Who, What, Where? We Can Really Help Your Hair!

Years ago I was fortunate enough to assist Horst Rechelbacher, a very popular hair stylist in Minneapolis in the 1980s.

He had asked hair stylists in the area to help him prepare models for a big fashion show.

While I handed him hair pins as he was creating the coiffurier's master piece
.
I rustled  up the nerve to ask him if there was a difference between African American hair and caucasian hair.

He answered "hair is hair"!

Hmmm!

I was taken aback at the thought.

Could this be true?

After all, my hair was kinky and dry.

My white clients had quite different hair. Soft, smooth, and it blew in the wind.

How could it be possible?

Hair is Hair?

Years later Horst Rechelbacher is a world class hair expert.

On hair health and products to support it.

Horst started "Aveda", and sold it to Estee Lauder a few years ago.

I never liked Aveda for its conditioning ability. It just didn't do what it tried to convince me it could do.

However they did formulate a few products that were close, for the short term.

The cosmetic industry has done lots of research on how black women and men spend their hard earned cash.

On personal care lotions etc. they found that black people spend 80% more money than their white counter parts.

The idea that "hair is hair" suddenly became a whole new science.

The Este Lauders and the L'reals of the world got the idea that they could help African Americans in their search for that magic bullet  that would resolve my confusion.

Hair is Hair?

No magic, but lots of research went into why African Americans have such problems growing healthy hair?

The research is paying off.

Big name product lines are bringing seriously helpful science to  bottles on the shelves of a salons near you.

My desire to be neutral on all product lines prohibit me from naming them. Even if I did give names, there are so many different types of hair that only the ones that I could name may not work for your hair type.

The search is still on, but your chances are much better in finding something that will most definitely work for you.

Remember! You get what you pay for. 

So! If you want to increase your chances at success? 

Go to a trusted upscale salon, and ask if you could talk to a stylist who sort of  looks like you for best results. 

Malls have lots of them.

The Salon where I work takes much pride in the products we sell. We have to satisfy many ethnic groups with all types of hair.

If you have questions about what products to use, black, white or m
racially mixed. Go to the “comments “ window and send me a question. I will do my best to share some valuable ideas. Thanks for you attention!                                                                         http://www.salon-intrigue.com/pages/team/tommy.html

A good place to start for growing healthy hair!

All Mixed Up!

Mixed race children/people who have not been raised in a traditional African American home are met with much discomfort in the beginning. Soon as it becomes necessary to tame the mane of a person with kinky or even extremely curly hair.
This hair should be understood before you become frustrated. First off a mom of a child with kinky hair needs to know that if you ignore it, it will not go away.
The sooner you understand that this type of hair needs special attention, the better your child will look at those times when you want to be proudest of her.

The things that work on Caucasian hair may not work on the child's hair.
I say " may not" because the range of hair types goes from straight to really kinky.
The shade of the skin does not indicate how straight the hair will be.
In my family we consider ourselves African American, but it is not that simple.
What do we do with the Irish, and French that are definitely apart of who I am.
One of the first things that the women in my family had to deal with was their hair.
From soft silky curls to the most difficult hair to deal with in terms of kink.
Please don't be intimidated by finding help in a salon that caters to African Americans? Even though YOU might get strange looks, as soon as the crowd sees you with a brown sugar baby, hearts will melt and help is right there for the asking.
Understand that your child's hair belongs to people who know what to do with it. Trust is difficult especially when you hear words that would not apply to hair as you have come to know it.
If you hear someone say that the "grade" of your child's hair is nice or course, etc., this is how African Americans talk about the ease or difficulty of the treatment  your mixed baby's hair needs.

The types of treatments are going to be time consuming, and not cheap but it is a responsibility that has to be taken seriously. Slacking is not an option.
Just as important as a great hair cut is to the person naturally straight hair is, the proper attention is as important to your kinky kurly kid. May be even more important because, if kinky hair gets matted, sometimes the only solution is to buzz it off. Little girls of any color would probably hate it!



I believe that any question that you have is innocent, and even though you might get weird glances from the stylist, I encourage you to ask about any puzzlement you might have.

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My friend "Nyah" is showing us what the proper attention to the hair from a very young age looks like. Her mother is serious about making sure that her girls are treated with great care! Regularly and timely attention. Thanks Char, and Nyah. Beautiful!




