Keratin Treatment Support Thread

[MarieB]

^^Yeah I read this a few days ago. Either adding to your shampoo or coloring your hair just prior to the treatment is supposed to help raise the cuticle so the BKT takes better. I did it the other day--added 10% developer to my poo before I BKT'd with d****h*** (I know we're boycotting but that doesn't mean I can't use something I already have lying around, right?). I also checked out their site before I started just to see if they had any extra steps or techniques that I was previously unaware of. Turns out they don't recommend the naked blow-dry, and they do suggest a quick flat iron at low heat (they didn't say what temperature, but definitely lower than what you use to seal) on the roots, then go for the high heat to seal. I did that, and so far the results are good. Did my first wash last night, and my hair is smooth and swangin'! Took me about 2 minutes to blow dry, too!

 

[Mecca_Goddess]

^^Yeah I read this a few days ago. Either adding to your shampoo or coloring your hair just prior to the treatment is supposed to help raise the cuticle so the BKT takes better. I did it the other day--added 10% developer to my poo before I BKT'd with d****h*** (I know we're boycotting but that doesn't mean I can't use something I already have lying around, right?). I also checked out their site before I started just to see if they had any extra steps or techniques that I was previously unaware of. Turns out they don't recommend the naked blow-dry, and they do suggest a quick flat iron at low heat (they didn't say what temperature, but definitely lower than what you use to seal) on the roots, then go for the high heat to seal. I did that, and so far the results are good. Did my first wash last night, and my hair is smooth and swangin'! Took me about 2 minutes to blow dry, too!

Interesting concept! What made you choose to use 10% developer instead of another level?

I actually want black hair again, so I guess this would work the same way. Does it matter if it is permanent or semi???

 

[CeCeUNedited]

As anyone experienced issues with damage to your curl pattern from the heat or the treatment?h

 

[mstar]

I just semi-stripped my BKT in preparation for my henna treatment, and I'm pleased to learn that my heat damage isn't as bad as I thought. Some of my ends remained stick-straight (definite heat damage), but other parts got quite frizzy after I did a Kiyafizzle conditioner, and clarified with sulfates. This is really good news.

I have the henna on my hair now...I'm praying that it will cover up this damn gray (I have two long strands of grey right in the area where I part my hair in front ), and that it will help my coils relax so that the BKT won't have to work as hard to make my hair straight.

The number of passes definitely makes a difference. My stylist did about 7 passes per section. The directions say up to 10 passes per section.

When I did a Rejuvenol treatment a few months ago, I used only 2 passes. I had to got back over my hair the next day with 2 - 3 additional passes to get my hair to look like my typical BKT. That BKT treatment reverted faster than the others.

Thanks for reminding me of these two important points: the use of developer, and doing enough passes with the flat iron. I forgot that a developer was used in the shampoo for my original treatment. Do you think it would be okay for me to use developer for my BKT next week, even though I won't be working with virgin hair? Although I've attempted to 'strip' my hair, it's definitely not completely free of the chemicals.

Your hair looks great, by the way...I love the shine.

What temp do you flat iron your edges with BKT?

I had the stylists use the pressing comb on my edges, so I'm not sure about the temperature. Although they're filling in nicely, my edges are still quite short...a little too short to be straightened effectively with a flat iron alone.

 

[MarieB]

Interesting concept! What made you choose to use 10% developer instead of another level?

I actually want black hair again, so I guess this would work the same way. Does it matter if it is permanent or semi???

Well, I used demi-permanent a couple of days before I applied the BKT. I used 10% because that's what I had on hand, and it seemed safer than 20%. I wasn't trying to go blonde lol. I have used Bigen before with no adverse effects. HTH.

 

[naturalmanenyc]

I have not yet done my first wash out (although it has now been 4 days) so I am not sure if using the 10 volume developer makes a difference or not.

