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Help! Chi hair straightening system

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Paisleygirl View Drop Down
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    Posted: October 29 2003 at 11:22pm
Hi everybody,

My first time here.

I just got the chi hair straightening system done on my hair yesterday - you know, the permanent kind of hair straightening. Well, I wonder if I made a mistake in doing this.

First off, my bangs. I have bangs and have always had them. My hair stylist (who's actually a Chi trainer) told me that my bangs would "relax and become normal in the next few days". But so far, they're just doing some wild stuff, going all sorts of directions and not relaxing straight down (instead they're going straight out). I'm hoping that I'm just panicking too soon on this one.

Secondly, my hair feels & looks SOOOO very thin now. I used to have natural curly hair, which gave my hair body and a thickness, even when I straightened my hair with a rod everyday after blow drying. I'm scared that I'm going to now look like I hardly have any hair, like it's thinning or something. I know that I can curl it just like I could before, but will it ever get back some thickness?

Lastly, and this will probably just take time, but my scalp feels very weird. It feels hard, like my skin isn't soft anymore around the cuticles. It's almost like I've got this thin, tight cap on my head where the hairs come out. Feels strange!

Is there anyone else out there that has had this procedure done? Has anyone heard any bad stories? Am I worrying about nothing? I love my hair when it's straight, never could hang with the natural curl. But after spending $500 on this procedure and hoping it would be the "cure" for my frizzy/nasty hair days, I'm really scared that I didn't do enough research before getting it done. *sighs*

Thanks for listening.

~Paisleygirl
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Paisleygirl View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Paisleygirl Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: November 02 2003 at 12:52am
Ok, here's an update.

My bangs are starting to get back to a normal state. The skin doesn't feel tight any longer like it did. I still have the very flat look going on, not much body to my hair, but I'm wondering if that's due to another problem I've discovered since I last posted.

The problem I'm now having is that when I feel the base of the hairs, in certain spots they feel very weird. Like they're hard, or bunched up (like hairs that are knotted together) or like they are wirey. I had my husband look at those areas that feel like that. He pulled out one of the hairs from those spots and the hair is bent at the base, and all of the other hairs in those areas are bent as well. It's about a quarter of a inch of the hair that's bent. It's not like that all over, but in a lot of areas it is.

I think my stylist might have messed up somehow. It's been 5 days now and I don't think it should feel like this.

I'm guessing since no one's responded to my post that they've not had the Chi transformation system done before.

Does anyone know of any other hair links out there that have advice? I've gone out to the Farouk website to see if I could find something and I couldn't. I've search around for other sites and I'm coming up short.

Thanks!!
Paisleygirl
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CosmoGirl View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote CosmoGirl Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: November 02 2003 at 1:44am
Paislygirl~
I debated on whether or not to reply to your message just because i don't have any good news to tell you. I am a hair stylist in Los Gatos, CA. and my ex-salon does the CHI hair straightening (i am certified in the CHI system).
Your hair has been overprocessed, do you know which formula they used on you?? Is your hair colored/ highlighted/ virgin?
The weird feeling you have on your scalp (almost like your folicles are standing straight up, mostly around your cowlicks) is the feeling most people get before their hair starts falling out.
The places where your hair is "bent" (close to the root) is the part where your hair may start breaking off if you're not careful. No tight ponytails!!
Your hair probably isn't any thinner than it started off as, it just feels like it's less hair since it's considerably flatter. But most likely your hair will be thinner in a few months (don't worry it will grow back). I would call your stylist if i were you. Sorry for the bad news.
~CosmoGirl
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Paisleygirl View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Paisleygirl Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: November 02 2003 at 1:04pm
Ok, I'm gonna start crying now. I do thank you for your response, but this is really scaring me.

