Smitha M. asks:
Hello Gals,
I would like to know about hair straigthening and hair smoothening. I have very thick, waist length hair. My hair is quite dry and bit wavy. I was thinking of getting it straightened at a parlour, but would like to know whether the procedure is safe or not. What are the advantages, disadvantages, side effects of smoothening and straightening. Has anyone you have gone through the procedure or know about it. Please let me know, your suggestions will help me decide whether to go for it or not!
Hi Smitha,
I underwent hair rebonding last year in june !! my hair, even though not poky straight, looked like a dream, but only till i was hit by reality !
i was asked to followup by regular hair-spa and loreal liss ultime products- shampoo, masque and serum ! i obliged ! i went for spas every 20 days till november when i had to engage and indulge in studies !!!
even though my hair is till soft and sleek, it started turning brownish, almost the malnutritioned slum kids types, i started oiling them heavily, even though we are advised against it after straightening or hair may revert back to its previous form !! but it helped my hair , its turning back to its original colour !
also loreal liss ultime serie was a find..oh so lovely for my hair !! But i know my hair is damaged because the day i apply any other shampoo my hair is broomy, frizzy !!! But right now m sticking to it till i find an alternative !!!
If you mean with a straightening Iron, I also have long thick wavy hair, and at the salon they will wash and then apply heat protector and use an iron – takes about an hour for my hair. It will damage your hair if you do it often (I mean daily or more than twice a week). If you mean Japanese straightening, this also uses chemical treatment, and then heat, but it is said to last up to 10 months. This changes the structure of your hair follicles, so there must be some damage there, but the positive would be your hair would come out pretty flat and straight. I prefer the iron, it is nice for special occasions. Hope this helps.
oh sorry, moral of the story is … if you are ready to give your hair proper pampering, with spas and devote about half an hour or so while shampooing every time, you can go for it !!
Also did i tell you you the moment you tie your hair, even slightly damp, it will form a wave there until shampooed next !!
Inspite of all its cons, it makes your hair very manageable !! you could well give it a shot !
That forming a wave thing is so true ! Now my hair has a permanent wave :/
Hey Smitha,My suggestion is dont ever try any of these..I never had the guts to play around with my hair,though I’ve frizzy hair..But I’ve seen my hubby doing this stuuf ,Smoothening..It lasted for say 2-3 months..The end ruslt after was ,his hair looked liked “chidiya ka ghosla” 😛
I rarely do straightening with a iron,but only after using a heat protective lotion.The verynext day i would wash and pamper my hair with curd and methi paste,to get the look healthy..
Good that you have waist lenght hair..my sugestion would be to use a iron and do it yourself when ever you wanna get the chic look and later give all healthy treatments for your hair.. 🙂
It depends on the current health of your hair really…..Permanent Staightening (rebonding….chemical straightening..) dries our hair and thats a fact u cannot ignore…..I personally have a very oily scalp so it didnt do much damage ……I only do partial straightening(only the fringes-I have hair so straight that people keep asking me wen i had my hair straightened….even if i havent….but the front fringes form a detestable cowlick :/ 🙁 )….and so I can distinctly make out the difference between the quality of hair that is straightened and the hair which is not…..as rashmi said above….u need to take extra special care for straightened hair otherwise it will go all frizzy , rough, lead to hair fall and what not….
Hi Smitha.. i have not done smoothening or straightening myself but i can share experience of one of my friends.. she had gone for hair smoothing (thats the brazilian blowout) .. it is much better and safer than rebonding.. rebonding is out now since smoothing has come up.. it does not damage your hair to the extent that rebonding does and you do not require maintenance sessions.. of course you will have to use products later designed for chemically treater hair.. you can go to a tried and tested (and trusted) salon and do it.. they will give you all the guidelines to follow post treatment.. even i am willing to do it since a long time . saving for it.. will be doing it soon 🙂 hope this helps
moderation!!! 🙁
Any type of hair treatment with heat and chemical is bound to give side effects. In hair bonding, the structure of the hair is altered and if not done by a good professional, it may damage hair. I would advise you to pick your stylist carefully and clear all your doubts by your stylist who would treat your hair.
