Once upon a time I had to lug my beloved Parlux hairdryer with me whenever I went away from home which would double the weight of my bag instantly (I have thick, frizzy, just-electrocuted hair in its natural state that requires a lot of smoothing. ) It was either that or risk those pathetic hairdryers that were attached to hotel bathroom walls which would take me half a day to dry my hair with.
Thankfully the hair tools of today are much lighter, leaner, sometimes wireless and more portable, meaning we can throw them in our handbag for after work drinks or in our hand luggage on a flight.
This is our tried and trusted edit of travel-friendly hair tools that make our lives (and hair) a lot more manageable
The Glide Hot Brush, GHD
A favourite with influencers, this multitasking hair styling brush has firm long and short bristles and it also heats up, smoothing your hair quickly. Amazing for renewing second day hair and imparting a silky softness.
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Babyliss 9000 Cordless Straightener
There have been a few cordless straighteners that have launched in the past, but they have never worked like the plug-in versions and never got hot enough. The recently launched Babyliss version, however, is an exception. Powered by lithium-ion, it comes with a magnetic charger that will give you 30 minutes use at maximum temperature, and with ceramic floating plates, it gives an exceptionally smooth glide. Does it smooth hair as well as the plug-in version? Yes, exactly the same. Absolutely brilliant – just don’t put them back in your handbag still hot.
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Thermoceramic rollers, Denman
If you want to fake the look of a salon blow-dry fast, blow-dry your hair smooth and then wrap the lengths around a set of Thermoceramic rollers from Denman. A genius invention, they are super lightweight, and use self-grip silver metallic thread so there’s no need for any grips or pins. Just roll into your hair, blast with a hairdryer and leave to cool for enviable waves.
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Ceramic and Boar Bristle brushes from Moroccanoil
Moroccanoil are not just famous for their cult defrizzing oil but they have an amazing professional range of hairbrushes too. One of my favourites is the Boar Bristle brush which smooths even the wildest hair (e.g. mine). Perfect to create your in-flight hairstyle.
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The GHD Flight Travel Hairdryer
It used to be the case that the lighter the hairdryer was the less power it had. No more – this power tool from GHD is 50% lighter than their Air Hairdryer with 70% of the power. With two power settings, it folds up to reduce its size and there is dual voltage so you can rest assured it will work wherever you plug it in.
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The Dyson Supersonic Hairdryer
The Dyson hairdryer is more lightweight than most professional hairdryers yet just as powerful. With special ion technology it helps to reduce static and is easy to use. With the motor in the handle (why did no one think of that before?) it makes this hairdryer small enough to pack in a suitcase.
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