Please help my mommy's fried hair!!!

[ashk36]

My mom has been wearing her hair the same since the 70's...It's big, red, and couldn't be frizzier. Seriously...I don't think I've ever seen dryer, frizzier hair in my life. It's been like that for as long as I can imagine. It looks extremely unhealthy. I know she hates it. I wanted to get her a day at the spa for Christmas (yes, I know Christmas was yesterday, but I haven't had time to shop, and when I have, I haven't had money!!) So I'm doing my xmas shopping and gift giving in January. We talked about a day of facials and massages and pedicures and all that fun stuff, but then she said what she would really like would be to get her hair done professionally. She has always had shoulder-length hair, she's always worn it the same, it's always big, and she's scared to change. She doesn't have time to fix it every morning, we work with dogs every day so what difference does it make to them anyways? I want to make an appointment with a super nice upscale salon in our area...but I'm scared (and so is she) they won't be able to do anything with her hair. Not only is it very dry and unhealthy looking, but it's also pretty thin. I was thinking of finding an aveda salon...but really, is there anything that can be done to fix such extremely severely damaged hair? I'm scared that they'll just look at her, sigh, and say, "Oh honey, I might as well just shave it off..."

 

[gildedangel]

Well, if your mother wants her hair to change; she is going to have to start putting some time and effort into it. A little bit of that will go a long way. There is no way to fully "fix" her hair without growing out all of the way; but there are products that can be used to make it a lot better. I would find her a solid deep conditioner (I used to use Aussie DEEEEP and it worked wonders!) and a good shampoo/conditioner made for dry hair (shampoos with moist or moisturizing in the title are good bets; I love the Aussie and Pantene ones).

For a haircut, she will probably need to go shorter; like a bob style (which suits almost anyone). I have really really thin/fine hair and by the time my hair reaches my shoulders it starts to look like crap. I keep mine between chin length and a couple of inches below that. It helps it to look a lot healthier, and it is easier to take care of.

Styling products will be important too. Try to find a defrizzing product, and a solid flat iron (get a heat protectant too!). A flat iron doesn't need to be a CHI or GHD, I have a Babyliss Pro that works great and isn't horrifically spendy. It would help smooth out the hair, and with the right products can help it look healthier. Sorry this was long; I hope this helps!

 

[MaskedBeauty]

I agree. She needs to start with a deep conditioner and a reconstructor. I like Joico Kpak reconstructor. Or Neutrogena Deep Recovery Hair Mask. Also a leave in conditioner would be good too. I don't think that anyone at a very nice upscale salon would tell her they can't do anything. I would schedule a deep conditioning treatment with them and also a consultation to talk to the stylist about different styling and cut options. Have your mom find pictures of styles and cuts that she likes and take them with you for examples. Of course you won't look exactly like the picture but that always helps.

 

[ashk36]

Thanks for the quick responses. I've been looking into joico products online, but they have a ton of stuff! I think I will get her some of their shampoo & conditioner, and a deep conditioning treatment...I mean, what in particular would you recommend from them? She never spends money on herself, so I know if I got her some expensive hair products she better use them! I would love to see something make at least a tiny bit of difference in her hair's texture. It's naturally curly, but as she's gotten older, her hair has gotten dryer and it breaks a lot. She usually just keeps it up in a ponytail on top of her head. Looks just like Pebbles from the Flintstones.

 

[BEA2LS]

maybe instead of an upscale salon, she should book at a more affordable one? this way she can go back for regular trims? (unless money is not an issue for the upscale one, i am just cheap - don't mind me!)
but regular upkeep will work wonders

 

[MizzTropical]

L'Oreal Hair Fixer from Sally Beauty Supply. You do a treatment after every shampoo until u notice healthy,thicker hair again. It's amazing. Trust me after one box(6 treatments) you will notice a huge difference. Your mothers hair may take a few boxes but it's so worth a try. They retail for about $7-8 a box. I used it after a years worth of horrible bleaching and it saved my hair. I still repurchase it too.

 

[ashk36]

She actually cuts her own hair normally. She was a master barber, and now a dog groomer (cause everybody knows dogs are way better than people!) I wanted to take her somewhere upscale because she needs a new do, period. I think I'll look into some of these products tomorrow since I have the day off. I'm really interested in Joico, I want to get some of their stuff for both of us.

 

[BEA2LS]

i have a Joico shampoo, and i love it! it's for blonde hair though and mine is now red sooo not much help anymore for me there

and you're right dogs are better than people!

 

[Simply Elegant]

She'll probably have to use a bit of heavy creams with lots of oil in them and a really good deep conditioning treatment and use it twice as long as it instructs to get good results and cutting off some of the damaged ends will really help too. My hair gets dry in the winter if I don't use some cream like Frederic Fekkai brilliant glossing cream on my ends in the winter.

 

[ashk36]

WOOHOO!!! Thank GOD for those fantastic after Christmas sales. I went by Trade Secret at the mall today and they had a gift set of Joico Kpak full size shampoo & conditioner with a small bottle of split end mender stuff for around $20. I also got her another gift set of the moisture recovery and reconstructor something...I dunno they were both deep conditioning treatments, also for around $20. I brought them home and she looked so confused. "When do I use this? What order do I use them? Which one? Where? How long? What is that??" Then her head promptly exploded. She surprisingly liked the smell of everything, which is wonderful because she is super picky. I really hope it makes a difference. I told her if she doesn't use them I'll be pissed, considering I spent over $40 on hair crap for her. She said, "What, my Suave isn't good enough? It's only $3!" Yeah...she needed a hair intervention. But I think she was actually excited to get in the shower and use her new stuff. I know she would never spend that much on hair products of herself, so if I didn't do it she'd keep on with the cheap stuff. Thanks for the input guys. Sorry this is so long but I'm stoked and think I got a pretty good deal!

 

[MaskedBeauty]

Sorry it took me so long to look back at this thread. I love Joico "Kpak" reconstructor. She should use it at least once a week and leave it in for 5 mins or longer. Just while you wash the rest of your body in the shower and rinse it out like normal conditioner. I would also reccommend Biosilk Silk Therapy. When you don't blow dry your hair, after you get out of the shower put some in your hair and distribute it evenly, let your hair air dry and when its dry it will be nice and soft

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[MaskedBeauty]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ashk36 WOOHOO!!! Thank GOD for those fantastic after Christmas sales. I went by Trade Secret at the mall today and they had a gift set of Joico Kpak full size shampoo & conditioner with a small bottle of split end mender stuff for around $20. I also got her another gift set of the moisture recovery and reconstructor something...I dunno they were both deep conditioning treatments, also for around $20. I brought them home and she looked so confused. "When do I use this? What order do I use them? Which one? Where? How long? What is that??" Then her head promptly exploded. She surprisingly liked the smell of everything, which is wonderful because she is super picky. I really hope it makes a difference. I told her if she doesn't use them I'll be pissed, considering I spent over $40 on hair crap for her. She said, "What, my Suave isn't good enough? It's only $3!" Yeah...she needed a hair intervention. But I think she was actually excited to get in the shower and use her new stuff. I know she would never spend that much on hair products of herself, so if I didn't do it she'd keep on with the cheap stuff. Thanks for the input guys. Sorry this is so long but I'm stoked and think I got a pretty good deal!

Thats a REALLY good price because I pay $18.99 for the reconstructor alone!!! Good job on finding that deal!!