Permanent hair straightening

I used to have very straight har when I was young (primary school age), but sometime around my adolescence it turned into a wild untameable beast (really thick and wavy). Late last year, with my hair getting longer, it was getting much less manageable and I was on the verge of shaving it all off again because it was taking far too much effort to just keep it under control. Then, as a surprise gift, Heidi booked my in for a permanent hair straightening.

Rather than shaving my head, Heidi took me to “Dream Mix” hair studio in Chinatown (Sydney). That place was very cool. The interior design was great, all the staff were incredibly trendy, and the place operated like a finely tuned machine. The entire process took a few hours, but it went quickly as they had personal LCD screens mounted in front of each of their chairs and I chose a watched a couple of DVDs from their collection.

Then, and after some Finding Neverland and Kung Fu Hustle, my hair was amazingly straight. Better than that, it looked exactly the same the next morning. And the morning after that and the one after that and so on until my wavy hair grew out. It was an absolutely no effort hairstyle: wash and go. (Just like having a shaved head without it having to be so short.)

That was a long time ago, and my hair was starting to grow out. Surprisingly the weight of the straigtened hair was doing a pretty decent job of keeping the rest of my hair from going wavy. However, when I went in for a trim (and the straight ends were cut off), my waves came back the next day. This resulted in some weird… bouffant top with straight back and sides. Very 80s, but I’m not super keen on retro. So I went in for another hair straightening at “K Three G” on Pier Street (Perth).

Pretty much the same procedure, but Heidi informs me that it is a bit cheaper than “Dream Mix” at $170. I figure if I get another 10 months of not having to do anything to my hair; it’s well worth it. I highly recommend permanent hair straightening to anyone with unruly hair, and I can also recommend “K Three G” for anyone in Perth.

Here are some before and after pictures:

Hair comparison

It’s like I’ve gone from European to Asian!

Note: This type of hair straightening is often called chemical straightening, chemical hair relaxing, Japanese hair straightening, ionic hair straightening, or bio-ionic hair straightening.

123 thoughts on “Permanent hair straightening”

  1. Why isn’t the left picture black and white, with you looking unhappy and with bad skin? The right picture of course can stay the same, with colour, a smile and good skin.

  2. Having the exact same type of hair (looked just like that when it was growing out) I might just do this. Im tired of looking like a lost member of Black Sabath in the mornings.

  3. Glad to hear it!

    I’m not sure that I can recommend it enough for long hair that’s similarly crazy. I don’t do anything but wash my hair and let it dry.

    It’s a little flat the first few days after straightening, but it gets a bit more shape after that. It also seems considerably longer after straightening (probably around 25%).

  4. Yeah, Ive had iron straightening a couple of times (when my GF is up for the task) and Ive seen how much lenght it adds. But Ive been kinda afraid of chemical straightening, Ive seen it go awfully wrong.

    But for the ease of it Im really reconsidering it. Otherwise I can only wear it untied if I put on more than a handfull of gel.

  5. im a bit confused can dis chemical straightening process works fo’ da middle curly hair like meh??? Lookin at ur pic ur hair seems to be long but my hair is middle n im totally depressed frm my hair i can’t grow it long coz i can’t handle it so i wanna ask again
    CAN DIS CHEMICAL STRAIGHTENING PROCESS WORKS FOR THE MIDDLE CURLY HAIR LIKE ME???

  6. hey nick yea i had a chemical hair straightening 4 days before n well i really dunno did it worked or not…………. my back part its good its straight but my front is kinda curly well its still not total straight………afta noticing my front part curly i again went to da sailoon n straightened again juss da next day n he did but still im not satisfied wid my hair……is my hair like dat or is some defaulties with da hair stylist??? and one thing i want to ask was dat does dis straightening straight our hair nomatter how curly is it or wat???
    Im really sad for da first time i did was straightening n my hair is yet not straight???

  7. Hi there Nick,

    Would appreciate the address and phone number of the ‘K Three G’ hair salon where you had you hair straightened. I have tried finding it on the internet and in the phone books but couldn’t locate it…..

    Since you are a researcher, did you do any research homework on the best salon and or type of chemical hair straightener? If so, what do you consider to be the most effective and overall best treatment?

    Sincerely
    Barbara
    Perth, Western Australia

  8. Michelle:

    Sorry, not sure how much it was at DreamMix (it was a surprise gift). Also sorry that I don’t have a contact number for DreamMix.

