Digital Perm!

[Guest inspired04]

what products do you guys use to style your hair? my curls/waves became really limp after the first shower

[Guest VOGUEx]

Mine lasted 6 months! but i recently cut my hair so there isn't much left. I used wax(putty) to keep it curly after i wash it...mousse is okay...though the curls weren't as apparent after a while with mousse.

[Guest xindi]

@Rissalicious thank youuu n__n

@* veenee if you have a Japanese straight perm, the part of your hair that has the straight perm won't take to the digital perm as well since it still has chemicals straightening it. I only overheard my stylist telling one of her customers this on the phone so I don't know many details XD she said something about how it would still perm, but the curls won't be as perfect.

@ inspired04 I use Redken's Fresh Curls shampoo and curling gel, those made a huge difference for me! they are kind of pricey though :x (I use my mom's discount to get them for $8 each haha)

though if your curls become limp waves no matter what you do with them, you should probably visit your stylist again. if you click back a few pages, you can see that when I first got it permed, the top half of my hair didn't take to the solution and became barely-there waves, so I had to get it re-permed >__< (for free though! 8D)

[Guest inspired04]

@Rissalicious thank youuu n__n

@* veenee if you have a Japanese straight perm, the part of your hair that has the straight perm won't take to the digital perm as well since it still has chemicals straightening it. I only overheard my stylist telling one of her customers this on the phone so I don't know many details XD she said something about how it would still perm, but the curls won't be as perfect.

@ inspired04 I use Redken's Fresh Curls shampoo and curling gel, those made a huge difference for me! they are kind of pricey though :x (I use my mom's discount to get them for $8 each haha)

though if your curls become limp waves no matter what you do with them, you should probably visit your stylist again. if you click back a few pages, you can see that when I first got it permed, the top half of my hair didn't take to the solution and became barely-there waves, so I had to get it re-permed >__< (for free though! 8D)

is this what you're talking about? http://makeupalley.com/product/showreview.asp/ItemId=31348/Fresh-Curls-scrunch-gel/Redken/Styling-Products (scrunch gel)

or this one? http://makeupalley.com/product/showreview.asp/ItemId=97537/Fresh-Curls-Curl-Refiner/Redken/Styling-Products (curl refiner)

[Guest KTZ811]

I'm sorry for my SUUUPER late reply but I've been doing this and it really does make your curls smoother + the right kind of loose curl! thank you!

I'm fairly sure the chemicals in the pool would affect the chemicals from the perm (I forgot where I read it, but I recall some story about a girl who got an Asian mom perm as a kid and swam everyday to get rid of it haha) but you should always ask your stylist to be sure!

Anyway I'm BAAACK just to update a recent discovery! with digiperm, your hair is a lot more easily affected by those overnight/no-heat curl methods. My hair is naturally very stubbornly straight, so any kind of overnight bun, braid, etc. would give a very limp curl that would disappear within an hour.

Anyway after a rush morning with my hair slightly damp and untwisted, I put it into a french braid and here's there result at the end of the day! It's more loose wave than curly like it usually is. yaaay

*quoted image*

HAIR MONSTER AHH

curls in a digital perm are really easily to manipulate the way you want them to be. you just have to figure out how!

Girl you hair is just SOOO GORGEOUS!! May I ask what do you use to keep your hair from frizzing? Mine hella frizzes like crazy so it looks like I have an afro! lol

[Guest Osakagrl]

So I am caucasian and my hair is very fine yet slightly thin (not horribly) and my hair is also almost shoulder length. Would a digital perm work for me? My hair holds curls really well when I do a pin curl wet set or use a curling iron...but since Im going to Japan in March Its pretty cheap to get it there....

[Guest superstar`kiss]

I just got mine done today and I'm excited of how it'll turn out in a few days. I feel that my waves were a little smaller than what I wanted, but I think once it begins to weigh down a bit, I'll start liking it more.