I'm not sure how to describe my hair before I went in for this. It had been about 3-4 months since my last coloring. I've used this lady and she's always done a great job and uses Farouk System products to color my hair. I had about 1 inch of grey hair when I went in last Tuesday. It wasn't all that unhealthy. It did have more split ends than it has had in a while just because I didn't go in for a trim since my last coloring (which was 3-4 months ago). But I use Farouk Biosilk products for my hair and to me it was only dry on the ends because of the splits, which weren't all that horrible. My hair is long and down to my back (bra line), however we took about 2 inches off after the straightening/coloring.

Wow, I just can't believe this. I wonder what, if anything, could be done. I just can't believe it...

thanks again for your response, even though it was bad news....

oh, and no I don't know what formula they used on me.

Ok, so do you think she overprocessed the coloring on my hair or was it when she did the straightening? Also, is this something where I should ask for my money back? I paid $500 for the straightening and $70 for the coloring. Something like this has never ever happened to me before...*sighs*

Paisleygirl
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CosmoGirl View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote CosmoGirl Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: November 02 2003 at 11:16pm
I don't think that it was the coloring that overprocessed your hair (unless you have had bleach highlights). There is a formula for tinted hair.
Most likely what happened was she took a long time applying the solution and then let it process for an additonal 15-20 mins rather that timing the back seperately than that front.
I wouldn't ask for your money back yet, but i would definately keep an eye on it and if there are any signs of breakage or shedding i would give her a call, don't be over paranoid about it though (keep in mind that you lose 100 hairs per day on average)
Ask your husband to look through the back of your hair to back sure that there aren't any "nubs" yet. Where are you located?
~CosmoGirl
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Paisleygirl View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Paisleygirl Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: November 03 2003 at 12:10pm
I think you're right. I've been reading some information from Vincent J's website about bent hairs and Chi, etc. From what they say, stylists using the Chi system aren't really trained well compared to other TR systems. '

I remember that she put the solution on all of my hair at the same time. She would come back every now and then and take one hair (from the back, same place each time) and do something with it, I guess testing it to see if it was ready. She did this like 2-3 times, each time saying I needed like 5 more minutes. She did not do the front vs. the back separately, but all at the same time.

The scarey thing is, she is certified by Farouk to do training for them for Chi (as well as coloring). I'm SO disappointed in myself for not doing the research like I should have done before getting this done. From what I've been reading, Chi is definitely not a trusted TR system with lots of unhappy customers.

I seriously do not like the way my hair looks right now. Because of all the bent hairs on top of my head, my hair just doesn't look good. I don't trust going back to her for her to fix it, although I may, I just don't know what I'll do. I tried calling her today, but her shop is closed. ~sighs sadly~

I'm in Texas. I've been using her for 2 years, and she mentioned the Chi system one day and I got very excited about the prospect of having straight hair all the time. I just didn't research it like I should have.

I'm ordering some products from vincentj that will deep condition my hair and give it some protein. Some people have mentioned that they did not have breakage after using these products (Crede shampoo/cond, PPT ID Care, Heatsilk). Hopefully they'll help.

My question is, I will have to get the bent hairs fixed, won't I? Because as they grow out, if they do not break off at the stress point, the bend will still be there, correct? I just don't think I should get another chemical treatment so quickly after the first. But, how long should I wait?

Thanks for all the info and help Cosmogirl!
Paisleygirl
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CosmoGirl View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote CosmoGirl Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: November 03 2003 at 4:46pm
I'm sorry to say that the bent hairs are not fixable, they may be masked, however.
Once your hair starts growing out and it gets curly at the root area again you may want to consider, bear with me here, a perm, body wave if you will.
If you keep having your roots done (with CHI) you may end up with bands of bent hairs (breakage). Unless, of corse, you're willing to put up with a little breakage for a straight look. If not, i would suggest going back to your original do, CHI is safe to perm over. I've done it before to a client who went to someone else to have her hair straightened, before i was certifed to do the job, and got sick of the upkeep. What do you think?
~CosmoGirl
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Paisleygirl View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Paisleygirl Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: November 05 2003 at 2:07am
Thanks again Cosmogirl. :) I'm thinking that for now I'm just going to really condition and protein my hair and try to take care of it and let it go back to it's original natural curly state. I'll wait and see how breakage goes. I'm really bummed. I'm always putting my hair up in ponytails or clips, etc and I can't even do that because it's so fragile. It's just so frustrating.

