When perming hair, the conditioning and deswelling of the hair should be done according to the pH of the hair and its degree of swelling. For example, a high molecular weight cationic polymer conditioner should be applied to the shampooed hair before applying the Reshaping Cream. The pH of the cream is around 9.5 and it is going to increase the pH of the hair. The hair is also going to swell to 30-60% percent leaving the cuticles wide open. Therefore, a cationic conditioning polymer will penetrate into the hair cortex and make hair soft, silky and more combable.
Once the hair is straight to a desirable degree, the Reshaping Solution is applied to the hair and the hair is now wrapped onto the desired size curlers. The Reshaping Lotion is left on the hair for 15 to 20 minutes. The Strengthening Lotion (deswelling lotion) is applied for 3 to 5 minutes and the hair is then rinsed thoroughly. The hair is then towel blotted, and the Neutralizing solution is applied for 18 to 20 minutes, the curlers are then taken out and hair is rinsed thoroughly with water. After towel blotting the hair, silicone based laminates are applied to the hair along with glycerin based light curl activator creams or gels. This process yields superior permanently waved hair that has more moisture, elasticity, tensile strength, a stronger curl, which require less usage of maintenance products on a daily basis.
Hi Dr Syed. Thanks so much for your responses to my previous questions, I really appreciate it. However, I have another query! Are 'cationic conditioning polymers' & 'silicone based laminates' available to the general public? Would they have a commercial name? Also, does Avlon sell them? Thanks in advance, L2L.
Dr Syed,
How do you suggest I prevent porosity during the permanent waving process? This started with my current Carefree Curl perm 3 months ago. Prior to this I was natural for 6 months but I've never had this problem with any other curly perm.
Until recently I've kept my hair damp by using a high water content moisturiser along with maintenance products that contain glycerine & propylene glycol. I apply these products & cover with a plastic cap overnight. I recently discovered Infusium 23 Leave-In Treatment for relaxed, permed & colour treated hair which has helped a lot, plus I deep condition with a cap & heat once a week.
I asked my hairdresser to use Roux Porosity Control Step 1 before applying the rearranger but she said it's better that my hair is porous so that it straightens faster (my hair is coarse) in order to minimise burning on my scalp.
I apologise for this long message but I'd really like to resolve this issue as I'm worried about breakage. I'm not currently experiencing any but for the last 3 months I've rarely let my hair dry out... However, I worried that keeping it continuously wet will result in some sort of damage eventually.
L2L,
Most of Avlon's conditioners that are used right after chemical process are cationic polymer based and are not available to the general public. They are sold to hairstylists only. However, our laminates are called KeraCare Silken Seal and KeraCare Silken Seal Liquid Sheen Spray. Both of these products are available to the general public through hairstylists and all of the JC Penny salons. If you cannot find them at the salons for some reason, you can purchase them online at www.avlon.com.
L2L, you can use Avlon's Ferm Quaternizer Conditioner which is formulated to be used before the application of the Rearranger Cream. This conditioner helps to minimize the porosity.
I would also recommend to use KeraCare Silken Seal daily before the use of a curl activator in order to seal moisture into the hair and keep the frizziness away.
Dr Syed,
I had a consultation with an Avlon hairdresser who does the Ferm perm yesterday. I was impressed by his knowledge of the product & of hair care in general. Consequently, I've booked an appointment with him to get the Ferm done at the end of this month.
Regarding the KeraCare Silken Seal and KeraCare Silken Seal Liquid Sheen Spray, I'll definitely purchase these items as soon as I can.
Lastly, I'd like to thank you for all your help & information you've given us, it is very much appreciated.
Your daily reader,
L2L
Hi Dr Syed
I had my Ferm Perm done at the end of May & I'm very pleased with the results. My curls are well-defined & I have very little breakage.
The one small draw back is that I recently had a reconstructing treatment & it made my curls smaller - I find that protein treatments usually do this; is it normal? However, at my next perm I may request larger rods in order to combat this.
