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View Full Version : I Just Had a Perm



momtofour
February 8th, 2010, 07:15 PM
I have come to the conclusion that I look better with curly hair. Of course, that involves the time and expense of getting a perm because my hair is straight as a stick. My last full-head perm was Novemeber of 2008; then I had just the top and bangs permed in February 2009. Since then, I had just let it grow. It was to my shoulder blades and pretty much one length. My bangs were straight. With the winter dryness, it had gotten pretty lanky. My daughter gave me a gift certificate to my favorite salon (the ONLY one I will go to, with the same hairdresser), for Christmas. I made an appointment and went last Friday. I had her cut two inches off the length and "feather" it a little around my face. I always bring my own perms (2 boxes). I LOVE, LOVE Redken's Creative Curl perm for Fine/Limp hair. It has no perm smell and really lasts. Being a licensed hairdresser myself, I can buy professional products. It came out SO nice, with soft ringlet type curls. It has so much more body now, and feels so much healthier.. I waited the required 48 hours before shampooing and washed and conditioned my hair. (Pantene is my favorite for this purpose). I will probably be all set now for a year, except for bang trims. I would post a picture but I am "techno-challenged" and don't know how. LOL!

Fractalsofhair
February 8th, 2010, 07:18 PM
Be gentle when you perm over it in a year! I'd suggest avoiding reperming the hair that was already permed, and be very careful with breakage! I'm glad you love it though!

Had you experimented with things like pincurls and rag curls on a regular basis?

Prism
February 8th, 2010, 07:19 PM
Wow. Your hair must be a lot stronger than mine. Every perm I've had has wreaked havoc on my hair, and that's when it was short hair. I didn't even attempt it when it was long.

I did have a friend who had very long hair that she'd get permed regularly. Her hair was just amazingly thick and resilient and apparently grew fast because she never seemed to have an issue with perming, heat, and the rest. I think that's probably pretty rare.

-simply Venus-
February 8th, 2010, 07:24 PM
I hope you can keep them up without much damage. =] Curly hair is epic. XD But it is a pain. =[ I have naturally curly hair, so there is nothing I can do about it without damage. >.< That's why I'm growing my hair long! So I have long, farie-like hair.

spidermom
February 8th, 2010, 08:53 PM
Enjoy your perm. The last one I had or will ever have made my hair fall to pieces; it was terrible.

camillacamilla
February 9th, 2010, 12:15 AM
I have heard that perms have changed and are very gentle now. I still have memories of the perms I had in the 80s. You would come out of the beauty shop with burns on your forehead from the chemicals and broken hairs already sticking up. Please tell me perms are not like this anymore.

Kris Dove
February 9th, 2010, 12:38 AM
I had a perm in the early 90's and it fried my hair more than anything else ever has. That said I loved the look of it for the first few months and have curl envy! I know a lot of naturally curly girls here use the Curly Girl CO method, perhaps that would work well with permed hair too? Just, whatever you do, don't use mousse! If my hair wasn't fried enough already that stuff took it over the edge!

curlywurlygurly
February 9th, 2010, 01:10 AM
As Kris Dove said you could try the Curly Girl (CG) method of Co-wash (conditioner washing) just google it for more information.
Since I started wearing my hair natural (wavy) I can't stand my hair straight - so little volume and character. I can image that you are also enjoying the volume of curls.

The perm formulas are a lot better these days or so I've read. However it is still a chemical process that will damage your hair so it's best to play it safe and look after you hair now then regret it later.

Glad to hear you're loving your curls :D

chicken
February 9th, 2010, 01:20 AM
Oh, be careful with your hair. I had two perms 4 years ago. I loved the look, but it damaged my hair so much... But I know the urge to have curls... You should really pamper your hair. Mine loved CO-wash at that time.