Truly

Tommy the Hair Guy:-)

Can we talk?

I am a licensed cosmetologist who has been doing hair for more than thirty five years.

With all the years behind me, I still run into situations and concerns that are new to me.

I am interested in helping anyone with any type of hair problem that you might have.

Please let's begin a conversation about what YOU NEED ANSWERS to.

If you want to challenge any opinion I have put in this blog, please consider that I am still learning and you can help me. So? Let's talk.

Go to the bottom of the blog page and leave a comment or ask a question?

I am looking forward to hearing from you!

I'm curious about how my blog is applied in your life?

Don't be shy!

Truly
Tommy the Hair Guy:-)

For a little help seeing what’s going on top:-)

After the Relaxer What Now?

Commitment is key!!!


The perfect formula for the after relaxer care consists of taking your little girl to the salon every other week until she can do it herself.
The formula an ideal that is difficult to attain, unless it rains money in your neck of the woods ?

Teaching a child to do as much as possible until a responsible capable person can supervise or just do it.

An idea that a relaxer will somehow damage the child's hair forever is absolutely not true!
What is true is that parents think that the relaxer will free them of the need to maintain the child's hair properly.

While a relaxer will make the job easier the hair needs constant observation.

Tangles alone are enough to turn pretty hair into a matted mess, unless you don't mind dread locks.

Make sure all tangles are gently combed out(not brushed). Brushing gives the illusion of tangle free hair, when what is happening is that tangled hair get covered by smooth brushed hair.
Tangles will remain under the brushed hair.

Another option for busy families would be to braid the hair which could be the solution for any maintenance issues because it needs less attention. Neatness is the most important issue. Wash and rebraid when braids get fuzzy.

There are different styles that might keep your young lady from getting tired of the same look.






Platting long natural hair when unbraided gives a full crimped look for longer hair. Make sure that the ends are trimmed for a healthy appearance


When tied back in a pony tail it will create a puff tail.



Corn rows look neat under hats, caps, clips, bows etc.

Corn rows can be kept neat by wearing a sleeping cap or scarf at night.

Braids look best when washed and re-braided on a weekly basis, although many moms like to wait two weeks.
Two weeks and no more because stuff can get lodged in the twists and turns of a braid and could become a live culture of who knows what?

Good hair begins with good treatment for ALL hair types.

All hair is good if you understand how to treat it!

Truly the Hair Guy!

Mr. Tommy

Children Have Hair Too! What can I do?

                                                    CHILDREN IN MY CHAIR?



This entry is meant for any child who needs a permanent relaxer intervention.

The most troubling service that I have ever been faced with is doing a relaxer on a child under 12 years of age.
Many mothers in this country are faced with having children and wanting to return to work after having a baby as soon as possible.

The troubled economy has made an impact on how I am asked to participate in  a young families life in terms of taking care of the hair of an infant girl's hair.

The fact that, in a two parent family, both parents needing to work means that a little girl who needs a lot of help with her hair has a hard time looking as sweet as the parents would like.

What is a little girl to do?

If a young family can afford it, they will take her to a trusted cosmetologist for help. Very often, if the child is under an age that the stylist is comfortable working on, the child will be turned away. Fearing of damaging the child's hair, and the possibility of seriously burning the scalp.
Burning the scalp could cause scaring that might prevent healthy hair from growing forever.

Being faced with the desperation of parents needing to free up time that would go into the hair care of a young child has created a stressful conversation. The parents may threaten to find somebody to do it no matter what.

Now what?

If anyone has ever thought that the life of a hair tech doing his job is a fluffy job?

Please consider the trust that is given to the stylist by parents who have no choice but to place the care of their most beloved possession in your hands.

STRESSFUL FOR SURE!

The trust that the stylist has in his own ability to do such a job has to come from a place of loving care and the ability to understand the descriptive words of a child who does not have full command of there own language.

Is your heart pounding like mine is right now?  Just writing the passage give me palpitations!

I have washed the relaxer out of the hair prematurely. Hearing the words " Mr. Tommy my head itches" demands immediately that I make an important decision.

To wash or not to wash???

I wash. No matter what. I wash the hair immediately.
Sometimes the relaxer has been left on long enough, but most often the hair doesn't have even relaxation to do much good.

So it needs to be repeated in a week. This is a corrective service and is done with no added charge to the parents.

