New Thermal Straightening? Anyone know about it?

[aquarius_ser]

The new thermal (japanese, it''s referred to, I think) straightening..... Has anyone had this done or know anyone that has?

I have always had long, very curly, naturally frizzy hair. The amount of work and time it takes me to manage my hair is getting very old. I have to wash my hair at night, put in a lot of gel, and let it air dry overnight which means sleeping with a wet head - not fun.

In the summer this creates a problem because do a lot of yard work, jogging, activies outside and I need to take a shower before I go out or do anything. So then I have to use the dreaded hairdryer, I have to put it on the lowest setting and stand there forever. I usually end up getting very frusterated and putting it up anyway. And cutting my hair short is not any option, the shorter is, the curler/frizzier it is - I tried it in middle school.

I''ve heard this straightening costs upwards of $800 but I don''t care... it would be priceless to me!

 

[belle]

there isn''t much that hasn''t already been talked about around here!
https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/japanese-hair-straightening-thermal-reconditioning.43620/

 

[aquarius_ser]

Sorry! .... Thank you!

 

[belle]

no worries!
i hope that helps

 

[portia]

aquarius,

Yes, I''ve considered this myself. I did some research online and found a TR forum. Many of the girls were initially happy with the results, but after the 3rd or 4th treatment had problems with breakage. Some of them had to cut many inches off to get rid of the damage. They were VERY upset.

My SIL had it done and her hair turned out beautiful - long, silky and shiny. Just gorgeous. She said I should go have it done... that it''s so liberating to not have to use a blow dryer or a straightening iron. After reading that TR forum I decided not to have it done and try and embrace my natural waves (still not there yet!). Anyway, she''s had several treatments and she''s now having lots of breakage. She said she''s going to have to let the TR grow out. I think it can work on some hair types, but not sure what those are. And even if you get a strand test, it really won''t tell you if you''ll have problems since it doesn''t show up after several treatments.

 

[diamondfan]

I would research the new techniques, if any, since it began. Is your hair fragile or prone to breakage? Do you color your hair? there are different methods (heat, with a flat iron, and non heated) and some are less damaging. Some even improve your hair, but I would do my homework. I also do not like pin straight hair with no movement. If you do not as well, make sure they can do it so you have some swing or curve at the bottom, otherwise your hair can just hang and look processed...jumt mho, but as someone with very long curly hair, I know there can be issues and have had friends be either very thrilled or in tears about having done it. I have never done it, money is not a factor but fear is, I am happy to get a blow out because I fear doing long term damage!

 

[poptart]

Have you ever read the book CurlyGirl? It sounds like your hair is extremely damaged. My hair is long and curly as well. It used to be frizzy but now that I treat it better it doesn''t frizz at all. Straightening it at this point won''t necessarily make it look better. Instead it will just damage it more. If you can''t cut off the dead ends, you should at least think about repairing what you have before straightening it.

*M*

 

[ladykemma]

Date: 1/15/2007 11:58:09 AM
Author: poptart
Have you ever read the book CurlyGirl? It sounds like your hair is extremely damaged. My hair is long and curly as well. It used to be frizzy but now that I treat it better it doesn''t frizz at all. Straightening it at this point won''t necessarily make it look better. Instead it will just damage it more. If you can''t cut off the dead ends, you should at least think about repairing what you have before straightening it.

*M*

another enthusiastic endorsement of the curly girl method!

 

[poptart]

Date: 1/15/2007 1:15:45 PM
Author: ladykemma

Date: 1/15/2007 11:58:09 AM
Author: poptart
Have you ever read the book CurlyGirl? It sounds like your hair is extremely damaged. My hair is long and curly as well. It used to be frizzy but now that I treat it better it doesn''t frizz at all. Straightening it at this point won''t necessarily make it look better. Instead it will just damage it more. If you can''t cut off the dead ends, you should at least think about repairing what you have before straightening it.

*M*

another enthusiastic endorsement of the curly girl method!

Yup! I pretty much live by it...

*M*

 

[FireGoddess]

I forgot this had been talked about before....I had posted that I was dying to do this...and I have actually gotten it done since then.

I had it done in September and I LOVE IT!!! It was a pretty penny ($600, but after how long it took, I''m sure she''s going to charge me more next time!). The one I had done is the Liscio thermal by Milbon (http://www.milbon-usa.com/home.cfm?milbon=cfaqs). Since it took about 10 hours on my long hair, my stylist and I had a lot of time to talk about it! The Japanese straightening technique is much more gentle on your hair and doesn''t fry it like the American ones can. It involves quite a few more steps that protect your hair from damage. I had wavy hair that wasn''t curly enough to look ''done'' when I scrunched it, and took way too much time to do it ''straight.'' I use quotation marks for straight because no matter how much I tried it never looked this sleek before! And it is so easy to do now.

The thing to consider in my experience is that you HAVE to dry your hair after you do this. My stylist says some of her clients don''t even bother with the hair dryer anymore after the straightening. I don''t do that - I do dry my hair. If your hair gets wet, it will dry in whatever shape it is when wet. For example, if I throw my hair up into a scrunchy to wash my face or something and the ends get wet, the ends will dry in a tight curl if bound up by the scrunchy and allowed to dry that way. I have woken up a few mornings to see straight hair with a curled kink at the end of a section, but a quick wet of that area and re-blowdrying makes it pin straight again, so it''s not that big a deal.

Having a good stylist is crucial. My girl is awesome...I color my hair and so when I told her I was interested in the Liscio treatment she put me on a ''pretreatment'' program to strengthen up my hair before the big day. I washed with special shampoo and conditioner, had a deep conditioning treatment a week or two before the straightening, to get my hair in the best condition possible beforehand. So someone that really knows your hair and cares about it is a huge plus. I love the look though, and I am so happy I finally had it done! I don''t regret it for a minute, and would do it again in a second.

 

[petuniaprincess]

My best friend has had it done and loves it...her hair looks amazing after just jumping out of the shower and combing it. However, when I asked my salon about it they said it will be a nightmare for your hair if you do the thermal straightening and your hair is either dyed or highlighted. They said it will basically kill your hair. Something to keep in mind, but if your hair isn''t color-altered at all I say go for it!!!

 

[FireGoddess]

Date: 1/15/2007 6:52:25 PM
Author: petuniaprincess
My best friend has had it done and loves it...her hair looks amazing after just jumping out of the shower and combing it. However, when I asked my salon about it they said it will be a nightmare for your hair if you do the thermal straightening and your hair is either dyed or highlighted. They said it will basically kill your hair. Something to keep in mind, but if your hair isn''t color-altered at all I say go for it!!!

This is why I think that having the right stylist is crucial. My hair was already colored before I did the straightening (years of having it colored/highlighted), and my stylist touched up my roots and pulled color through my hair two weeks after straightening it!! And my hair was not fried at all. But, like I said, she did put me on a strengthening regime before straightening and I do use products (shampoo, conditioner, leave in treatment) specifically for straightened hair. It''s important your stylist knows what your hair can handle, and what s/he can achieve with your hair. She did strength tests on my hair before straightening and if my hair hadn''t passed the test, she wouldn''t have done it. You definitely want someone who knows you are a walking advertisement for them and wants you to have the best hair possible, not someone who just wants to make a buck. And it is crucial they know your hair''s ''history''...everything that has been done to it. Particularly if your hair is long.