The Economics & Benefits of visiting a Curl Specialist

There are benefits to taking your curls to see a curly hair specialist, both economically and to help you take control of your curls and learn to love them. We are the stylists who love your curly hair and want to help you love it too. The aim is not to criticise other stylists and what they do but to point out that there are those of us who specialise in working with curly hair every working day. Most of us live, breathe and are immersed in curls.

Yes, your outlay per haircut will be more than what you are used to paying and I see people writing in forums that they can’t justify paying $xxx to have a specialist attend their curls. But let’s put that into perspective. Now you might be having your curls cut every 6-8 weeks, this equates to around 6.5-8.6 times per year. After calculating an average price of 5 different hairdressers across Brisbane offering a similar service, here are the facts: The average price is $92.60 and includes a style cut, wash and blow dry and if you make a return appointment approximately every 6-8 weeks, the cost is between $601-$796 per year. 

When you visit a true curly hair stylist, you will need to visit less often per year – an average of 3 times, so every 4 months (it can even be longer if you have longer hair and/or are growing it). The average cost of a service is $130 and includes a personalised curl cut, cleanse, hydrate, style and gently dry your curls. The annual cost is more like $392. Weigh it up! That’s the economic benefits but the true measure will be the care and attention given to your curls where you can see the true potential of your curls. 

A curl specialist knows you have been through many trials and not so great outcomes with your hair. We hear it all the time and really empathise with you and our goal is to turn around the way you look at your curls. You take away realknowledge to help make a difference to the way you care for your curls day to day from a curly hair professional. We understand not all curls are created equal, even on a single head there can be several curl types all trying to do their own thing independently of each other. We understand the frustrations and want nothing more than to teach you to look after what you were blessed with. 

When you visit a curly hair specialist please understand that most of us have spent a small fortune learning and honing our craft continually attending education, sometimes in other areas of the world. We do this because we absolutely love what we do and want to provide our curly guests with a wonderful experience and hair outcome. 

Curls are not a curse, they are not broken and do not need to be fixed, they are perfectly imperfect or “wabi sabi” as Scott Musgrave says. So very true.

I have a curl confession to make. When I go to Brisbane each month I try NOT to wash my hair for the week or so I am down there.
I often wondered why my hair was "different" when I was in Brisbane as opposed to being at home in Townsville. Mind you, I don't have completely perfect hair at home, but it generally looks & feels softer. Oh & I have more clump in my curls. In Brisbane, my hair takes on a whole new life, that I call the evil curl monster.

It starts on Day 1 so I don't even get a day or 2 of decent hair. Nine times out of ten I will sleep with my hair pineappled because it has become habit to not have hair in my face while I sleep. And I NEVER sleep without my faithful piece of satin to wrap around my pillow. My satin is the equivalent of a lovely old blanky that travels everywhere with me.
It goes like this: wake up, have 2 coffees with breakfast, read emails, FaceBook & InstaGram, get dressed, put makeup on & take hair down. This is where the evil curl monster appears & my smile turns upside down :(

Instead of  my lazy curls falling loosely from the pineapple, a den of snakes just like Medusa appear. They are all separated & seriously resemble a head full of hideous serpents. Ugh!
At first I wasn't too concerned & thought if I used a little oil on my hands (just like when scrunching out the crunch) it would be fine. Nope. Then I try a little leave-in conditioner & use my hands & to take that through my hair carefully. Check out Carleen Sanchez's video here for refreshing your curls on second, third day etc. More often than not, "refreshing" my hair does work, other times not so much. I mean, just imagine how shrivelled up & limp we would look if we didn't have a drink for several days! Curls NEED a drink too! Some days I have no option other than to put my hair in a ponytail, braid it or yes, put that pineapple back up & wear it like that for the day. But that's OK. Curls are not perfect, they are perfectly imperfect, or "wabi sabi" as my friend, Curly Hair Artisrty founder, Scott Musgrave says.
I do apologise if I look like a bag lady some days who is trying to teach others how to look after their curls. The struggle is real. I get it. But don't stress yourselves out ( and I know plenty of you do) on those days when your curls want to act like belligerent little toads. That's why they make hair ties, clips & head bands to try new styles with. And remember there is always tomorrow to make a fresh start.

