Silky Smooth Hair With A Keratin Treatment

Salon Selectives hit the nail on the head all those years ago with their ad campaign – we do all want our hair to look like we’ve just stepped out of a salon. And now you don’t have to be a dab hand with the hairdryer to achieve that look. Keratin treatments can help control the frizz of your hair (no more Monica’s when you go on a holiday to hotter and more humid climes) and give it that soft healthy look.

Our resident hair expert Ollie Blackaby, Art Ambassador at Headmasters, explains just why you should consider a Keratin blow dry next time you go to the salon.

“We live in a society of instant results and hair trends move at such a quick rate, we need to be adaptable. But saying that, a constant is healthy hair, if your hair is in top condition no matter what the trend it will work; a bit like having a capsule wardrobe – you need the basics!

“That’s what is great about a keratin blow-dry, not only is it a hair treatment that smoothes the hair, reduces frizz and blow drying time, fitting into our busy schedules.

“It also slowly fades out giving you versatility, rather than a permanent product which can weaken the hair, while you have the commitment of having to grow it out and ultimately result noticeable re-growth.  Also, a lot of chemical treatments slowly dissipate into the hair to some degree, but a keratin blow dry, as long as it’s done properly, can be done every 3 months without any real long term damage.

“Perfect before going abroad, this treatment will eliminate frizz caused by humidity (No1 hair hate!) plus it minimises that amount of heat styling you do helping to keep you hair in great condition.

“It’s not cheap, but I think its worth it in the long run, especially if you think you wear your hair every day; so applying the cost per wear equation and the fact that you won’t need to spend as much repairing damage it really is worthwhile.”

So just what does getting a keratin blow dry entail? I went along to find out…

Firstly Ollie washed my hair, leaving the shampoo on for a full 5 minutes to ensure that it was squeaky clean. He then rough blowdried it and began the process of painting on the keratin solution in small sections. This was then left to dry 20 minutes. I have to admit having tried many hair treatments over the years, I was expecting a strong smelling product but this didn’t appear to have any smell at all.

Ollie then finished drying my hair with brush and hairdryer before using straightening irons over small sections adding a slight twist at the end for movement to lock in the treatment.

As far as a salon blow dry goes, it looked great however I was under strict instructions not to get wet for 72 hours – so I had to forgo gym, be careful showering and pray that there would be no rain to protect my hair from.

Three days later, I washed the treatment out with sulfate-free shampoo and conditioner. The first test was blowdrying my hair. I usually have to blow dry and straighten or else my hair is straight but frizzy but with this treatment I could get away with just blowdrying. Over the next week or so I left my hair to dry naturally – soft curls, again minus the frizz –  before the ultimate test, going on holiday to humid Thailand.

I didn’t use a hairdryer once and I was left with soft frizz-free curls and when I did use my straightening irons on the final day, I didn’t find my hair getting bigger as the day wore on (many belle’s will know just what I mean about this!). It may be expensive as a one-off cost but since it has lasted me over a month already, it is well worth the outlay.

“Always use a sulphate free shampoo, like the L’Oreal Professionnel Pureology range after a Keratin treatment – it cleans the hair without removing the Keratin treatment and again will help maintain the condition of the hair,” Ollie says.

Keratin Repair and Restore blow dry treatment at Headmasters start at £150