To be honest, I wasn’t too impressed with my first use of this product. My hair felt conditioned and a little glossy, but nothing like I was expecting when considering the high end price tag and the stylists oath-like promise that this product was “the truth.” The second time was used in a mixture with the Keratin Oil treatment and my hair was miraculously different, but I wasn’t sure if it was the Keratin Oil or the Mask. Well, last week marked the third of my once weekly use of this product.

So the verdict is in.

I’m blown away. My hair is even softer with a shine like never before. It even has a different feel to it: sleeker and stronger. I definitely understand the stylist’s insisting that I use this as a system (the keratin oil every 6-10 weeks & the repair shampoo followed by the mask weekly) and that I was to evaluate it over time, not just by the first use.

To use, I do a sort of hot towel treatment. The heat helps hair absorb the conditioner. Beginning with a shampooing, it takes about 40 minutes until you’re ready to style:

I shampoo first, then squeeze my hair dry. The instructions say to towel dry, but I squeeze hair with my hands and maybe pat just ever-so slightly with the towel. My hair is curly and tangly, so I find that the water helps to distribute the product more evenly so I am careful not to over-dry it. I then cover my hair with saran wrap or a plastic salon cap to protect my hair–( This is because I keep reading that a towel’s rough material is bad for hair..especially curly hair.–So I don’t like the idea of the towel against my hair–You could skip this step according to your own preferences.)  Then, I dampen a towel and put it in a pot (yes, a pot) over medium heat. When its piping hot, but not too hot to touch, I wrap the towel around my head. I start another hot towel, and throw that one on my head when the first one has gotten too cool. I alternate towels until I have had the mask in my hair for 10-20 minutes. I don’t think its necessary to do too much longer than that. Then,I rinse with cool or lukewarm water. You don’t need another rinse- out conditioner. But, you could do a leave-in conditioner or a styling/smoothing product.

{At the salon, the stylist just wraps a towel around the sides of my hair and puts me under an infrared dryer for about thirteen minutes. At home, I avoid my hand held blow dryer because of drying/damaging effects (hence, the steamed towel method)  but the infrared dryer didn’t seem so harsh. }

The mask isn’t really a substitute for a daily conditioner if you are washing your hair everyday or every 2 or 3 days. You should follow with a daily (and perhaps less expensive) conditioner. If you’re only shampooing once a week anyway, then the mask may be your only conditioner.

Me, I wet my hair just about every day, but I shampoo only once a week. This is because I have curly “afro” hair, and shampooing any more often than that would strip my hair of much needed nutrients. In between masks, deep conditioning, shampooing, or protein treatments, i.e., the days where I’m doing a water-only wash, I follow with a leave-in conditioner/detangler which locks in moisture, makes my hair manageable,and has a soft, melon scent.

Wella is for all hair types, not just curly. And it is especially good for hair that needs moisture and repair..curly, color treated, damaged, dry, and otherwise salon junkies. The only trick is figuring out where to get it. The Wella company is divided into many different parts each with their own products. I was able to get mine here in Atlanta at the fabulous James Madison Salon on Peacthree, but I’ve only seen this one on websites in the UK and Australia.

This is a great product, but I’ll warn you that it should only be used by a professional stylist.

After shampooing, the stylist smoothed this through my towel dried- hair. He then worked it through to the ends and put me under an infrared hair dryer for about 10 minutes. Once rinsed, I could immediately tell that the texture of my hair had changed. My hair feels soft, supple, and moisturized. It seems to be stronger too.  I was told that the keratin oil cannot be used too often, and that I should wait AT LEAST six weeks before the next treatment or longer if I could. In between, I am to use  a Wella SP mask.  I’m using the SP Luminous Mask, but all of their masks are supposed to be great.  Wella is known for their treatment systems whose full effects can take a few weeks to manifest. However, I did notice an immediate difference from the Keratin Oil. I’m hoping the my hair will get healthier and healthier over the weeks that I use the treatment.

