Dyson Chitosan Review: Is it worth it?
The global brand has just branched into a new range of the products for the very first time but are they actually any good?
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The rules of haircare are simple and finite, at least according to my hero in life, Elle Woods. But since the 2001 release of arguably the best film of all time, Legally Blonde, the rules of haircare have started to get murkier and murkier. There are hundreds of products available on the market and finding something that works for your hair type can be incredibly frustrating.
Enter: Dyson Chitosan.
The world renowned brand known for its incredibly powerful vacuums and hair tools has surprisingly entered the product space.
“Despite entering (haircare) eight years ago in Supersonic, we had actually started studying hair science with chemical engineers well before that,” Sam Burrowes, Dyson Associate Principal Design Engineer tells news.com.au checkout.
“We’ve been in the business of understanding hair because you can’t develop a device that has a fundamental mission of reducing hair damage and promoting hair health, unless you understand what causes the damage and how hairs react to certain situations.”
WHAT IS DYSON CHITOSAN?
Chitosan is the hero ingredient in Dyson’s new haircare range and it derives from an ingredient found in oyster mushrooms.
“We looked at oyster mushrooms, because if you look at fungi as structural entities, they have this pliability and flexibility to them but they also have this inherent strength and that comes from Chitosan,” Sam says.
“We extracted that, put it into a powder form and then created what we call Triodetic technology.
“Dyson Triodetic™ technology locks in the shape of individual hairs with a lightweight structure of bonds, while other ingredients in our formulas help to simultaneously condition.”
The brand has released both a Pre-Style cream and a Post-style serum designed for all hair types. There are four variations of the pre-style cream including a light and rich conditioning version for both straight to wavy hair and curly to coily hair.
Dyson Chitosan Pre-Style Cream
WHAT DO THE NEW PRODUCTS DO?
The Dyson Chitosan Pre-Stye cream is designed to be used on damp hair before drying either naturally or with a hair tool. It holds your style for double the amount of time than untreated hair and ensures you have 50 per less unwanted frizz. The light conditioning option is great for those that find their hair gets weighed down easily while the rich conditioning is for those who need extra nourishment.
The Dyson Chitosan Post-style serum is to be used on dry hair and helps to hold and define your finished look. It also offers extra hydration and shine.
“Another way in which they’ve broken down problems to solve was looking at hair type,” says Sam.
“Type 1 and type 4 don’t have the same level of pre-style flexibility.
“A type 4 is going to need a lot more moisture, for example, in that pre-style routine than somebody who has a type 1 hair.
“So we have four variants of our pre-style cream that it’s dedicated, not only to hair type, but level of hydration that you’re seeking, be it light or rich.”
WHAT THE NEWS.COM.AU CHECKOUT TEAM THOUGHT?
- Philippa Tonkin, news.com.au checkout Shopping Writer, has long, thick, wavy to curly hair
- Claudia Coy, news.com.au checkout Social Media Producer, has long, fine hair that tangles easily and doesn’t like to hold a curl
- Melody Teh, news.com.au checkout Acting Editor, has long, straight, fine, flat hair
Philippa Tonkin, news.com.au checkout Shopping Writer
When it comes to my hair, I have tried a lot of products. As anyone with curly hair knows, the curly girl routine can be a lot of work. While, I don’t have tight coily ringlets my hair ranges from waves to soft ringlets as can be seen in the centre image above.
I tried both the light and rich conditioning cream in the curly to coily range as well as the post styling serum.
For my hair, I found the light conditioning was definitely the better option. While I liked how my curls looked with the rich conditioning, I found that my hair felt super weighed down and quite oily and sticky.
With the light conditioning pre-style cream option, while I definitely could still feel the product in my hair, it was a lot more lightweight and didn’t weigh my hair down.
I was pleasantly surprised at how well my curls turned out. I had fully formed ringlets that stayed in shape all day.
In terms of the post styling serum, I cheated a little bit and used before my hair was dry. This is because I like to air-dry my curls which can take a long time so with any oil or serum I normally apply after I’ve removed my microfibre hair towel and finished scrunching my curls. I didn’t notice a huge change in my shine or hydration in my ends like I have with other serums but my hair definitely still felt super soft which is always a plus.
Claudia Coy, news.com.au checkout Social Media Producer
I, like millions of others, have recently been hooked on the big bouncy blowout look made trendy again thanks to Sabrina Carpenter. However, my hair is very long and very fine and does not enjoy being styled, or rather – won’t be styled for long periods of time. So when I asked to trial the new Dyson Chitosan pre and post styling serums I honestly didn’t have a very high expectation.
Let’s start with the pre-style cream. I worked three pumps of this lightweight serum into my (90 per cent) towel-dried hair and then ran a brush through to make sure the product was evenly distributed. Unlike other hair creams I’ve used before, my hair didn’t feel greasy after application – so far, so good. I then finished drying my hair with my Dyson AirWrap and instantly saw the curls holding their shape for longer than they had before using the pre-style serum.
Finally I ran the post-style serum through my blowout and crossed all fingers and toes that this would magically hold my hair in place for the day. The serum was just as lightweight as the first and smelt beautiful. It also created a beautiful gloss over my blowout and made the whole style look more polished in general.
