So, its product review time at Kellie Central! Today were taking a look at Chi Enviro Smoothing Treatment! So, after day in the pool on Labor Day, I washed my hair and went to bed with it damp only to discover that Id awoken with ethnic hair. It was FRIZZY!! I mean, it was standing up in places where I thought gravity would surely make an appearance, but not. It was frizzalicious. My regular hair gal wasnt available, so I made an appointment at a salon to have something done about it. They use the Chi Enviro Smoothing Treatment. Its supposed to remove 95% of the frizz from your hair and give you sleeker, more manageable hair for 4-6 months. Yes, MONTHS. Before the treatment, my stylist said I was a perfect candidate for it, and that clients hed used it on before were all very impressed with the results. Without giving the blow-by-blow, and despite his assurances, I started to become skeptical of this product while still in the chair (3.5 hours) on Friday afternoon. The product, if youve never had it done, is like an application of Elmers Glue. It makes your hair humid and sticky, and it has to stay on for 48 hours. FIrst it got blow-dried with a round brush (torture!!) and then 1 strand by 1 strand (more torture!) was combed and straight-ironed to curate (I didnt have the heart to tell the guy he was using the wrong word) the product into the follicles. Now, after the hair drying, the ends of my hair became rather like a birds nest - all going different directions and basically tangled, because remember - Elmers glue-like-consistency and all. Despite all that - it had a pleasant smell, and wasnt chemical-ee at all. And as he was straightening, using a fine-toothed comb, my head - MY head - started to hurt and become painfully over-worked. I dont do tender scalp. I never have. You cant have hair like mine and be tender-headed. But I did. Almost brought tears to my eyes every time that combed crackled through another Elmers glue-induced tangle. As I was sitting in the chair, I kept looking in the mirror and thinking wow, my hair has really lightened, because Id just dyed it my favorite dark red a couple of weeks ago and it had been pretty dark. When hed started the process hed said it would change my hair color (Id told him Id colored it about 2 weeks ago), but it REALLY lightened it. So, finally, it was done. My instructions from the salon were to complete the process at home. So Id just spent a shitload of money and now I was going to have to finish the job at home for 2 of the 3 days that the hair has to be hot-ironed and combed. Yesterday I did it - 5 passes on each section at 410 degrees - not too much hair in the iron at once. Remember that pleasant smell I mentioned in the salon? That was gone later that evening to be replaced with what I can only equate to a babys dirty diaper that has Desitin residue on it. Remember that smell, moms? Yeah. Not so pleasant after all. So after the first day of hot-ironing at home I told mum last night I was still skeptical, but that all the sites and reviews Id read said the magic really doesnt happen until you wash it out after 48 hours. So, I was willing to suffer another day with the smell, the sticky, the general ick. So I got up today, and my hair was, literally, a nightmare. It was kinky and bent and still sticky and smelled - just generally unpleasant. I hot ironed it for the third and final time - by now holding my nose as I did so, because on top of the dirty Desitin diaper smell, it was now starting to smell a bit like a pot of water on the stove after all the water has boiled off. Then I did as directed - used a sulfate-free shampoo (Pureology), and washed it - no conditioner, because that might weigh it down. I patted it dry - no circular motions - no turban towel, just a pad-down to get the excess moisture out. And then I tried to comb it. Id been told in the salon that I wouldnt have that after-washing tangle issue that Id had before - it would be SO much easier to manage, I was told. So, after giving my biceps a workout detangling my hair as gently as possible, I put a heat-protectant on it, as recommended, and started to blow dry... Since this HAS become a blow-by-blow, Ill cut to the chase. My hair is HORRIBLY dry and dull - Ill post pictures of it in a bit. Its no easier to manage - its not shiny - its not frizz-free. Its just a bad weekend older than it was Friday morning. So - after following the direction TO THE LETTER, which I hardly ever do - I have nothing to show for it except my hair IS a tiny bit softer - but no softer than I could have gotten it without this treatment and an hour or so with a curling iron. So folks - if youre thinking your tresses need some de-frizzing- DO NOT use this Chi product. Ive long believed that Chi products are just over-priced and over-hyped, and that my Hot Tools products can do just as much for a third the price. I feel vindicated in that belief now. A photo of my sad, dry tresses is next to the beautiful model hair in the Chi ad. :) So, to summarize - the Chi Enviro Smoothing Treatment is a big fat NO! Nuh huh! DONT DO IT!
Posted on: Sun, 07 Sep 2014 18:44:16 +0000
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