Search Results: Michelle Breyer
Go to any drugstore or supermarket these days and the aisles are filled with the hottest salon products.
It is estimated that as much as 15 percent of all salon haircare products now are being sold through unapproved retail channels.
But even though technically not illegal for them to be selling these products, haircare companies are fighting what they see as the growing problem of a diversion — a controversial and contetious issue that has gotten worse in recent years.
The implications for consumers include higher prices and poor product quality, not to mention the purchase of products not suited for their hair. It costs manfuacturers and salons millions of dollars per year in lost sales.
“It’s confusing to the customer,” said Vikki Bresnahan, product security manager for John Paul Mitchell Systems, which has been on the forefront of fighting diversion.
The bottom line, she said, is that “we don’t do business with any drug, grocery or discount stores or any retail Web sites — not EBay, not Amazon.com, not Drugstore.com. All of that product is diverted. We only do business with salons.”
Companies say their reputations are on the line.
Redken believes that only trained and licensed professional stylists can prescribe the best products for their customers.
“If you go to a Target and buy one of our products and it doesn’t work properly, you may never purchase a product from John Paul Mitchell again,” Bresnahan said.
So where did the product come from?
The industry calls it the “gray market.” In some cases, a distributor might order a larger amount than it legitimately is selling to a salon, selling the rest “out the back door” to others. In other cases, wholesale companies employ collectors who approach salons, paying them more than their cost for the product. In some cases, salons start ordering more products to have adequate supply for diverters. There could be several steps between the wholesaler and the consumer, and many retailers may not know where the products come from.
There also are counterfeiters who may knock off salon products, filling the bottles with fake products that might not be clean or safe.
“It’s hugely frustrating,” Bresnahan said. “It causes problems for our salons, which are our No. 1 supporters. Without them, we wouldn’t be where we are today.”
And a lot of salons make most of their money off product sales.
Bresnahan believes it is unfair for drug, grocery and discount retailers to get into the professional haircare business.
“Salons aren’t carrying canned goods or pharmaceutical products,” she said. “Why compete with a salon that’s not competing with them?”
Most companies have statements on their bottles that warn consumers that products can only be guaranteed when sold at professional salons. But companies such as John Paul Mitchell, Graham Webb International and Sebastian International have begun taking more drastic measures to fight diversion, spending millions of dollars.
Since it’s not illegal, it’s up to the manufacturer to catch the wholesalers, distributors and salons that are selling products on the side — a difficult endeavor.
Redken, for example, hired a former FBI agent to develop its strategy and to oversee its anti-diversion program.
Redken codes its products to track their movement, and conducts followup audits of distributorships to find violators. Redken representatives also conduct regular shelf sweeps at unauthorized retail outlets in the United States and some foreign countries. The products are “decoded” in an effort to identify diverters. Redken also offers monetary rewards for supportable information that leads to the identification of diverters of Redken products.
In its newest distributor contracts, L’Oreal Professionel has included a segment specifically addressing diversion and requiring all distributors to put a secondary code on the products to help it track diverted products.
Paul Mitchell even tried to get a law passed that would make diversioin illegal. But the company was unsuccessful in its effort.
Kenra has done a better job than most at fighting diversion. When salon owner Kenneth Anders told Kenra that some of its products were being sold at an Ohio drugstore, Kenra told him to buy out the store’s stock. Seven carfuls and $2,200 later, the problem was fixed.
Ultimately, the consumer is the key to anti-diversion efforts. John Paul Mitchell now runs national television and print ads to get the anti-diversion effort out to consumers. The company is encouraging stylists to talk about the subject with customers while they’re in the chair.
But even when the consumer is fully educated, it’s still a tough battle.
“It’s hard to overcome the convenience,” Bresnahan said.
(NaturallyCurly.com’s CurlMart does not participate in diversion in any way. We wish we could bring you more of the products we know you’d like to buy from us, but to do so would be unethical.”>
In a strange way, Kissa Thompson can credit her grandmother for the success of her company.
When she went natural a decade ago, the response from her Southern grandmother was less than positive.
‘She didn’t like my hair,’ Thompson recalls. ‘To her, it was frizzy and unruly. She said ‘Do something with your hair.”Thompson did do something, but not to her hair. Five years ago, she launched ButtaFly Unlimited, a line of inspiring t-shirts, hats and more. One of the company’s most popular shirts boasts ‘I Love My Hair.’ Other hot sellers are emblazoned with the words ‘Free Your Soul,’ ‘Be a Leader’ and Be Unlimited.’
‘It speaks to a lot of people,’ Thompson says.In a world where clothes scream out company logos, Thompson believes that ‘if you’re going to wear something, it should mean something.’ The company’s entire philosophy is about loving who you are.
‘That’s what our shirts are about,’ she says. ‘Buttafly Unlimited wants to inspire those who wear the designs to love themselves and be proud of who they are. Everyone has some issue. We want to encourage people to love who they are.’
The 30-year-old Brooklyn entrepreneur hasn’t always felt comfortable with her own look. Her mother didn’t know how to work with her hair and she did a lot of experimenting. She began seeing people with natural hair and began cutting her relaxed hair shorter and shorter. She says she loves her natural hair now.
‘There’s nothing like the versatility of natural hair,’ she says. ‘Once you go straight, it’s straight.’Her t-shirts aren’t trendy, and have a simple, old-fashioned feel to them. She believes they are the type of t-shirts you can wear forever. She regularly changes the colors and designs.
The response to the t-shirts has been overwhelmingly positive, says Thompson, who also designs jewelry. She has gotten orders from around the world.
When she wears her shirts, ‘People will say ‘I love your hair too,” she says. Thompson plans to expand into films, a newsletter and children’s books.
‘Our philosophy is to wear stuff that represents your soul,’ Thompson says. ‘Buttafly is the metamorphosis of the individual. And Unlimited represents the unlimited possibilities of life.’ ‘It’s not about clothes,’ she says. ‘It’s about having a voice.’.
When it comes to curly kids this school year, the message is loud and clear.
‘Celebrate it,’ says Rodney Cutler of New York’s Cutler Salon. ‘The best thing to do is to go with it.’
And unlike years past, when stick-straight hair dominated the hallways, curly kids will have plenty of company this year. The look is Bohemian, and texture is hot.
‘Everybody got sick of the flat iron,’ says Noah Hatton, a freelance stylist for Redken. ‘We’re sick of blowdrying. It’s better to embrace it.’ ‘In the past, I didn’t see a lot of curly people,’ he says. ‘Now I see curls everywhere.’After a summer of sun, salt and chlorine, it’s time to get their hair back into back-to-school shape, said Canadian stylist Ilona Reece, who launched Taria Curlz, a video about curly kid haircare.
That means conditioning the hair with a product for very dry hair. She recommends applying an ample amount of conditioning treatment or a moisturizing conditioner, starting at the ends and working up to the roots. When the hair is saturated, comb the product through the hair with a wide-tooth comb, clip the hair up and place a plastic bag over the hair tightly so the hair is contained. Let the conditioner stay on the hair 30 minutes and then rinse it out. The process should be repeated once a month to keep the hair moisturized.
‘The more moisture curly hair gets, the better,’ Reece says.
A spray bottle can be filled with conditioner and water for a quick locker room pick-me-up.
Diane Da Costa likes to apply a light oil like almond or carrot to moisturize texturized hair. She leaves the oil in the hair.
Shampoo no more than once or twice a week, wetting and conditioning the hair on other days. Otherwise, the natural oils can be stripped from the hair.
Lavender is a natural lice deterrent, so parents of young children may want to buy a spray in lavender product such as Devacurl Mist-er Right or Tai Texture.
It may be time for a good haircut. But cutting curly hair can be tricky. And try to find a stylist who has experience cutting curly hair textures.
The younger the child, the shorter the hair, says Lorraine Massey, author of ‘Curly Girl’ and founder of Devacurl.
‘I definitely think a blunt cut above the shoulder is lovely for a toddler,’ says Massey, who has three curly children of her own. ‘As they get older, if Mom’s got time on her hands, you can go a little bit longer. But it must be taken care of.’Boys are opting for longer looks that accentuate rather than hide their curls, whether it be long ringlets or an afro.
‘It looks adorable longer,’ Hatton says.Reece cuts curly hair dry because of the shrinkage factor.
‘I avoid the curl jumping up three inches when I only cut off a half an inch,’ she says.For extremely curly hair, Reece actually flat irons the hair straight with a ceramic flat iron so she can cut the hair evenly.