I know there are tons of people of different curl patterns who have the same issues so it made me wonder why. It took a fair while for me to work out what the problem was & the only factor that was different in my curl care was the water in the two cities. I find the taste of water in Brisbane is a little "mineral-ish" so I knew there was some sort of difference to that at home. So I googled "hard water" & read all about it to see if there could be any correlation to how my hair was looking. I found that SE Qld has the second hardest water in the country so things were starting to fit together. One google search led to another & another......
What I tried was using soda water (at room temp, brrr, not out of the fridge) for my final rinse. I use tap water to rinse out the shampoo & soda water in a jug to trickle rinse out my conditioner. I don't do this all the time but have found when I do, my curls are that bit softer.  Oh, and when you make up your refreshing spray, I always advise to use demineralised or distilled water.

Happy Curl Days, Amanda

What exactly is being "C G"?

So what does it really mean to be going or have gone "C G" (Curly Girl)? Is it a state of being, is it something you eat, do you need to study for it, what is it even?

Curly Girl is a term that was coined by Lorraine Massey when she wrote her book "Curly Girl: The Handbook" & describes a method used in caring for naturally curly hair. The book is a fabulous resource, like a reference book, for people of curl & is often read by both new & regular clients in my salon, although a growing number have the book at home themselves. 

It is also a term that is used by many people in quite a loose structure. This is how a conversation can go: 

Client: "Oh, I don't use shampoo, I do CG" 

Me: "That's great. So tell me, what are you using?" 

Client: "I bought xyz brand conditioner at the supermarket & I use that" 

Me: " Ok, do you use it to co-wash? How is it going for you? Are you using styling products?"

Client: " Co-wash? It's my conditioner. I dunno, it's ok. My hair is still frizzy though. Yes, I use a leave in waxy product & gel sometimes. But I don't really like them".

Yes, this blog was inspired by frustration. I don't accuse anyone of anything, cast blame or want to make my clients feel like naughty children. I want to teach. I want to inspire. I want my clients to be able to look after their hair so much better than what I could ever do to their curls. And I want them to know that! Henry Kissinger once said " A diamond is a chunk of coal that is made good under pressure". This quote can apply to the frizzy hair you see in the mirror as well. It really can become more defined ( the diamond ) with time & perseverance ( the pressure )

I get really frustrated when a client contacts me after a couple of weeks or so & tells me it's not working for her. I also get sad for her because I totally get it!! Sometimes I try a whole new way of doing something & it doesn't seem to be working out for me. But, you know what? Every single time when something hasn't worked out, when it has "failed", it is because I haven't followed the steps correctly or used the wrong ingredients. I can put it down to this every time! Here's an example from a while back. I wanted home made bread so I had all the ingredients ready to go. It said to use warm water to help the yeast rise. I used water from the tap that wasn't exactly warm, but water is water. Right?? Umm, no! The bread didn't work out. It didn't rise & I made a brick (blah! It was horrible) & I'm sure it could have been classified as a lethal weapon. There was a good reason it didn't work out- I didn't follow the instructions. Simple. 

There is no magic potion or wand when we do curly hair. We disclose exactly what we are using & show you exactly how to use it as well. (The right ingredients + the correct steps = recipe for success). Yes, we will advise you to use the product/s we use in your hair because we know they work. They work beautifully in conjunction with the methods we show you at the basin & in the chair. 

Yes, there are alternatives out there & we will often mention a couple of them, BUT, are you going to get the same results? Probably not. But, you may achieve something similar & in the end, the choice is totally yours.

Some of the traits you need to have or develop when going over to the curly method:

- Trust ( Trust what we are teaching you & have the belief you can do it too )

- Willingness ( To embrace new ideas ) 

- Enthusiasm ( For your own curl outcome )

- Patience ( It WILL take time & effort. You are practicing something new & you are also reversing many years of how your hair was cared for previously - & that may include chemical &/or heat damage which needs to be addressed.) 

When a new client tells me her hair is is still frizzy or unmanageable after just a week or 2, But that she really is trying, I feel excited that she is reaching out for confirmation that things will turn around. The journey to Curl-vana can be longer for one curl person than another, don't give up, don't have unrealistic expectations that can make you feel upset or angry. We don't all begin the journey from the same starting point. 

When a client says she has used the techniques she was taught & has the right products, but doesn't want to invest the time, I know she's not ready. YET! 

When a client tells me her hair hasn't changed & she is still using those same "good" products she was using before coming to see me & there is no difference, I know she has unrealistic expectations.  If you change nothing, nothing will change- Unknown.

So CG means different things to different people but to me it means that I use healthy hair products to feed my curls to give them every opportunity to be defined & happy as well as nurturing them. That's my definition. 😊💕🌀

This Week in Hair.......

This past week, an iconic stylist overseas chose to think about curly hair & post those thoughts on her Facebook page. That's fine, it's her page & she can have an opinion. The trouble was, she referred to curly hair as "wool" & how she sees curly people come into her salon & ask to be able to dry natural under gentle heat. She went on to say they probably don't want to pay for a "proper" styling service & that their "wool" looks HORRIBLE when dried naturally!! 

