedure, my arms hurt, and I feel like I need another shower. If I plan to do this, post shower I apply a smorgasbord of hydrating, smoothing products (an attempt to control the inevitable frizz) and spend a solid hour and a half blow drying my hair. This usually results in a poofy, dry-looking mess, which I then must follow up with about another hour to two hours with a straightening iron on the highest possible heat setting and yet more product to try and protect my hair from said heat. Once done, it usually stays for a few days, barring me getting caught in a rainstorm, but I rarely ever go to the trouble. I mean, a three-hour procedure just for straight hair does NOT appeal to me. My friends all know this about me, and after I sent a picture of the RevAir to my best friend, she immediately fired back, “Girl, let me know if that works. Because if it works on YOUR hair, I will definitely buy it.”
The RevAir claims that it will give me the same result I get from a blow dryer and straightening iron in nearly half the time and in a healthier way. I had my doubts. But I carried the very large, vacuum-like hair dryer into the bathroom to give it a whirl. Armed with towel-dried hair and my usual host of products applied, I gathered my hair into the recommended 3 “x 3” sections and turned on the RevAir. Firstly, this is easily the loudest hair dryer I’ve ever heard in my life. Several people asked me if someone was vacuuming later…I went with the Level 2 setting and lowest heat option. A higher speed setting only succeeded in giving me some gnarly tangles, so I decided against going up anymore. Be warned long haired girls, you may need to do the same. The higher the speed, the more likely the tangles, and they are some serious ones. I set a timer while I struggled with manipulating the awkward long hose, just to see how it went. Now, part of my awkwardness was that this was a totally new product to me and I also very rarely dry my hair at all anymore. Once I got the hang of it though, it went surprisingly fast. I spent pretty much the maximum recommended time (120 seconds) on each section of my hair, but I was definitely shocked with the end result. In a mere 28 minutes, my hair was dry, smooth and straight and appeared soft, shiny and healthy.
No matter what else I may say about the product, it worked! Quite stupendously. I got tons of comments on how healthy and nice my hair looked, and it felt great and stayed lovely and smooth until I next got caught in a rainstorm! My frizz factor was decreased by a huge margin, and I’m pretty sure I’ve never gotten it so straight and smooth with just a blow dryer and straightening iron. And in less than half the time! I can safely say I never expected it to work so well, and I am thrilled. I will never go back to a traditional blow dryer and straightening iron. The results were just too good, too fast and too convenient to use anything else.
My only real criticisms are the sheer size of the product and the loudness factor. It truly sounds like an industrial vacuum cleaner running and it’s not super practical for travel. This makes me a bit sad, because I love this so much, I can’t imagine going on vacation without it. But seriously, there’s no way I could get this in a carry on and probably not in checked baggage either. I would be first in line for a travel-sized option if they made one, so I’m hoping that’s in the works! For now, I’ll be a curly girl on my vacations. But this may be the absolute best option for getting that smooth, straight look that I’ve ever seen. An especially good investment for those that consistently struggle with the amount of time and effort it takes to get straight hair, like myself and other curly girls out there. Give it a try; I bet you’ll be impressed!
BEST PRACTICES TIPS & TRICKS:
- TENSION (REVERSE-AIR SPEED)
- This is the dial on the Base Unit. Tension replaces the need for a brush or hot flat irons. START AT SETTING 2-3. Once you see what your individual hair can tolerate, you can GO UP ONE LEVEL AT A TIME. IF YOU HAVE ANY TANGLES, GO DOWN A LEVEL. DO NOT TURN IT IMMEDIATELY TO LEVEL 7 as it may not give you the best result – in fact, it can be the opposite. Coily, Type 4 hair usually works best around Level 5-7.
- HEAT
- This is located on the Wand. The Temperature Settings are No, Low and High Heat. Even the hottest heat of the Wand is LESS than the lowest heat on most Flat Irons.
- NO PUMPING
- You have likely seen other reviews where Influencers are doing this wrong. THERE IS NO NEED TO PUMP OR BOUNCE THE WAND. In fact, when you do that, you are not allowing the roots to get dry. The reverse-air move constantly and consistently down the entire length of your hair, drying from root to end at once. BOUNCING THE WAND MAY DISRUPT AIR FLOW AND THAT CAN CAUSE TANGLES.
- TIME TO DRY
- Each section will dry in 30-90 SECONDS, so long as Wand is kept to scalp. Thickness, texture and section size mean your time may vary. Experiment to find your ideal time. Test by pulling Wand a few inches away from scalp and touching roots. If they are dry, it is likely you are done.
- WAIST LENGTH HAIR is much less dense at the ends, watch your tension setting and perhaps use detangler on the ends. You may need to use a bit bigger section if tangles occur at low tension settings (1 or 2). Some may have to dry in 2 phases – Dry the roots first, then move about half way down on a lower setting to be sure each section of hair gets dry time in the wand chamber.
- WANT IT STRAIGHTER?
For those with Type 4 hair, you may find you want to finish your look with flat ironing. Remember, getting hair to this point has just happened IN LESS TIME WITH LESS HEAT, MEANING LESS DAMAGE.
