By Angela Olu Ajetunmobi

FOREWORD

At last, a comprehensive but basic guide to achieving the healthy, beautiful and bouncy hair of your dreams; Black hair is difficult to handle, slow to grow, with a tendency to excessive dryness, and easily susceptible to damage-sometimes irreversibly. There are techniques that you need to combine with good products to achieve great-looking hair. Black hairdressing has it’s own science, theory and practice; and you would do well not to treat it as you would Caucasian hair. You also need to know what are good and bad hairdressing practices, because styling your hair in a certain way could lead to breakage or damage.

The only way to beautiful black hair is not to wait for the rot to set in; you must avoid damage ab initio so that you do not have to go through the stress of trying to restore your damaged locks. If you follow these basic rules, you will be living healthy hair. Your hair will be so much better if only you can listen to it.

Close your eyes and feel the texture of your hair, rubbing the strands of the hair between your fingers. If you are not listening and feeling your hair, you cannot allow it to be its best. The secret lies in continually conditioning the hair without respite, so that the hair’s shock absorbers would have been prepared for any attack by any negative hairdressing procedures. No specific generic products are mentioned, but some general terms have been used such as cholesterol conditioner or peppermint shampoos that are easy to identify.
This guide is simple and easy to use. These golden rules are simple to understand. Learn them over and over so that they become second nature to you.  ENJOY..

INTRODUCTION

The single most important cause of hair damage in black, straightened-by-relaxing-cream-hair, is what is referred to in the hair industry as styling damage; I call it bad hairdressing practices BHP. And, we all are guilty of serious error of judging whenever we allow our hair to be misused, abused and confused. After over 18 years dealing with the peculiar problems of the black head of hair, I can assure you that these rules will help any woman who seeks to:

1. Have beautiful but healthy hair;
2. Improve badly damaged hair;
3. Make good hair look and feel even better;
4. Prevent damage ever before it occurs;
5. Arrest damage, should it occur.

There are so many procedures that I have come to realize, over the years, are old wives’ tales and myths handed down over time, and which we all have never bothered to question. Considering that most of our stylists are not lettered, it is amazing that even those of us who are able to think logically, have never been given any explanation for some of the things that they ‘allow’ us do to our hair. Since we all may know the common causes of hair damage, we ought to be more worried about those causes we do not know, and which even our stylist cannot give us information about. Most stylists are unable to be dynamic enough to change their age-old practices and embrace newer ideas; of course, if you had learnt hairdressing the wrong way, invariably, your techniques will be wrong and you will not get the desired result.

Please note that the following suggestions that I make here have been tried, tested and used in running the hair clinic. These rules are the result of years on the job, and have helped the studio to remain the number 1 choice for those discerning women who seek healthy hair above all else.

THE GOLDEN RULES

The golden rules relate to the mundane aspects of hairdressing such as shampooing, conditioning and styling. The most frequently asked question by clients who visit the ANGEL’S STUDIO hair clinic is “what am I doing wrong?” You see, the truth is that most women know that their hair could be better than it is because all hair starts out healthy before it suffers abuse by our hair stylists. In fact, they can tell you at what point their hair started to deteriorate, or what particular procedure was responsible for setting off the self-destruct button. From my experience and in my opinion, the difference between the women who have good hair and those who don’t is the knowledge they possess. Women need to know the peculiar characteristics of their own hair and scalp, and what activity can cause styling damage.

They need to know about bad hairdressing practices, which I call B.H.P. My approach is to avoid and/or prevent any harmful procedures so that my work will be to strengthen and improve upon what the client presents with; rather than seeking first to repair and then reconstruct damaged hair. As you know, it is easier and cheaper to prevent than to cure. As a result, no hairstyle is worth damaging your hair for. As women, we have got to take control of our destinies; we need to have the courage to refuse a procedure suggested by a stylist {male or female}, especially if the said stylist has not done the procedure on himself and herself, and experience whatever negative results may occur. When a client complains of discomfort or pain, the stylist should know what she is talking about from personal experience. Therefore, if the stylist has never had his or her hair pulled into a tight bun, he/she can never know what it is like to suffer the “artificial face-lift syndrome”. And the male stylists tend to be guilty of these practices, as they are always quick to use hot irons to achieve that perfect polished look.

BE ASSERTIVE because you know you!

Do not allow yourself to be bullied by any hairstylist especially if you really know about your hair and scalp. Remember that most stylists in this part of the world may not be able to read the instructions on any product. Therefore take the advice on face value alone until proven otherwise. You own your hair and you know what you want, and your opinion should count; except your stylist has achieved the reputation of being effective at treating hair. However, please be ready also to admit your ignorance if confronted with proper information by your hairstylist as to whether or not you should be doing certain procedures, especially if the said stylist is knowledgeable, seems to make logical sense to you and comes well recommended.

Be conscious Of quality

Do not compromise on any fronts whatsoever as quality never goes out of style. Quality may cost more, but you get more in terms of marked and visible improvement in the feel and texture of your hair. Buy only the best products or what I call superior products that have been manufactured after a lot of time, research and effort had been expended. Patronize only professionals to handle your hair for the best results. If in doubt, get someone who has enviable healthy hair to recommend her hairstylist to you; BUT do not jump right in. Always insist on a detailed consultation first, to make sure that you are comfortable with his or her ideas before work commences. Above all, the stylist must be ready, willing and able to treat your hair differently from every other. She must be a good listener to be able to decipher what you want, but she must be professional enough to tell you that what you want your hair to be can only exist in your dreams.

Be specific

It follows therefore, that once you can get a professional consultation, you ought to be specific as to what your expectations are. You need to discuss with your stylist all the way; and that means, what you expect will be the result before any procedure commences and what you think will be happening to your hair while the procedure is going on, especially if you are doing chemical work. This ensures open, ongoing communication of ideas, so that you are not under any illusions as to what the final outcome will be, and you can be assured that you were not rushed into any procedures before communication is complete. Don’t say “I think…” and if you do, make sure your stylist knows you are not yet sure. If you communicate ambiguity, then you must not blame your stylist who is not clairvoyant to guess rightly.