Guess Who Has A New 'Do...

All my life, I've had straight black hair and a fear of dying, perming, or otherwise chemically processing it. I'm really lazy when it comes to grooming: I love clothes, but when it comes to hair and makeup, the former is more wash-and-wear than anything else, and the latter basically consists of a daily routine of moisturizer with SPF 30, lip balm, and mascara. Anything that could potentially damage my hair or require more maintenance than I was willing to put in was not for me.

I spent yesterday combing the pictures on Rasysa looking for a longish hairstyle with sideswept bangs that would complement my face shape and hairstyle. I never bother looking through conventional Western magazines for hairstyle inspiration because my hair is so much thicker than standard Caucasian hair that I have a hard time picturing how celebs' haircuts might work on me. Rasysa is great because 1) it's free, 2) it has thousands of hairstyle pictures, and 3) all the hair models are Asian. Rasysa was a serendipitous Google search find from a couple years back, and it's been one of my favourite bookmarked sites ever since. The picture below isn't what I printed off and brought to my hairdresser, but it's very similar.



I wasn't intending to perm my hair, but after 10 minutes of Q&A about how much maintenance a look like this would require and how damaged my hair might be when he's done, I decided to go for it. This was my first time getting a perm, and I was really surprised at how long the cut and perm and took; almost three hours went by before he was done! The process involved layering some of the bulk out of my hair, applying a relaxant and setting solution, blowdrying, more cutting, and finally a bit of styling. The result was a slight all-over wave that was subtle yet striking.

As he was working his magic, my hairdresser gave me tips for how to ensure the curly ends will look their best. As it turns out, less is more when it comes to curly hair and it would be even lower maintenance than what I was used to. Sweet!

The tips:

• Conditioner is your friend. Apply conditioner to the ends and don't worry about rinsing all of it out; whatever's left in your hair after a quick rinse will help make it soft and define the curl. Or better yet, use a leave-in conditioner.
  Instead of rubbing your hair, grab a section of it and squeeze the water out with a towel. This will keep your hair from frizzing.


• Blowdry the roots and let the ends air-dry. Don't comb or brush it because you'll break up the curl and create frizziness.


• For added definition, smooth a bit of gel on the ends and finger-scrunch your hair.

I'm still getting used to the 'do because this is the first time I've ever had curly hair. It definitely turned some heads as I headed home, so maybe I'll get used to it quicker than I thought.