Any frizz control products that anyone can recommend? My hair looked super messy today after the whole blow drying was down at the salon. >_<

[Guest shockingpinkz]

^

^yup samee, I twirl it and then scrunch up the coil.

heeyyy you guys it's been a while..!! haha

It's been about 2 months since I got my perm and here's my update with more picturesss

I LOVE IT MORE THAN EVER~ feels like curly hair is just a part of me now haha. I look at my before pictures with super straight hair and I'm just like o__o LOL

I've found that this style works best if you shower in the morning and let it air dry. With college lifestyle I have no problem with that, but this might be too time consuming for anyone with normal 8AM classes. I'm sure there's a way to blow dry them, but I don't know how since for me that usually ends up with few curls and lots of frizz XD

If you just shower at night though, you can just rewet + twirl + scrunch your hair in the morning with water at the sink or something. The result won't be as curly as if you take a shower in the morning, but it still works out fine as you can see by the picture! ^__^

Your curls can be pretty versatile depending on how you style them. I still do the same: blot/scrunch towel dry, wait a bit, apply curling gel, and twist/scrunch my hair into 8 sections (on each side, 3 for top layers and 1 big one for bottom layers).

*quoted image*

Shower in the morning + twisting and keeping the coils in tact

EDIT: woahh for some reason in this picture it looks like I have black roots growing in LOL TT__TT ... that's my natural hair color ;_;

*quoted image*

Shower at night + rewet/twist in the morning on a really good hair day haha :3

*quoted image*

Shower in the morning + lazy twisting + wind blown hair from riding my bike LOL

I love your hair! I need to re-perm my hair soon (its been over a year). What size curls did you ask for? Large curls or Medium curls? My hair is only a few inches shorter than yours but I'm still contemplating what size to get.

[Guest papiroflexia]

Hey guys, I was planning to get a digital perm soon but I have a few questions.

I have thin, fine, straight hair and from my research it seems like I can only get waves?

I don't mind that, that's what I want anyways but I was wondering if I was to dress up and curl my hair, can I?

And I like to do sports. Tying my hair up wouldn't ruin the perm much would it? And last question, how would I add volume to my hair since blow drying makes it frizz?

I'm just hesitant since it's expensive and I don't want to ruin my hair or regret it.

[Guest darkmist]

Hey guys, I was planning to get a digital perm soon but I have a few questions.

I have thin, fine, straight hair and from my research it seems like I can only get waves?

I don't mind that, that's what I want anyways but I was wondering if I was to dress up and curl my hair, can I?

And I like to do sports. Tying my hair up wouldn't ruin the perm much would it? And last question, how would I add volume to my hair since blow drying makes it frizz?

I'm just hesitant since it's expensive and I don't want to ruin my hair or regret it.

I've permed my hair twice - while I got a cold perm both times (my hair was wrapped in sections around various sized rods, drizzled in perm solution and waited for like 30-40 mins with no heat and was all done) and I can't say for sure whether or not you'll just get waves with a digi, I'm assuming the post-perm haircare is all the same anyway.

Yes you can curl your hair after a perm - however remember to use lower heat settings than normal since your hair already is permed and damaged from perming (to what extent it depends on your own hair). To get nice bigger curls without using curling iron, invest in a diffuser and use that to dry your hair - so you know how you can grab you hair from the bottom and scrunch up? That's what you do with a diffuser, only instead of using your hand to scrunch, you use the diffuser and dry your hair that way. This also helps to elimiante frizz. You can tease for additional volume if you want and add hairspray to keep the curls lasting nicely throughout the day. Frizz can also be controlled through different shampoo/conditioners (look around for anti-frizz onthe label) or hairsprays.

[Guest -bagsholic]

hello, i had a digital perm last week in a japanese salon in toronto. immediately after the perm, only the ends were curly. after 2 hair washes, my curls looked like loose waves..the salon said they could re-perm it.

has anyone digitally-permed twice in a row? another question, how long should the process take? i think the stylist heated my hair for 30 mins. then applied a solution for 10 mins. then wash and dry - is this normal?

[Guest xindi]

Hey guys, I was planning to get a digital perm soon but I have a few questions.

I have thin, fine, straight hair and from my research it seems like I can only get waves?

I don't mind that, that's what I want anyways but I was wondering if I was to dress up and curl my hair, can I?