For starters, I believe that a "proper" styling service is in relation to the type of hair I am finishing as a stylist. I choose not to do a blowout on naturally curly hair, that does not mean the curly haired client is not being styled sufficiently, it means their finish is appropriate to the type of hair. I do have clients who have long, sleek hair who do have their hair blown out & even have the hot iron used. 

The stylist the storm erupted around is a traditional stylist who does prefer her clients leave with sleek hair. ( And most likely enough silicone laden product to protect the space shuttle from heat damage) The post went mega-viral within hours & although she did have some supporters, the majority were from people who felt angry & hurt by the comments & rightly so. It went a lot deeper than people being precious, the stylist stepped away from displaying professionalism on social media & several comments accused her of bullying. 

The saga went on for a few days with thinly veiled apologies & the majority rejected those apologies as the damage had been done.

There are two morals to this story:

- Be careful what you post on social media. Screen shots shared last a lot longer than a deleted post

- The most important one for people of curl is simple. Don't expect someone who does not understand (or see beauty in) your hair work with it or manipulate it into anything but it's natural beauty. 

You don't go to GP when you need a specialist service. See a professional curly hair stylist for your curly hair. 

Take A Walk To Your Home, Sweet Home

DON'T RELAX! Cultivate Curls!!

Curly hair is not as difficult to manage as people think. The easiest way to deal with curls is to work with what nature gave you, not against it. Don’t go down  Straight Street, it’s not where you belong, Curly Crescent is where you need to be & I can teach you  how to  love being home sweet home.

Now that Summer is gone & the weather is starting to cool down, it is the perfect time to start your curl journey. By the time next summer rolls around, you will have plenty of practice in what to do with your hair & hopefully be loving your curls by that time. So, this past summer was spent with your hair either looking like a matted Shih-Tzu, a Disney witch on a really bad day or thrown up on top of your head. Whichever look you ended up with, it still ended badly with lots of tangles, frizzy, distorted curls, cutting out hair ties or even tears. 

It doesn't have to be like that & ultimately will not take you a great deal more time while conditioning your hair. Hydration is the major factor in how your curls will behave & coupled with great products & your application method, you really can achieve beautiful curls. 

Given that a lot of Australia has fairly semi-temperate winters, we aren't generally concerned with the issues affecting the northern hemisphere - below freezing temperatures - so getting to know your hair & how to achieve the best from it can be done during this time of year. And right now, Autumn is a great time of year to get started.

First of all you want to use a shampoo (cleanser) that contains no sulphates, although there is one sulphate in particular that is acceptable & it is behentrimonium methosulfate. (See my blog post on 20/2/15 regarding good vs evil products for more information). When cleansing, it is important to give your scalp a good scrub to remove dead skin cells & any dirt with fingertips, not your fingernails. You can do this same step when co-washing as well. Make sure you gently move the cleanser down your hairshaft by scrunching it along the length of your hair without rubbing. Rinse well & always treat your curly hair carefully so as not to disrupt the patterns forming in it while wet.

The conditioner (hydration) you choose will make or break the way in which your hair is contained in its shape ( the degree of, or hopefully, lack of frizziness as well as curl pattern, or lack thereof) so it is imperative to choose one that is free of silicones & alcohols. Check out the list of ingredients deemed to be curl friendly from this site: http://www.wikihow.com/Determine-if-a-Hair-Product-is-Curly-Girl-Approved to become a lot more aware of what you can look for as well as what to avoid. A conditioner with a lot of "slip" is best because you want to get that roping action happening when hydrating your curls in order to help form those big, juicy curls. 
Adding a handful of water from time to time during your hydrating step is imperative to get the conditioner to hold that moisture, the water, in your hair to prepare for amazing curls. I believe this step is crucial to the outcome of your curls as hydration is what makes curls pop! Without proper hydration you will still have frizz. Check out a great blog by a fellow Curly Hair Artist, Melissa  & especially the article "Squish to Condish" (Here's the link to make it easy: http://www.thereoncewasacurl.com/blog/squish-to-condish) 

The styling product you choose to use needs to be curl-friendly as well & should be one suited to your hair type, curl type & weather type believe it or not! What is working for me in Townsville may not work for you in Melbourne at all. It has a lot to do with the humectants in the product & where they lie on the ingredient list. Check out my humectant blog for more info on what they are & what they do. As a general rule, if it is nearer to the top of the list then there is more of that ingredient in the product than if t were closer to the bottom of the list. You don't have to be a scientist to work it all out, but you can become a guru at what YOUR hair needs. Along the way there will be mistakes - products purchased that either don't live up to the hype or just totally wrong for you. Don't toss it all straight away though, look for other curly people to start a product swap a couple of times each year or so. It will also get a whole lot of curlistas together to discuss all things curls!!  You can research in an online forum or  on reputable curly hair product web pages. Read the ingredients of products you think might work for your hair type & look for products with similar ingredients that are available to you in Australia. 