Anyhow, thanks again for your reponses. It seems pretty quiet on these boards. Glad someone's out there to listen and respond.

Paisleygirl
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Merlin View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Merlin Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: November 05 2003 at 4:51pm
Paisleygirl

I am so sorry to hear about your problem with the treatment. I certainly hope things improve for you. We are all pulling for you! I didn't answer your first message because I am totally unfamiliar with the Chi process and read the postings from Cosmogirl with great interest.

Cosmogirl
The description of the Chi process sounds very similar to the Yuko system. Is it? I have seen several Yukos and most were terrific but a few left the hair in terrible condition. The results seem to depend on the experience and talent of the stylist. (Haven't we heard heard that one before?) I do appreciate your informative posts. Thanks!!
Merlin
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Paisleygirl Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: November 06 2003 at 10:21pm
Thanks for the well wishes Merlin.

I wish there was some site that listed the differences between all the different straightening systems. I know that Chi states their system being unique since they use Silk with "Cationic Hydration Interlink", and using negative ions & ceramic irons. My stylist swears that Chi is NOT like the others(the japanese systems)...~shrugs~

Dunno if that helps at all...
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote SSassy Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: November 07 2003 at 5:31pm
I hopefully have a little good new for you..I had Liscio straightening on my hair about a year ago and absolutely LOVED it. However, instead of sticking with what worked, I went with the Phyto Specific relaxer with horrible results. The same experience you had with "bends" near the roots, and it fried about 4 inches off the bottom of my hair - it looked and felt like seaweed mush.

After weekly protein treatments and deepconditioning at home every other night, my hair FINALLY stopped feeling like doll hair after about 2 weeks. I tried to lay off my blowdryer as much as possible to give my hair a break, and I never experienced the breakage that my stylists felt were imminent.

I ended up getting a sassy shag cut to hide my hair blunder, and it actually ended up being a really cute cut! Nothing that I would have done had I not had the hair disaster, but it definately was something good that come of it.

My advise..don't cry over split milk. Do all of the things you are in getting your hair healthy again, but in the meantime, try a new cut since your hair is thin/flat now anyway!

btw..the CREED products work fantastic, as does Kerastase.
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Merlin View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Merlin Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: November 10 2003 at 7:46am
Paisleygirl

Actually, that does help. I have used Chi irons in the past (not presently) but didn't know they had a straightening system. I will have to get back up to speed.

I wish there was a web site that discussed the various systems too. I did find an article at beautywalk.com by our own Karen Shelton that discusses chemical hair straighteners quite well (it is in three parts so click the other sections at the bottom of the page - you will also related articles there that you might find interesting).

http://www.beautywalk.com/beauty/january03/Chemical_Hair_Straightening_Faqs.htm

I hope your conditioning regime is showing improvement in your hair and that all will be well very soon. Hang in there! We're rooting for you!
Merlin
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Paisleygirl Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: November 17 2003 at 11:02pm
Wanted to give an update. It'll be 3 weeks from tomorrow since my Chi TR.

Unfortunately my hair is breaking off from the bends and coming out at the roots. It's been getting gradually worse. It's especially bad on the days that I style it after shampooing. I'm losing lots of hair!

I'm very careful with my hair, and have been doing protein treatments, etc - but I guess it's just not helping as much as I had hoped.


~Paisleygirl
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Merlin Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: November 18 2003 at 11:16am
OH NO! I am SO sorry to hear about your hair loss. Keep up the protein treatments - think how much worse it would be if you weren't doing them. Have you spoken with the shop? The least they can do is refund your money. Not a solution to your problem but SOME satisfaction.