And I like to do sports. Tying my hair up wouldn't ruin the perm much would it? And last question, how would I add volume to my hair since blow drying makes it frizz?

I'm just hesitant since it's expensive and I don't want to ruin my hair or regret it.

I have thin hair as well. It depends on how fine your hair is really, but you definitely cannot get the big loose curls that are the most popular. And if you get moderately big curls, you can't have your hair that long since it won't be able to withstand the weight of the curls--it would just turn out limp and weakly wavy. You can get a perm still, you just have more limited options. I have a digital perm with thin hair and it still worked out fine

My hair stylist specifically advised against tying up your hair; she said try wrapping it into a bun and using a clip instead. I don't really know why that's so, but I shamelessly tie my hair into "Korean" style buns all the time LOL, and it still worked out fine ^^ For volume, I imagine you'd have to find the right mousse/product and the right method to blow dry... trial and error.

hello, i had a digital perm last week in a japanese salon in toronto. immediately after the perm, only the ends were curly. after 2 hair washes, my curls looked like loose waves..the salon said they could re-perm it.

has anyone digitally-permed twice in a row? another question, how long should the process take? i think the stylist heated my hair for 30 mins. then applied a solution for 10 mins. then wash and dry - is this normal?

hello, i had a digital perm last week in a japanese salon in toronto. immediately after the perm, only the ends were curly. after 2 hair washes, my curls looked like loose waves..the salon said they could re-perm it.

has anyone digitally-permed twice in a row? another question, how long should the process take? i think the stylist heated my hair for 30 mins. then applied a solution for 10 mins. then wash and dry - is this normal?

It should take way more than 40 minutes... 2 hours at least! I think mine took 3-4 hours, I don't remember.

Hello everyone, it's been a while! LOL it seems like I'm the only one who updates this thread XD but when I was mulling over the decision of getting a digital perm, this thread helped me a lot!! So I might as well give back.

Soo my hair got really long and the curls were getting to be a pain to manage. As I previously stated, I have very fine hair that didn't do well in holding up the weight of curls. I had to do overnight methods to keep them nice, which isn't that much of a hassle, but I'm lazy LOL.

So I cut off ~5-6 inches of my hair and stopped using my curling shampoo, expecting my hair to fall straight... ironically my curls are now nicer than ever HAHA. Also my hair started growing a LOT faster, it was just below my shoulders when I cut it on before the New Year; the pictures here are recent '

Before I cut it:

(I cheated with overnight methods to make them look good--I separated my hair into top and bottom section and used 2 snap curls for anyone wondering)

After:

(it's slightly shorter and poofy in the second picture because this is just after it fully dried... it dies down a little bit haha)

aaand in a bun:

STYLING METHOD: I find that now, my curls look best with minimal maintenance. All I do is scrunch it after the shower with curling gel, and that's it! I don't twirl them into ropes anymore, maybe just to a few random sections that appear limp. It takes longer for my hair to dry that way, but I don't start class till 10-11 so whatever LOL

Random details: I also straighten them from time to time, and they revive themselves in the shower. Also, my hair is naturally brown and it became a lighter brown after the perm... which is annoying cuz now it looks I have roots ;_;

As a time marker, I got this perm in July and it's still pretty curly!

as always, let me know if you have any questions and I'd be happy to help

[Guest meringue]

STYLING METHOD: I find that now, my curls look best with minimal maintenance. All I do is scrunch it after the shower with curling gel, and that's it! I don't twirl them into ropes anymore, maybe just to a few random sections that appear limp. It takes longer for my hair to dry that way, but I don't start class till 10-11 so whatever LOL

I agree that minimal maintenance makes curls look their best. I used to separate my hair into 2-4 strands and then twirl them and clip them to my head so they stay curled up. They took forever to dry and I felt like my curls looked too "done up". These days I just twirl or scrunch lightly (and not clip them to my head!) and my curls look much nicer, kind of like the curls that the girl on my avatar has. I also add a bit of mousse while my hair is still wet to minimize frizz. Otherwise I add a frizz-serum if my hair already dry.