‘I explain to them that they have beautiful curly hair and that I am only straightening it so I can give them an even haircut,’ she says. ‘I tell them that once their hair gets wet, it will go back curly again.’Da Costa likes simple blunt cuts for straight to wavy or curly long hair. A rounded angle layered cut works well for a textured afro, she said.
‘Easy, easy, easy is the key,’ says NaturallyCurly.com Curl Master Dana Kaplan of M Salon in Cambridge, Mass.Parents should be aware that cutting a young girl’s hair too short may harm her self esteem, even if it might look cute to them.
When styling curly hair, the less done to it the better.
Many stylists recommend using a moisturizing detangling spray before styling.
Styling products can help define curls and reduce frizz. There are several styling products available specifically for curly kids by such companies as Curlisto, Curls and Ouidad. Adult styling products can also work well in children’s hair as long as they’re not too heavy and sticky.
Pomades and curl revitalizers can be kept in the locker to zap frizz and redefine curls throughout the day. Christo of Christo Fifth Avenue suggests putting a a tiny dab of pomade in your hand, rubbing it between your palms and pulling the hair back as if you’re making a ponytail. Then let it loose.
Hair accessories can create easy, fun looks that can help pull the hair back from the face. That can include everything from bobby pins to raffia to headbands.
Get creative. Instead of one ponytail, maybe put two in the back. Try one side up and other down. But when pulling the hair back, make sure it’s not pulled too tight because it can cause hair loss.
For a fun curly style, Da Costa recommends apply a styling cream like her Tai-Texture TwistCreme, taking large sections and creating two-strand twists all over the head. Let it dry and separate the curls for a controlled look that should last as long as four days. Cover the hair at night with a satin bonnet to protect the curls.
For curls that have gone astray, wrap the hair around your finger, hold it there for 10 seconds and pinch it.
‘I promise it will reset your curls,’ Massey says.The look for high schoolers is a soft, tousled and textured, says Cutler — loose updos, messy ponytails. If you want to pull it back, pull it back in a loose way.
‘Back to school is about looking stylish without looking like you made an effort,’ Cutler says.ShampoosCurlisto Kids Tearless Shampoo
Ouidad KRLY No Time For Tears Shampoo
Circle of Friends Ana Banana 2-in-1 Shampoo
Circle of Friends Hans Blueberry 2-in-1 Shampoo
Jessicurl Hair Cleansing Cream
Burt’s Bees Baby Bee Shampoo Bar
Suave For Kids 2-in-1 ShampooConditioners
Curly Q’s Coconut Dream Maximum Moisturizing Conditioner
Ouidad KRLY No More Knots Conditioner
Lockers/ Refreshers
Jessicurl Awe Inspiraling Spray
Jane Carter Solution Nourish & Shine
Leave-in-Conditioners and Detanglers
Bumble & Bumble Leave-in
Curlisto Kids Leave-In Conditioner
Curly Q’s Moist Curls Moisturizer
Circle of Friends Abebi’s Safari Detangler
Circle of Friends Maya Papaya Leave-in Conditioner
Redken UV Rescue Daily Sun Milk
Johnson’s No More Tangles
Stylers
Circle of Friends Einar’s Arctic Freeze Hyper Hold Gel
Circle of Friends Luc’s Lemon Lime Shine Hair Slicker
Circle of Friends Erik’s Shaping Hair Gel
Circle of Friends Janaina’s Mango Mousse Foam
Circle of Friends Valerie’s Vanilla Freeze Hair Spray
Ouidad Pump & Go Spray Gel
Redken Glass
When Kim Etheredge walked into a beauty store, she never knew in which direction to head.
The stores were segregated, with ethnic products in one place and other products for curly hair in another. There was no in between.
‘I never knew what would work for my curls,’ says Etheredge, the daughter of an Irish mother and an African-American father. ‘I had to search from one end of the store to the other to concoct a combination for my unruly, kinky, wild hair.’Wendi Levy, the daughter of an African-American mother and a Jewish father, had long shared her frustration.
‘When Kim and I met, we were laughing about our common problem,’ says Levy.So Etheredge and Levy decided to create their own hair product line — products that would appeal to women of all ethnicities. Two years later, they launched Mixed Chicks. Their tag line is ‘Are you tired of defining our race rather than our curls?’
‘We don’t want to exclude anybody from using it,’ Levy says.
The first product in their line is a leave-in conditioner. The alcohol-free conditioner, which they launched in April, contains ingredients such as primrose oil, jojoba oil and a little bit of emulsifying wax. It has a pH of between 4 and 5, which Levy says is ideal for curly, kinky hair.
They plan to add other products to the line and currently are working on a shampoo.
Both women have traveled a long path to their current venture. Levy, 36, grew up in Atlantic City.
‘It was very segregated there,’ she says. ‘You either lived in one neighborhood or another.’She has been doing hair since she was 7, learning about ethnic products from her mother.
‘I did my mother’s highlights and relaxers,’ she recalls.Levy began combining products, mixing hairdressing grease with mousse, leave-in conditioner, ‘with a touch of Dippity Do.’ She was changing the mixture all the time.
Etheredge, 34, was born in New York and raised in Culver City, Calif.. She recalls growing up in a condominium complex with many multiracial neighbors.
‘All my friends had curly, crazy, kinky hair,’ Etheredge says. ‘Nobody knew which products to put in their hair.’She spent years straightening her hair with a blowdryer. She keep her hair under control using a combination of Aqua Net and Dippity Do.
‘My hair was hard, crunchy and nasty,’ she says. ‘I used to slick it back on the top and wear the back curly.’Now a public relations consultant for NFL player Terrell Owens and R&B artist Keith Sweat, she spent many years as a television production coordinator, working on numerous sitcoms, talk shows and pilots.
After moving to California four years ago to pursue a career in the music industry, she met Etheredge.
‘Wendi always had the best curls,’ recalls Etheredge. ‘We always compared curls.’The two women began experimenting with products.
‘We thought that if we put together products we liked, there probably a ton of people out there looking for something like it,’ Levy says.So they did some research, found a good chemist and brought some of their favorite products. It took five trips back to the lab before they found the perfect concoction — ‘a little of this, a little of that.’ Their curly friends served as guinea pigs. But even their straight-haired friends have become fans.
‘The feedback has been phenomenal,’ Etheredge says.
When the head of the local chapter of Girls Inc. called Jessicurl’s Jessica McGuinty for a donation, she was glad to help out.
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| Conair donates 15 percent of the net proceeds from its Mini Metal Pro dryer to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation. | |
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| Ouidad recently unveiled the limited edition pink ‘Curls for a Cure’ Deep Treatment Intensive Conditioner. She is donating 50 percent of the proceeds from the sale of each bottle to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation during October 2005. | |
Ouidad recently unveiled the limited edition pink ‘Curls for a Cure’ Deep Treatment Intensive Conditioner. She is donating 50 percent of the proceeds from the sale of each bottle to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation during October 2005.In addition to donating hair product, McGuinty offered to serve as a volunteer for the organization, a national nonprofit youth organization that provides vital educational programs to millions of American girls, particularly those in high-risk, underserved areas. She was asked to put together gift boxes for five at-risk girls about to graduate from high school.
“I came up with the theme of ‘Nurture Yourself: Body, Mind and Soul,’ ” McGuinty says.
She solicited help from other business women in the area, and 35 stepped forward to donate products for the boxes. As a result, the gift boxes were loaded with a huge array of jewelry, soap, lotion, perfume, bubble bath, journals, clothing, note cards, slippers and other gifts.
“I’m totally blown away at the generosity these women have shown,” says McGuinty, who is always the first to donate her time and money to worthwhile organizations. ‘It’s an amazing example for these girls to see how warm and kind women can be.’
It may seem that the beauty industry focuses only on outside appearances. But many manufacturers — from homegrown companies like Jessicurl to large corporations like Redken — have made it a priority to give back to society, whether in the form of time, money or hair product.
They give back in a variety of creative ways. Conair, for example, donates 15 percent of the net proceeds from its special pink Mini Metal Pro dryer to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation. John Paul DeJoria, the head of John Paul Mitchell Systems, chopped off his signature ponytail for a $50,000 donation to the Red Cross Tsunami Relief Effort.
Redken Fifth Avenue has partnered with bcause, a not-for-profit organization that advances the charitable causes of salon owners and beauty industry professionals. To support the program, Rekden has distributed bcause labels to salon owners and beauty professionals to be placed on the canisters and plastic bags that consumers can use to collect additional money atevents, including gay pride parades in Los Angeles, San Francisco, Minneapolis and Chicago.
