Hair Straightening

Part 20 in a series by Karen A. Stevenson, President, Studio K Salon

What is all the intrigue about hair straightening lately?

People with straight hair wish they had body and curls to their hair, and of course, people with curly hair wish they had straight hair.  Widely marketed techniques of straightening are hitting the papers, advertisements, and salons.

Have you heard about the various procedures to straighten?  There are many straighteners on the market; some have been around for decades.  The older the procedure, the more damaging it is.  Some thio (Ammonium thioglycolate) chemically based straighteners are so damaging, that once you apply to the curly hair, you cannot overlap when it comes to a re-touch.  That means, when you have approximately four months of grown-out curly hair, you cannot apply any of the relaxing product on the hair that was previously relaxed or else you will suffer great breakage and damage.  This product is frankly, a relic of the past.

Approximately a year ago, a new rage of straightener came out that made the press, called the “Japanese” straightener.  This particular straightener announced it was milder on the hair.  Months later, clients complained of damage, or complained it was too restricting, because they were instructed they could not tie their hair up in a hair tie, could not drive in a convertible car, or various other hair rearranging activities, for fear of breakage or curl reversion. 

Let’s take a look at some of the issues a hairdresser would be cautious about if they were to perform a straightening:

With most hair straightening products on the market today you can't permanently relax or straighten your hair if:

The good news is, there is now an even better product out there that is not only extremely conditioning to the hair, leaves the hair in better condition than it was prior to getting the service done, but it also straightens without leaving the hair flat and lifeless.  It is done with both conditioning agents, and a flat iron at precisely 375 degrees.

The Japanese straightener, which has received the most press, seems to have its flaws.  Some of the flaws are that it cannot be done on previously chemical relaxed hair, nor over previously permed hair for curl. It cannot be used over the top of color, or high lift blondes.  The Japanese straightener does not claim a desirable result on straigtening African American hair as well.

The product used at our salon, Take 5 Hair & Company, is a revolutionary straightening product that allows the designer to straighten over previously permed or straightened hair, as well as hair that has been colored, and high lift blondes. 

Who can have the process done?  People with curly, wavy or frizzy hair.  Be prepared to have a minimum visit of 4 hours or more, depending on the length, the amount of curl to be straightened, and the necessity for pre-softening depending on the resistance of the hair and wave pattern.  With the service, it is necessary to use the hair care products, included in the price, to maintain the best results, have the least amount of curl reversion, and keep the hair in it’s optimum condition.

The results are beautiful!  Be prepared to communicate to the designer exactly what your expectations are so that they understand how straight to process your hair.  The end result will usually allow for body, some slight wave remaining, and the client can even color or highlight their hair the same day.  The condition of the hair will be soft, silky, and shiny. 

The good news is when the re-growth is ready to be done again in approximately four to six months, we will be able to use the same product and procedure over your entire head of hair, and give it again, the optimum in conditioning and straightening without damage

Educate yourself with regard to the straightening choices available.  You are welcome to go to www.grundhair.com and click on the Hair Straightening section at the top of the home page, and learn about the Grund Hair Straightening procedure.  Clients that have had this service performed have been extremely pleased. 

A free consultation to see if this procedure is right for you, is available by calling our salon at the number below.