In fact, a perm might actually be the secret to attaining those elusive ‘I just woke up like this’ supermodel waves with little to no effort.
Why are perms making a comeback? Shouldn’t they stay in the 80s?
‘If you think about it, the 80’s were a very bold time. Women were bold and expressed that in many ways and weren’t shy about it. I feel as though women are reclaiming that space,’ says Roszak. ‘It is about taking ownership. Beauty is a form of expression, it’s about how we want to feel and not about anyone else.’
What’s different about the modern perm?
‘We’ve created the mareWAVE and it’s customised to each woman based on the way the rods are placed and the size we use, making it uniquely personal,’ explains Roszak. ‘We are really focused on each perm being totally authentic to each woman. In the 80s, the process was the same – restructuring your hair to go from straight to wavy – but you were way more limited with your options.
If you want a beachier, more natural, smoother wave, we place the rods in a totally different direction. It’s all about placement, which will then determine the movement and shape.
Gone are the days of the Jheri curls where people slept in a shower cap to avoid staining their pillows. The modern perms are all in the technique, the new wave is gentler and more of a soft loser curl. Instead of using traditional perm rods you can create different type of curls, from spiral coils to wavy hair. You can use rollers and flexi rods.
Perms Dos And Don’ts
Don’t use brushes, only wide -tooth combs
Do use shampoo and conditioners that contain humectant and emollients.
Don’t use rubber bands to tie the hair back – use covered silk bands instead.
Do let your hair air-dry
Do comb permed hair when you have conditioner in your hair after towel dry gently, and leave it alone
Do perms damage your hair?
Perms dry out the hair considerably. Use leave-in conditioner to protect the hair without weighing down the curls. Use deep-conditioning treatments to replace lost moisture and protein treatments on a monthly basis depending on the condition of your hair.
Can you perm textured hair?
Perms are done using a chemical called ammonium thioglycolate often shortened to thio.
The process of perming Afro textured hair is twofold. First the thio based chemical is applied to remove the natural curl then rinsed off. The damp hair is set on rods, rollers or flexi rods and a waving solution called reshaping lotion is applied to set the hair in its new shape.
This is then rinsed off and neutralised. The neutraliser is the harshest phase of the process. Afro/textured hair tends to experience excessive breakage after a perm although this depends a lot on the skill of your stylist and your commitment to properly moisturise your hair daily.
Can you perm dyed hair?
Coloured hair can definitely get this process done now, thanks to the softer solution and rods we use on the hair. It can even de-frizz and redefine naturally wavy hair.