Christo of Christo Fifth Avenue is planning a huge fundraiser this fall for the National Women’s Alliance, a national nonprofit organization that focuses on the needs and concerns of women and girls of color. Some of the top names in the beauty and fashion industry have donated time and products for the beauty day, and all proceeds will go to the Alliance. Christo plans to make it an annual event.
“It’s a way of giving back to people,” Christo says.
At Zotos International, makers of Bain de Terre and Nucleic A, employees have raised $30,000 for Noel Foundation, a Fairfield, Conn.-based organization that provides money for people who are going through cancer treatment
In some cases, the cause may be deeply personal. Ouidad, the Queen of Curl, was diagnosed in 2002 with breast cancer — the same disease that took her mother. Fortunately, Ouidad was treated and made a full recovery. But she vowed to never let her recovery be the end of her battle.
This summer, she unveiled the limited edition pink ‘Curls for a Cure’ Deep Treatment Intensive Conditioner. She is donating 50 percent of the proceeds from the sale of each bottle to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation during October 2005. With each 8-ounce bottle, customers receive a wide-toothed comb and a pink silicone bracelet with the
phrase ‘Curls for a Cure.’ The conditioner retails for $50.
In others, it comes to down to a sense of social responsibility — doing what is right.
“That’s what it’s all about at the end of the day,” says Denis Simioni of Toronto-based Ojon Corp.
Before Simioni discovered the benefits of the ojon nuts, the Miskito Indians of Central America sold ojon oil to others in the region on a very small scale. In the mid-1980s a non-profit group called Mopawi helped them to promote the product on a national level, in hopes of generating income for the producer families in the region. In the 1990s, they were selling less than 2,000 liters (about 2,500 small bottles”> of ojon oil a year, generating approximately $5,000 a year. This meant an income of less than $67 per producer each year.
In the 1990s, Ojon President Simioni expressed an interest in marketing the product internationally after seeing the haircare benefits of the oil. With the consent and assistance of Mopawi, Simioni placed his first order of ojon oil with the Indians in mid-2003 –- 4,500 liters (about 6,000 bottles”>. In order to ensure that the Tawira would gain a better quality of life from the venture, Ojon offered to pay 230% of the previous market price for the raw oil.
In 2004. production totaled 30,000 liters, providing the Miskito Indians with an increase in income of 450%, benefiting more than 5,000 people.
In addition to providing a market for their product, Ojon has set up an Ojon Scholarship Fund to benefit disadvantaged school children in the production area. The fund is designed to encourage youth to further their studies and develop leadership skills. In the first phase of the project, the fund will help them to access secondary level education; in future, a higher education. A local Community Committee will administer the Fund, granting scholarships to the most outstanding students based on school records and guided by a scholarship regulation system. Books and materials also are provided for schools in each village.
“We don’t want to change them,” Simioni stresses. “We want to improve their way of life.”
In the coming year, expect more charitable ventures from the haircare industry. Lorraine Massey of Devacurl hopes to set up S’Hair, a non-profit organization that would encourage stylists around the country to donate a portion of money from each haircut to local charitable causes.
“The money would go toward different charities that would be chosen each year,” Massey says. “It could really add up.”
Massey also envisions a huge gala each year called the Hair Ball, where participating stylists from around the world would gather to celebrate.
“It’s something that’s been missing from the industry,” Massey says.
During her 10 years as a hairdresser, Nicole Siri has heard the same complaint from her curly clients.
Many believed their only option was a ponytail. So Siri decided to put together a book to help people with curly hair how to stylishly put their hair up.
Hot off the press, ‘Strictly Curls’ is a 90-page, spiral bound, hard cover book with detailed step-by-step instructions on how to create 14 styles. The styles range from easy to moderate to more experienced. The book also includes detailed sections on the correct technique for using bobby pins and how to use other accessories to get different looks. ‘If you already put up your hair, these styles will be easy for you,’ she says. ‘But some people only know how to do a ponytail.’
The 29-year-old hairdresser originally planned to be a fashion designer. But when her college eliminated its fashion design program, she decided to go to cosmetology school instead.
‘Now I don’t want to do anything else,’ Siri says.
Siri, who works at Salon Nordine & Day Spa in Reston, Va., says she has developed a passion for curly hair, and many of her clients have curly or wavy hair. Often, she says, she would create a beautiful style for them. But when they got home, they couldn’t recreate it. ‘I said ‘I’m going to put it all in a book so they’ll have it as a resource,’ ‘ Siri says. ‘The timing was right.’
Siri says she benefited from her photographer sister who worked with her on the book. Strictly Curls, which retails for $19.95, is available on CurlMart. ‘It doesn’t matter what products you use,’ Siri says. ‘If you’re wearing your hair up, it can look good.’
For Kechi Agbasi, the wakeup call came while browsing through some photos of herself at a conference.
‘The photographer had taken the photo of the presenter, so of course the back of my head was photographed,’ she recalls. ‘I was so shocked at what I saw. I had no idea that my hair was in such bad condition. It was broken all over the place. It is at least three different lengths and if you looked closely, you could see my neck through my hair.’
Agbasi, a Web developer, vowed to change the condition of her hair, and began taking a closer look at the products she was using on her texturized hair. What she learned was that her hair products were loaded with chemicals, some of them harmful. She began making her own products, using her own knowledge of aromatherapy and essential oils to craft them from natural ingredients.
Her dry, damaged hair now is thick and healthy. And her product line, Long Lovely Locks, now is available for sale (click here“>.
‘I did an extensive amount of research, and challenged myself to create products that were above and beyond what’s currently out there,’ Agbasi says. ‘I’m hoping the public will feellike I do about my products.’
Her line includes 12 products, such as Ginger Gel-O, Honey Silk Pre-Shampoo Hair Masque, Curly Custard, Braid Out Boyaux and Coconut Hair Milk. The products contain natural ingredients such as aloe vera gel, cocoa butter, olive oil, cranberry oil, jojoba oil, mango butter, grape seed oil, macadamia nut butter, rosemary essential oil and honey.
One of her goals was to take the guesswork out of haircare. Too often, she says, people have to combine several products to get the desired result. All of her shampoos, for example, are cream-based to clean as well as condition. This month, she is coming out with Curls de Light, a light gel that moisturizes as well as enhances curls.
‘I’m constantly creating things,’ she says. ‘I’m using what I’ve learned from the products I’ve made to create other products. My mind is always working.’
Mia Simone Wright had been pushed to her limit. While attending
graduate school, she also was supporting her family and dealingwith major health issues.
‘I was stressed out and tired,’ Wright recalls. ‘I didn’t like the options the doctors were giving me.’So she took matters into her own hands, learning everything she could about natural health and experimenting with herbs and tinctures to heal herself.
What started as a quest to improve her own health has evolved into Mia Simone’s Boutique, an online specialty store that sells 100 percent natural skin and haircare as well as body and hair jewelry. Her hair products are designed especially for dry coils, curls, kinks, naturally textured and chemically treated hair.
‘If a person has dry or sensitive skin or hair, that’s my market,’ Wright says.Her haircare line includes products such as Honey Olive Soy Protein Vitamin Ultra Hydrating Conditioning Treatment, Aloe Vera Herbal Leave-in Treatment and Locs Coils Waves & Curls Moisture Rich Styling Soufflé.
The 32-year-old Hartford, Conn.-based entrepreneur got her start in the business world during her senior year at Bethune-Cookman College in Daytona Beach, Fla. She began designing and selling jewelry, using semiprecious gemstones and exotic beads from around the world. Her jewelry collection is called ‘Ethnic Elegance.’
Wright wasn’t always interested in natural products.
‘For me, using all natural and organic products wasn’t something I did growing up,’ she says.Her interest was piqued when she moved to Colorado eight years ago for a sales and marketing position with IBM. She was stressed out and suffered from fibroid tumors and dry skin. So she decided to take advantage of Colorado’s huge, active natural health community.
‘It was interesting to me,’ she recalls. ‘I started learning and reading a lot about herbs. I taught myself so much, I thought why not help others.’In 2000, she decided to add natural skin and haircare to her already successful jewelry business.Her first products were 100 percent natural gourmet handmade soaps. The extra-superfatted soaps, which contain natural and organic fruits, vegetables and botanicals, can be used on hair or skin.
Next came her Aloe Vera Herbal Leave-In Treatment, which contains ingredients she used to strengthen her own weak hair, which had suffered through years of perms.Two years ago, she decided to let her hair go natural.