I should have turned the kid away!

NO!

Sometimes you just need to suck it up and move gently and cautiously forward.

Truly

Tommy the Hair Guy.

Uncommon Knowledge!

                                   The Permanent Problem

When talking about Perms (relaxers or curly permanents) there  are cultural influences that confuse the simple term (perm).

People with highly textured hair ”kinky to extremely wavy” call relaxers “perms” and people with naturally straight hair might call curly permanents “perms”.

What makes the term “perm” apply to all types of  hair, no matter whether the hair needs to be relaxed or curled? The mere fact is that if it changes the structure of the hair permanently it is a perm.

Hair colors are rarely referred to as a “perm” color, rather the description “permanent color” is most correct to keep terms from being confusing.

“Good News For bad hair” articles are meant to give clear understanding for clients to use common terms that a stylist will most likely understand.

 With that said, another thing that clients need to understand is when ever any type of permanent product is used the product will affect the hair till that hair is cut of completely.

A half inch a month is average for new hair growth, so for 12 inches of new growth you would arrive one year after your permanent service at a point when you could have a different permanent done.

I have heard clients say that they had a permanent color six months ago so now they want a relaxer.

Well, if you have 12 inches of permanently colored hair and now you want it relaxed you will have devastating results if you are not using a relaxer that is specifically designed for this service.

They do exist!

Research different product lines and ask lots of questions.

Truly

Tommy the Hair Guy

Is That a Brazilian On Your Had?

                                              A Brazilian on your head.

Brazil has been forever etched in the minds of most Americans as a place where beauty and rich culture is a way of life and celebrated the world over.  From some of the most beautiful people in the world to the most beautiful music in the world. 

Brazil is a country of people of great ethnic diversity. 

The Brazilian Indians, Africans, Europeans bring different physical characteristics to the current population.

The skin, hair and eye color. 

Given by each country's genetic information, blended together  offers a pallet of color for Mother Nature to create a population of people with breath taking beauty.

Africa and the characteristics it offers to the mix, brings texture to Brazilian hair. From tightly coiled hair to  a fuzzy mass of kink, the European's idea of beauty is not any of these. Brazilians, like people all over the world want the typical European smooth, silky, shiny, soft, etc hair.

Brazilians are also known for their artistic nature, as well as scientific know how.

So!

 A Brazilian artistic scientist created the Brazilian Keratin Treatment.

Brilliant person!!!

Also known as BKT, this treatment has given the world of cosmetology a tool that can render the fuzziest and turn it the most beautiful soft, silky, and shiny hair one could ever imagine. 

Really!

This process is truly a God send for people who could use more control of their coif in very hot humid weather. 

Anyone living in Florida has probably known about the BKT for a few years now! The use of BKT in an irreplaceable tool for maintaining smooth, silky hair in the most humid weather.

But!

The chemicals that are used to make this miracle possible have been viewed by many people  as dangerous and toxic.

The truth about many things like carpeting, and countless other necessary household appliances can bring issues of toxicity into our lives. Innocently bought  without question, we live day in and day out with products that are difficult to live without. Literally living with chemicals that will not be rinsed away after we use them.

Like anything that comes in contact with our skin and respiratory system BKT does give off fumes that can effect us. Dryness of the eyes nose, and mouth. Even light headed ness has been experienced by myself and others working near the service area while the process is being administered.

Unlike the fumes given off by our carpeting (even after cleaning) still release gases that can be more harmful than our exposure to the chemicals in the Brazilian Keratin Treatment. 

The gases are rinsed out totally and a sheath of protective keratin is left behind, to do its magic!

I am a certified instructor for a brand of the Brazilian Keratin Treatment and have reviewed information  supplied by O.S.H.A. Available to the general public for consumer information related to safety. 

There are clear safety guide lines for its use, and if one is exposed for more than eight hours there may be toxic affects.

A technician has to be aware of information from O.S.H.A. for safety guide lines.

BKT is safe but as with any chemical, please be careful!

BTK CAN BE USED ON GENTLY RELAXED HAIR WITH BEAUTIFUL RESULTS!

This double process can actually could help hair grow, but the amount of heat must be considered!

Thank you Brooklyn !

I can not advise doing this process yourself, a professional will know all the safety rules and the out come will be more consistant. 

Truly

Tommy the Hair Guy