Brazilian blowout-hair straightener chemical

[shootingstar]

But I learned the hard way that only a very skilled stylist can cut my hair this length. When I get a bad haircut, it just looks awful no matter what I do with it.

True, naturally straight hair demands skilled, ACCURATE cutting by hair stylist. Just 1 millimetre difference on one side, is noticeable and gets to be a pain when the hair grows longer. An experienced stylist can see in bone straight hair, actual overall growth waves of hair emanating from the scalp which is determined by the shape of a person's head.

I didn't know it for a long time, but I have a cowlick on the top crown of my head of hair. I needed to know this because depending on how my hair falls as it grows longer and how a hairstylist cuts my hair (ie. layering, etc.), if person does it wrong, it shows a small bald spot on top of my head! I honestly thought for a time, that I was going bald.

I don't have naturally wavy hair to hide that type of error..unless I contort myself to use a curling iron at the back of head. (which I gave up years ago)

I could never cut my own hair because of the accuracy that is required for cutting. Anyway, it's a layered cut.

[KnottedYet]

A distant friend of mine had very frizzy hair. After a few years I saw her again, and she had these amazing silky, shiny, glowing curls. Almost corkscrew curls. Lusterous and sleek.

She said she'd stopped using shampoo. Her dermatologist recommended rinsing her hair well every morning, and scrubbing her scalp once a week with sugar or salt (because they dissolve and rinse away) to keep the skin healthy. Pretty much just leaving the hair alone to manage itself.

Words cannot express how lovely her hair was.

She said that some mornings she didn't even rinse it; and that she could just run her fingers through it, shake her head and go.

[shootingstar]

A distant friend of mine had very frizzy hair. After a few years I saw her again, and she had these amazing silky, shiny, glowing curls. Almost corkscrew curls. Lusterous and sleek.

She said she'd stopped using shampoo. Her dermatologist recommended rinsing her hair well every morning, and scrubbing her scalp once a week with sugar or salt (because they dissolve and rinse away) to keep the skin healthy. Pretty much just leaving the hair alone to manage itself.

Words cannot express how lovely her hair was.

She said that some mornings she didn't even rinse it; and that she could just run her fingers through it, shake her head and go.

Interesting. So it was the oil in her hair that kept it unfrizzed?
Sorry, for sounding so obtuse. But straight haired people really do live in a different hair world. The concept to me to towel-dry wet hair and have it air dry naturally into a curl, is foreign.

I simply look at hair conditioner bottle and shiver. I can't use that stuff on my hair...dullens it, makes it lifeless.

As you can tell, I don't have problems with dry ends.

[Owlie]

Heh, lucky.

Curly hair is usually dry, and shampoo often strips all the oils out (the idea, of course, is to replace it by buying their handy matching conditioner!). I cut back my hair wash to once a week, and it's much happier. Actually, most stylists who have cut my hair have told me to only rinse with conditioner on the body of my hair, away from the scalp.

[Eden]

A distant friend of mine had very frizzy hair. After a few years I saw her again, and she had these amazing silky, shiny, glowing curls. Almost corkscrew curls. Lusterous and sleek.

She said she'd stopped using shampoo. Her dermatologist recommended rinsing her hair well every morning, and scrubbing her scalp once a week with sugar or salt (because they dissolve and rinse away) to keep the skin healthy. Pretty much just leaving the hair alone to manage itself.

Words cannot express how lovely her hair was.

She said that some mornings she didn't even rinse it; and that she could just run her fingers through it, shake her head and go.

hmmmmmm
that may be worth a try....

I have curly hair that used to be more frizz than curl. With age it seems to have tamed down and become more curls, less frizz, but I've also cut back on the shampoo a lot. I usually shampoo it once or twice a week with a lauryl sulfate free shampoo and then only try to get the areas near my scalp as it does get oily and nasty and dandruffy looking if I don't, but if a sugar scrub would take care of the skin and the scalp oils without drying my hair I'll try it.

[badger]

my hair's getting wavier as I get older. If I knew about brazilian blowout and could afford it and didn't care about chemicals, I probably would've done it. But I'm not a girly girl in any way, so I never spend any time (or money!) on my hair.

I was talking with my hairdresser yesterday (it just so happens I was getting my bi-annual hair cut) and the salon she works at does brazilian blowout but she herself doesn't. I was also talking to her about colour, how when it's finally time to cover my grey, if she used "natural" colouring. She said no, that they give an orange tint.

Since I'm so anal about chemicals and using products that are biodegradable and cruelty free, I may just have to go naturally grey... or just use henna and have orange hair.