She has since expanded her line to include an array of moisturizers and conditioners, which can be used on the hair or skin.
With each product, she says she thinks about herself and the problems she has experienced.
‘A lot of these products I’ve developed because of my own needs,’ she says. ‘I knew there were people out there with similar problems.’Wright believes in taking a holistic view when it comes to health and beauty. No matter how good the cream or conditioner, it won’t work unless she also focuses on her diet, exercise and stress level, she says.
‘I believe we should make sure we’re good stewards over our bodies,’ Wright says. ‘You get one body and that’s it.’Some of Mia’ Simone’s Favorite Natural Ingredients
Aloe Vera: Components in aloe vera help the skin rejuvenate itself at a cellular level. A natural emollient. Healing properties, astringent, anti-fungal and antibacterial properties. Contains vitamins A, B1, B2, B3, B6, B12, C, E. It also contains amino acids, folic acid, calcium, phosphorus, potassium, iron, sodium, choline, magnesium, copper, chromium and zinc. It carries the nutrients down through all layers of the skin.
Glycerin: A natural humectant that attracts moisture and retain. It in the cortex of the hair and skin.
Extra Virgin Olive Oil: Contains Vitamin E. Has soothing, healing, moisturizing and conditioning properties.
Honey: A natural humectant that softens. Honey is naturally antibacterial and hydrating.
Soybean Oil: Moisturizing, softening, conditioning and protective properties. High in Vitamin E and linoleic acid.
Flaxseeds: Very high in Omega 3 essential fatty acids. Promotes healthy hair.
Tea Trea Essential Oil: Acts against bacteria and fungi.
Ginger Essential Oil: Stimulates circulation, helps improve circulatory problems, is a strong antioxidant with effective antimicrobial properties.
Lavender Essential Oil: Balancing, helps to relax scalp. Helps improve skin problems.
Orange Essential Oil: Contains flavonoids and Vitamins A,B, C, and E. Helps relieve symptoms of dermatitis. Can reduce nervous tension; uplifting, soothing.
Sage: Helps control dandruff and reduce hair loss. Stimulates hair growth and promotes shine in dark in dark hair.
Peppermint Leaves: Helps bring oxygen into blood stream, works to clean and strengthen. Contains Vitamin A and C, magnesium, potassium, inositol, niacin, copper, iodine, silicon, iron and sulfur.
Capsicum: Improves circulation, enhances effectiveness of other herbs, high in Vitamin A, C, iron and calcium. Rich in potassium and contains and Vitamin C, magnesium and phosphorus.
Oatstraw: Powerful stimulate that’s rich in body-building nutrients such silicon and calcium. Contains Vitamins A, B1, B2 and E. Improves circulatory function.
Irish Moss: Contains amino acids and protein. Is an emollient and nutritive (something that nourishes or promotes growth and repairs the natural wastage of organic life”>.
Rosemary: Improves circulation and eczema, stimulating hair growth, helps prevent premature balding.
Nettle Leaf: Invigorates scalp and encourages hair growth.
Lavender Flowers: Helps to relax scalp, helps improve skin problems.
Marshmallow: Soothes and heals skin. Very high in Vitamin A, rich in B-complex, calcium, zinc, iron, sodium, iodine and pantothenic acid. Anti-inflammatory, anti-irritant.
Horsetail: Strengthens hair. Rich in silicon and selenium. Contains silicic acid, which helps circulation, Vitamin E and other nutrients.
Rose Hips: High in Vitamin C, rich in Vitamin A, B-complex, C, E and contain Vitamins D and P, organic iron, silica, potassium, sulphur, niacin and rutin. Helps improve circulation and psoriasis.
After months of snow, rain and wind, the balmy summer weather is a welcome change. But sun, chlorine, saltwater and humidity can take a toll on your curls leaving you with a mess of frizzy hair.
1. Keep it moist
“The key to keeping curls looking good in humid air is to make sure the cuticle of the hair is already ‘filled’ with moisture and proteins before you step out the door,” says curl expert Ouidad. “Doing so makes the cuticle unable to soak in any additional moisture that is in the air, which can cause frizz.”
2. Protect your hair
Sunscreen isn’t just for the skin. Look for frizzy hair remedies that offer sun protection for your tresses. Some finishing and styling products contain sunscreen with an SPR 15. Leave-in mists are a great way to spritz the hair when you’re in the sun to keep keep hair fresh and vibrant, whether it’s straight, wavy, curly, coily or in braids.
3. Condition & clean
Diane Da Costa, author of Textured Tresses, suggests coating the hair with a leave-in conditioner before swimming in a pool or the ocean. After swimming, rinse your hair to remove all the residue of salt and chlorine and reapply the conditioner to protect the hair.
“You don’t have to shampoo every day,” Da Costa says. “But make sure you rinse everyday and apply that leave-in conditioner.”
Avoid products like Sun-In, warns Curl Master Amie Zimmerman of Dirty Little Secret in Portland, Ore. “You might as well skip the expense and pour Clorox right on those beautiful locks.” Zimmerman says.
4. Trim more, cut less
When it comes to hairstyles, longer is better, says Jonathan Torch of the Curly Hair Institute in Toronto, Canada. It allows you more ‘style management’ than short hair, especially with rising hair-shrinking humidity.
“You need to leave length for a Plan B,” he says. “You will have days when you want it out of your face and a ponytail must be an option.” He suggests getting regular trims, especially in the summer—every eight to 10 weeks for long hair and six to eight weeks for short hair.
“Leave your hair down and let dry naturally,” says John Rudiant, Redken session artist.
Stay away from time-intensive blow-outs and high-maintenance styles.”I avoid straightening like the plague,” Torch says. “Curly hair is in. You might as well go for it. If you straighten it, you will be so weather conscious.”
Torch especially likes high ponytails, where the hair is pulled back tight and the ringlets in the ponytail are well-defined. “It’s an easy, quick updo that always works,” Torch says. “Your hair is off your face, off your neck and looks soft and sexy.”
Ouidad likes messy knots because they stay in place easily yet still show off curls. She suggests this half-bun version: secure the hair into a low ponytail and then pull the bulk of the tail back up through the elastic, stopping halfway. This creates a knot base, but allows for curls to spill over the top, creating a trendier look. Or for another fun summer look, you can secure the hair at the nape and gently twisting the ponytail into a loop and pulling the tail end back.
5. Kick up the color
When it comes to color, Torch says he’s more ‘aggressive’ when it comes to summer color. He goes brighter, knowing that the harsh summer rays will cause it to fade.
Melanie Shelley, owner of Trim Classic Barber & Legendary Beauty, says the Audrey Hepburn look is big when it comes to summer color. Even stars like Faith Hill have traded their blonde locks for shiny milk chocolate brown with honey highlights. The rich brown tones reflect the light, making the hair appear healthier overall.
Hot Weather Product Picks Shampoos
CurlFriends Purify Clarifying Shampoo
ConditionersCurly Hair Solutions Silk Leave-In Conditioner
CurlFriends Replenish Leave-In Conditioner
Redken UV Rescue Protective Oil
Redken UV Rescue Sun Milk
Ojon Restorative Hair Treatment
Styling Products
Curly Hair Solutions Curl Keeper
TAI Texture Lavender Mist with UV protection
Aveda Light Elements Mist
Redken Undone 02 Weightless Defining Cream
Redken Vinyl Glam 02 Mega Shine Spray
Ouidad Climate Control Gel
Ouidad Clear Control Pomade
Amie’s Summer No-Frizz Tips
Paint or scrunch plain olive oil onto clean, dry hair. Pile the hair on top of your head and wrap it in plastic wrap. Cover it with a towel and leave on for 20 to 30 minutes. The heat from your head will activate the oil. Wash your hair a few times to get out the oil residue.
Spring is the season of romance — blooming flowers and warm nights, weddings and proms.
It’s a perfect time for curlies to try out the many new hair accessories. The jeweled clips, headbands and ponytail holders, adorned with a rainbow of gems and stones, are a fun way add spice to kinks, curls and ringlets. With so many new products on the market, one needn’t spend hundreds of dollars. There are accessories available for every budget.
‘Accessories are a big fashion statement,’ says Christo of Christo Fifth Avenue. ‘There are so many good accessories you can wear to look chic and fashionable. It’s a great way to get curly hair off the face while making a statement.’For short curls, Christo likes little combs to pull the hair back, adding a fashionable flair. For longer hair, he uses a bobby pin, pulling back the hair, criss crossing it, tying it into a knot and using a jeweled bobby pin to accessorize it. Accessories adorned with pink, green and orange crystals are hot for spring. Jean Shan of XShan hair accessories says the type of accessory depends on the customer’s hair. Those with long hair might opt for claws and banana clips to pull the hair up. For fancy events, customers opt for higher-end items such as jeweled ponytail holders and barrettes.
