Has anyone done a Brazilian keratin treatment?

[msmerymac]

Random, but just wondering.

My hair is very fine. The front tends to... wave up if I just let it air dry. Not because the hair structure is naturally wavy/curly necessarily, but because the hair can't weigh itself down enough to actually dry straight. As a result, I usually flat iron it. Then my ends get damaged, so I'll cut a bunch off. Rinse and repeat.

I've always wondered if the Brazilian Keratin treatment would make my hair smooth and straight all the time. But then there's the question of health - I can't see the formaldehyde making my hair any healthier, that's for sure. So in the end, I'd probably just have to chop it anyway.

I know it's expensive, so when I see Groupons for it, I get itchy fingers. I should probably talk to a stylist about this, huh?

[laladypoet]

I have never heard of this. I've heard of a Brazilian wax, but that's it. I guess I live too far out in the sticks.

[starlily]

I've done the keratin treatment and a brazilian blowout. If your hair is very fine, I'd worry about it being too flat afterwards.

[msmerymac]

What's the difference between the keratin treatment and a blowout?

/I suck at beauty.

[shadow]

What's the difference bw a keratine tx and a Brazilian one?

[starlily]

Aug 31, 2012 14:42:11 GMT -5 msmerymac said:

What's the difference between the keratin treatment and a blowout?

/I suck at beauty.

Keratin treatment = no formaldehyde; 3 day waiting period before you can wash your hair, or style it in any way.

Brazilian Blowout = the controversial one. May or may not have formaldehyde depending on who you believe. Can wash and style your hair immediately afterwards.

They both cost roughly the same and take around the same length of time to do. Keratin seems to last a bit longer on me, but I prefer the lack of wait period on the BB.

But I really don't think either is great for very fine hair. I think it would make your hair look plastered down in a bad way.

[dev22]

My boss gets the blowout, but she has SUPER thick hair - I am afraid that with thin hair (like mine) it would just kill any and all volumn.

[shadow]

Ok I'm even more clueless than i thought. What is a blowout then? I always thought that was just when they blow dry your hair...

[seventeen]

I've done keratin treatments before (also known as brazilian blowouts). They are not guaranteed to completely straighten your hair, but they have always made mine pretty straight. I have naturally wavy/curly hair. What they do the most is to smooth my hair out. I can let my hair air dry and it doesn't frizz, though I usually choose to blow dry it. But it stays straight without the use of any styling tools.

This past one that I got at the end of May lasted about 10ish weeks.

[msmerymac]

Aug 31, 2012 15:54:26 GMT -5 shadow said:

Ok I'm even more clueless than i thought. What is a blowout then? I always thought that was just when they blow dry your hair...

In a normal blowout, if you have curly or wavy hair, they use a blow dryer and usually a bog round brush to blow it straight/into a style. With the Brazilian blowout (and keratin) they do use heat to activate the treatment, hence calling it a "blowout."

Obviously I don't know all the details, though!

[JLN]

I wouldn't do it if your hair's fine at all. Both treatments are meant for full or thick hair.

[mrsukyankee]

I have fine bleached hair & I get the L’Oréal Professionnel’s FIBERCEUTIC Fibre-Filling Treatment (Botox for Hair), which really helps with wispy hair.

[decemberwedding07]

You need to try the Aveda Smooth Infusion Texture Smoother (not the similarly named Smooth Infusion REtexturizing System). It is a temporary treatment. The Brazilian treatments all will leave your hair pretty limp and they all (no matter what they say) contain formaldehyde. I have a link to an independent study showing the formaldehyde in each treatment that claims to not have formaldehyde, but it's bookmarked on my home computer and I'm not home.
Also, my own experience with the Brazilian blowout (very similar to the keratin treatments) was that it made my hair damaged after the second or third time. And it has a cumulative effect. So, you get it done a third time and your hair is damaged, so you decide not to do it again, but then your hair is a totally different texture on the new growth than on the rest of your hair. Sucks.

[MrsAxilla]

Sept 1, 2012 13:57:51 GMT -5 decemberwedding07 said:

You need to try the Aveda Smooth Infusion Texture Smoother (not the similarly named Smooth Infusion REtexturizing System). It is a temporary treatment. The Brazilian treatments all will leave your hair pretty limp and they all (no matter what they say) contain formaldehyde. I have a link to an independent study showing the formaldehyde in each treatment that claims to not have formaldehyde, but it's bookmarked on my home computer and I'm not home.
Also, my own experience with the Brazilian blowout (very similar to the keratin treatments) was that it made my hair damaged after the second or third time. And it has a cumulative effect. So, you get it done a third time and your hair is damaged, so you decide not to do it again, but then your hair is a totally different texture on the new growth than on the rest of your hair. Sucks.

Huh. That's not my experience at all. I've been getting the Brazilian Blowout every 6 months or so for several years and in my experience, the cumulative effect has been positive. The keratin fills in the damaged areas. I started with a bob length and now my hair is to my bra strap and is healthy and awesome.

Another bonus- it seals in color, and you can do both at the same time. I do red, which is notorious for fading quickly, but with the BBon top, the color doesn't fade at all. I have massive roots, but the color still looks great.