We saved about $1,750 by flying to Europe out of Chicago O’Hare Airport instead of Detroit International. It was about 4 hours away by car, but definitely cheaper to rent a car, drive to Chicago, and then drop the car off after sightseeing for the day! In addition to visiting the Shedd Aquarium, we also popped into Drybar! I will be reviewing their blow drier, curling irons and straighteners soon, but I’ve always been a fan of their hair products. I have tremendously frizzy hair, especially in the summer, and their hairspray and haircare line are the only ones I’ve seen consistent success with, in addition to not making my hair look greasy like most others I’ve tried.
The dry shampoo, flexible hold hairspray, and detangler spray are seriously lifesavers for my stubborn mane!
All of their hair products and hairstyles are drink themed! Also, Alli Webb, the founder of Drybar and a super stylish gal, recently helped a bill be passed in Cali which allows salons to serve small amounts of alcohol (maximum 12 ounces) to their clients (when they’re older than 21 of course).
There are no Drybar locations in Michigan, so I’ve been hoping to go to one of the locations in Chicago for awhile. The salon is really unique because they don’t cut or color hair, they only wash and style it. You may be thinking, “What the heck! I need to keep up on my color and cut, why would I just go to have my hair styled?” I was skeptical at first too, because it seems like you’re missing half the experience of going to a salon. Therein lies the beauty of it! Because Drybar focuses solely on styling hair, guests are able to visit more often and spend less time doing their hair themselves. We went on a Friday afternoon, and there was a line of people waiting for their turn. Stylists were busy chatting away with their clients as they curled, straightened, and otherwise styled their guest’s hair.
People were getting ready to go out for the night, and quite a few people were there with their friends, which means it was part of their weekend routine. I saw the girl ahead of me greet her stylist by name and with a hug. Clearly people were attached to their stylists!
“Hugs Accepted”, absolutely adorable!
I already own all of their hair tools, so I stocked up on some of my favorite products and added the rollers and hair clips to my arsenal! Shout out to Alli for creating such an awesome de-tangler spray! I didn’t know it at the time, but it’s impossible to find conditioner in Europe! I’ve looked EVERYWHERE and I can’t find anything in Germany, France, or Poland! It is not possible to brush my hair without conditioner (seriously, my hair would rather rip out than de-tangle on its own lol). Thank you Alli, your products have literally saved my hair while I’m in Europe for a month!
If you live near a salon, be sure to check it out, it’s such a fun environment, and it’s super relaxing to have someone else do your hair without having to worry about how the cut and color will look! They also have membership type deals where you can get so many styles done per month, along with lots of fun events. This would have been so perfect to have near me for prom, graduations, dates, or when traveling. It was a convenient way to be able to relax, freshen up, and have a cute style on my way to Germany – thank you!
Thank you so much for reading! Be sure to sign up for updates in the sidebar if you’d like to be notified when a new post goes up! Please let me know what you thought of this post, and if you’ve ever been to a Drybar salon, or if you’ve ever tried their products!
Annie Fairfax
Maja Sullivan says
Hi Annie,
Thanks for the article. I’m familiar with the Dry Bar and what they offer but never have been to one…yet.
As for the part about no conditioners in Europe, I am surprised. I’m from Poland and I lived in different places including German. They do have hair conditioners. These are called balsams or balms. You can buy them at any store. They also have specific cosmetic stores just for beauty products, ex. Rosemann in Poland or DM in Germany. Were you looking for something specific? I don’t think there are any Dry Bars there yet though.
Greetings, Maja
anniewearsit says
Ahhh, thank you for your comment!! I’ve been looking in grocery stores and some of the pharmacies around, and they have no clue what I’m talking about when I ask (maybe because I’ve been using the wrong word?), and when looking myself, I haven’t been able to find anything. I didn’t realize they had a different name here, thank you so much! I will go out this evening and search lol. I feel so silly, but I’ve never been here before and I’d be so happy to find some. None of the hotels we’ve stayed in have had any either, is that common? They provide us with shampoo, body wash, and lotion, but no conditioner. I’m not looking for anything in particular, just a decent conditioner. We will be heading further south soon, but passing through Germany again. Is DM a common brand I should ask for? I’ve seen shampoo in stores, but nothing that looked like conditioner near it, is it typically somewhere else? I know there are much bigger issues in the world, so I’m certainly not complaining. Sorry for all of the ignorant questions, I appreciate your help! My husband and I have been wondering what everyone uses here…haha
Maja Sullivan says
Haha, that’s funny!
DM is a chain of stores that carry all cosmetic products. So you can find the same stuff we have in US, L’Oréal, Pantene etc. They won’t be selling these at a pharmacy , that’s solely for meds,Rx etc, maybe some medicating hair products but not regular stuff. They do have some better soaps and maybe some natural perfumes but that’s it. Also they have Douglas chain, it’s Parfümerie, so things that a cosmetic counter at a Macy’s would sell: Chanel, Lancome etc. But look for DM stores or Müller. Müller is a good choice, a little priceyer than DM but has both regular stuff and perfumes, even kids toys.You could also find personal care products at almost every grocery store:Kaufmarkt, Edeka, even Aldi. The conditioner is called Haarbalm. Also you could ask at the hotel for it, sometimes they will keep it at the front office and just give when asked. Haha! It’s true! But also depends on the hotel chain. I would say the typical German ones won’t have it, people are more robust there not so “fancy” as we get here in US haha. But most of the international chains like Mercure, Sofitel,Hilton,Radisson or Marriott would have it in the room. Good luck,enjoy Europe! If you are heading to Poland, let me know and I would be happy to help ?Maja Sullivan (I’m at your page LP Dress to Impress btw)
Kendra Koontz says
Oh I wish we had one near Lexington, Kentucky! This sounds so neat. I hate styling my hair and this would be perfect for those days where I need to look nice, but have no idea how to get that look on my own. I didn’t even know this type of place existed. Thank you for sharing!
Jessica Malinowski says
I don’t think I’ve got one near me either. I’d never even heard of them.
Jessica Malinowski says
I need to go to a dry bar I guess!
Caroline Jordan Miller says
Love a good DryBar visit!!