Dana Kaplan of M Salon in Cambridge, Mass. likes to use fun barrettes to create a fun twist. He twists up pieces of hair and clips them, twists up more hair and clips them, continuing the process until the client gets the desired look.
‘It’s a moppy, Bridget Bardot kind of look,’ Kaplan says.New York stylist Antonio Soddu, creator of the CurlFriends line of products, believes the most difficult thing for many curlies is to put up their hair in a way that looks natural. He likes to use fun barrettes and clips to pull up some pieces of hair while leaving others loose.
‘People with thicker curly hair mustn’t pick up all their hair,’ Soddu says. ‘They should create different shapes. If you pick up the side and the back, you get an amazing look without pulling it all up.’Soddu also suggests putting a series of beautiful clips around the face to flatten it out, leaving the rest loose and curly. He likes to use a variety rather than putting in identical accessories.
‘Everything should look fun and casual,’ he says.In addition to the many barrettes, bobby pins and combs available this season, Valerie Stoneking of Steam Salon in Los Angeles is a big fan of scarves, ‘especially when it’s a fuzzy day.’ She wraps them around the head, from halfway up the forhead to the top of the head for a Bohemian look. She likes to let the scarf flow long behind the neck.
‘If it’s a bad hair day, you can still look hip,’ Stoneking says.Christo suggests using fabric that coordinates with an outfit as a headband or to decorate a ponytail.
Curl master Amie Zimmerman of Dirty Little Secret Salon in Portland, Ore. likes to use multi-colored hair extensions in spring colors like fuschia, yellow and lime to accessorize.
‘Many can even be permed to match the client’s own curl pattern, adding a shot of color and fun,’ Zimmerman says. No matter what you do to accessorize your look, ‘have fun with it,’ Soddu says. ‘It’s spring,’ he says. ‘Don’t get too serious about it.’
Shelley Campbell was a self-described product junkie.
When she decided to go natural a few years ago, she became frustrated by the constant revolving door of products. Each time she would find a product that would work for her, the formula would change or it would disappear from the shelves altogether.
So Campbell decided to make her own line of products and realize a life-long dream.
“I said ‘These are the ingredients I like,” Campbell said. “I wanted to know how I could mix them together to make them better.”
With the help of a chemist at a lab, she launched Kinky-Curly.com, a line of styling products for curly, kinky, frizzy textured hair, in 2003.
They sat down together and tested products. She wanted the products to be as natural as possible, with hair-friendly ingredients such as aloe vera, jojoba oil and wild cherry bark.
“It was a learning experience for both of us,” Campbell says of the product development process.
Her first product was the popular Jojoba Jelly, followed by the Gloss Pomade and the Spiral Spritz. As her knowledge grew and she learned more about natural products — and got more feedback from customers — she came out with her Curling Custard and Knot Today, a leave-in conditioner. All of the products are water- based, without the heavy, greasy ingredients found in some ethnic hair products.
“I want to keep my focus on styling,” Campbell said.
Kinky-Curly is a natural evolution for Campbell. She grew up in Far Rockaway, N.Y. where every other shop was a beauty supply store. She was always telling her friends about the latest, hottest products. “I’ve been reading ingredients as long as I can remember,” Campbell says.
Growing up, her thick curly hair was relaxed for most of her life. After letting her hair grow long, she decided to go natural, growing out the relaxed hair rather than opting for ‘the big chop.’ The entire process took a year and a half, during which she wore her hair in twist-out styles to blend the natural and relaxed textures.
Because of her own experience, she says she can relate to the goals of other women with highly textured hair. She believes natural hair is beautiful hair, and with the right products and styling techniques, it can flourish and grow to great lengths.
‘As my knowledge has grown, I wanted something that would truly benefit the hair,’ Campbell said. ‘I wanted to create a system that gave people specific results.’
Angela deJoseph |
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Advertising exec Venus Johnston was tired of her long, straightened hair. So one day, on impulse, she cuts it short.
But she is unprepared for the reactions of her friends and co-workers, who all have an opinion about her new ‘do.
Trisha Thomas’ book ‘Nappily Ever After‘ may sound like a familiar story for many African-American women who have decided to go natural. The book—and its protagonist Johnston—especially resonated with curly hair expert Angela De Joseph, creator of product lines such as African Wonders and Naturalaxer.
‘I could relate to it so much,’ says De Joseph. ‘As a child, I felt that if I was able to have perfection on the outside, everything else would work. You were taught you have to get rid of your natural curl. It creates a certain type of insecurity for people without straight hair. You live in fear that your hair will revert back to its natural state. Your hair becomes your enemy. It also becomes your barometer of your self esteem.’
‘What you discover is that self esteem is not based on looks and what your hair is doing,’ De Joseph says. ‘Venus’ journey is a universal journey.’
So De Joseph is helping to bring tale to the silver screen. Academy Award-winning actress Halle Berry has signed on to play Venus, and Marc Platt, producer of such films as ‘Philadelphia’ and ‘Legally Blonde,’ will be the film’s lead producer. Patricia Cordosa will direct it. It will be put out by Universal Studios. De Joseph is a producer and also is working on the script.
‘It’s really a remarkable project,’ De Joseph says.
The book, which has been called a cross between ‘Bridget Jones’s Diary’ and ‘Waiting to Exhale,’ is about a black woman’s journey to self-discovery.
‘It’s the kind of movie that will make people laugh and cry,’ De Joseph says. ‘People will really cheer for her and respect the woman she becomes.’
De Joseph’s involvement with ‘Nappily Ever After’ is a natural for a woman who has spent her life working in the entertainment and hair care industries.
Her mother, Pearl, was a cosmetologist and beauty school owner on the island of Trinidad in the West Indies. She didn’t believe in damaging hair in the name of style. The De Joseph family moved to America in 1958. De Joseph grew up in Los Angeles, where her family worked as a hairdresser.
After dabbling in acting and modeling, she pursued writing. Her first article was an 8-page pull-out guide in the January 1979 issue of ESSENCE called ‘Everything You Ever Wanted to Know about Hair.” In addition to working at such publications as ESSENCE and Sophisticate’s Black Hair Styles, De Joseph’s extensive resume includes jobs as creative director of Johnson Products Co. (Ultra Sheen, Afro Sheen, Classy Curl”> and as a fashion and beauty reporter for such television shows as ‘Live with Regis and Kathie Lee’ and ‘AM Los Angeles.’
In 1993, she completed film school, writing, producing and directing an award-winning film called ‘It’s in the Bag,’ a movie about a homeless woman who finds a coupon for a free beauty makeover at a Beverly Hills salon. It was in film school that she met Halle Berry.
In 1996, De Joseph launched the African Wonders Botanical Treatment line. Four years later, she launched Naturalaxer, a hair relaxer that combines African shea butter and Amazonia nut oil with an alkaline mineral relaxer to loosen curl – not straighten it. She opened the fist African Wonders hair Care Store in Inglewood, Calif. in 2002. This summer, she will launch The Curl Shop, a line for all ethnicities and hair types.
De Joseph’s involvement in ‘Nappily Ever After‘ began when Thomas contacted her about African Wonders sponsoring her book deal. She read the book and loved it.
‘I was in tears,’ De Joseph recalls. ‘The journey so closely paralleled my own personal life.’
It wasn’t difficult to get Berry interested in the film, De Joseph says. In addition to acting in the lead role, she also will be a producer.
‘She comes to this from a biracial background,’ De Joseph says. ‘She has dealt with a lot of issues about where you fit into society. And dealing with her hair has always been a big issue.’
The film currently is in the pre-production phase. After the script is completed, casting will begin for the other actors. It potentially could hit the theaters in 2006.
‘When Venus goes all natural, her world is completely different,’ De Joseph says. ‘Her world goes through this shift. She begins to develop that inner woman. That’s a strong, positive lesson for young women.’
Curl guru Christo of Christo Fifth Avenue treated twin curly sisters to a makeover the other day. From the moment they walked into his salon, he could see beautiful curls hidden in their hair. But it would take the right cut and color.