As for the holding power, the Chitosan range definitely helped the curls keep their shape for longer than I’ve ever experienced, but after around two hours I saw my hair start to drop again. If you have shorter, more manageable hair these products would be great for you! For longer, finer hair girlies like myself, I’d say these are great products to introduce if you want more definition and a glass hair look overall.
Melody Teh, news.com.au checkout Acting Editor
My approach to my hair is, shall we say, low maintenance at best. I have straight, fine hair that’s easy to manage so I can mostly get away with simply air drying my hair after a wash, giving it a quick brush in the morning, and then out the door I go.
But recently I realised this “do nothing” approach – surprise, surprise – isn’t good for my hair so I have been on a mission to find products that will help my hair health. So I was very keen to try Dyson’s new hair styling products. As leaders in hair tools that prioritise hair health, I was sure Dyson’s hair products would not let me down. And I was not disappointed.
I have been using the Pre-style cream (both the light and rich conditioning) and Post-style serum for straight to wavy hair for the past few weeks and spoiler alert, I’ve been loving both.
As my hair is fine, I prefer the light conditioning over the rich one for pre-styling. The cream is a lovely texture that my hair instantly absorbs. It doesn’t weigh it down or make my hair look greasy or oily, which I have found happening with other products. And since using it I have noticed my hair is shinier and healthier looking! Plus, less frizz, which is always a win. I like how you can use it on towel dried hair, making it easy to slot into my routine.
I don’t style my hair too often (read never except on special occasions) so I haven’t really been using the post-style serum for its intended purpose but I do find that it gives my hair extra shine and hydration. Even though I don’t style my hair, I have noticed my hair has been looking good for longer. You know what I mean? It’s just looking much more put together which as a lazy girl, I highly appreciate.
Unsurprisingly with Dyson, the packaging is sleek and looks great in your bathroom cabinet. I’m a big fan of the precision pump so you never over do it with the product.
Although these products are nice to have for someone like me, if you’re someone who can’t walk out the door without perfect hair (how do I become you? Please teach me), then I’d highly recommend these products. They are luxurious and do what they say they do.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
WHY HAS DYSON GONE INTO HAIR STYLING PRODUCTS?
Sam says that Dyson has been working on this specific formulation for over five years.
“Since 2019 we have been studying ingredients, understanding the problem to solve, and then working towards a solution that we thought was interesting and could be disruptive,” he says.
“At Dyson, we genuinely don’t want to enter a space until we have something unique to say, and a point of view that makes sense.”
WHAT MAKES THESE PRODUCTS DIFFERENT TO OTHERS ON THE MARKET?
“If you look in the marketplace of styling products, most styling products work by using simple polymers that glue the hair together,” says Sam.
This is why many products leave behind that crunchy feel. However, Sam says this crunch is damaging to the hair and can lead to breakage.
It was this that started the ingredient exploration and led to Chitosan, he says.
“Dyson engineers were looking at how we could create technology that would coat strand by strand and give individual retention,” Sam says.
“So, they took that base ingredient of Chitosan and formulated exclusive technology that we call Triodetic and it allows for an individual shaft by shaft retention.”
HOW DO I KNOW IF I SHOULD USE THE LIGHT OR RICH CONDITIONING PRE-STYLE CREAM?
Pete Thomsen, Dyson Global Styling Ambassador, says it is very easy to identify your natural hair type.
“Imagine your hair has been washed and left to air-dry. What shape do the majority of the strands take?” he says to ask.
There are four main hair types:
- Type 1: Straight to wavy hair. This hair type can require washing more regularly than other types to avoid a build-up of oils.
- Type 2: Wavy to curly hair, often described as a wavy ‘S’ shape. This hair type also requires regular washing as oils can progress down the hair strand more easily.
- Type 3: Curly hair with tighter ringlets, curly hair can often suffer from dryness due to lack of sebum across the hair strands.
- Type 4: Curly to coily hair types.
Pete says for types 1 and 2, some products may wear the hair down and lead to a lack of volume and style retention. While types 3 and 4 need something a bit heavier and moisturising to keep the curls fresh.
DO I NEED TO USE BOTH THE CREAM AND THE SERUM TOGETHER IN MY HAIR ROUTINE TO SEE RESULTS?
Pete says you can use the products together or separately, depending on your styling routine.
“If you’re looking to make a choice between them, the Pre-style cream is a great foundation product to start with,” Pete says.
Whereas if you’re looking for a product to apply after styling to add definition, the Post-style serum may be best suited for you.
“It’s great for reducing frizz for a smooth finish, especially on straighter styles. Or, you can use it on natural curls to add definition,” says Pete.
DO I NEED TO USE A DYSON DEVICE TO SEE THE BENEFITS OF THE PRODUCTS?
No. The products are compatible with all styling routines, says Pete. However, they are the only styling products specifically designed and tested to work with Dyson hair care devices. So if you were to use a Dyson device, these products are definitely very compatible.
WHERE IS DYSON CHITOSAN AVAILABLE TO SHOP?
Dyson Chitosan is available to shop from the Dyson Australia website.
How much does the Dyson Chitosan range cost?
Both products cost $89 each for a 100ml bottle. There are 15ml products available that cost $29. Also when wanting to repurchase shoppers can buy a refill for 79.
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