Hang in there. We're all pulling for you!!
Merlin
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Originally posted by Paisleygirl Paisleygirl wrote:

Wanted to give an update. It''ll be 3 weeks from tomorrow since my Chi TR.

Unfortunately my hair is breaking off from the bends and coming out at the roots. It''s been getting gradually worse. It''s especially bad on the days that I style it after shampooing. I''m losing lots of hair!

I''m very careful with my hair, and have been doing protein treatments, etc - but I guess it''s just not helping as much as I had hoped.


~Paisleygirl



Paisleygirl,

I just got my hair done with this treatment however I was the hair model for the Chi represntative. I paid close attention to everything that was being done and I feel your hairdresser did this incorrectly. It is only day two for me right now. At first I thought after having this done wow my hair is straight and looks thin, but after washing it with the Chi hair products and quickly styling it myself I still have body, shine and I love it. I have not experienced any hair loss yet. But I did notice that the instructor specifically told the class that you must go with the hair shaft and I believe your hairdresser did not and that is why you have bent hair. I am so sorry for your experience. I will keep you posted on mine. If you have any questions or I have any more problems I will let you know. Please e-mail me at garretandheidi@aol.com. All I can say is I am sure glad the Chi representative did my hair otherwise I would probably be experiencing the same thing as you. Hope it gets better. Heidi
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Paisleygirl Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: November 20 2003 at 12:30am
Heidi,

Thanks for your well wishes! :)

Just so you know, my stylist is certified with Chi and she actually trains other stylists on how to perform Chi across the U.S. So...I'm not really sure what happened, but I guess even those who train others can make mistakes. She said it's possible that she got the solution too close to my scalp and/or ironed my hair wrongly.

My strong opinion is that she left the solution on too long to my hair. I remember she came back 2 times after the initial time limit for the solution and did something with one of my hairs on the back of my head, testing it I guess, and told me I needed to bake about 5 more minutes. Hmmm or was it longer, I can't remember now. I just know it was two separate times she said I needed to sit longer. Which by the way, most of the hairs in the back (where she tested) are totally fine with no bends except for the very top and the nape. From what I hear, Chi's solution is thinner than other types and if it sits too long on your hair or is too close to the scalp, body heat (from it sitting too long) can cause the solution to be sucked into the scalp. I truly feel this is what happened to me. I knew something wasn't quite right, because after she completed my hair and styled it, most of my head (especially the areas of my hair that are now bent on the top and sides) felt VERY tight! It was if I had a helmet on...or better yet, it felt like my head had some kind of facial mask on it , you know the kind that pull and stretch your skin where it feels tight. That to me is proof alone that the solution got too close to my scalp. I had even mentioned this to her after she styled my hair, at how tight it felt and weird. It took 1 to 2 days for that to go away.

Anyhow, sorry, I'm rambling too much now. I just wanted to let you know more about my situation. :) I'm hanging in there and trying not to panic. Hairs are continuing to break, but I'm hoping it'll stop soon.

I'm glad to hear your experience was positive. I've done tons of searching about TR's since mine 3 weeks ago, and believe me, Chi seems to have the most horror stories out there from botched jobs. I really don't feel like Chi does enough training for their stylists. That, plus I don't believe it's as good of a system as others like Liscio.

Anyhow, I hope you enjoy your new hair!! :)
~paisleygirl
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HEIDIHOHAIR View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote HEIDIHOHAIR Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: November 20 2003 at 10:11am
Wow, I wonder if your stylist was the same as mine she is from Texas too. Pretty scary!!! It is day three for me and now I am stressed. Everything seems to be going okay. I have not noticed any breakage yet!!! key word yet. I do like the shampoo, treatment and keratin that they gave me to use. My hair is shiny. But I am still pretty new. I did blow dry this morning with a round brush to add body. I am hoping I just did the right thing by doing this. I looked for other stories regarding this propduct, and I couldnt find any, maybe I am not looking in the right place. Please keep me posted as well as I will keep you posted. you can e-mail my personal e-mail and that way I will know if we had the same stylist rather than sharing her name with everyone. Thanks for the support. Heidi
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I am totally terrified now that i have read all this stuff of your horror story with the chi straightening system! I was actually considering having this done to my hair. I had not done it because i was scared since it's something so permanent. I would like to keep my hair slightly curly so i could switch between hairstyles. Thank goodness i waited!