Maria, on the left in the photos, had very brassy color — the result of at-home coloring. The mid-shaft of her hair was reddish brown while the ends had faded to an orange tone. Color expert Cypriano decided to give her a color that was as close to her natural brunette color, but with added depth and vibrancy. He used a combination of Colorective Coloring Shampoo and Conditioner from Curlisto Systems, followed with a Curlisto Iron Therapy to hydrate the hair and seal the color in.
Chrystalla had very long hair, but it lacked shape. Christo decided to take off a good amount of length and sculpted through her curls to create the ultimate style that suits her features the best. Her hair was dry and frizzy, therefore he used the Deep Therapy Masque to moisturize her curls properly. Finally, Cypriano applied a custom blend of Colorective for extra dimension and luster on her natural color.
Maria and Chrystalla Mihailidis before their makeovers.
The detailsProducts used on the sisters’ hair
Structura Lotion
Control I
Repair Styling Cream
Unruly Paste
Structura Spray
(See CurlMart for information about purchasing these items.”> The Crew:Hair Stylist Colorist: Cypriano
Make up: Natalie
Art Direction of Photography: Christo
Assistant Stylist: Rosaoura
Texans, get the look yourself!
You don’t have to live in New York to get Christo’s special treatment. Christo and Cypriano will be in Austin, Texas April 25 and 26, offering cuts and color at fraction of their usual cost. The two-day event will be held at the hip San Jose Motel in Austin’s SoCo district. To make an appointment, you can call Christo Fifth Avenue at 1-800-810-CURL or NaturallyCurly.com at 1-888-249-9250.
Jonathan Torch’s fascination with curls began 15 years ago when a client came in with a head of bulky, unmanageable frizz.
The veteran Canadian hairdresser admits that the layered cut he gave her looked terrible. But after that mistep, he made it his mission to figure out how to work with curly hair.
Over the years, he has become a student of everything curly. He has studied how curly hair looks when it’s wet and dry, how it shrinks and what makes it frizz. He has discovered the best ways to reduce bulk. He has watched how it changes from season to season. And he has learned that no two people have exactly the same curl types.
Torch even developed his own curly hair care line, Curly Hair Solutions, to address the needs of this special hair type.
‘It’s the closet thing to sculpting I’ve found in hair cutting,’ he says of working with curls.Thousands of curly clients later, Torch says he’s taking the biggest leap of his career. This month, he’ll be closing his Cutting Crew Salon and opening the new 2,000-square-foot Jonathan Torch Curly Hair Institute in the North York area of Toronto. While the Cutting Crew worked with all hair types, the new salon will focus on curly hair.
‘I’ve come to accept that curly hair is my expertise,’ Torch says. ‘Everybody says I’m taking a big risk by specializing in curls. I believe it’s my destiny, and it’s what I know and what I do the best. I just love it.’
The Institute also will serve as a training facility for other hairdressers to learn how to work with curly hair. It will have 10 stations, a classroom and a photo studio.
‘We’ll be able to educate them on all the different options for curly hair — whether they want to color it or style it different ways,’ Torch says. ‘That will help hairdressers feel comfortable with curly hair. And that will help people with curly hair everywhere.’Torch says he doesn’t advocate one method of cutting curly hair, but likes to use a combination of techniques, depending on the hair type. For example, he might use the tunnel cut to remove bulk. He has techniques that frame the face without cutting short pieces.
‘I like to create openings you can see through, which allow the individual ringlets to frame the face,’ Torch says.He has learned how to teach his clients to to create perfect ringlets with the ‘skip curl’ technique, which involves taking section of hair, twisting it around the finger and spinning it like a jump rope.
Since Torch believes the right products are essential to maximizing the potential of curly hair, the Institute will have a laboratory where he can develop new products for Curly Hair Solutions, which includes the popular Curl Keeper styling product. Torch says he’s currently working on five new products.
Torch says he plans to add a spa to the facility next spring. Torch is confident in his decision to focus on curls. ‘You see how it changes lives,’ Torch says.
Many curlies now are wondering whether a perm might help make their hair more manageable, giving them looser curls or more uniform ringlets? The answer, say curl experts, is yes and no.
“The theory works on paper,” says Jonathan Torch, who recently opened the Curly Hair Institute in Toronto. “But technically speaking, it doesn’t work as well as it should work. The idea of perming the hair to loosen the curl is a fallacy. I haven’t seen it work in all the years I’ve done perms.”
The chemistry of permanent waves is pretty straightforward. Hair is largely made of keratin, a protein that contains a lot of the amino acid cystine. Typically ammonium thioglycolate is used as a reducing agent to break down the hairshaft and reshape it. The oxidizing agent in the neutralizer halts the chemical process when the hair has taken the desired shape.
Hairdressers stress that a perm swells the hairshaft, which can cause already-porous curly hair to become dry and frizzy, the opposite effect of what a curly intended.
“You need to decide if you want to get rid of frizz or you want to get rid of curl,” says long-time hairdresser Jane Carter, creator of The Jane Carter Solution line of natural products for curly hair. “If you want to get rid of frizz, wash and wet your hair every day. If you want to get rid of curl, you really have to relax it.”
While a whole-head perm might not be the solution for somebody with curly hair, spot perms serve an important purpose for those with straight or wavy areas. A perm can deepen the ‘S’ formation of wavy hair, giving more bounce, especially in the winter months, Torch says.
Christo of Christo Fifth Avenue and Curlisto line of curly hair products says he has a client who has consistent curls everywhere except on the top of her head, which is flat and wavy. He does a spot perm to blend the top layer with the bottom layer.
“A likely candidate for a perm at Ouidad would be someone with curly and straight hair,” says Ouidad. “Most heads of hair have three to four different textures. The benefit of a spot perm is that you can achieve a uniform curl pattern on a head of hair that naturally has three or four curl patterns.”
For spot perms, Torch says he uses different-sized rods to get a more natural look that will blend more naturally with the rest of the curls.
“It blends like normal, healthy curly hair would,” Torch says. “If it’s the same, it looks like a wig.”
NaturallyCurly.com Curl Master Amie Zimmerman of Dirty Little Secret Salon in Portland, Ore., said she has only permed a curly’s hair once to match the curl pattern on the rest of the head. She wasn’t thrilled with the results.
“The curls turned out great, but the texture of the hair left something to be desired because it was extremely tangly and dare I say, damaged by the end of it,” Zimmerman says. “It’s an option, but one I only choose if the client has been highly educated about the compromise in integrity that the hair will have.”
In many cases, a relaxer or softener is the solution to loosening curls, not a perm. When talking to a stylist, the client must be clear about exactly what it is they want to achieve.
“You need to evaluate the hair to detremine what they need to do,” Christo says. “If they have tighter curls, it can be handled with a Biosoftener, which takes out frizziness and dryness.”
For those who want straight hair, a thermal reconditioning treatment may be the best choice.
For those with straight hair who want a curly look, perms are an ideal option — especially with new perm technology that provides a more natural look and is gentler to the hair. Perms now are available that automatically ‘shut off’ so that the perm cannot be overprocessed.
In many cases, different-sized rods are used to mimic the look of naturally curly hair.
Perm diva Dawn Ramsay-Hiller of the Cutler Salon in New York alternates between larger and smaller rods, sometimes leaving pieces unrolled altogether. This ensures the hair doesn’t have the stereotypical poodle perm look.
For those with straight or wavy hair planning to get a perm, there are some important things to consider before undergoing the process. First of all, make sure there’s no silicone buildup on the hair, which can act as a barrier to the perm solution. It is good to use a clarifying shampoo before perming to get rid of any chemicals or buildup that may interfere with the perm.
And the client must be prepared for the realities of having curly hair. With their straight hair, they might have been able to pop out of bed, brush their hair and head out the door. Curly hair takes a few extra steps.
“All of a sudden, they have curly hair and don’t know how to deal with it,” Christo says. “People with a perm have to do everything a person with curly hair does. They need to learn the rules. It’s all news to them.”
Those rules include applying styling products when the hair is wet, never brushing the hair when it’s dry and using a diffuser on the dryer. Never shampoo every day and make sure to deep condition on a regular basis. The cuticle protecting the cortex has been altered, causing the hair to be dryer.
“You need to educate the clients on how to deal with it,” Christo says. “Not only will they love it, they’ll love it so much they’ll bring in more people.”
After any perm, the hair must be left alone for at least two days until the hydrogen bonds readjust themselves — no shampooing, brushing or braiding.
“Even though you’ve neutralized it, the air will help restructure those bonds,” Torch said.
Always wait at least two weeks before cutting it.