I'm still learning how to care for this perm. As you may remember, I was dealing with over-processed & very porous hair, so I'm used to using a LOT of product.
I have some pictures on this blog in case anyone is interested: http://curlykitchronicles.blogspot.com/2009/06/zara-aka-loves2laugh-her-ferm-perm.html#comments
Thank you so much! I wish I had changed to Ferm earlier!
Regards
L2L
Hi Dr Syed
Will there be any more entries in the series of curly perms?
Regards
L2L
Yes, it possible that we will add more information regarding the permanent waving process.
Dr Syed
It would be great if there was more info regarding curly perms. I would particularly like to see:
Pictures of REAL curly perms on afro hair, either on models or regular people. Including:
The type & size of curls you can achieve eg big rods versus small rods, spiral curls done winding the rod, instead of in the normal way.
I'm aware the results also depend on the length & texture of the hair. However, it would be great for new & existing curly perms wearers to go into the salon with more than just a general idea of what we want, attempt to explain it to the stylist & desperately hope they understand what we mean!
L2L
In addition, I would also like to see information on:
1) The types & sizes of rods, rollers, flexi-rods etc that can be used on curly permed hair & the effect they can give. I'm aware I asked for pictures above but going by my & other curly perm wearers experiences, they are pretty hard to find!
2) Dyeing & using henna on curly permed hair.
3) White/grey hair - will it be harder to get & keep curls in this type of hair? Is it more likely to break?
4)General maintenance of curly permed hair; how often to wash, deep condition & use reconstructors.
Regards
L2L
Hello again Dr Syed!
I have one last query regarding mineral oil. I notice that the Ferm maintenance products contain mineral oil.
However, I find that products that contain mineral increase my breakage. The broken hairs are short, medium & long. The breakage occurs:
- When applying the hair products
- When styling, either by hand or a wide-tooth comb
- During the day (I will see broken pieces on my clothes & on my desk at work
- On my pillow
- When washing & conditioning, in the bath plus on my hands when applying shampoo & conditioner
I like the Ferm products as they keep my hair soft & moisturised, plus they give great curl definition. They also work on my over-processed hair, which I'm not ready to cut off, as I will have to go back to about 2 inches.
I've used products that don't contain mineral oil, but in order to keep my hair from drying out, I had to use a lot of product & keep re-applying during the day. Also, the curl definition was really bad on my over-processed ends with those products.
I now use a combination of Ferm & other maintenance products. The breakage has decreased when applying products & styling my hait but that's all.
1) I would like to know why this is happening.
2) Are there any other products you recommend either with or instead of Ferm products that could help me?
3) Are you planning on not including mineral oil in Ferm & your other hair products?
Regards
L2L
Hi Dr Syed
I saw your response on the other page, thank you.
Another question re the maintenance of curly perms is: does wearing the hairstyles below cause damage to curly permed hair?
- Weaves
- Wigs
- Clip on extensions
- Braids, cornrows or twists, with or without extensions
Is it okay to wear them on a long-term basis (eg 6 weeks to a year) to stretch the time between perms?
Or is it better to use them infrequently such as for special occasions?
Thank you in advance
L2L
Hi Dr Syed
I'd like to know if you can safely use henna on (curly) permed hair.
I've never used it before but I'd like to use it to thicken up my naturally fine hair... & also to cover a few greys too, lol.
I've done a lot of research into henna & I've heard that it can be drying & damaging if you use inferior quality henna, which includes commercially produced 'boxed' henna.
However, 'body art quality,' henna is supposed to be the best & not damaging to natural or chemically-processed hair at all. It's supposed to make hair stronger & more resistant to damage.
I'll either be using normal henna alone, which will only colour the white hairs whilst strengthening/conditioning my hair in general. Or, I'll use henna & indigo to go darker all over.
I would just like your opinion on whether it would change or ruin the curls or cause in damage in curly permed hair.
Thanks in advance
Vanessa Jones