I

Thanks for reminding me of these two important points: the use of developer, and doing enough passes with the flat iron. I forgot that a developer was used in the shampoo for my original treatment. Do you think it would be okay for me to use developer for my BKT next week, even though I won't be working with virgin hair? Although I've attempted to 'strip' my hair, it's definitely not completely free of the chemicals.

Your hair looks great, by the way...I love the shine.

 

[Mecca_Goddess]

So far I have used 2 brands.. MT and QOD Max...

They both made my hair softer and wayyyy more manageable, but I really think that QOD Max had the most effect on loosening my curl pattern. I luv it!!!

Anyone else notice this with QOD Max???

 

[Dove56]

So far I have used 2 brands.. MT and QOD Max...

They both made my hair softer and wayyyy more manageable, but I really think that QOD Max had the most effect on loosening my curl pattern. I luv it!!!

Anyone else notice this with QOD Max???

My hair gets bone straight with QOD Max...the middle of my hair is very curly so it get about 75% straight but about 90% of my hair gets bone straight.

 

[Mecca_Goddess]

My hair gets bone straight with QOD Max...the middle of my hair is very curly so it get about 75% straight but about 90% of my hair gets bone straight.

I was def. amazed! I can't say that I want to have "out of the shower straight hair", but I def. would like to get to 3a texture if possible.

I am considering doing another QOD Max in 1 month.

Let the layering begin!!!

 

[me-T]

My hair gets bone straight with QOD Max...the middle of my hair is very curly so it get about 75% straight but about 90% of my hair gets bone straight.

*takes note for when my marcia runs out*

 

[Mecca_Goddess]

*takes note for when my marcia runs out*

me_T.... Do you use the developer method? Just curious....

 

[me-T]

nah, never heard of it til now actually

 

[AtlantaJJ]

Maybe i missed this somewhere, but what exactly is the developer used for????

ETA:
After going back and doing some research I found out that those who do this use it as a way to enhance the treatment and to enhance te results on "virgin hair"... Am I right on this one?

I think this may be why my results were not exactly what I wanted.....

The developer helps increase the porosity of virgin hair so that it can take the treatment better. I have some gray hairs to color so I'm going for a two-for-one using the developer right before my BKT

 

[me-T]

i'm scared to try any of that cause when the day comes that i want my hair to fully revert, i don't want to uncover any crazy damage.

 

[AtlantaJJ]

i'm scared to try any of that cause when the day comes that i want my hair to fully revert, i don't want to uncover any crazy damage.

It's not necessary to get a good BKT. I color my hair anyway so it works out for me. 10% volume developer is fairly mild anyways. 30% and 40% developer is what's used to get color to lift a couple of shades. That's strong.

 

[Mecca_Goddess]

The developer helps increase the porosity of virgin hair so that it can take the treatment better. I have some gray hairs to color so I'm going for a two-for-one using the developer right before my BKT

That makes sense. It has been almost 6 months since I last dyed my hair. I guess that my hair is not virgin anymore, but would it still be beneficial?

 

[naturalmanenyc]

I did my first wash out after the Marcia Teixeira Chocolate BKTand my curls are back

I did momentarily freak out when my curls did not come back after my inital wash with WEN Fig; however, once I washed with Rejuvenol aftercare shampoo, all was normal again. I also did a steam treatment for 15 minutes with Giovanni Smooth as silk.

ETA: I do think using the 10 volume developer did loosen my curls a bit more than usual. We only used the developer for 1 wash, not 3 washes per the directions. I am guessing that using 3 washes (with developer) would have gotten my hair much straighter than I want.

After initial water rinse (no shampoo)

clean hair, after steam treatment

That one piece of hair in the back has been looser than the rest for about 1 year. So long as it does curl back up, I will not trim it off.