“When you first perm the hair, it is so curly and tight,” Torch said. “It’s not exactly how your hair will fall. Wait two weeks for the hair to calm down. Then you’re dealing with reality.”
A typical perm lasts three months.
Ultimately, Torch says, the success of a perm lies with the person doing the perming. The way the rods are rolled, how long the perm solution is left in and how the neutralizer is rinsed out all affect the outcome. If the hair is wrapped too tight it can cause breakage when the hair shaft expands. The ends of the hair must be protected from the solution or they can get dry and damaged. The ph of the perm must be matched to an individual’s hair type.
“These are all the difference between failure and success,” Torch says. “I love perms. You can get a lot of wonderful results if they’re done properly.”
How to take care of a perm
- Never shampoo everyday. Always use perm-friendly shampoos and conditioners.
- When you dry hair, use a diffuser or air dry it.
- Product application is key. Make sure to apply in sections. Gels create a tighter curls, while lotions and mousses tend to produce a looser curl.
- Never brush your hair when it it’s dry. Comb it with a wide-toothed comb.
- When you go to sleep, clip up the hair so it doesn’t get messed up.
- Wrap hair VERY LOOSELY in a towel to remove excess water before styling but DO NOT RUB.
Perm Survival Kit: For the newly curly, it can be confusing to know which products to use on new ringlets and spirals. Here are a few faves of veteran curlies.
Shampoos
- Devacurl No-Poo
- Jessicurl Hair Cleansing Cream
- Elucence Moisture Benefits Shampoo
- AG XtraMoist Shampoo
- Curly Hair Solutions Treatment Shampoo
- Redken All-Soft Shampoo
- Aveda Sap Moss Shampoo
- Neutrogena Triple Moisture Cream Lather Shampoo
Conditioners
- CURLS Coconut Sublime Moisturizing Conditioner
- Elucence Moisture Balancing Conditioner
- Curly Hair Solutions Silk Leave-In Conditioner
- AG UltraMoist
- CurlFriends Replenish Leave-in Conditioner
- Curlisto Deep Therapy Masque
- Ojon Restorative Hair Treatment
- Curlisto Repair Styling Cream
- Suave Milk ‘n’ Honey Conditioner
Stylers
- Paul Mitchell Sculpting Foam
- Curly Hair Solutions Curl Keeper
- Curlisto Structura Lotion
- Beyond The Zone Noodle Head
- MOP C-Curl Curl Defining Cream
- Tigi Curls Rock Curl Amplifier
- AG re:coil
- Jessicurl Rockin Ringlets
- Devacurl Angell
- Batia & Aleeza Bio-Herbal Mineral Sculpting Gel
- ISO Bouncy Creme
- Frederic Fekkai Luscious Curls Curl Enhancing Lotion
- ABBA Weightless Gel
Curl Refreshers
- CurlFriends Rejuvenate
- Jessicurl Awe Inspiraling Gel
- Tai Texture Lavender Mist
- ABBA Instant Recall
Pomades
- Curlisto Unruly Paste
- CurlFriends Seduce
- Jane Carter Solution Hair Nourishing Cream
Other must-haves
When Kaya Casper decided to go natural eight years ago at the age of 19, she was hungry for information about natural hair.
But what she found in hair magazines were pictures of models wearing extensions, weaves, wigs and texture-altering chemicals on their hair.
‘I found two pages here, three pages there, but there really wasn’t much,’ Casper says.So in July 2003, Casper published the first issue of Naturally You!, a magazine featuring models with 100 percent natural hair — no extensions, no weaves, no texturizers or relaxers. Natural afros, locs, twists, and updos are only a few of the styles featured on models with varying degrees of kinky hair.
Naturally You! has articles by and about people — women, men and children — who have natural hair and those transitioning to natural hair. Most of the models are amateurs, and they represent women of all hair textures and styles. And the magazine also addresses other aspects of natural living, including mental health, mental wellness and physical wellness. ‘In Naturally You!, it’s cover-to-cover natural hair,’ Casper says.
Casper, like many women, didn’t always accept her hair’s natural texture. She got her first perm at the age of nine.
‘I begged for it,’ says Casper. ‘At that time, I thought I had really nappy hair. It was horrible. I lived in a white neighborhood and I wanted to look like the other white girls and the other black girls who all had straight hair.’But Casper developed a sensitivity to the strong chemicals. So she decided to cut it all off.
‘People said ‘Don’t do it,’ she recalls. ‘They told me it was a horrible idea. That motivated me to do it even more.’ So she took her scissors and started chopping. ‘It was an empowering feeling to walk out with no hair to hide beneath,’ she says. ‘It was so interesting when it started growing back in.’Transitioning was an intense process, she says. Even after her hair started growing in, she had a mental transition to go through. She had to get used to her new look — a process that was difficult at first.
‘I wasn’t prepared for it at first,’ she says. ‘I went back and forth. I finally accepted it the way it was.’ Six months after she went natural, Casper says she had the privilege of shaving off her mother’s perm. Her sister also has gone natural. ‘It has been such an experience,’ she says. ‘They’re both happier and much more grounded.’Casper says she originally wanted to create a Web site that provided the information she had gathered over the years while she was learning what to do with her natural hair.
‘But a lot of people started asking for it in print because a lot of black people don’t have access to the Internet,’ she says. ‘Hopefully we can reach more people. I was blessed to go through the process and come out on the other end of it. I feel I need to pass it on.’
Denis Simioni
Six years ago, a relative of a Canadian ad executive brought him a baby jar filled with brown paste she had purchased from an Indian on a Honduras street.
‘I almost threw it in the garbage,’ Denis Simioni admits. ‘It didn’t look very appetizing.’
Despite more than a decade of working in the beauty industry for some of the biggest names in haircare, he never thought the contents of that jar were something you would use on hair. So he stashed it away in a bathroom cupboard, where it remained for two years.
Then one day his wife, Silvana, went searching the bathroom for a product to repair her overprocessed tresses. She found the forgotten bottle of paste and cautiously applied it to her hair.
‘We could not believe the results,’ Simioni said. ‘It totally revived it. I couldn’t believe how shiny and soft her hair was.’
Simioni became determined to find more of this miraculous paste made from Ojon palm nut oil. Before long, he was on a plane to Honduras on an adventure that would rival something out of an ‘Indiana Jones’ movie, complete with spiders, snakes and sharks.
A few years and nine trips to to Honduras later, Simioni heads up Ojon Corp., one of the world’s hottest and most unique new haircare companies.
100% pure Ojon palm nut oil
Launched in December 2003 with the popular Ojon Restorative Hair Treatment, the company now sells shampoo, conditioner, styling cream, shine serum and volumizing foam made with Ojon oil. Ojon will expand into skincare in late 2005 and 2006.
Bazaar dubbed Ojon ‘our new favorite,’ while Oprah magazine called it ‘one of the summer’s best.’ During a sale of Ojon products in December on home shopping network QVC, the company sold out of 20,025 of assorted products in just 34 minutes, not including the wait list.
‘I never thought I’d have my own haircare line,’ Simioni said of the line, which grossed $4 million in sales in 2004. ‘It was a fluke. I guess I was in the right place at the right time.’
The veteran ad man said he couldn’t have made up such a unique marketing pitch if he tried.
‘You spend your life manipulating the truth, trying to make it sound better, trying to give it a story,’ he said. ‘In this case, the story came first.’
Denis laughs when he recalls that first trip to Honduras to find the Miskito tribe that sold his wife’s grandmother the Ojon paste. With his Spanish-speaking father-in-law and brother-in-law, he embarked on a five-hour ride in a rundown single-propeller plane that landed on a dirt road in the middle of nowhere. From there they hiked for two hours before chancing upon the Mopawi, a local non-profit organization dedicated to helping the Indians of the Misquitia.
Armed with vague directions, they headed out on a five-hour small hand-carved boat ride into the rainforest.
‘They told me we had to cross a lagoon and a river and that we should look for the Indians without hats,’ Simioni said. ‘We still didn’t know where we were going. There was no treasure map with an ‘X.’
Clusters of Ojon palm nuts
Finally they came upon some children playing — children with glossy, gorgeous, hatless heads. In fact, the Miskito Indians are referred to as Tawira, or ‘the people with beautiful hair.’
The kids brought them into the village and showed them the Ojon tree, which is unique to the rainforest of the Misquitia region of Central America. They showed him how the Ojon nuts, which resemble small coconuts, are chopped out of the trees, boiled to loosen the peel and smashed in wooden bowls.
