I launched my YouTube channel a few weeks ago with an “unwrapping” video of Drybar’s “Peace on Earth Good Hair to All!” hair dryer kit. The kit was definitely a splurge, but I was hoping it would perform better than my ancient Conair dryer.

I have a lot of fine, long hair, and if I do not blow dry it completely  during the colder months, it either looks flat immediately or gives me a headache (neither of which is a good option).

Unfortunately, the Drybar Buttercup Hair Dryer did not seem much better than my ancient dryer. Although the dryer was light, had a good grip in hand, and was a little quieter than what I am used to, it did not seem to make much difference with drying time.

The kit included two products – Hot Toddy heat protectant and Triple Sec styling spray. Hot Toddy seemed fine – like any other heat protectant, and I did not notice a difference with the Triple Sec. If anything, it made my hair stick together in sections – giving a messier second day look to freshly blow dried hair – and made my blow out look slightly unkempt.

The large hair clips included with the set had many pieces on them that caught on my long, straight hair, and required extra time to untangle.

I actually liked the Drybar Round Brush more than expected. I remember buying a wooden round brush more than a decade ago to replicate a voluminous salon blow out. In real life, however, there is rarely time to do a full blow out and using a round brush on hair that is longer than shoulder length takes too much time and effort. It has sat in my drawer ever since.

The quality of the plastic bristles on the Drybar Round Brush seemed quite cheap, but it actually pulled through the hair nicely. Like the dryer, it had a good grip and felt lightweight in hand. The bristles held the hair well, in my opinion, and seemed to allow good tension for drying. The difficulty, however, is blow drying longer hair with a round brush. I have always had this problem, so perhaps it is an issue with technique, but it was not practical for me. I usually prefer to blow dry my hair upside down, starting at the roots, and then dry it with a large paddle brush – flattening pieces between the brush and the dryer.

In the end, the kit had some good things – the feeling and weight of the dryer, the length of the cord, the large barrel round brush for those who know how to use one, and the Hot Toddy heat protectant cream. Those benefits were not enough to justify the price of the kit, especially since drying time was roughly the same as my older hair dryer.

I sadly returned the Drybar kit and am still on the lookout for a better hair dryer. Do you have any recommendations for me?