I feel really badly for hairdressers and those nail salons. The chemicals they're exposed to daily can't be good.

***
have any of you heard or use Moroccan Oil? I don't like hairspray and crusty stuff in my hair so my hairdresser used that on my hair yesterday. She said she totally swears by it now. Did a bit of research, I guess it's argan oil, Moroccanoil is a brand.

[KnottedYet]

Since I'm so anal about chemicals and using products that are biodegradable and cruelty free, I may just have to go naturally grey... or just use henna and have orange hair.

Or you could use brown henna, or black henna... you don't have to use red henna. Red henna will make gray hair strawberry blonde or orange if you use only red henna.

I use brown henna with a little red thrown in. No orange effect unless I use straight red henna, and even then the orange effect washes out in about a week.

[badger]

Or you could use brown henna, or black henna... you don't have to use red henna. Red henna will make gray hair strawberry blonde or orange if you use only red henna.

I use brown henna with a little red thrown in. No orange effect unless I use straight red henna, and even then the orange effect washes out in about a week.

good to know, thanks!! I have very dark brown with red hilights, so that sounds great (like streaks!). At least if it's awful it'll wash out. I feel more hopeful now

[Eden]

good to know, thanks!! I have very dark brown with red hilights, so that sounds great (like streaks!). At least if it's awful it'll wash out. I feel more hopeful now

I have med brown/auburn hair with red highlights and I occasionally use straight up red henna to kick the color up a bit. for the first week or two it does look kind of orange (as does my scalp!), but that goes away and it looks natural after that. Plain old henna has a hard time coloring my greys though. Fortunately most of my grey is still underneath, but the henna puts only a light, light stawberry blond color to it, which is much lighter than my normal highlights, so it still looks like greys. The brand I use does have a "grey covering formula", but I haven't tried it yet.

I tried a salt scrub today.. it felt good, we'll see what my hair looks like when it dries. I was just thinking that whenever I've swam in the ocean I get *super* curly from the salt water.... I've washed the salt out of course, but we'll see how my hair reacts.

[shootingstar]

Gosh, after reading about curly hair-taming, I'll never complain about naturally straight hair again. And will never complain about the boring routine of shampooing hair after near-daily bike rides.

And will continue to worship very skilled hair stylists.

[smilingcat]

Headline reads: "Portland hairstylist takes on the bigwigs"

According to the article, Oregon OSHA claims that variety of tests used showed, that the samples (Brazilian Blowout) contained anywhere from 4.85% to 10.6% formaldehyde.

Formaldehyde causes serious health problems and cancer.

here is the full online article

Reporter for the Oregonian is Katy Muldoon
ph:503.221.8526
e-mail: katymuldoon@news.oregonian.com

I would say, until we find more about this bru-ha-ha, I would err on caution and forgo using the Brazilian hair straightening product. The manufacturer is based in California.

Sheesh!

Smilingcat

[channlluv]

I permed my hair a couple of times in the early 90s because my hair was surfboard straight and wouldn't hold a curl for the life of me, but the perm only made it poodlish. I didn't care for that, either, so I went back to the standard center part, surfboard straight style and I wore a lot of bandannas.

About three years ago I won a cut and color from a high-end salon in a fundraiser at my daughter's school. It was the first time I'd ever been to any place other than the local Supercuts kind of place. This woman, Joanna, did an amazing job cutting my hair. I had enough to do a 14" ponytail for Locks of Love and still have my hair come just to my shoulders, so she cut that off first, and then did something I'd never had before: layers. Who knew I had naturally wavy hair?

I loved it! The new style got a lot of compliments and I went back to her a couple more times, but ultimately, I just couldn't afford it. (Her salon is in the posh section of La Jolla, which was named the moniestest place in America or something like that not too long ago, to give you an idea).

Back to Supercuts for me, but I lucked out and found a woman there that had worked in high-end salons before and had moved back to my area to be close to her family. Lucky me. When she's finished with my cut and color and blow dry, I look like I just stepped off a magazine cover.

Of course, the next day, I'm back to the bandannas and scrunchies, but still. I kept the layers, and although they're growing out down to my shoulder blades now, it's still long and wavy and I like it. It's very easy to take care of.

On the shampoo, I do wash just about every day, with L'Oreal's EverStrong Reconstructing Shampoo and Conditioner, and once or twice a week I'll do a deep condition with a keratin hair mask.

Usually Sunday mornings, my at-home spa day. Deep condition the hair, do a mask or peel on my face, wax the brows, shave the legs, then lotion everything from the neck down, take a nap...ah, bliss.

Roxy