I finally tried the Marcia Teixeira Chocolate BKT. I bought a 4 ounce sample from a BHM member a few weeks ago and had been itching to try it out. I did not want to do this treatment myself so I went to my stylist who had done my first Rejuvenol BKT, Erica Diggs. Check her out http://www.youtube.com/IAmEricaMakeupArtist or [email protected]. Erica is now using Lasio One Day BKT. Lasio smells like bubble gum to me and it is a spray on BKT - $150.

My first BKT was the Lasio One Day treatment and then I had Rejuvenol done for the last 6 treatments and now for treatment #8 I used the Marcia Teixeira Chocolate BKT.

The Marcia T Chocolate is very different from the Lasio spray on treatment and also the Rejuvenol cream based treatment. Like Rejuvenol, Marcia T Chocolate is cream based but Marcia T is much thicker. I can usually do my Rejuvenol BKT with 2 ounces but for the Marcia T we used the entire 4 ounces. In fact, since the Marcia T is used on 100% dry hair, my hair sucked up the treatment. I will also add that for my virgin hair we did use 10 volume developer mixed in the pre-treatment shampoo. The directions recommend 20 volume developer but I was afraid to have my hair turn colors.

I have been wearing my hair out 95% of the time and I had a ton of tangles and single strand knots. The initial blow out was a pain. If I could bring myself to protective style at least 50% of the time, I would probably have less single strand knots and be able to retain more length. I have thin ends, since I do not protect them like I should, but since my hair is curly 95% of the time, I do not trim them off.

The Marcia T is put on with a color brush and it makes the hair somewhat heavy. My hair felt much more coated and sticky with Marcia T than with Rejuvenol. Marcia T felt more sticky to me than Lasio or even Rejuvenol. I felt that I lost more hair during the blowout with the treatment on my hair due to the stickiness of the product. There were also LOTS of fumes. Granted, the treatment smells like chocolate but the fumes did cause my eyes to water. Also, it was much more smokey in the room when we did the blow out than with Lasio or Rejuvenol.

After the blowout, my hair was flat ironed in tiny sections. We used my easy comb (conair version) - http://www.fabove.ca/mm5/images/hairstyling/ez_comb3.jpg
My eyes also watered during the flat iron which is not something that happens with Rejuvenol or Lasio. My hair has lots of movement and it smells like chocolate.

We started around 12:30 p.m. and I was done by about 3:30 p.m.

I expect this treatment to wear off in 2 - 3 months like the last few treatments. If it does last longer, it will likely be due to using the 10 volume developer mixed in with the shampoo.

The first wash out will be the real test of how well this treatment works. Although I do like the chocolate smell, I will not be ordering this Chocolate treatment again. The fumes were far too heavy for me. I did not like the sticky feeling that the treatment gave my hair. I felt that I lost a lot of hair during the blow out due to the product being somewhat sticky. My FHI Runway was also coated with the product. We switched to use Erica's flat iron about half way through so my Runway would not be ruined.


My hair this morning

My hair now

Back shot - I really need to stop wearing my hair out 95% of the time. If I could bring myself to protective style, I would retain more length.

 

[AtlantaJJ]

I'm all colored, got my MTA in, and I'm ready to flat iron. I'm amazed at how much my hair has grown in 6 months! Which reminds me, let me have a glass of whey protein isolate before I get started!

ETA: This is the first time I am using my Ression Tool on my edges I really like it! I am using at about 380 degrees.

I'm so slow! LOL

 

[nakialovesshoes]

Ladies I need some advice. I came here because I've been entertaining a BKT for some time but was scared for some reason that it wouldn't work for me & my hair would be ruined.

I have a curl & for the most part I like how manageable it makes my natural hair but with the same look as my natural hair. The issue is unless I touch it up every 3 months, my hair tends to break at the demarcation line.

My hair is past my bra strap & nearing the longest it has ever been in my life. I know the idea around here is health before length but I don't want to lose my progress & start all over. Currently my hair is thick enough that you can't see the breakage unless you part my hair & really inspect.