    Barbara:

    K Three G hair salon is on the section of Pier Street between Hay Street and Murray Street (in Perth City). It’s pretty much opposite Took Be Gi. Sorry that I don’t have a contact number.

    I’m not too sure about other types of straightening; it’s probably best to talk to the hair stylists about that.

  9. I was thinking of getting my hair chemically treated. But then i thought, what happens when the curly hair starts to grow back? Wouldnt you be like locked into getting your hair redone forever to stop this from happening?

    Please leave me your thoughts.

  10. Sasha:

    Yes. Yes you would. I think hair-dressers recommend getting your roots done every six months or so.

    In practise, it’s not that bad if your hair is pretty long; the hair that grows out tends to be weighed down by the straightened hair. It was probably 9-12 months before you could really see my wavy roots, and it wasn’t even that bad.

    I guess if you routinely straighten your hair or use hair products, you’re trading daily maintenance for one session every 6-9 months. After a chemical straighten I seriously did not have to put *anything* in my hair for around 6 months.

  11. Hi, i was just wondering, i have a slightly red scalp thats itchy some times and i don’t know why, would it be safe to chemically relax my hair?

    thanx

  12. Reade:

    Hi. Hmmm… I don’t really know. I do know that bleaching red/itchy scalp can really burn and damage your skin, but I don’t really know about the chemicals used in hair straightening.

    I’d recommend bringing it up with your hair stylist. They should be able assess the condition of your hair and scalp to see if it is suitable.

  13. Hey… I am thinking about getting my hair chemically straightened but I am kinda on a budget. I realize that you have to spend a decent amount of money on the first straighteneing, but when you go to get your roots touched up after a few months, does it cost the same amount of money or is it less?

    Also, do many salons chemically straighten hair or just a few? Thanks!

  14. Can you put up a picture of your entire head so I can see how it looks? If you don’t want to I understand, but I’d really appreciate it.

  15. Sarah:

    I’m not sure how much touch-ups are, but I would imagine less than a complete straightening, but not too much (it seems like close to the same amount of effort). If you hair is pretty long, you probably will only really need touch-ups 2-3 times a year (since the weight of the hair helps keep new growth straight; and the straigtened bits shouldn’t go wavy again).

    It seems that a lot of salons now offer chemical straighening. At least a lot of Asian-style hairdressers anyway. I’d recommend shoppping around a bit.

  16. hi nick, i’ve been researhing this japanese bio-ionic straightening system all day,i’ve been trying to find a place with a decent price, and the only one which is under $600 is k3g, who are charging $300. the competitors say to watch out for cheaper prices because the styist is probably unqualified or unprofessional, and i most probably won’t get the results im looking for. but because you recommended k3g for people in perth, im considering them to save myself a few hundred bucks! i just wanted to know if the results were perfectly straight hair, soft and moistured, and was it just as good as dream mix? it doesn’t bother me that they don’t have great english, i just want to be be assured that my hair won’t be experimented on. if you could let me know what you think, i’d be greatly appreciated! thanx!

  17. Hi Ninah,

    The stylists at K Three G have been here for a while now, and prior to that they used to work in Sydney. They did a good job (although the results were not _quite_ as good as Dream Mix). They won’t be experimenting on your hair!

    I’d recommend that you ask for a (shampoo and) deep conditioning (or protein treatment) as well. Hair straightening can put a fair amount of stress on your hair and it’s good to fortify it against damage.

    Results will be strongly related to the health of your hair. If you’ve had a lot of stuff done to it (eg. hair colour, or frequent blow drying) the results may not be as good as you are expecting (no matter where you go).

    The hairstylists should be able to assess your hair and give you some indication as to how well your hair will respond to chemical straightening.

    – Nick

  18. hi nick, thanks heaps for the info, you made the decision easy for me! i can’t wait to get done! thanks again!

  19. hey nick.. um that “ninah” guy says “the only one which is under $600 is k3g, who are charging $300”

    but u said “Heidi informs me that it is a bit cheaper than “Dream Mix” at $170”

    im a little confused.. do u have any idea of a rough cost of the procedure at k3g? thanks mate

  20. Hi Aaron,

    Ah… probably best to see if Ninah posts again. 😉

    I went there quite a while ago when they were having a special and I got only the straightening (no additional protein or conditioning treatment). It probably also depends on length of hair… so best to check…

  21. hi i was thinking of gett my hair chemically straightened although i have been on a medicine called rooacutan do u think i still can get it? Also i wnet to get it checked at at two places one said i can get it and one said i cant?