[Guest sueee]

So, I went to the salon yesterday and went in thnking about getting my hair coated, highlighted, and cut. While waiting, I decided to not trim or highlight my hair because I'm trying to grow it out and got a digital perm with coating instead. There were 3 people working on my hair (the main stylist and two helpers) because there were a lot of customers. Once my perm was done, they had washed my hair and it was really curly (with small curls). The stylist didn't style my hair because she said it wasn't good to dry it too much. I had left only to notice i got really small waves that were not the same all around (right side has larger waves and left side has smaller waves). Thinking that I probably messed with it too much and caused it to flatten, I washed my hair again today (was really curly with small curls), scrunched it, and let it air dry and it came out the same. Did something go wrong with my digital perm? If it did, I'm thinking maybe it's because so many people were working on my hair. My friend couldn't even tell that i got a digital perm. She thought I had either crimped or braided it. Should I go get it redone?

before i got it permed (naturally)

after i got it digital permed

[damyoungji]

I am planning to get my hair wavy (same as loose curls?) soon. I was going to get it digital permed towards the end of April, but since graduation pictures are to happen most likely in March, I want to get it done in time so that the curls will look natural (not messy).

Do you think my hair is long enough to be digital permed? I do not want to risk the chances of it looking shorter than it already does in the picture (the front is now a tiny bit longer, and the back is just above my breasts). My jawline is not that skinny (when I have no facial reaction whatsoever), so do you think it is good to get the digital perm sometime soon? If not, how much longer should I grow out my hair? I prefer taking my graduation picture with loose curls, but if it is going to make my face look bloated, I rather not risk it. Some hairdressers tell me to grow it a bit longer, while others say it will be fine to get it done now. I like to hear other peoples opinion since I have no clue if the hairdressers are either confident, or they just want the money now.

[Guest xindi]

@sueee waaait did you say you washed your hair? did you wait 2-3 days before washing it? If not, that might be the problem X: If that's not the case, it's best to ask your stylist because there are a lot of things that may have factored into it--your hair didn't take to the solution, you're not styling it quite right, etc

@amyoungji I think your hair looks long enough (: Looser curls hardly alter the length of your hair unless the hair stylist goes crazy with the trimming (like mine did). At most, the curls will shorten your hair by an inch. however, everyone has different hair and digital perms don't always turn out the same (it took me a LOT of trial and error to figure out how to style it), so if you are paranoid you should wait it out until after graduation pics to get the perm.

As for making your face look bloated, I heard that loose curls flatter the face, not make it look wider

[Guest yoobin.chunsa]

most of you girls have beautiful NATURAL straight hair. I've always wanted to have my hair permed but i dont think that i should cause my hair is "slightly rebonded" ( umm.. cause my hair is naturally wavy and thick. semi rebond is a rebond that is not really straight, the volume rebond maybe) Though my hair looks naturally straight and soft with this kind of treatment. So I wonder if its ok to perm my hair. Im worried about my slightly wavy roots -.-

[Guest Rekidai]

sooo I got my hair permed in dec. i need some input! So i use a calming balm and did big rollers when i did my digital perm. Now its March! so three months later..i twist it before i go to sleep and my hair at the back is all limp. can anyone give me some tips to fix this? when its wet i put curl calming balm on it than spray it with treseme curling strong hold.

I was thinking about waiting for it to dry 80% than try doing this method again and twisting. If i don't twist it at all it dries straight-ish. straight and some limps. This is also my first time doing digital perm. If i get it re-done would it hold better? should i also try doing it with smaller curls? : ( anything would help thanks!

[Guest Midnite-Candi]

lol i had di-perm when it was shortish XD yeah it really does make the hair an inch short >.< dats the one default~ the other was dat i sucked at taking care of it =/ it was really pretty tho! soft ringlets~ <3 i totally reccomend but u shud go only if u hav the confidence to take time to style it... like u wont just expect it to do by itself like straight perm~

