I am incredibly lazy with my hair. I thought that when I cut it into a bob I would be inspired to blow dry it, style it… do *anything* with it. But no: I rough-dry it, straighten my fringe and leave the rest to fend for itself.
With this in mind, the concept of blow dry bars is music to my ears. They’ve been around in the US for ages and they’re finally getting bigger over here, much to my joy. The concept is simple: you pop in, have your hair washed and styled and you’re good to go. Such a great idea if you have a night out or busy weekend or just want to treat yourself.
Bardou Blow Dry Bar Review
The Bardou salon is a pop-up, so at the moment it’s located in Kensington (they also have a salon in Reading) in a beautiful building with high ceilings and spacious rooms decorated in a super high end, glamorous style: all white with black and gold detailing.
EDIT: I’ve just heard the breaking news that the pop up is moving to Covent Garden in December – perfect for all the festive parties in central!
The hairdressing stations were on casters so they can easily be packed up and moved out to the next place, and were topped with huge mirrors surrounded by lightbulbs for the full Hollywood experience.
My stylist, Victoria, was so lovely – really friendly and chatty but not so chatty you felt you couldn’t relax. We had a quick chat about my hair and what kind of blow dry I wanted. Then I was taken through to have my hair washed with the Bardou hair care products. I chose the Volumising range as my hair can always do with a bit of a boost.
I got given truffles and champagne! Why aren’t all hair salons like this?
And here’s the finished product! Apologies for the iPhone photos but my camera is massive and doesn’t fit in my handbag! Also, my phone case is brilliant so any excuse to get that in the shot…
My hair was blow dried straight (something I never have the patience to do) and given lots of volume. It felt so soft and thick, I couldn’t stop swishing it! My fringe is a bit straighter than I would typically do myself, I prefer it to look a bit less ‘done’ but fringes are so personal that I don’t think anyone has ever styled it the way I wanted!
The Bardou signature blow dry is £35 which I think is brilliant for lazy and/or useless people like me who want beautiful hair without having to touch it themselves! You can see the menu and prices HERE.
What do you think? For what occasions would you get a blow-dry?
Hi Lex!
I am in the US and we have these everywhere! I, too, am very lazy with my hair styling– mostly because heat is a huge trigger for my rosacea, so hot showers and blow drying is something I actively avoid (I also have super long hair, and keep it that way because it’s easier to put up without completely drying it!). How do you manage your hair while limiting flares? I noticed in a separate post you mentioned you do not wash your hair everyday. I’m curious how you keep it looking so fresh without having to wash and/or blow dry it everyday? Love your blog! I’m a huge fan and have found some amazing skincare products through your posts!
Thanks!
Dana