Japanese Hair Straightening – What you need to know
Posted: Friday, January 13, 2006
by Paul Hockney
This form of treatment is not recommended for:
· more delicate African hair
· hair that has been heavily treated or damaged
· hair that is quickly thinning and falling out
The treatment is very expensive, $300-$800 in top salons and depending on which process you opt for can take between 4-6 hours to complete. This is a far cry from using your own hair straightener at home for a fraction of the cost and only taking a matter of minutes. Given the cost you should expect a free consultation on how well (or if) the treatment will work on your hair.
As the treatment is very expensive you should do your homework. Here are a few tips:
· Visit the websites of salons close to you for more details about which Japanese hair straightening treatment they use.
· Visit the salon and speak with their straightening specialist about the process
· Make sure the specialist has sufficient experience in the process. Don’t forget you are paying lots of money so you don’t want to end up with damaged hair because of an inexperienced stylist.
· Ask for some “before and after" pictures of previous customers results.
· If possible ask to speak with a previous customer to get some detailed insight into how long it took and to find out if there are any things they didn’t like about the process.
If you do decide to go ahead with the treatment then here is a summary of the whole process.
· A protein conditioner is applied to your hair.
· A cream based thio relaxor is then applied. This will soften your hair and disassociate the sulfur bonds inside the hair shaft.
· After a period of time the stylist will do a test to see if the hair has broken down to the right degree.
· Once the proper amount of Sulfur bonds have been disassociated the stylist will rinse your hair.
· Your hair is dried into the style you normally wear it in.
· The stylist will take small sections and apply some degree of tension to get your hair as straight as possible.
· Once the neutralizer has been on the hair for the proper amount of time it will be rinsed from the hair.
· After the hair is rinsed it will be dried again and ironed into the style you wish to wear.
· The neutralizing chemical only begins to re-associate the sulfur bonds. The hair still needs to absorb more oxygen and will do so naturally through the air.
· The hair designer will instruct you not to shampoo, wet or style your hair for 24-72 hours, this is to allow it to completely neutralize into the current shape.
The results from the process are amazing, considering your hair is subjected to nearly 6 hours of chemical and heat treatment. You will probably be advised to use special after care products. You should take the stylists advice but make sure and shop round for the products online, as they can be very expensive in salons.
However, all the time and effort is worth it, as your hair will not need to be treated for at least 6 months. So twice a year should be enough for curl free hair all year. If you still can't justify the spend then get your hands on a good quality hair straightener like the Sedu Hair Iron.
About the Author:
Andrea Simpson is a self confessed hair straightener fan. She runs her own website devoted to Sedu Flat Irons and other hair straightening devices and processes.
hi, does anyone know a salon in baton rouge, louisiana who does this?
Hello, i just got the japanese hair straightening process done a couple hours ago, FOR FREE. i was a model for a class of students who had only ever done the procedure once before. I have to admit i was very scared going in but my hair turned out Phenomanally!!!!! In fact they had about tendifferent girls with different hair types, and they all said mine was the best. My hair type is thick and very curly and frizzy., and now it lays flat against my head. the salon i went to was Albertos in st. paul, MN. my hair is healthy than it has ever been and i still had virgin hair when the product was applied. the product that they used was called Bio Ionics and i highly incourage you to look into it, it was great.
hi. does anyone know how long you have to wait after Japanese Straightening your hair, to get it wet in a pool ??(this is important to me because i only have a little bit of time left of summer vacation and i am trying to firure out when to get my hair straightened and still be able to go swimming. )72 hours before youo can get it wet or pull it in a pony tailwhat if I wash my hear at 60 hours instead of 72 hours due to jury duty???Will it be okay???Ihave short hairjust below my earsThanksHeleni have the same question! Did you end up washing it and did anything happen!? thank you!
Michelle
There is really no other way to acheive this type of hair through any procedure or product except through Japanese Hair Straightening. I'm the first to admit that flat irons are an outstanding tool but that is all they are. A tool. This system actually changes the texture of your hair. If this is done correctly and by a professional your hair will feel like silk. This system makes your hair healthier, softer, easy to manage. Unlike flat irons which will only dry out your hair. It does not matter what brand the straight iron is and it doesn't matter what you put on your hair to protect during. Inevitably your hair will break, dry out, lose shine and luster and many other things probably best left unsaid for now. Yes, they do have to be redone because of new hair growth but it's not every six months it's more like a year. For many people (myself included) 2 to 3 years is perfect.Doesnt your hair grow out curly after a month or two? how can it last 6 months... or as you say 2-3 years? I want to get this treatment done, but i just need to know this so i wont be surprised when i see my new hair growing out curly.
how does this treatment compare to the Brazilian Hair Straightening treatment? Is the Brazilian treamtent safe? How about for nursing mothers?hello, I have had the brazillian one done. It worked well, but doesnt last very long. The brazillian one is NOT permanant. which is good for you hair, but not good for your wallet. I had the japanese one done yesterday, and it was cheaper!
Hey does anyone know a salon that does this in louisiana?Thanks:)
Does anyone know of someone who does this in NC (around Greensboro or Winston-Salem)?
How is it possible to go for 6 months without the new growth growing out curly ?It's not. You still have to get the new growth treated.
best thing i spent money on, im really into the visual kei style, and this made it so much easier to style appropriatly
hi...i once had my hair chemically straightend about 3 years ago when i had virgin hair and al it did was keep my hair staight permently, BUT was soo stiff and dry every time i got out of the shower. stayed stright but not silky at all.i have curly hair, but im just curous..how is this any different..? or is it???
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