Isa-belle
February 9th, 2010, 01:24 AM
I have heard that perms have changed and are very gentle now. I still have memories of the perms I had in the 80s. You would come out of the beauty shop with burns on your forehead from the chemicals and broken hairs already sticking up. Please tell me perms are not like this anymore.
Well, the last perm I had was one of the supposedly new-generation "gentle" perms.
I lost chunks of hair in the few weeks after it.

Of the 3 or 4 perms I had in my life, it's also the one that wreaked total havoc on my hair; but the length had been permed a year before, so that definitely played a role. At the time I'd thought that with all the hype around the "gentle" new perms that would be okay. Well, it wasn't.

The first perm I ever got (almost 10 years ago) gave me glorious curls, and my hair was waist/hip length at the time, so that was very dramatic. A perm can look nice on virgin hair. (My hair was also thick and sturdy :) )
But there are 3 problems with it: first the upkeep is a pain and the mousses are drying; if you don't put plenty of curling agents every day the curls are not pretty. Second, as your hair grows out the perm, you are left with this weird 2-textured hair. Again, not pretty. And third, the only 2 ways to solve this is either grow the perm out, which requires patience; or get a new perm. And that is when the hair gets really, really damaged (when the same hair gets permed several times).

Never again! I have learnt to embrace my hair's texture, and when I want something different, there are always braid waves, bun waves, and rag curls.

Before the perms, I used to be complimented all the time on my hair. How thick and healthy it looked. I used to do non-damaging rag curls quite often (several times a week) in high school and many people loved it.
It has taken me almost 3 years to fight the damage from the last perm, and of course I still have these significantly shorter chunks of hair, which accentuate my taper. I am still working on regaining my hair's initial thickness. I know I will get back there some time - my hair is now chemical-free down to the waist/hips. :)


I am not trying to rain on the OP's parade here. A fresh perm does look lovely on virgin hair and I am sure yours does :) . I wouldn't recommend perming in only a year though, unless your hair is short and you plan on keeping it that way. Perms, sadly, cannot work on long hair on the long run.

Sammich
February 9th, 2010, 01:27 AM
Ahh... Thank god I read ^'s post. Haha, I wanted to wait for my hair to get longer and perhaps perm it... gently. >__>;
<<;...
I actually planned to perm my hair because I love curly so much and I know how to look after it now. >_>; Not like when I had my perm it was all icky...
My hair was pretty soft after the perm I had actually and was great, and non frizzy. Only issue I had was to keep the curl formulation, that's why I was hoping to get a perm later...
Of course, my hair was about shoulder length. :p
So I guess I'll have to rethink on my decision.
AND OP. Congrats! :D *Hug*

faeflame
February 9th, 2010, 04:37 PM
It came out SO nice, with soft ringlet type curls. It has so much more body now, and feels so much healthier.. I waited the required 48 hours before shampooing and washed and conditioned my hair. (Pantene is my favorite for this purpose). I will probably be all set now for a year, except for bang trims. I would post a picture but I am "techno-challenged" and don't know how. LOL!
Congrats on the perm turning out so well!
--Hijack-- I love the look of a perm in my straight hair and have been fighting the urge to perm again, since I had some breakage with the last one ~5 years ago. (My siggy is the perm at a year old). Do you have any recommendations or tips for getting a good perm? Please feel free to PM me! Thanks!!

Luckysock
February 9th, 2010, 04:47 PM
Pictures pictures!

I love the look of curly on my super straight hair too - at the moment I indulge my curl lust with sponge rollers lol. I've thought about perming too - I have a friend who gets amazing results, but we have very different hair, and I just don't think mine is tough enough.

anyways - pictures please!

Eniratak
February 9th, 2010, 05:10 PM
One of my friends has thigh length hair that she's been perming for years. It's gorgeous.
I'm glad you enjoy your perm!

plainjanegirl
February 9th, 2010, 05:24 PM
Glad you are happy with your new perm ! I would love to see pics. Trust me when I say I have been very tempted to go get a perm, but when I curl my hair it doesn't hold real good so I'm afraid a perm would fall out.