Wella prices and services at the salons who use Wella products tend to be expensive. One way to save money on your hair treatments is to only go to the salon for services that really should not be done at home. For example, you can buy the mask and do your own weekly treatment. Save your big bucks for the keratin treatment which requires a professional to apply it.

]]> http://atlantabodyblog.wordpress.com/2010/01/27/product-review-wella-sp-oil/feed/ 0 bvtraveler Wella Keratin Oil http://atlantabodyblog.wordpress.com/2010/01/27/beauty-schools-to-patronize-or-not-to-patronize/ http://atlantabodyblog.wordpress.com/2010/01/27/beauty-schools-to-patronize-or-not-to-patronize/#comments Wed, 27 Jan 2010 07:29:16 +0000 IABTW http://atlantabodyblog.wordpress.com/?p=9 ]]> The honey-moon is over…and by “honey-moon,” I mean those good economic times when we could afford to go the salon every other week, select a master stylist, and have the freshest, sharpest haircuts. In fact, things are pretty dull now… economically, that is. And getting a facial, forget about it. If hair appointments are now considered a luxury, any other services must now be out of the question.

But wait! There’s hope, people. It’s called beauty school. Many people view beauty schools as second rate, like a consignment shop is to clothing. But before you dismiss the idea, you should at least give it a try. I absolutely loved my experience at the Aveda Beauty school in Buckhead.

Now I’m one of those women who didn’t get acne in their middle school and high school days but is instead suffering from it now at age 2*. At age 20, I looked back on my teens and said “pheeeew,” thinking I had made it threw puberty with hardly a blemish to speak of. A year later, I started to experience break outs which seem to increase during our hot, humid, Georgia summer.

Returning from winter vacation from a long trip over seas, I decided a facial would be a good way to reassess my skin care routine which needed  some tweaking: my acne was under control, but my skin was horribly dry, and the tone was uneven from the harsh cleanser. (Stridex, that’s another story). The vacation had left my budget tighter than usual and a friend recommended Aveda Beauty School as an alternative. She had never been there but swore by Aveda products.

I gave them a call. And yes, I do srongly recommend making an appointment. In fact, it wasn’t until two weeks from the day that I called that there was an available slot for me to try the 60 minute Outer Peace Ance Facial. To make a long story short, I highly recommend it! I arrived on time and had to wait about 15 or 20 minutes before I was led back through a maze of salon chairs and a blur of blond highlights, aluminum foil, and black aprons. The sound instantly muted as Asha, my esthetician-in-training, closed the door behind us once inside the room.

Once changed and lying down, I was presented a series of scents, and I had to pick one. She explained that the idea was that my body would know what it needed once I smelled it, and my facial would be customized, somehow, according the the scent that I picked. I ended up picking the second scent that I smelled. It sort of jumped at me as soon as I smelled it.  So I’m realizing how much aromas play a role in our lives. It’s such a treat to be able to smell something that is  truly pleasant.  A facial is a great time to be able to focus in on that scent and the relaxation and pleasure it brings to our senses…

And so I was cleansed, exfoliated, invigorated, relaxed and renewed through the use of Aveda‘s many skin care products. One of the great things about the Outer Peace facial is that you get to sample all of the products in the Aveda Outer Peace acne treatment collection at once. and  I found the prices for some of the products to be kind of steep, so trying before buying is definitely a plus in this case. The esthetician recommended for me the Aveda foaming cleanser, the acne relief pads, and the acne relief lotion. She also gave some tips; For example, that by cleansing with harsh cleansers, my skin was responding by producing even more oil, and that toner was a necessary step–which I had been skipping–which corrects pH and removes any product left behind during the cleansing phase. Her last piece of advise was to keep alcohol away from the skin.

In the end, I did not buy any products because it just wasn’t in my budget. But I was amazed at the experience and thankful for the advise: I’m now switching to  a milder cleanser, Aveeno Clear Complexion Cleanser, which has good reviews and is under $7, and I bought some plain ol’ Neutregena toner that’s alcohol free. Reviews on these things to come….