  22. Hey Nick, Okay, I have some what Curly/wavy hair…I have had some flat ironing done in the past, but not much. I was told to get my hair relaxed..witch costs about 30 to 40 bucks. I would like to get some details about hair relaxing, but not Chemially Straightening.

    also, if i did get my hair chemically straightened or relaxed, would they be able to shape the look on my hair the same way I flat Iron it?

    Thanks-

    Randy

  23. Hey, I’ve been straightening my hair (with a hot iron I mean) for about a year and I’m getting sick of it…

    My sister’s a hairdresser and says she can use a hair relaxer on me… but I wanted to see finished results before I did it… could I possibly see any other pictures of your hair post-straightening??? I’d really appreciate it, thanks!

  24. Hi Nick, I want to get my hair chemically straightened but my mum tells me that it would royally screw up my hair.Since my condition (of it being curlier as I’m in my adolescence age) is the similar to yours, I want too know. Is this true, if its not done correctly?

    I’ve asked hairdresser’s opinions on it, and they tell me it does. But I’m not 100% convinced by them… Would you recommend it?

  25. Hey nick.
    I want to get my hair chemically straighted but when I went to get my hair tested it broke, did this happen to you?
    It sucks cause I have to wait until my hair gets repaired :(.
    Did your hair break at all when you got it done?

  26. Sorry for the late responses; been very busy at work. 🙁

    Logan: Sorry, no pictures 😛 (It was all a while ago now)

    Suzanne: In my experience it is permanent… on the bit that was straightened. New growth will not be straight though.

    Maddie: I think if not done correctly, you hair can be damaged. I think it’s mostly due to the type and condition of your hair to begin with. Thin light hair is generally bad for straightening; and hair that is coloured is bad as well. Maybe get a test done like Jason…

    Jason: Ouch; that’s unlucky. My hair didn’t break at all.

  27. Hi Nick,
    very good all information above. what exactly straghtening method did u do? was it the japanese one? which of them we do not need to blow dry and still have the hair very straight?? thanks very much!!

  28. I don’t know anything about having hair ‘chemically straightened’, so I’ve been looking online.

    I have a few questions:

    After the straightening did your hair fall out (more than usual) and did it get dry or anything? Was it brittle at all?

    Did your hair begin to wave/curl after a couple of months?

    What shampoos and conditioners did you use? Special ones?

    Thanks!!

  29. Aisha: My hair didn’t fall out or get dry or anything. It wasn’t brittle. In fact, it felt like it was in better condition than ever. The straightened parts of the hair (ie. not the regrowth) stayed straight permanently. I didn’t use any special shampoo or conditioner, but was told not to wash it for a couple of days after the straightening (iirc).

    Stephanie: Thank you :D… although, truth be told, the other side of my face is awful! 😉

  30. hey nick, im a 14 year old girl who cant stand her hair anymore, its frizzy and i feel bad for my parents because i buy alot of expensive products to calm my hair down in shape. im thinking of getting it permenently strightened but i’ve heard alot of things from people’s comments like my hair started fallin out after i got it, or my hair became really dry,. i really wanna take good care of my hair and keep it healthy at the same time, what do u recommend i should do?

  31. Hi yakeen,

    My advice would be to talk to a local hairdresser that offers chemical straightening; they will be able to assess your hair and tell you how getting it straightened might affect it. You can ask them about a protein or intense conditioning treatment that might help ensure that your hair doesn’t dry out.

    On the other hand, maybe you could consider a short haircut! I think they look great. 😀

  32. HEY ..u seem to be gettting alot of responses to tthis day. u must get sick of talking about this.

    My scenario has been similar to urs. highschool – now went from striaght to wavy riduculous mendusa hair.

    I just wanted to ask for decent contacts sydney. u mentioned K Three G moved from sydney.
    Ive already tried permiing..and boy was that a flop!

    thanks… let me nkow wehn u can.

  33. hey
    umm i have really thick, curly hair that gets way too frizzy. i can wear it curly sum days but i gotta put alot of hair stuff in it, gel, spray, etc.
    my cousin is a hairdresser at a very nice salon and she had talked to me about gettin it chemically straightened.. Im kinda nervous becuase as bad as i want this i want my hair to be healthy…
    ive read above and you said sumthing like its better to have thicker longer hair and mines is very thick and rigt now curly, its about bra strap length or a little shorter…do you think this process will go through good?
    thankss babe!

