<P> In 1890 the first hairdryer was invented by French stylist Alexander Godefroy . His invention was a large, seated version that consisted of a bonnet that attached to the chimney pipe of a gas stove . Godefoy invented it for use in his hair salon in France, and it was not portable or handheld . It could only be used by having the person sit underneath it . </P> <P> Armenian American inventor Gabriel Kazanjian was the first to patent a blow dryer in the United States, in 1911 . </P> <P> Around 1915, hair dryers began to go on the market in handheld form . This was due to innovations by National Stamping and Electricworks under the white cross brand, and later U.S. Racine Universal Motor Company and the Hamilton Beach Co., which allowed the dryer to be small enough to be held by hand . Even in the 1920s, the new dryers were often heavy, weighing in at approximately 2 pounds (0.9 kg), and were difficult to use . They also had many instances of overheating and electrocution . Hair dryers were only capable of using 100 watts, which increased the amount of time needed to dry hair (the average dryer today can use up to 2000 watts of heat). </P> <P> Since the 1920s, development of the hair dryer has mainly focused on improving the wattage and superficial exterior and material changes . In fact, the mechanism of the dryer has not had any significant changes since its inception . One of the more important changes for the hair dryer is to be made of plastic, so that it is more lightweight . This really caught on in the 1960s with the introduction of better electrical motors and the improvement of plastics . Another important change happened in 1954 when GEC changed the design of the dryer to move the motor inside the casing . </P>

When was the first handheld blow dryer invented