How Do I Do It: Straight Hair Edition!

And now, the moment you've all been waiting for... I'm going to share with you, how I get my unruly curly hair straight enough to live with!

I get asked every day how I get my hair so straight and honestly, my boss answered the question best today by saying, "She flat irons the pee out of it."  Now, that's very true.  However, there are some special tools and products that I use along the way, that without, I'd never get the desired results.  So today, I plan to share with you the secrets behind my straightened hair.

To start, some background.  I am bi-racial, therefore I have extremely coarse curls, and a TON of hair.  Even though it's short it takes some effort to get my hair to cooperate.  The products that I mention in this post may be to heavy for finer, less dense hair types but I am more than happy to share alternatives if anyone is interested. I'll put a star by the products I use that have lighter options.  Like this "*".

To begin I shampoo and condition with Pureology since all of their products have anti-fade technology and I do color my hair (gasp!  It's true!).  Currently I'm using the Essential Repair Shampoo and the Super Smooth Condition.  Since my hair is slightly damaged from prior lightening I do a Redken Cat treatment in between shampooing and conditioning.

After the "cleansing mode", I towel dry my hair and apply Pureology's Miracle Filler (a plant protein based reconstructing spray that helps to rebuild hair from the inside out), Pureology Super Smooth Relaxing Serum*, and Redken Power Tame 16*.  I then blow dry my hair to about 80% dry using my fingers.  Once 80% dry I use a Denman brush to smooth my hair using the roundness of my head to act almost like a giant roller, basically I'm smoothing my hair down while drying it.

This next part is extremely important!  I ALWAYS section off my hair using some kind of clip so that the flat iron is only going over a small, 1/4-1/2" section.  Not sectioning brought me years of frustration with my hair.  This is the secret behind getting an entire head of smooth hair!  I personally start from the front (because I like to see instant results) and work my way to the back of my head.  Once completely flat ironed, I spray in a bit of Redken Real Control Mineral Elixir* to add shine and fight frizz, and use Pureology Anti-breakage Twist* to obtain a piecey look.  If I'm going for a smoothed down controlled look I use Reken Forceful 23 hairspray, or if I want a more relaxed run-your-hands-through-it look I go for Redken Fashion Work 12 hairspray.

I recently purchased a new flat-iron since my last once bit the dust.  My new iron is a Bio-Ionic Free Style.  The body of it is very similar to the CHI which I now use at work, but I think it is more lightweight, and it DEFINITELY gets my hair smoother.  I'm very impressed with this flat-iron and I definitely recommend it.  It heats up very quickly, and has a temperature control.  I kind of want to go back and get a second one, but I know that's just my excitement talking and I can only use one iron at once... Remember: when using any kind of heated tool on your hair, always use a heat protector, The Pureology Super Smooth Relaxing Serum that I use has a heat protector in it, as well as the whole Super Smooth line, but if you use other products that do not, please be sure to add one to your regimen.

I know that there are a lot of curly and wavy people out there that struggle with straightening their hair and fight frizz and unruliness on a regular basis.  I want to let you know that you are not alone.  I think it is very important to embrace our natural curliness, but I understand that sometimes you just want your hair to behave.  If you have any questions at all please feel free to leave a comment or message me at facebook.com/lindanunesbeauty  I'll do my very best to get back to you with any tips that I can help you with.  Believe me, I understand.