Keratin treatments? should I?

[winterbride1220]

Hello, and good friday to you! I'm thinking of getting one done to help relax my curls to a wave. If you've done it , what do you think?

Pros v cons?

any alternative treatments you would recommend instead?

reviews? what should i look for?

and, How long do you wait to wash your hair after the 1st process?

[NachoProblem]

Yay! Thanks for asking this, I wanted to ask about keratin treatments myself and then I saw something shiny and got distracted.

[calips]

I have always had curly/wavy hair. In past years it is more wavy and prone to frizz. I have had the Brazilian Blowout 3 times. At first I wasn't a fan, but now I love it!!

I had to get used to the fact that you lose volume and I have always liked Volume/bigger hair. My long thin face can't take stick straight. I feel like a drowned rat. Now, I have learned to work with it (I use hot rollers and curl it -- spmetimes I sleep in soft rollers.) The result is smooth (absolutely no frizz) waves.

It is still a little too straight for me because I am used to curls and body but the easy blow dries have me sold. Before the BB I was blowing my hair out (30 min +) just to curl it. Now I can air dry and just blow dry the last five minutes and curl.

That, has me hooked.

[heyney]

I had it one 3 weeks ago, and love it!

My hair is usually curly/wavy with some frizz.

You cant wash it for 3 days.

It took all the frizz out (some body and wave too), cut blowdrying time down, is shiny, and overall gave me a new look.

I love my new 'do, and would def recommend it!

[majick143]

LOL Nacho! I had one treatment a while back and I HATED it during the process and for the whole time I couldn't wash it. It felt like a massive build up of product and heavy crap in my hair and it was beyond awful. andplusalso it stung the crap out of my eyes when she was doing it... fumey... BUT after the first wash, the blow dry time cut in half, the shine, the smooth soft hair, I was sold.
i'm having another in a couple weeks because of the blond that I put in it the last two times I went destroyed my hair. So we're trying to restore the health and that should help.

[decemberwedding07]

The best one by far is the Aveda system. They have a permanent one and a temporary one. The temporary one is the only one I've tried.

I did the Brazilian Blowout a couple of times, but switched to Aveda once it came out. The Brazilian Blowout worked SO WELL the first time. I have super curly hair, and it made it so that I could wear it curly or straight. I loved it. It had a cumulative effect though, so by the third time, the ends were board straight, and it looked really weird unless I straightened it. I also think the heat used ended up being damaging over time. It burned my throat, eyes, and nose, so I had to wear a mask and keep my eyes closed. It took HOURS.

The Aveda one was faster, doesn't use the super hot iron, and really works. SERIOUSLY no formaldehyde at all, and it doesn't burn your throat or eyes at all. I love it. Here's a good FAQ on it.
www.aveda.com/cms/spp/popup/smoothing_treatment_faq.tmpl

[preppy]

I had it done before our wedding last summer since we were having N outdoor wedding in July in Florida and I didn't want frizz. I loved it! I could easily air dry which was amazing considering the humidity. The worst part was the days you couldn't wash your hair or pull it back. It really sucked since my hair gets greasy really easily.

The brand I had done was called "surface" and I picked it since it doesn't have formaldehyde like many of the other brands cause that really freaked me out!

[SuziSaysDa]

I have had both keratin and Brazilian Blowout, I far prefer Brazilian Blowout to keratin (I have had Coppola and one other brand). They are very similar, except the keratin requires you to keep your hair dry for three days following treatment. I also found Brazilian Blowout to last longer than keratin.

I have been having treatments, either BB or keratin for almost two years now, I love what it has done for my hair - really it has been life changing. I used to spend forever drying and flat ironing my hair with mediocre results (easily frizzed, even with good product), now I can walk out of the house with wet hair and it will dry straight and frizz free. My blow dry time is dramatically reduced and I have not touched my straight iron in about two years.

[winterbride1220]

great, I 'm sold! I need to run and get an appt but 1st I have to make my schedule allow the 3 day wait. Thanks, people~

[letyourselfgo]

I was seriously considering the Aveda one, but decided to go for a relaxer instead, mostly due to cost.

I would go for it, if that were possible.

[winterbride1220]

I'm going to do it! I think my hair is curlier than ever. Maybe it's my new hairstylist, or the sulphate-free, or the 90% humidity but it is so tight. Hopefully, this will make it easier to handle. Loove the idea of wash and go.

[lo]

After the treatment wears off, does your hair feel different? Damaged or dry?

I had really damaged hair that I chopped off and have been growing out my hair for over 2 years now, so I don't want to go back to that.

[Deleted]

My stylist does an "express smoothing treatment" using the Coppola keratin whatever it is, and I've been doing it about a year now. It has seriously changed my life. I prefer her express version to the regular because I can wash it after 24hrs. If I had to wait 3 days to wash my hair or put it up, I think I'd go crazy.

My hair doesn't feel dry or damaged as it wears off; the treatment is actually very moisturizing and has pretty much eliminated my breakage problem. I don't get split ends as quickly anymore, either.

[scout8]

Ditto all the other posters. Life changing for me. Only downside is the cost. I can get away with doing it twice a year and using the Frieda 3 Day Straight in between.

I haven't tried the Aveda one a few of you mentioned, but it sounds interesting.