  34. Hi Brittany,

    In my experience (wavy, thick, black hair), chemical straightening worked very well and my hair _felt_ better (less tangled and easier to manage). Your hair will probably end up appearing 15-25% longer when straight (so if that’s what you are after, great!).

    I can’t say much else aside from it worked well for me and that _if_ your cousin (a professional) reckons it will work for you, those are good signs. 😀

    – Nick

  35. hi nick,
    i got my hair chemically straightened last august and it was very good but i have recently got it done again after a year from a different place though ,it has become worse than normal. why could this be.? can i get it done again from the previous place ? is there any time duration after which only u can get it done again.

    shazia

  36. I get my hair chemically straightened every 6-7 months – am now up to number 4 due very shortly. I visit ZEDZ in Melville WA. Last time I was there it was $300. Absolutely love it. My hair when growing up was shirley temple curly – YUK i hated every minute of it and vowed that when they could permanently straighten hair without it looking horrid I would do it. Having straight hair is way way cooler and no where near as hot as having all that extra hair curled up around your neck.
    My hair is in much better condition and yes I do use better shampoo and conditioner also put into it every day Oleo Relax from Kerastase and have had lots of hairdressers when I get my hair cut comment on how good the condition of my hair it.

  37. Hi nick!!!

    I went to kthreeg today and the hairdressers seem very nice and know what theyre doing … they quoted me for $300 as i have quite long hair … this is a good price considering a friends salon was going to charge me $500 😐

    Was just wondering why you thought your experiences at kthreeg werent as good as the previous salon you went too?

    And also after you wash your hair … is it still very straight not wavy at all?

    Thanks for the help!!

  38. Hi Alisha,

    K Three G was good; it’s just that DreamMix was exceptional. Washing didn’t affect the straightness of my hair (but you can’t wash it for a little while afterwards; a couple of days I think).

    – Nick

    BTW (to everyone): Incidentally, I have very short hair now. Just a change in style; it had nothing to do with the straightening. 😉

  39. HELLO ALL!

    Just wanted to say, I went to get my hair chemically straightened at K THREE G today and the hairdressers are so nice there!!! My hair is so HOT Now!!! I used to have long curly. frizzy, hard to tame hair …. now i actaully look like a model from a hair commerical, im not even joking!!!

    I had colour in my hair before getting this done .. and my hair was really dry … but it still worked! My hair is in the best condition now and the results are astonishing!!!!!

    😀 😀 😀

  40. THanks man, (truth be told i didnt think u were gonna reply and i myself had forgotten) oops!

    but i found DreamMix on whitepages.com.au and im going to take a look as i work in the city anyway.

    but im worried as i think over the last few mths , im starting to notice a receding hair line.not sure if it will worsen after bionic straightening.

    i went to revo studio and they were gonna use :
    shseido black lotion for natural straight(wave) -as i dont want it dead straight
    $20 for pre-treatmen
    and straightening-$160
    and 25 or 55 depending on haircut or no haircut

    total : 235 ish
    my hair is upto my nose before straightened.
    they really made it look like they cared coz two pple sat with me.

    on the other hand- “club7 hair studio” recommended by a nepalise colleague is only 160
    ANd he told 149 for it all.i have a feeling he might not put any pre-treament etc..
    I wnt thru a whole bunch of korean/jap male hair magazines and tried to pick hair that wasn’t so ‘dead-straight’.

    i guess what im saying is(after telling u all my lifestory):
    AM I MAKING A MISTAKE??AM I GONNA REGRET ALL THIS BY GOING TO A PERSON WHO DOESNT SPEAK ENGLISH WELL?
    if it doesnt work to standard after 3wks time, what are my rights?? argghhhh

    panicking pravi,
    pravi_b@hotmail.com

  41. oh yeah..sorry there was a point to all that ….

    Does anyone here know where i can look at male hair fotos for example?

