Thermal Hair Straightening

[karamel]

Hi all,
I'm considering having my hair thermally straightened, but I'm very apprehensive about it because: 1. it's pricey and 2. I'm worried about frying my hair.
I have naturally wavy/curly, sometimes frizzy hair, and love it when it's straight and sleek. I can style it straight myself, but it is such a huge hassle, and even then I still find waves that just won't behave! And the minute I set foot outside - poof! - instant frizzball.
Have any of you had the thermal process done? If so, is it worth money? Does it totally fry your hair?

TIA for any experience/advice/info!

[Kristine]

If you are talking about thermal reconditioning (aka the Yuko or Japanese hair straightening), then I WOULD ABSOLUTELY DO IT!!! It has seriously changed my life....okay maybe that's a tad bit melodramatic, but really, I love my hair now and I used to hate it. It is pricey, but it lasts a long time and IMO it's definitely worth it (my first treatment lasted 7 months, I just had it re-done in early May). It doesn't fry your hair at all - in fact the texture of my hair has improved (alot).

I know there is someone else on the BB who has had this done (SusanL maybe? I can't remember), so hopefully some others will chime in with their experiences as well. But I say, go for it! :)

[karamel]

Kristine,
Yes yes - thermal reconditioning, that's it!
Oh I'm so glad to hear you're happy with it!
So it stays nice and straight even after it's wet? Do you have to work at drying it straight again? Do you have to use special products to maintain it until your next appt?

[Kristilyn1]

well, my best friend did it and felt that it really was NOT worth the money at all. Of course I feel guilty about it because *I'M the one that talked her into it. She felt that her hair was no softer or straighter than other processes she's had done to straighten her hair, but this one was a few hundred dollars.

I do know one other person that had it done and loved it--but she barely had curly hair. My best friend has SERIOUSLY curly hair--this may sound weird but her hair is extremely soft but dry--does that make sense? Maybe it depends on the texture of your hair?

Kristi

[karamel]

Hmmm...

Kristi, my hair isn't thin, but it isn't thick either - kind of in the middle. And it's very dry, and really wavy, but not wiry. Did your friend that didn't like it have super curly, thick, wiry hair? Did the salon she went to give her a consultation about whether or not it would work with her hair?

Kristine, what was the texture of your hair before you had it thermally reconditioned?

[Kristine]

Kara, yes, my hair stays straight even when wet. I do blow dry it after showering just because it's faster, but I can just use my fingers or a regular brush. No pulling, etc.

As for texture....my hair was really weird. Curly/frizzy in the front and kinda wavy in the back - fairly dry. Not super curly, but definitely frizzy. You have to have a consultation with the hair dresser before you have it done (at least I did), so he/she can probably tell you if your hair is the right type to get thermally reconditioned. The guy that does mine told me that he sometimes turns people away because he knows it won't turn out well.

But again, I really love it. I'll never go back to frizzy hair! :)

[karamel]

Kristine,
Thank you for answering all of my questions! I'm so excited to try this on my hair!
I'll report back on how it goes!
Thanks again for all the info!

[Grace]

I have a friend at work who gets it done to her hair too, and she really loves it. Her hair is very curly, but I'm not sure about the texture (I never really looked that closely or ran my fingers through it or anything! :p :D ). But she keeps going back and her hair always looks great - not fried.

[Angelina]

Originally posted by Kristine

But again, I really love it. I'll never go back to frizzy hair! :)

My hair is straight and limp as spaghetti. One day, when it was really humid, I was so happy because my hair had some body to it!! I told my sister-in-law that my hair was finally looking less than dead and she looks at it and says..."That's not body, that's frizz". Oh. :(

Angela

[pinky]

A friend I knew got it a few years ago and it came out fantastic - she never had to worry about t getting frizzy or wavy, she would just wash it and run out and it would be perfectly straight. It culd rain, and no frizz.

It took a really long time though, and it was super expensive at the time. If your hair is really long, it's more than if it was short.

[karamel]

Originally posted by pinky

It took a really long time though, and it was super expensive at the time. If your hair is really long, it's more than if it was short.
I've heard this too - another concern since I have mid-back length hair.

I've been mulling this over, and am having a really hard time justifying the expense. Will continue to mull...:p

Thanks for the responses everyone!