Until next time, Stay Curly! Amanda

The Sulfate Dilemma - Good vs Evil

For the scientists: SO₄^2-  is the compound formula for the chemical structure of sulfate, just in case you are interested.
So all sulfates are pure evil, right? Well, maybe not! Not all of them at least;  it seems like there are some good guys out there after all. But before you go out & buy some sulfate laden shampoo from the supermarket, read up first.

Over the past few years we have been warned to stay away from the nasty sulfate monster in the cheap (read that: poor quality) & curl unfriendly hair products. Ok, so we got that memo & most curl respecting folks avoid sulfates like the plague in order to preserve the integrity of our curls. Curly haired people research like no other group & also have bathrooms full of products that promised us the world, but gave us frizz, lank hair, too big, no volume & even no curls!! Now it seems like there are some sulfates that are ok to be seen with, so read on.

According to Sister Scientist (naturallycurly.com) there are good & bad sulfates & the good ones can be helpful to curlies. Sister Scientist is a cosmetic chemist (her real name is Erica Douglas but her work name is pretty cool, don't you agree) who decided she was going to dedicate herself to developing quality & innovative products due to her hair battles growing up. Follow her on FaceBook, Instagram & Twitter for more information.

Two of the harshest are Sodium Lauryl Sulfate (SLS) & Sodium Laureth Sulfate (SLES). They are extremely drying on the hair & strip it of its natural oils. I can remember when I was a kid using shampoo that would make my hair "squeaky clean" & shampooing twice to make sure it really was clean. OMG! No wonder my hair was weird. Literally squeaky. Yep, sulfates were here & more than likely, really low quality sulfates to boot! I mean, back then there was little emphasis on using a quality shampoo. A 'good' shampoo was one whose name was widely known but not necessarily high in quality. Thank goodness we are so much more knowledgeable now & have information at our fingertips to help with decisions. You need to remember that in all likelihood, if the products you buy are 'cheap' (btw, I really hate that word) then the ingredients are cheap as well. After all, business is business & the objective is to make money. So, some shampoos are not going to be any better than using dishwashing detergent in your hair. If you really are serious about your curls, invest in them! To cut to the chase, it starts to get really involved chemically from this point & if you wish to read more about surfactants, Sister Scientist's article at www.naturallycurly.com is a great place to start.

Of the four types of surfactants (A surfactant is one of the many compounds that go into making detergent),  there is one type that can actually be beneficial. It is known as a cationic surfactant called behentrimonium methosulfate. It is less irritating & has the ability to create a lot of slip when in a conditioner- remember the slip you need to achieve the "seaweed" feeling once your curls are hydrated? It helps close the cuticle of your hair, which means less likelihood of frizziness.  When you use the 'roping' method of taking the conditioner through your gorgeous curls, adding water as needed & squishing as you go, this particular sulfate can be of assistance.

If you want to know more about behentrimonium methosulfate you can Google it to find further information from many different websites. There is a lot of information out there so go & explore; it will help you have a greater understanding of what is curl friendly & what is not. There is such a huge maze listed in the ingredients of any product & maybe it might give you just a little bit more confidence in what you choose to use.

References: http://www.naturallycurly.com/curlreading/home/the-truth-about-sulfates-according-to-science/ viewed 26/1/2015

Humectants- A Brief guide to the Basics

It was not my intention to publish this information in my blog so early into the journey but there has been a bit of interest in the topic recently so I have brought it forward. 

Humectants: What are they & what do I need to know?

Lots of people are asking about humectants. What are they? How do they affect my hair? Is it something to do with weather? Etc, etc. The whole humectant issue can be quite scientific & lead to confusion so I am going to do my best to break it down to a need to know basis. Simply, the absolute basics of what you need to know in relation to curly hair. There may be a little science included just to clarify the subject but not too much as I don’t want to create more confusion, especially to those new to the curly way of life.  I hope this goes a little more toward your understanding of what products you need to use in your hair. What I use in Nth Qld in my fine hair during summer could be totally wrong for another curly in Tasmania to use in her fine curly hair regardless of the curl pattern type. As most curlies know, the weather plays a big part in what our hair’s behaviour will be day - to -day.