    Ive tried on the net a few times but i guess im just not getting much hits.

    much appreaciated if u could send me a link
    Im not asian but ive had chemical hairstraightening done before.
    I loved the first 2weeks after which i realised i wanted to slaughter the dodgy hairdresser coz it stopped being straight after a few washes.in fact it was worse after haircut after haircut
    pravi_b@hotmail.com

  42. hey.. all u perthies just thought u might want to know..

    was going to this shop spokey dokes the other day and ran into k three g =)=) i tohught it was on the corner of pier and murray but thats “marcs” or something if i recall correctly

    anyways k three g can be found on william street close to the train station in between roe street and james street pretty much on the corner of willaims lane.. should be around 189 william street =)

    hope this helps i can wait to get my hair done after school finishes woop woop haha peace x

  43. hi there nick – i know you’ve had a lot of people asking about hair relaxing, and i don’t want to irritate you by asking more questions, but if you could take the time to answer, i’d really appreciate it.
    well, my hair has a bit of damage from constant use of ceramic hair straighteners, though i ‘heal’ it with intensive creams and what not, but i’m so tired of having to straighten it!
    so what i want to ask is, would chemical straightening damage my further (since i have pre-existing damage)?
    also, my hair is by no means as long as yours, but long enough that it requires straightening, so how long do you think it would take for someone with shorter hair?
    anyhow, i appreciate you taking the time to read this.
    thank you.

  44. hey, I dont really know anything about hair, so just wanted to know:

    Do you know how the process actully works? because I dont want to be putting something in my hair that will one day cause it to fall out
    and

    Does your hair look asian-style straight no matter what? Because I really just want normal kinda wavy/straight hair like most guys have.

    Thankyou!

  45. pravi:

    I can’t say much except that it worked fine for me, this sort of hair straightening is permanent, and that K Three G appear to be pretty good at it.

    Makoto:

    I never really used ceramic straighteners or anything so my hair was in pretty good condition, so I can’t really say if your hair will get really damaged. I can say that the hairdressers should be able to assess your hair and give you some idea as to how it will turn out.

    A lot of the time required isn’t really due to the length of the hair, it’s more waiting for the chemicals to work, and there are 3-4 stages to the process. So it will probably still be a few hours even with shorter hair.

    Oskar:

    The process is something like: clean hair, protein conditioning treatment, chemical process to break bonds (which create curls), wash hair, protein conditioning treatment, iron all hair, apply a sort of chemical seal (to keep it straight), blow-dry hair.

    If you want wavy/straight hair this isn’t for you. It will be straight until you cut it off, but new growth will be normal.

  46. hey do u rmember if u got it from a guy or girl from Dream MIX?
    name would be great.im assuming tis and asian person.
    thanks man, i think img oing to get ti sometime this mth.

  47. hi i would like to get my hair permanently straightened, however, i do not want to go to a salon or anything cos im bit embarrassed bout it, so would you recommend a straightening kit for home and would you no where i can get some in my area i live in canberra.
    thanks.
    ps. sry ino ur busy but it wud really help me.

  48. sorry this is also in combination with the otha question if u do no where i cud get some permanent straightening kits in my area, wud you also no where to get fairly cheap ones cos im not that rich.
    thank you so very much
    write back soon. 😀

  49. Hi *. Thanks for the comments; just some quick reponses this time.

    pravi: Can’t remember a name, but it was a guy.

    Allie: Thanks! 😀

    sam: I’m not sure that this is what you want to hear… but I’d say “get over it”. I don’t know of any home products that can produce similar results (although you could use a straightening iron for straight hair for a day). It’s far better to go to a professional; they won’t judge you, I’m sure they get all sorts of customers. Also, what would be more embarassing: going into a hair salon for a few hours or messing up your hair? I don’t mean to be harsh; just some food for thought.

  50. hahaha thanks 4 ur comment jeez that was faster than i expected yeah ino im pretty up myself. yeah i guess i could do that and yes i have been using a flat iron thingy for like ever n its killed my hair 2 the max thats y i had 2 cut it and now wen my new hair grows back i want to get it permanently done so that i dont have to fricken use that stupid iron thing everyday, *sigh* oh well.
    thanku for ur very quick comment apprciate it very much cya later. :D!

  51. Hi Nick
    Have you or anyone heard of Hair OPE in Sydney? Apparently they are one of the only ones which use the genuine Japanese Hair Straightening system… Also, has anyone had adverse reactions to this? I’ve heard rumours of hair falling out etc… no idea if true or false…
    Thanks heaps
    Jenn

  52. Hi all,
    Can any one plz tell me any good and reliable salon doing chemical straightening in Melbourne?

    i have been doin search on straightening for my very curly frizzy hair but when i found about bio ionic ,it was highly expensive like 900$ and then HDS Told me i ll be needing touches in 5 -6 months and have to pay the same price ,its pretty expensive.

    then i went to a salon at bourke street Melbourne….some korean ppl are working there.they told me a price of 200$ and they did not mention anything about pretreatment.can somebody plz advice me wat should i do.m really worried 🙁

    and Nick is there any K3G salon in Melbourne as well
    thanks

  53. SAM from Canberra – I got a DIY kit from PriceLine about 6 months ago!! Was about $50, sorry can’t remember the name but it was near the perm stuff.
    It was very messy to do but it did the job, a 2nd set of hands helped 🙂

    Actually I think it maybe called Easy Straight ??