I had been talking to Dontspeakdefeat & she thinks that the BKT would definitely help strengthen my hair at the demarcation line as I transition. Because the BKT would make my jheri curl hair go straight, I'm assuming I would have to wear my hair straight until I chop all of my chemical ends.

What do you ladies think? In the end I want to use the BKT to make my natural hair more manageable but without the permanance of the curl. But I want to do gradual trims - no BCs.

 

[MarieB]

Well if DSD says you're cool to do it on a Jheri curl, I'd say go ahead (being that she's a professional). I know that I have BKT'd on both relaxed and semi-natural hair, and I have experienced no adverse effects. I actually think it's the best thing that ever happened to my hair, truth be told. Good luck, nakia. Are you doing it yourself?

 

[AtlantaJJ]

Ladies I need some advice. I came here because I've been entertaining a BKT for some time but was scared for some reason that it wouldn't work for me & my hair would be ruined.

I have a curl & for the most part I like how manageable it makes my natural hair but with the same look as my natural hair. The issue is unless I touch it up every 3 months, my hair tends to break at the demarcation line.

My hair is past my bra strap & nearing the longest it has ever been in my life. I know the idea around here is health before length but I don't want to lose my progress & start all over. Currently my hair is thick enough that you can't see the breakage unless you part my hair & really inspect.

I had been talking to Dontspeakdefeat & she thinks that the BKT would definitely help strengthen my hair at the demarcation line as I transition. Because the BKT would make my jheri curl hair go straight, I'm assuming I would have to wear my hair straight until I chop all of my chemical ends.

What do you ladies think? In the end I want to use the BKT to make my natural hair more manageable but without the permanance of the curl. But I want to do gradual trims - no BCs.

I would caution you that you may still have demarcation line issues with the BKTed hair and your natural BKTed hair because the textures will be very different especially if you have 4b hair. To help with this perhaps you could focus the BKTs on your roots as they grow out rather than doing multiple BKTs on your chemically processed ends. If you do multiple BKTs the full length of your hair, your hair with the curl will get stick straight over time while your roots will be fairly curly.

 

[MarieB]

Atlanta JJ, are you done yet? Because I'm fiending for new pitchas!

 

[nakialovesshoes]

Well if DSD says you're cool to do it on a Jheri curl, I'd say go ahead (being that she's a professional). I know that I have BKT'd on both relaxed and semi-natural hair, and I have experienced no adverse effects. I actually think it's the best thing that ever happened to my hair, truth be told. Good luck, nakia. Are you doing it yourself?

No I would go to DSD. I have absolutely no flat iron skills.

I would caution you that you may still have demarcation line issues with the BKTed hair and your natural BKTed hair because the textures will be very different especially if you have 4b hair. To help with this perhaps you could focus the BKTs on your roots as they grow out rather than doing multiple BKTs on your chemically processed ends. If you do multiple BKTs the full length of your hair, your hair with the curl will get stick straight over time while your roots will be fairly curly.

Thanks for the tip. I have kinky, wavy & curly hair all on my head - I guess I'm 4b, 4a & 3c.

I thank both of your for your input. I have one last question - if I aggressively treat my roots with the BKT for the sake of the line of demarcation, will I still revert once the chemical ends are gone & I'm ready to wear my hair natural?

 

[AtlantaJJ]

Atlanta JJ, are you done yet? Because I'm fiending for new pitchas!

This is not a picture worthy event. I had 4b virgin hair, I did a hair color which took well, but the BKT didn't come out qite like I expected. It could be because I did the color right before the treatment. The BKT did reduce my shrinkage about 50% which is very helpful but its nothing to take pictures about. It would be helpful also if I were straightening my hair. I can tell it would blow out easily and flat iron easily as well but I won't be doing either of those things. I just did the BKT for conditioning and manageability.

I forgot that I have some O.K. Keratin wash same day formula, I'll use that next month. I need to layer multiple BKTs to get this hair to stretch on out!