What are humectants?

Simply put, a humectant is a substance that absorbs or helps another substance retain moisture, as glycerol.  (www.dictionary.reference.com).

Humectants are added to hair products to help retain moisture & they actually pull moisture from the atmosphere into the hair if it is dry & thirsty. Curly hair is inherently dry as it is more porous than straight hair, thus it screams out for moisture & while reaching out for more it begins to separate from its curl pattern, causing frizziness.

If you go outside on a rainy day, you will especially notice it when there is light rain falling. Your hair doesn’t get completely drenched, just light spots of rain……then you will notice it begin to expand & the frizz appears. Extremely dry air can impact curly hair as well, creating frizz. I know, it seems really confusing. How can humid air AND dry air cause frizz??? Don’t even think about giving up & going straight.

A little more science again, Tonya McKay has a great article on naturallycurly.com,  (Effects of Relative Humidity on Hair and Humectants) detailing how, in nature, everything strives toward equilibrium. Everything naturally wants to spread out evenly, not clump in some areas & sparsely in others. In other words, the law of nature says that everything should be equally spread but we know curly hair works to defy this law! This is where humectants come in to help diffuse the moisture evenly throughout your hair. The humectant typically tries to achieve this balance by pulling moisture from the air into dry hair. But of course it isn’t quite as simple as it sounds.  Humectants can be your best friend or worst enemy so read on…….

How does humidity affect my hair?

In low humidity (E.G dry winter air) there is very little water in the air so the air then takes the moisture from your hair (Equilibrium, nature balancing out as above). This effectively causes fly aways which when ruffled together cause frizz. In this environment, you don’t want the moisture to be pulled from your hair by the air, so the best type of protection is to use a conditioner that has very good moisturisers in it & to use a styling product to seal that moisture in the hair.  A lot of the traditional humectants may actually assist the air in removing the moisture, therefore sealing the moisture in is vital especially for high porosity hair! Some effective sealers include jojoba oil, caster oil. Not coconut oil as it is absorbed into the hair shaft, a sealer will ensure slower loss of water in the hair. The frizz issue happens because of the natural need to spread moisture evenly & if your hair happens to contain more water than the cold, dry air, you may be robbed, that is why sealing will assist in keeping the curls in place.

There are newer humectants being developed that do assist in extreme dry climates. Google for more information: hydroxypropyl bis-hydroxyethyldimonium chloride & dihydroxypropyltrimonium chloride for all you ingredient geeks out there.

In high humidity environments the opposite effect takes place: The air has all the moisture & because of the laws of nature & the need to spread that moisture evenly, if your hair is dry, porous & unprotected it will stand up & scream out for some of that moisture.  In the process of doing so, the open cuticles rub against one another & cause frizz! Due to the extreme amount of water in the air when humidity is very high, you can actually end up with an overload of moisture in your curls & they can become tangled & frizzy & lose their curl pattern. Curls should be kept well moisturised to minimise absorbing too much water from the air in this type of environment by looking for products containing lesser humectants or those with less hygroscopic ability. (Hygroscopic: adj. Absorbing or attracting moisture from the air) Therefore, using a product high in humectants, especially glycerin, means more water can be attracted into your hair- not good in high humidity!                                                                                                                                                                                       

Remember, the more you really know about your curls in relation to the weather will make living with curls so much easier. Depending on where you live or travel to, it is very likely you will need to change what you use in your hair along with the seasons. If there are wide variations in the relative humidity you will need to be mindful of when to change products, although curly hair is a reliable barometer. Don’t always rely on what other curlies suggest you use in your hair, what works for one curly could be totally wrong for another. The golden rule is: We are uniquely curly, not sheeple! So experiment & play with different products, research what products or techniques work for you but most of all, enjoy your curls. Don’t curse them!

The following will link you to a list of humectants as well as a full scientific explanation of what they are, dew points & further additional information you may be interested in reading. http://www.naturallycurly.com/curlreading/ingredients/the-ultimate-guide-to-humectants-and-hair/

References:

Dictionary.com. 2014. Dictionary. [ONLINE] Available at: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/hygroscopic?s=t. [Accessed 12 January 15].

Naturallycurly.com. 2007. Humidity,Humectants and Hair. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.naturallycurly.com/curlreading/curl-products/curlchemist-humidity-humectants-and-hair/. [Accessed 13 January 15].

Naturallycurly.com. 2007. What are Humectants?. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.naturallycurly.com/curlreading/curl-products/curlchemist-what-are-humectants/. [Accessed 12 January 15].

Thank you also to Melissa Stites from Curly Hair Artistry