    Not something I’d do on a regular basis but as a one off it worked and did it’s job.

  54. hey mate…can you please somehow get a contact number for the ”Dream Mix” please? the pictures look pretty amazing lol…so yea…

  55. Hi Jennifer, I haven’t heard of OPE; although I didn’t really look around much while I was in Sydney. I personally had great results and no negative reaction.

    Hi Mona, I’ve no idea about any places in Melbourne (sorry!). $900 sounds pretty expensive to me. In regards to the $200 place; I figure if they have been in business for a while, and the staff can answer your questions, they should be pretty safe (at the very least, I’d expect that working hairdressers are generally very professional)

    Hi Ricardo, I got these details from the whitepages website:

    Dreamix Hair Salon Pty Ltd
    Shp5/ 410 Sussex St Haymarket 1236
    (02) 9211 8321
    

    Hi *Liz*, ah thanks… I blushed!

  56. Sorry to comment again..but just a question..

    How many days couldnt you shower after you straitened it?

    Also, when you woke up, and your hair is totally dry, was it still asian straight? and does it really last till it grows out again?

    Thanks mate..cheers:)

  57. Hi,

    Just to aswer some of the questions…

    It really depends on the hair studio you go on whether they tell you not to shower…but generally, they want you to leave your hair without any shower (or water..lol) for approx 24 hours. This is obviously becuase it could loosen up the hair hence taking off some of the chemicals which straightened it and damaging the hair.

    No matter what you do to it, your straightened hair should remain straight! your hair will appear less straightened when new hair grows back.

    From my experience, i recommend a place called “REVO STUDIO” which is also on Sussex street. And also “Hanavie” in Clarence street, though i havn’t been there yet (lol). I’v heard the owner works in Tokyo for various hair magazines….

  58. Hi Pochi,

    Thanks for the help; I don’t really have much time for this blog anymore – but people keep asking questions!

    Not that I mind in the least. 😉

  59. Hi Nick,
    sorry, i just a few more questions as i’m planning on going to K three G in a couple of weeks.
    Following the procedure, your hair is stripped of its natural oils, right? As such, did your hairdresser recommend any post-treatments to rebuild this? If so, how long after did you have to treat your hair before it’s strength was rebuilt?

    Thanks, it’s much appreciated.

  60. Hey I have untamable, frizzy, curly/wavy, short dryed out hair and i want to get a relaxed perm but will it make my hair worse? I have a maxiglide starightener and it works great but after a few days my straight smooth hair gets really oily is that normal? Do you have any recommendations?
    Thanks
    Nico

  61. Hello fellow hair straighteners!

    I had my hair chemically straightened in Bangkok about 7 weeks ago and I think I need a touch-up already (hey, it only cost $50). Can anyone suggest a reasonable place in Brisbane that offers this service?
    Have a great week!
    Shelle

  62. Ive considered getting my hair permenantly straight, but i have a question, do you get split ends because of the chemicals or does your hair get damaged in any way

  63. I came across this discussion while i was looking for a phone number and i thought i might be able to help a bit since this discussion has been going on since 2006. I have long black frizzy asian hair, and i get my hair chemically straightened every year for the last 5 years. After straightening your hair should look longer, straight, shiny and healthier looking if it doesn’t and just looks damaged, you didn’t get a good job done.

    Just for emily, you do end up getting split ends because your hair does get damaged. do not dye your hair if your getting it chemically straightened, your hair can only handle so much damage. you’ll get split ends which are twisty at the ends which need to be cut off, they get worse if you leave them. the weight of your hair usualy pulls the curly regrowth to be straight too. othewrise invest in a hair straightner for the regrowth

  64. hi nick i was wondering if they gave you any advice about how to take care of your hair when the process was done?

    Like don’t dye your hair for a while?
    or don’t straighnted it with a blow dryer?

    im seriously considering to go there and get my hair done im always in dat area any way..all my asian friends get thier haircut there !!

    thnx!!

