SPINOFF: The blow dryers at Dominican Salons

[Solitude]

When I tell people I got Dominican blowouts for 7 months of my 12 month transition, they run the other way or just say "oh". Would I get DBs every other week now that I am natural and only rarely use heat? Probably not. However, they worked for me back in 2007-08, and my hair flourished. I could go as far as to say I would never have transitioned if it had not been for the coaxing of my Dominican stylist. Back when I was afraid of my curly hair, having someone tell me I could go to the salon down the street and get it straightened without the chemicals was the greatest thing I had ever heard of. Yes, people do have bad experiences, but that does not account for ALL experiences.

Yes, even when I went at 5 months post, I never heard "you need a relaxer," which I used to hear at 8 weeks from other stylists.

I definitely think it's important for people to know that there are good and bad experiences so each person can decided for herself. Thanks for sharing!

When you have thick gorgeous hair, you can get away with ANYTHING!!

Lovely!

OP: Let me start by saying I think your hair looks great, and you've made good progress. But (dipping toe in post) I do think you could have much more progress if you were not applying so much heat. Now, I am completely biased. The blow dryer has never been my friend and the dominican method literally tore my hair up. But my stylist uses as similar method (roller set with blow dry) with less heat and less tension, and I went from barely SL to BSL in a little over a year. As long as you are not noticing breakage around the edges and in the top of your hair, I would believe you are not using excessive heat.

But if when it comes time to wash your hair you have stray, shorter pieces sticking out, that's breakage. One of the reasons people are misled by the dominican salon results is that the straightening process smoothes down the broken portions so they blend in with the longer hair and it's not as obvious after it's done. As I always say, look at the hair of the people coming in, not the ones going out. GL!

Hi Cherokee-in-Black. Thanks for sharing your experience.

Back in Houston (that's where I'm from), my stylist did roller-wraps, which are probably "healthier" but I was too impatient to sit under the hood dryer back then and I would just ask her to blow-dry and flat-iron it (I also applied heat at home, which damaged my ends/ I then needed trims/ and so on....) so yes, there are variations on this method that use less heat with the same or similar results. Because I am relaxed, I don't need a ton of heat used on my hair after a rollerset.

I don't really know how much more progress I could have made than going from chin/nape length to almost APL...I'm pretty happy with it. I don't have any broken pieces in my hair; I had layers. Actually, when I started the middle of my hair simply wouldn't grow (retain length). It was constantly breaking, which was why I had a layered cut and now it is only an inch shorter than my longest layer.

I also take careful care of my hair at home, instead of just depending on salons. I think you have a good point, though. People should make sure that they are familiar with the health of their hair instead of just going by what looks good in the end results.

 

[Ms. A.Sunshine]

OP: Let me start by saying I think your hair looks great, and you've made good progress. But (dipping toe in post) I do think you could have much more progress if you were not applying so much heat. Now, I am completely biased. The blow dryer has never been my friend and the dominican method literally tore my hair up. But my stylist uses as similar method (roller set with blow dry) with less heat and less tension, and I went from barely SL to BSL in a little over a year. As long as you are not noticing breakage around the edges and in the top of your hair, I would believe you are not using excessive heat.

But if when it comes time to wash your hair you have stray, shorter pieces sticking out, that's breakage. One of the reasons people are misled by the dominican salon results is that the straightening process smoothes down the broken portions so they blend in with the longer hair and it's not as obvious after it's done. As I always say, look at the hair of the people coming in, not the ones going out. GL!

I had to say something about the bolded part....what some people fail to realize when hair sheds new hair grows back in its place so sometimes you see shorter pieces that does NOT always equal breakage especially if its a strand here or there....breakage usually affects a section is is quite obvious those fly aways pieces are new hairs growing in...and EVERBODY has them.

 

[Lovestyr]

First off your hair is beautiful!!nice and thick hair...I havent been to a dominican salon yet. I plan on going to one after my current 24 week stretch.

I have read the threads concerning the heat and I think the heat is fine as long as you get it done in moderation.

 

[brownbean96]

I have to agree...it's kind of discouraging to hear people go so hard on Dominican salons. The comments that go super hard/that are super negative have the unflattering ring of being very judgmental and falling in to the category of hair Nazi-ism. I experienced that on NP - it was very hard to tolerate. I loved the great info but the bias views (and I get why they do it) were not for me. That's why I appreciate this site but when people use scare tactics its not cool in my book. I adore when women share their experience (good or bad) but I'm not here for folks to preach to me or scare me out of doing something.
You have to do what works for you and for the most part, in order to know what DOES work for you, you have to open to trying things that make sense to YOU.

Not directed at you, BUT people also thrive on drama. When she shared a negative experience, there were a ton of sympathy responses (and rightfully so), but when someone like me shares a POSITIVE Dominican salon experience, most people don't have anything good to say. I just find that strange.

If I had posted a thread about "omg, those dominicans burnt my hair!" folks would be in here shaking their heads and commenting right and left. Sometimes I think people of here enjoy setbacks and drama more than progress and positivity. We spend more time talking about what doesn't work, what is harmful, what causes setbacks, breakage, split ends, and what not to do....I guess I've been around here too long, maybe I need to take a break but I'm still technically a newbie *sigh.*

 

[clever]

Thanks so much for this thread!I've been toying with the idea of doing blowouts at home.I'm natural and when I want my hair straight I normally rollerset and then flat iron but since I moved up to the huge purple/black rollers I can't fit under the pibbs so I end up using smaller rollers but roots are still damp.I just ordered a marilyn round brush and this blower

Hopefully this will help some.I'll post results after I try it.

 

[clever]

Folica has a 10% off coupon (top10).

 

[Solitude]

I have to agree...it's kind of discouraging to hear people go so hard on Dominican salons. The comments that go super hard/that are super negative have the unflattering ring of being very judgmental and falling in to the category of hair Nazi-ism. I experienced that on NP - it was very hard to tolerate. I loved the great info but the bias views (and I get why they do it) were not for me. That's why I appreciate this site but when people use scare tactics its not cool in my book. I adore when women share their experience (good or bad) but I'm not here for folks to preach to me or scare me out of doing something.
You have to do what works for you and for the most part, in order to know what DOES work for you, you have to open to trying things that make sense to YOU.

Yeah, it's crazy. I've been spending less time online, since I pretty much have my reggie down and I don't need any more products. I'm on a personal roller-setting challenge for the rest of the year. Blowouts are working for me, so I'm going to stick with them and update at the end of the year.