That's Played Out (Part 1)!

The maximum absorption rate for hair to reap the benefits of a
hair conditioning treatment or hair conditioner is 1-20
minutes!

In my opinion, the social life of a cosmetologist is similar to a celebrity who goes out into the public and they are overwhelmed with questions about their last movie, television appearance or last music performance. Most times when we go out to dinner with a group of friends or to a party and we are introduced as a hairstylist the conversation, like those with celebrities, immediately turns to hair care. And like a celebrity who gets asked the same questions about their most popular performance, us hairstylists gets asked the same questions about the most hated service in the hair salon....drum roll please; THE GAWD AWFUL HAIR DRYER!

Every body and their great grand ma wants to know why do hair stylists put people under the dryer for a long time when getting a hair conditioning service only for the hair stylists to leave them, forget about them, go have lunch, talk on the phone, run errands, go to the beauty supply store, order products from the distributor right in their face, argue with their significant other, pay their bills, fuss at their children, get on Facebook, scroll Instagram, Tweet or text sweet nothings to their boo thang all while their paying customer sits under THE GAWD AWFUL HAIR DRYER!

Again, this is my Blog Nodogo and Ndogo is Swahili for small, therefore, I have to be brief. This Blog Ndogo will be a two part series.  First things first. When ever I am inundated with this question by the hundreds of people I meet at any type of gathering or party, I always respond in Kurtis Blow voice, "Hold up, hold up, hold up; that's played out!" If y'all old enough, y'all know the rest....LOL

I did some extensive research on this heated topic and let me tell you, there are many of school of thought on this topic. So to the point, readers were calling writers stupid and writers were calling readers stupid. To access this information on Google Scholar was like trying to get into Fort Knox (not happening dude)! So, I am not going to call my readers stupid and while I can not get into Fort Knox, I do know a thing or two and about three chemists to help me help my readers. So here goes it...

The reason sitting under a heated dryer is played out is because of this fancy word called NANO TECHNOLOGY or molecular weight. When it comes to hair care products, I have wrote and taught over one hundred times that the cost and quality of a product is strictly determined by what goes into it and the packaging. So, nano technology speaks to the quality of ingredient used to make the product do what the manufacturer thinks its customers are looking for. 

These molecules are so tiny they can actually penetrate that
very thin strand of hair. Can your egg do that? NOPE

If a customer wants a product that works quick, will not weigh her hair down and is priced within reason; then it is going to take three things. Those three things are very very tiny molecules (hence nano technology), a trained, skilled & certified hair stylist and of course MONEY. Cheaper, out dated products, eggs and mayonaise do not have the technology to penetrate the hair, repair it and wash away with out leaving the hair over processed and you sitting under the dryer for a long time. Why? Because their molecules are too large.

If a hair stylist is using hair care products that calls for sitting under the dryer for 20 to 30 minutes, it only means the molecules are larger and will take much longer to penetrate the cuticle to work. It does not mean the ingredients in the products are not working. They are working different on a molecular level. Which explains why those old school treatment takes a long time and may cost more money (yes you will have to pay that stylist for their time, even if you sit). If the product instructs the hair stylist to leave on the hair for 1-3 minutes or 3-5 minutes BINGO, it's on and crack-a-lackin! That means the molecular weight is very very tiny, the molecules can go directly to the section of the strand of hair that is damaged while the rest rinses down the drain and over processed hair is NOT the result. 

Cationic (ionic) molecule that can attract oil and dirt. It can penetrate the
cuticle layer of hair without DAMAGING it or WEIGHING it down...BAM!

Now, I know for some this will be good news and others will remain wedded to what they have been doing. Of course that is perfectly fine. Typewriters are hard to find, but people still use them. The mantra for the salon, The Reverence Design Team, where I work is "experience the science of hair care." We truly personify that mantra. We only use products with the latest technology. We are all trained and certified by the hair care companies who has this kind of of innovative, unique and affordable technology in their products. While I am all in favor of "Me Time," I also understand that "me time" is not isolated to hours in the hair salon. Their is a paradigm shift in hair care where women want to know what is being use on their hair. They also want it in a timely fashion. Using outdated products and practices will not damage hair in any capacity. A hair stylist who refuses to follow the manufacturers instructions, will.  What it will do is take longer and cost more money. 

Good news; in this case, new school trumps old school. Bad news, sitting under a hair dryer past 10 minutes in this day and time is played out.

In my Kurtis Blow voice, "Dontcha give me all that jive, about things you wrote before I's alive..." And that concludes part one of "That's Played Out."