The side effects have been mentioned well.. Even I have gone through the rebonding process for my hair.. I have curly hair shoulder length. The point to remember is how long do you want your hair to remain straight. Since you have waist length hair waiting for your curly hair to grow back will be very time consuming and would require extra styling… Since when your wavy hair will grow back from the roots, you will have half straight and half curly hair and this phase is very irritating.. Keep a note of the same before making any decision…
One of my friend did hair smoothening. Her hair looked like shilpa shetty’s hair.. creamy smooth & pretty. i was all gaga over it and wanted to do it. Mine is waist length wavy hair. after doing a LOT of googling and asking opinions i came to these conclusions: 1. Hair straightening/re-bonding/perming/smoothening or ny other chemical treatment WILL damage ur hair. 2. the amount and level of damage depends from person to person. some may have a very dry hair and some may loose hair. 3. Chemically treated hair needs to be maintained carefully. as rashmi said. Now i chucked the idea of getting my hair treated, instead opted for great shampoos, conditioners, packs etc for my hair. It looks fabulous now (compared to how it was 😛 ). I do get my hair temporarily straightened or curled for occasions.. So my opinion is, be happy with what u have and take good care of it to bring out THE best in it. Don’t take any risks. Whew… Now that was a long comment..!! 😀
Same here! I just started caring for it better and Im happy with what I have.
yes shai.. its not worth it.. BTW… i have a sweet friend in ur name sinc my 11th standard.. her name is shahida and v call her shai..
Hey Smitha,
I have moderate wavy hair.. frizzy down the length. I got my hair straightened at YLG bangalore. and I am pretty satisfied and it has been 6 months now. She did a rebonding but I asked her to not to use flat iron, instead use blow drier. This did not give me poker straight hair but the frizz was gone and it looked very naturally straight. you have to take care after getting treatment done. Monthly spa is recommended. I use matrix opticare shampoo, conditioner and biolage serum leaving the conditioner in for 5 mins, 3 times a week and i am happy happy..
But if your hair grows curly from the root, unlike mine which is curly down the length, I would not recommend any kind of straightening coz it looks horrible once your own hair starts coming.. any ways.. curls are in these days 🙂 🙂 🙂
u should be so happy that you have waist length, healthy hair…You can maintain it nicely with a great shampoo, conditioner and pack etc… Invest in a great hair serum..Buy a good quality flat-iron and straighten at home even though it will take time..Get a great haircut..
The bonds in hair are permanently broken in rebonding…So nothing can be predicted of the outcome..ie whether it will remain healthy or will break off in clumps..My sister did rebonding and her hair looked awesome but had hairfall from hell…still it was worth it she says..
you could do smoothening treatment at the salon or you could get only your bangs or front portion smoothened out so that it looks good…According to the length of hair the cost also increases…
Find a good salon first… 🙂
You posted exactly the question I had in my mind 2 yrs back and i am glad that I haven’t straightened my hair
Read my below answer only if you are not so a big fan of poker straight hair and just want ur hair to luk styled without damage
I had exactlly the same kind of hair you have and what I did is got a good hair cut done which added layers to my hair so the waves luked bttr but with same length. After that I loved my own hair more than straight hair. But to maintain the curls I used style twice every week with a blowdryer
Very recently I discovered the Sock Bun No heat curling which adds loose curls to hair that suits our kind of hair and no damage at all
vish u have beautiful hair… 🙂
thank u Ife
bt its v dry at ends 🙁 and also my hair does lot of manmaani 😛
i just listen to it n style it according to it’s mood 😛
i got my hair rebonded last year…and right now, my hair is a mess. i have had sever hairfall, lots of split ends, and very dry damaged hair in the last 1 year. so i would not really advise anybody to get hair rebonded. you just end up with bad quality hair for a long time.
if by straightening, you only mean ironing, you may go for it once in a while. invest in a GOOD ceramic hot iron and a GOOD hair protectant (yes, I mean the expensive ones here. they cost more, but are any day better than a cheaper iron/ protectant, and they last you a life time). try and limit ironing to 2-3 times a month, else your hair will become frizzy in the long run.
whatever method you use, please remember that you’ll need to take good care of your hair, and that’ll require time and money investment, both.
all the best!!
thanks…thanks …thanks to all the beautiful gals here for giving me ur inputs!!!!! thanks to jomol n rati for posting my query!! i needed all ur inputs to decide on chemical hair treatments!!!
After all ur inputs, i think i will just stick to getting my hair ironed at home with a flat iron instead of a parlour!
And @Vish: what is this Sock Bun No heat curling? how is it used and where can i get it?
And gals can u pls suggest a very gud shampoo , conditioner n serum for long, wavy, frizzy, dry hair..pls!!!
and also can you gals tell me which haircuts will luk gud for waist length hair?any parlour u know does it best in Mumbai or hyderabad??pls help me gals!!!!