  65. Bethany: i get my hair cut at kthreeg too, but the northbridge one.

    after you get it, you can’t wash your hair for 2 days usualy, but the longer you leave it, the more permanent your results, because you need time to let the chemicals set in. when you sleep, try not to turn and toss so much, keep the hair as straight as possible, dont tie it up, dont put it behind your ears. these things all ruin the straightness.

    dont dye your hair for at least 3 months, give your time hair to mend itself, use treatments weekly to keep the hair healthy and shiny.

    after you’ve done the permanent straighting, you’ll have no need for a hair dryer, just towel dry and leave it, it will dry perfectly straight.

    keep in mind, the longer your hair is, the more straightening costs and they will give you a cut too at the same time, etiher before straightening or after. straightening for long hair takes about 3 hours. and if you have a short fringe, wait til it grows out a bit before you straighten, nobody wants a dead straight flat fringe.

  66. hey im looking at permently straigtening my hair just wondering if it works for hair past shoulders and hair that has been permently died
    how hard is it to look after on a daily basis

  67. Hey Donna,

    Mine is past my shoulders (now) and its still striaght. I’ve always dyed my hair and no probs etiher.

    It’s been done about 6 months and looking in need of a little TLC, but earlier on, I could have just stepped out of the shower and let it dry naturally (and very straight).

  68. hey guys, i thought id pop in and say thanks to nick. IT was freaking annoying (especialliy for a guy) for someone who taking steps into the unknown.Where no man usually takes to find out or even do straightening. Noone could imagine me with longer hair, some preferred me with short.” U look good with short hair, why grow it for?”

    Since nov 07, i have recieved a barrel no wait…rooms full of compliments from friends,work,strangers AND strangers thru work/friends. guys ANd Girls alike.
    mind u, i did my own cutt.coz i don’t like the asian hairstyle that was given to me on the day of straightening @ dreammix.It was too dragon ballZ/anime for a non-asian like me.(asian= chinese/korean etc..)
    Without boasting, it has changed my social life and i do get the random person with a request for my number for drinks etc…u get the drift.
    I personally did it because i was working&studiying too hard and cameback frm ovaseas lking lyk crp.it eventually showed in my hair also in 2007. SO I got it for the convenience (and coz i always wanted to try out longer hair)

    NIck, thanks for posting ur pic.I’m happy to share half of my face if any guy is looking to do it too.

    It was only since i was going for my 2nd regrowth touchup that i found out secretly that some of my friend’s friends and flatmate wants to OR has already done the same.
    I was going to chop it all off and start again, only to remember at the last hr what i looked like prior to nov 07.I don’t have afro hair but it was getting quite coarse and curly by the haircut.
    AFter talking to hairOPE , DReammix, 2 or 3 other places in chinatown, i finally decided to do it again in early 2008.
    I even met a guy who had his done for the last 12yrs. (asian guy in a non-jap straightening salon) in that sydney QVB area.

    Unfortunately the cut was crap,and within a few mths, my regrowth seems a little longer than i expected.Lucky thing was that i was able to hide my head for atleast a week before i went to work/public as i had expected it to suck. I guess the mental mantras to make my hair grow a bit faster helped a lil!

    A lot of asian places ie: in apartment blocks like world tower and near summit/meriton seemed unhelpful for non-asians and made it more expensive for me to ask for even a touchup on my regrowth let alone my first time.

    Alll i can say is:
    – make sure ur hairdresser is upfor it ON the day.If he’she is ill or watever.. cancel it and re organise.It’ll show in their 3hr endurance.
    -I was an exception but always try to see that they SHOW u the bottle before they use it on ur hair, not some mixed or opened brand or worse…a dodgy brand.
    -I was an exception (again) but do try to see the client’s before and after fotos. with styled cut if avail.and ask if u think they CAN do it. Take a few fotos with u of ur ideas.

    This reply is long coz i guess im writing this all at once for the last 10mths worth or more.
    I thought id pay a visit here since i know what it was like. Actually i found a new concept that pretty much does the same thing but allows for hair to be wavy or straight. girls can have their locks when they want to also. But i forgot what it was called. It was “cold”..something” I think it was called “cold compress” or something.It was on an american hair website. I don’t think u had to wait 48hrs to wash ur hair either as it was the opposite to way jap straightening was done.

    oh yeah…they say 10-12 strands or something naturally falls form your hair. but no one told me until the end that i might need treatment every now and then after straightening it.
    So YES, JEn, hair DOES fall out and it was MORE then 20 strands a month before it was due for a touchup.some from the bulb and some from breaking. yes, im a bit worried about receding hairlines. 😛

    Nick has prolly left this blog a long time ago but i thought i’d say thanks 1 more time.

