While I gather all of my thoughts and pictures from our Taiwan trip, here is a quick short post on my most recent digital perm experience. I've previously blogged about my experiences here, here and here, but it has been a while since my last. Deciding whether or not to get the digital perm is a bit of a tug of war every time.
On the one hand, I love the look, and it allows me to have volume and keep my hair "interesting" without any work. On the other hand, it takes absolutely forever to do (on average 4 hours, and that's assuming the chemicals "take" which with my hair is usually not the case) and I hate the smell of the chemicals. Plus, I have psoriasis on my scalp and I am sure sitting under an electric heat lamp as chemicals get forcibly imbued into my hair is about the last thing that any dermatologist would advise for me to do. But oh, vanity, thy pull is strong.
What pushed me over was a promotion that I got from hair-do, the Japanese hair salon here that has locations all over Central and Causeway Bay, as well as other parts of Hong Kong. For HK$1600, they did the entire perm including a moisture treatment. That's still not super cheap, but I know they use quality materials and have good staff, and they were not taking length of the hair into consideration. I had been thinking about doing something to change up my hair for a while now. Getting the promotional text seemed like the encouragement that I needed. In the quieter days after Thanksgiving, I decided to take the plunge.
I had previously been to Chicca of the hair-do group, and this time I decided to try Ichirin. I quite liked it. This salon felt very airy and clean, with light wood and mirrors and windows everywhere. And just like I experienced with Chicca, they offered the most interesting and thoughtful amenities. I received a locker for my personal items, which I could lock so that my possessions would not be at risk when I had to leave my salon chair, for example, to go to the hair-washing station. When washing my hair and applying the chemicals, they provided little shower caps... wait for it... for my ears. When my hairstylist wrapped the towel around my neck, it felt like he was doing origami in the air while performing an aria, he snapped it with such precision and care. So, you know, I appreciate the little touches like that.
The entire thing took about 3.5 hours, and included a trim, one chemical application, a thorough wash, rollers with heat (I guess this is the "digital" part of it), a second chemical application, another wash, and then moisturizing treatment and blow-dry. The technology has clearly improved over the years because every time I have tried this treatment the time required has decreased.
I look like an alien.
Even more so with the digital helmet attached.
When they pull off the rollers, it always looks a bit shocking at first...
This is the aftermath. Given how curly it looked in the previous picture, I was convinced it would be wavier. The stylist assured me that it was better for it to be loose waves, because at this length and given my face shape it would not be good for my hair to be too curly. I was really disappointed when I walked out of the salon but now that I have had the hairstyle for about a week I feel better about it and I think the stylist was right.
On the one hand, I love the look, and it allows me to have volume and keep my hair "interesting" without any work. On the other hand, it takes absolutely forever to do (on average 4 hours, and that's assuming the chemicals "take" which with my hair is usually not the case) and I hate the smell of the chemicals. Plus, I have psoriasis on my scalp and I am sure sitting under an electric heat lamp as chemicals get forcibly imbued into my hair is about the last thing that any dermatologist would advise for me to do. But oh, vanity, thy pull is strong.
What pushed me over was a promotion that I got from hair-do, the Japanese hair salon here that has locations all over Central and Causeway Bay, as well as other parts of Hong Kong. For HK$1600, they did the entire perm including a moisture treatment. That's still not super cheap, but I know they use quality materials and have good staff, and they were not taking length of the hair into consideration. I had been thinking about doing something to change up my hair for a while now. Getting the promotional text seemed like the encouragement that I needed. In the quieter days after Thanksgiving, I decided to take the plunge.
I had previously been to Chicca of the hair-do group, and this time I decided to try Ichirin. I quite liked it. This salon felt very airy and clean, with light wood and mirrors and windows everywhere. And just like I experienced with Chicca, they offered the most interesting and thoughtful amenities. I received a locker for my personal items, which I could lock so that my possessions would not be at risk when I had to leave my salon chair, for example, to go to the hair-washing station. When washing my hair and applying the chemicals, they provided little shower caps... wait for it... for my ears. When my hairstylist wrapped the towel around my neck, it felt like he was doing origami in the air while performing an aria, he snapped it with such precision and care. So, you know, I appreciate the little touches like that.
The entire thing took about 3.5 hours, and included a trim, one chemical application, a thorough wash, rollers with heat (I guess this is the "digital" part of it), a second chemical application, another wash, and then moisturizing treatment and blow-dry. The technology has clearly improved over the years because every time I have tried this treatment the time required has decreased.
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