Smitha, I get frizz in my hair a lot, and it’s wavy at the ends. I tried John Frieda Frizz Ease Hydrating Shampoo and Conditioner, and Brocato Straight-out fabulous shampoo (available on the urban touch website). My hair’s a lot more manageable now. The L’Oreal range is also very good, and I’ve heard good things about TIGI as well 🙂 I also wanted to get my hair straightened but then I saw how bad my friend’s hair became after using it and also my colleague’s hair so I decided to just take good care of my hair.
smitha.. in youtube the sockbun no heat curling method videos are there… u can make a sock bun at home with an old sock..
cut your hair in really long layers.. ask the hairdresser specifically that you do not want to reduce length..u can go to vish’s blog and see it there how she has cut her long hair…
dove hairfall resuce one is great for dry frizzy hair.. its deeply moisturizing and is the best thing i have used in years…
buy a mild shampoo also to use in between..
Aussie serum is really good…In india you could try loreal serums..
hi smitha sorry fr d late reply but v glad ife has already answered it 🙂 🙂 🙂
yes u can find tons of sock bun curling tuts 🙂
try it bfr u try straightening
bttr get a styling mousse or a styling gel it holds curls well
try giovanni wala styling gel n it’s al natural n no silicones
@ smitha- thanx for asking this ques!!
even I’m goin thru the same dilemma…I have knee length thin hair. I love the length of my hair n dint want to get it cut so instead i got a haircut only in the front layer. But the problem is that I have a slight wave at the top which I hate…so everytime i shampoo i straighten it with a flat iron…i’ve been doin this for over 6 months now n my hair is a mess ..it has become so frizzy…recently i discovered heat protectant n was also thinking of getting hair smoothening dun on the front layer only. after reading all the input from u lovely ladies m not goin ahead with this…but i need u to guide me on ‘how can i restore my hair to its former glory’?…would really appreciate if u guys cud suggest any product/home remedies to manage the frizz and restore the moisture balance.
ps- i have a dry scalp
There is a wonderful treatment called “Keratine Treatment” which makes ur hair frizz free , not poker straight. I got this done abt a week back & I have had a wonderful experience….my hair has never been this good before. No after care is necessary except that a Suphate free shampoo needs to be used. It is expensive but well worth it.You could give it a shot!
Hi Monika ,
u got it done somewhere in Delhi…am looking for this treatment . lemme know where can i have this done. Thanks
monika i heard it doesnt last long .. . is it so ?? my friend got it done 2 months back and her hair is curly again !!! though she told me her hair is in better health than ever !!!
I got in done in Kolkata…..It’s been less than a month so I guess I cannot commenst on the longevity but it is good till now……..it does not make the hair poker straight but improves the texture & makes it look healthy. I am loving it
smitha i had straightened my hair(rebonded) regularly for the past 6 yrs and had taken all the required care but now my hair is half of wht it originally was and its dry brittle and greyin…….so 4 the sake of ur hair plz don do the chemical straightening cos it will def damage ur hair……..use the iron instead…..it s much safer and looks gr8
I already am suffering with a lot of hair fall and hair straightening is not recommended by anyone here? I was about to get my hair rebonded this month..now I am thinking again! I do want to see any bald patches! is there any way you can avoid hairfall after straightening/rebonding?
have always been fasinated by straightning..bt nvr tried cz i hav very thin n brittle hair…
a frnd of mine was tellin c was advised fr hair smoothening …c had in a way tempted me to go fr it…bt nw m cnvinced i dnt need it..
everyone knows it doesn’t worth but still women go for that.and i have been thinking from the last 2 yrs to straighten my hair but every-time this thought comes in my mind it brings the damages it will cause to my hair.So finally i bought iron straightener and curler so whenever i want to have straight hair i just use them.
And i can assure you that your would not want your hair straight everyday coz i don’t.
sorry girls, i dont agree with most of u pple.. i’ve done straighting twice at a gap of 1 yr…yes ofcourse ur hair feels much less volume than it actually was jst becoz its straight n smooth..i really didnt face any side effects as such…but ya i do miss my earlier volume, bt still m happy with my silky, soft, straight hair..
i have got rebonding on my hair three times and still love it.. mine are very curly and frizzy hair.. and believe me the rebonding does wonders to it.. they are a lot manageable and look good too… give them proper care and u get beautiful poker straight hair
Hi girls,
I want some suggestion, I have been facing hairfall since a long time and I have thin, frizzy and wavy hair. I am thinking to get smoothening done but I am afraid of it’s side effects, I don’t want to lose anymore hair. What should I do?
I don’t like to tie my hair as they look really thin and can’t keep them open too because frizzy and wavy doesn’t look good. Please help.
hello girls,
I had thick and healthy hair originally but from past few years I have been facing hair fall for no reason. Now my hair have got really thin, frizzy and wavy.I was thiking to get smoothening done but I am afraid of it’s side effects. I don’t want to lose anymore hair.
What should I do?
I don’t like to tie my hair as they look thin and cannot keep them open because frizzy hair doesn’t look good. I want my hair to look good and I am doing everthing possible to make them healthy and thick again.
Please help as to what should I do.