Although the Miskito Indians had been using Ojon palm nut oil for centuries to clean, condition and protect their hair, it never had been exported beyond the region.
That was about to change, but it would require significant time, effort and money on the part of Simioni to make it happen.
‘At first I thought, ‘I don’t speak their language and it takes 8,000 nuts to make 3.5 cups of pure Ojon,” he said.
He also would have to organize the tribe to make the paste and find a way to ship it from the middle of the rainforest to Italy where it could be purified.
Simioni spent the next three years developing and testing Ojon formulations while he built a relationship with the people of the Miskito tribe. In cooperation with the Mopawi, he developed a partnership with 895 Miskito families — 15,000 people. The company obtained exclusive worldwide distribution rights to the Ojon oil. In addition to getting paid for the ingredients, they also receive a portion of the profits form the sale of Ojon to help preserve their traditional lifestyle and the region’s rainforests.
‘As opposed to negotiating the price down, we negotiated up,’ he said. ‘I wanted them to trust me.’
The company limits the annual harvest in order to protect the natural resource, and to ensure that authentic Ojon continues to be harvested and extracted by hand in the traditional way as a guarantee of purity. The tribes are consulted on all aspects of the business, from product development to marketing.
Even after he set up a production facility, it took a year to go to market so they produce enough of the oil. He also partnered with a manufacturer to help them take the natural product and build a line.
‘That’s why the price is so high,’ he said. ‘It’s not that we’re trying to make more money. But the cost of the products is huge.’
They launched the treatment on QVC in December 2003. Ojon was on for six minutes at 10 p.m.
‘Not only did we sell out, but we had a waiting list of 2,500 units,’ Simioni said. ‘It exploded.’
Ojon expanded into other haircare products in March on QVC, getting an equally enthusiastic response. In December, the company launched the Hydrating Styling Cream and Volumizing Foam. The Shine Serum will be introduced this month, available only at a limited number of outlets including NaturallyCurly.com’s CurlMart.
Simioni said one thing has become clear about the market for his products.
‘Through our market research, we’ve found that the No. 1 user of Ojon are people with curly hair,’ he said. ‘Curly hair is dry hair. To maintain curl, you want to put moisture back in the hair. Ojon does that without weighing it down.’
He said the products can be used to either enhance or smooth curly hair. To straighten, he recommends mixing the Styling Cream with the Volumizing Mousse. For thicker hair, he mixes a little Styling Cream with the Serum. Some even use a small dab of the treatment can as a leave-in conditioner.
All the products contain various concentrations of pure Ojon oil. The treatment is 100 percent Ojon, while the other products contain between 15 percent and 25 percent oil.
As for the products’ unique smell, which some compare to incense, Simioni said he initially toyed with processing it in a way that would eliminate the fragrance. But he opted to leave it as it is.
‘I didn’t want to change a thing,’ he said. ‘I wanted people to experience the real thing.’
Simioni claims clinical tests prove that the products restore the hair, repairing the cuticle without weighing down the hair. Some people even say it makes their hair grow faster, he said.
Despite the long journey and the hazards he encountered along the way, Simioni says it’s all been worth it.
‘When people say it’s the best product they’ve ever used, it was worth it that I risked my life,’ he said.
Tonja Chagaris always specialized in cutting curly hair. But the Arizona stylist saw a real void in her market for a salon that specialized in working with all types of curly hair.
“With all the different cultures here, there was no place to go if you had curly hair,” says Chagaris, who three months ago opened Spirals Salon in Tucson, a salon dedicated to curly hair. “Having naturally curly hair myself, I know it’s so hard to find someone who understands it — how to touch it, how to style it, how to cut it. It is very much an untapped market.”
Thanks to stylists like Chagaris, it has become a growing market.
Titi of Curve specializes in curly and textured hair.
“The vast majority of the population doesn’t have straight hair,” says Titi of Curve Salon in Brooklyn, which specializes in curly hair. “I don’t know how we’ve gotten along this long without more people specializing in curly hair.”
Although New York has several salons focusing on curly hair, curlyheaded men and women in other parts of the country often found it more difficult to find a stylist versed in the ways of ringlets and coils. But that is changing, with salons popping up around the country that have made curly hair their priority.
In some cases, it may be one stylist within a salon who specializes in curly hair. In others, the salon may choose to be trained and certified by well-known curl experts like Ouidad, Lorraine Massey or Christo, and to carry their product lines. And in some cases, stylists are opening their own curl-centric salons, using their own experience and techniques and carrying a range of curly hair products.
These include salons like Spirals in Arizona, Batia & Aleeza in Beverly Hills, Calif. and Curl Jam in Bethesda, Md. Jonathan Torch is in the process of opening his Curly Hair Institute in Toronto. While his other salon cuts hair of all types, the Institute will concentrate on curly hair.
Toronto curl whiz Jonathan Torch is in the process of creating a curl-centric salon.
Californian Barbra Taber, who has gained a reputation as a curl guru, plans to open a salon called Ringlets in the Los Angeles area. As it is, she says, 90 percent of her clients have curly hair, some coming from far away as Chicago and New York to get one of her haircuts.
“I’ve always done curly hair,” says curly-headed Taber, who currently works at salons in Beverly Hills and Woodland Hills.
Diane Wirono, who has naturally curly hair herself, opened Curl Jam seven years ago with another stylist.
“We both have curly hair, and have both been through every trial and tribulation of working with and against our hair,” she says. “Curly hair motivated us to open our shop.”
New York curlmaster long ago saw the need for a salon specializing in curls.
“The reason all these salons are specializing in curly hair is because of demand from their clients,” Christo said. “In the past, people were paranoid to wear their hair curly because they thought it was out of fashion or unprofessional.”
But these days, with more curls in magazines and the movies, curls have gained popularity. People want to work with their natural texture.
“Over the past five to 10 years, there’s been a movement toward texture,” Titi says. “People are letting their hair do what it wants to do. Before it was all about getting your hair to look stick straight. Now, it’s all about encouraging the curl.”
Salon owners also can see the success that curly salons have had in New York, and the popularity of curly product lines. And with a large population of people with curly or wavy hair — people willing to spend money to make their hair look its best — many see huge market potential.
“I think that more people have a minimum of natural wave, if not curls,” says Wirona, who believes her shop’s name and expertise with curls set it apart from other salons in the Bethesda area.
Jacqueline Early of J. Earleys Salon on Beacon Street in Boston got training from Ouidad and Christo, and says 50 percent of her clients have curly hair.
“I am so grateful I’ve had the opportunity to look at another dimension of hair,” she says. “It’s definitely been worth it to invest in a specialty area.”
Early believes curlyheaded clients are very loyal clients when they’re happy with a hairdresser. Her clients come from all around New England and the New York area.
Taber, and others who specialize in curly hair, say people with curly hair have different needs than their straight-haired counterparts.
“Cutting curly hair is a different animal than cutting straight hair,” says Titi.
Titi, who is half Black and half Japanese, decided to open the salon in 1997 with her sister, Miko, because of their own traumatic experiences with their curly, kinky hair.
“Going to a Japanese salon was not an option,” Titi says. “And Black salons wanted to weigh it down with grease. There were no choices. Most people with curly hair just got what they could get. They’d throw a dart and hope for the best. It was always an ordeal.”
She considers Curve to be a place where people can talk to people who truly understand their hair and can help provide solutions to help it look its best and offer options.
In many cases, curly clients may be leery of hairdressers. In many cases, they may have shunned salons altogether because of bad experiences.
“They’re paranoid and nervous,” Taber says. “Most of them are scared to death.”
In many cases, they have been fighting their hair most of their life and may need to be educated in how to wear it curly. Taber recalled getting a call form a 75-year-old woman who had worn her hair in a bun most of her life. She was able to give her a curly style that worked with her hair’s texture.
“When I do consultations with clients who are wavy or curly, they often don’t know how to work with it,” Wirona says. “They are under the misconception that if they let it dry naturally and it doesn’t look good, they should blow it out. But fighting natural texture goes so much against nature.”
And these salons and stylists are in it for the long term, says Diane Bailey of Tendrils Salon, a natural hair salon in Brooklyn. Bailey says people initially thought she was crazy when she decided not to use chemicals any longer in her salon since most black women wanted to straighten their hair. But as more people became aware of the options, she says her business has continued to grow.
“This isn’t a trend,” Bailey says. “Trends come and go. This is a life choice — an option people are choosing.”
Christo believes this proliferation of curly stylists and salons is good for everyone.
“These salons help maintain the trends of curly hair,” he says. “They help people accept their hair.”