My hair is extremely coarse and with extremely rebellious curls and top of that one side is curlier than the other. In the past i have tried products on myself that i have bought in Sally's Beauty Supply, called One n Only Curl Reducer. This product didn't really do anything drastic to my hair but i did notice that my hair would be a bit more flatter, not making my hair look so puffy, which was awesome, but still when i would blow dry it, it would immeadiately get frizzy.

Two years ago i started going to go to the beauty supply and getting this product from Quantum done. I loved this because it would soften my extremely curly hair and once i would blow dry the hair it would not frizz up even in high humidity. A month ago I went back to get it done again, but the hairstylist did not want to put that product on because my hair was not virgin anymore, because of my newly acquired highlights. It totally sucked because she then went on to use the one n only product i have used in the past that really does not work on my hair.

Do you know of any other products out there that could be strong enough to control my hair but gentle enough not to break/damage my highlighted hair?

Thanks.
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What a nightmare reading all this! I did it too, and have been losing lots of hair too. I had ALOT to begin with but now it has been several months and it''s still coming out. Anyone have any good suggestions? What are the protien treatments mentioned?
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Paisleygirl Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: December 08 2003 at 2:43pm
Michelle,

I'm sorry to hear that you've had breakage too. It's been 6 weeks since my CHI TR and I've had tons of breakage from the damaged bent hairs and it's continuing to break off. I've got patches of small little hairs on the top and one side of my head. Luckily I have somewhat thick hair, plus I have some long hairs that are kinda hiding the patches of broken hairs, so for now no one would notice just by looking at me (unless they looked closely at my hair). However, the long hairs that are left that are hiding the patches are also damaged with sharp 90-degree bends and I'm afraid before long they'll break off (which by the way, my bends are at about 1 inch from the root right now). It'll be interesting to see what happens, especially once all those 1 inch hairs start growing out longer (which btw, I have long hair to mid back). I'm still not freaking out yet, or at least not trying to. I've definitely lost alot of hair and if it wasn't for my semi-thick hair, I'd probably look pretty bad because of the thin-ness. But for now it's not horrible, even though it is frustrating.

About the products. Here's what I've been using. I use the PPT ID Care for a protein treatment - if you have damaged hair then use it once every two weeks, if you have normal hair then use once a month. This is a very important product to have. Then I've been using Redken's Extreme Shampoo & Conditioner as well as Redken's All Soft Conditioner, Heavy Cream Conditioner, Addictive, and Anti-snap. I love these products and kinda change them out depending on what I feel that I need. My favorite is the Addictive. It works wonders. The bottle says to rinse it out, however I find that if I use about 3-4 squirts on my wet hair and leave it in and style that it gives my hair LOTS of bounce and body, and shine. Although, because my hair is damaged (some of the hair that's bent is actually splitting near the bend and then breaking off) it still doesn't look so great the day after shampoo/styling (i wash every other day), so no matter what products I use, my hair still ends up looking dry and dull right before I wash again. It may just take some time before my hair can really get healthy again (although I'm sure if I was faithful in taking my vitamins and eating right that that could help some...) Some people rave about the Crede products, however I won't use their shampoo because it's got sodium hydroxide in it which is Lye (look at a Draino bottle!!). Also I've read some negative responses in addition to all the positives on Crede.

Anyhow, those are the products I've been using. I would mainly suggest you get some protein into your hair so that it can become strong and repair itself. Keep us posted! Good luck to you!
~Paisleygirl
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