Get It Straight
Do you have curly, frizzy hair? Are you constantly fighting with your blow dryer or flat iron to achieve a manageable hairstyle? Thermal straightening may be exactly what you’ve been looking for.
You may not have heard of thermal straightening yet, as it’s a relatively new process. Also known as thermal retexturizing, reconditioning, and rebonding, the process originated in Japan about six years ago and slowly made its way over to the U.S. It’s designed to transform frizzy, kinky, curly hair into soft, silky, straight hair while protecting the integrity of the hair using vitamin B5, soy proteins, wheat proteins, and keratin amino acids.
The process is completely permanent, lasting six months to a year. Thermal straightening works well on curly and wavy hair but won’t completely straighten extremely curly hair. Clients with extremely curly hair can still benefit from this service, however, as it can help make unruly hair much more manageable.
Thermal straightening consists of an application of alkaline to the hair to open the cuticle and break down the disulfide bonds (bonds that determine the texture of hair). Once the majority of the disulfide bonds have been broken and the hair has been blown dry straight, the hair is pressed with a ceramic iron, which helps to further break the disulfide bonds to straighten the hair. A ceramic iron is essential because it provides intense, even heat and is designed to work optimally with the formula and procedure. Application of the neutralizer rebuilds the broken disulfide bonds in their new straight pattern. A final blow dry and ironing of the hair helps to further straighten the hair and finishes off the process.
The procedure is completely finished three days later when the product has finished oxidizing. For those 72 hours, hair can’t come in contact with any moisture (no shampooing, steam rooms, hot tubs, or perspiration), and can’t be clipped, banded, or tucked behind the ears. This ensures the hair stays in its smoothest possible state. Time spent in the salon can be anywhere from three to five hours depending on the length and curliness of the hair. Because this is such a long process, the price can be substantial – starting at $350 for the first three hours; every hour after that is $100. However, the results are extremely gratifying. The hair stays completely straight until the re-growth comes back in with its natural curl.
Thermal straightening requires a long-term commitment; if you want to keep up your straight hair, it’s recommended you get your re-growth retouched every six to eight months, or whenever you have a minimum of three to four inches of re-growth. It’s also recommended you follow up with the prescribed liquid tools that will ensure the best long-term results possible.
If your kinky, frizzy, curly hair is becoming a problem for you and takes a vast amount of time to maintain, thermal straightening is definitely a good option. The long-term results of this innovative service will give you a great head of permanently retexturized hair that’s smoother, shinier, and healthier than when you started.
If you have questions for the author, please e-mail them to info@peoriamagazines.com. TPW
You may not have heard of thermal straightening yet, as it’s a relatively new process. Also known as thermal retexturizing, reconditioning, and rebonding, the process originated in Japan about six years ago and slowly made its way over to the U.S. It’s designed to transform frizzy, kinky, curly hair into soft, silky, straight hair while protecting the integrity of the hair using vitamin B5, soy proteins, wheat proteins, and keratin amino acids.
The process is completely permanent, lasting six months to a year. Thermal straightening works well on curly and wavy hair but won’t completely straighten extremely curly hair. Clients with extremely curly hair can still benefit from this service, however, as it can help make unruly hair much more manageable.
Thermal straightening consists of an application of alkaline to the hair to open the cuticle and break down the disulfide bonds (bonds that determine the texture of hair). Once the majority of the disulfide bonds have been broken and the hair has been blown dry straight, the hair is pressed with a ceramic iron, which helps to further break the disulfide bonds to straighten the hair. A ceramic iron is essential because it provides intense, even heat and is designed to work optimally with the formula and procedure. Application of the neutralizer rebuilds the broken disulfide bonds in their new straight pattern. A final blow dry and ironing of the hair helps to further straighten the hair and finishes off the process.
The procedure is completely finished three days later when the product has finished oxidizing. For those 72 hours, hair can’t come in contact with any moisture (no shampooing, steam rooms, hot tubs, or perspiration), and can’t be clipped, banded, or tucked behind the ears. This ensures the hair stays in its smoothest possible state. Time spent in the salon can be anywhere from three to five hours depending on the length and curliness of the hair. Because this is such a long process, the price can be substantial – starting at $350 for the first three hours; every hour after that is $100. However, the results are extremely gratifying. The hair stays completely straight until the re-growth comes back in with its natural curl.
Thermal straightening requires a long-term commitment; if you want to keep up your straight hair, it’s recommended you get your re-growth retouched every six to eight months, or whenever you have a minimum of three to four inches of re-growth. It’s also recommended you follow up with the prescribed liquid tools that will ensure the best long-term results possible.
If your kinky, frizzy, curly hair is becoming a problem for you and takes a vast amount of time to maintain, thermal straightening is definitely a good option. The long-term results of this innovative service will give you a great head of permanently retexturized hair that’s smoother, shinier, and healthier than when you started.
If you have questions for the author, please e-mail them to info@peoriamagazines.com. TPW