[Guest mrs.kirrard]

okay  so i have always had really soft, shiny, stick-straight hair. i never dyed it, never permed it. i rarely ever used any kind of heat on it (i would always air-dry my hair, never straightened it or curled it). my hair grows pretty quickly too so i used to donate it a lot to various organizations for cancer patients/wigs/etc. people always complimented me on my hair, but i was never satisfied. i thought it was boring. and then last year or so, i started curling my hair more often (maybe once every 2-3 weeks or so) and i LOVED it. i love curly hair. i  always have. i thought big, voluminous, wavy hair was beautiful. i would get frustrated because my hair was SO straight (complete 생머리), that even if i curled it and doused it in hairspray, within a few hours it would become limp and lifeless.

so i decided to get a digital perm. i grew my hair out (as shown in the above pictures, i grew my hair halfway down my back and had a few layers - the shortest layer would sit halfway down my chest, the longest layer about an inch past my boobs). i researched everything possible - to-dos, aftercare tips, horror stories, etc. and it seemed like it would be great for me. i went and got the digi perm yesterday. i was really hesitant at first, however, the hairdresser, my mother, and the majority of my friends (through texts) were pushing me to do it and said it would look nice.

so i went through with it. i told the lady that i wanted big, loose waves/curls that looked natural and would be low maintenance (i'm a college student with mostly 8AMs, i have very little time to sit and play with my hair in the morning. normally i'd get up, shower, brush my hair, and be out the door). i told her i wanted the curls to start around my ears and to keep the top + my bangs straight. i wanted to keep the length also (i was going to ask her to trim it after the entire process was over so that i could get the fried ends cut off).

and then she pulled out her scissors and i could tell something was going to go very wrong. she chopped off a lot of the length and layered it a lot - the top being very heavy and choppy and short. the bottom layer was long but pretty thin. she then added some chemical to my hair and then started rolling them into rollers. i specifically told her i wanted the big ones so that i'd have loose curls, but she said that my hair was TOO straight, so that it probably wouldn't come out that well. so she alternated with some medium rollers and large rollers. she also rolled them ALL THE WAY TO THE TOP OF MY HEAD. she even took some of my bangs, but said it would look better because it would give me more volume + make the bangs blend in with the hair better. but she left some of the bangs down/straight. i was scared.

she clipped the octopus machine (LOL) onto my head then and left me for about 30 mins. then she undid them, washed my hair with water, put me under one of the cooling/heating helmet things for 5 mins, then put neutralizer on the rollers for about 10 mins, and then undid the rollers. she washed my hair with shampoo and told me to towel blot - and then i was done. (i was so confused because all the things i read about digital perms said that it took about 3-4 hours. it took me maybe an hour and 45 minutes or so.)

okay so the top 2 pictures are from last night, after i got home and it had finished air-drying (with a curl shine essence thing she had put in). it was fluffy and poofy and kind of frizzy. it looked very messy and unkempt - nothing like the big, loose, shiny curls i had been expecting. even the hairdresser could tell that this wasn't what i had been expecting and assured me that within 2 weeks or so it'd be perfect/look fine. 

the bottom 2 pictures are from this morning. 1 after i showered and towel blotted and let sit for an hour (it takes about 3 hours for it to fully air dry, i realized today). it still looks very tight and wet and messy. i added the shine essence product she gave me and twirled it, as instructed. the bottom right picture was taken just now - 7 hours later. it's back to looking poofy, frizzy, and messy. it's also kind of limp in some places, but then tighter in other areas. like.. there's one section of my hair that's almost straight - with a SLIGHT fail wave at the very bottom/tip. while the top layers of my hair are tight curls.

it looks like a mix between a middle school student scrunching her hair with gel + an old lady/ahjuhmah perm. it feels a little stiff in some areas and the ends feel terrible. it's as if i curled my hair the day before, hairsprayed it, and slept on it - so it has the kind of crunchy, limp feel/look. i'm so unhappy. i feel so terrible for taking my straight 생머리 for granted for so many years. i really wish i could just go back in time and refuse to get it done :\ everyone's telling me that within a month or so the poofiness should go away and it'll look much better... but i'm just so unhappy with it right now.

does anyone have more care tips? it's only the second day for me. i switched to a moisturizing/damage repair shampoo and conditioner. i also want to straighten the portion of my bangs that she curled (would that be bad for my hair?) sigh. at this point, i'd welcome any help. T_T i want my hair to look better/healthy again.