I'm very pleased with my hair color for now however, my grays are covered and its a nice deep black wine color

The other good news that after having done a BC back in March to about 2 inches, I have about 2 - 3 inches of new growth all around. That's good growth for me!

ETA: I'm conditioning with Biolage CeraRepair Pro, then I'll do a moisture DC. My hair is very soft and is definately more manageable so mission accomplished!

 

[naturalmanenyc]

^^I'm also a BKT'er who does not wear straight hair. It seems that about half the BKT ladies on this board are using BKT for reduced frizz for curly hair while the rest are using BKT for straight styles & transitioning. It is quite interesting to see the different uses.

 

[MsRR]

I just semi-stripped my BKT in preparation for my henna treatment, and I'm pleased to learn that my heat damage isn't as bad as I thought. Some of my ends remained stick-straight (definite heat damage), but other parts got quite frizzy after I did a Kiyafizzle conditioner, and clarified with sulfates. This is really good news.

I have the henna on my hair now...I'm praying that it will cover up this damn gray (I have two long strands of grey right in the area where I part my hair in front ), and that it will help my coils relax so that the BKT won't have to work as hard to make my hair straight.



Thanks for reminding me of these two important points: the use of developer, and doing enough passes with the flat iron. I forgot that a developer was used in the shampoo for my original treatment. Do you think it would be okay for me to use developer for my BKT next week, even though I won't be working with virgin hair? Although I've attempted to 'strip' my hair, it's definitely not completely free of the chemicals.

Your hair looks great, by the way...I love the shine.


I had the stylists use the pressing comb on my edges, so I'm not sure about the temperature. Although they're filling in nicely, my edges are still quite short...a little too short to be straightened effectively with a flat iron alone.

I did a henna on 7/13 and want to BKT my hair thats left out from my sew in. How long do you think I should wait..anyone using henna and bkt can answer this question...also do you think this is a good idea?

 

[jayjaycurlz]

Are any of you ladies using the BKT to transition? If so how many weeks post are you & when do you think you'll BC?

Hey Nakia,

I'm on a NO BC 104 week transition. I'm currently on week 47 and I have no plans to BC. BKT and henna are helping manage the two textures. So far, I love the results.

 

[jayjaycurlz]

I did a henna on 7/13 and want to BKT my hair thats left out from my sew in. How long do you think I should wait..anyone using henna and bkt can answer this question...also do you think this is a good idea?

I have a henna/indigo gloss on my head right now and I will wash this out now and BKT. Since henna raises the cuticle, I won't clarify but use a mid poo instead and the apply Encanto BKT. Last time I used too much and the fumes were horrible. This time I'll use less and do my roots only.

 

[MsRR]

I have a henna/indigo gloss on my head right now and I will wash this out now and BKT. Since henna raises the cuticle, I won't clarify but use a mid poo instead and the apply Encanto BKT. Last time I used too much and the fumes were horrible. This time I'll use less and do my roots only.

Wow! so no waiting is needed with bkt and henna..ok I will give it a try and will only do the roots this time..thanks.

 

[AtlantaJJ]

I have a henna/indigo gloss on my head right now and I will wash this out now and BKT. Since henna raises the cuticle, I won't clarify but use a mid poo instead and the apply Encanto BKT. Last time I used too much and the fumes were horrible. This time I'll use less and do my roots only.

Wow! so no waiting is needed with bkt and henna..ok I will give it a try and will only do the roots this time..thanks.

Wait, this is new news!

I didn't know that henna raises the hair cuticle, I thought it coated the cuticle.

I also thought that doing the henna and BKT close together would be a recipe for ultra dry hair. Am I wrong about that? Because if I can do these two things together, it would be my ultimate answer to my hair color / manageability issues.

Its my understanding that you should have your moisture/protein really balanced before you do the BKT. Henna leaves me on the dry side until I can do a couple of back to back DCs.