    Finally, excuse my grammer, its cold and my hands are freezing and it’s taken my 40 mins to write this juggling inbetween other things-to-do on the net.

    Good Luck!

  69. Thanks for the follow-up Pravi!

    I haven’t done anything to my hair in ages and it’s now pretty short (but growing again).

    It’s good to know that my post helped people with information (and it sounds like a bit of courage as well) to follow up with what they want to do.

    My fiance got her hair straightened when we were in Thailand and it’s really great to see her happy that she can just “wash it and leave it” now (since she used to get frustrated and is really busy all the time).

    1. Hi michelle! There are two KthreeGs now. One at 40 Pier St. in Perth, and one at 189 William St. in Northbridge (between the horseshoe bridge and the Brass Monkey).

  70. Hey Nick, I am thinking about having my hair chemically straitened. I know all about the costs and stuff, but I don’t wanna damage my hair. I have THICK CURLY HAIR and I’m going to let it grow out some more cause I am going for an emo look, but I need to know what kind of pre-treatments I should get and would it damage my hair?

    How long will it last, cause if it lasts until your hair grows out it wont last very long for me cause my hair grows pretty fast. Is this a waste of my time cause I want it so badly!?

    Also, will I need to condition it regularly afterwards so it wont look dry?

    1. Hi Joseph. It’s been a while since I posted this (my hair is long and curly again now), but here’s a quick point-by-point response. 😉

      I have thick curly hair. I didn’t get any pre-treatments (aside from a deep conditioning immediately prior, as part of the process). My hair was not damaged at all (in fact it never felt healthier!) The straightening is only to hair on your head at the time of the treatment, so new growth will be whatever your hair is normally like. Think about it like dying your hair in that you will have “roots”, but not quite that bad since new growth is weighted down a bit by existing hair.

      If anything I conditioned my hair less after it was straightened (because I didn’t have to do anything to it to stop it from being frizzy). So yeah, that was my experience. Your experience may be different, so don’t hold me to it! 😛

  71. Ok. Thanks!!! I’ll try it even if it doesn’t work, cause it’s only hair and it’ll grow back.

    The reason I asked this is because alot of people said they’ve had bad experiences with it(They said there hair was damaged, started to fall out and stuff like that).

    But, I think it mikght actually work and can’t thank you enough!

  72. Joseph – you should check out the keratin straigthening procedure. It’s a bit more expensive but it’s supposed to be much better for your hair.

  73. this is urgent can anyone pls give me the number for the K Three G in william street? i really need to get my hair done in these few days…
    thanks!

  74. Hey nick 🙂

    Well i wanted to straighten my hair but i dont know if i should. I straightened my hair before in 2009. Then i decided to cut it in june. It was out of control and i really hate it! My hair right now is medium-short. So what should i do?
    Help! Help! Help! >.<"

  75. Hi Aly,

    I can’t really any offer advice on straightening medium-short hair. All I can say is to have a look at different styles you might want, and have a chat with a hair stylist.

    Incidentally, I think medium-short hair is awesome. 🙂

  76. Hi Nick,
    Great post – I was looking for places around Perth and actually past kthreeg a couple of days before stumbling on this post. 4 years later and it’s still going strong, calming the masses and their hair 🙂

    FYI I had my hair done in Thailand in December and 9 months later it’s still straight. The roots have grown out a fair amount and my hair has a nice volume to it but the underneath is a little brittle and can knot easily if I have a hoody on or something pushing it up against it. Might book in with kthreeg this week.

    Good luck all.

  77. hey nick,
    its really amazing to see you helping ppl here about their hair for like 4 years now hay..

    i just want to ask.. which hair dressing place is the best in perth? i want to get an asian hairstyle.
    i know there are 2 k3g and i heard the on pier street is better than the one in northbride.
    but there are also “top image in china town and wintrop)
    which do u think is better? or u have other greater paces than this?
    please inform me.
    thanks a lot buddy =D

    1. Hi Jonathan,

      Actually, I have absolutely no idea!

      I think that the last time I went to a hair salon was k3g back when there was only one (on Pier st).

      I just cut my own hair now… which may sound a bit weird…

  78. oh i see…
    i went to k3g today.. and the result is better than i got from top image…

    and yeah cutting your own hair doesnt sound weird to me at all..

    i know a few friends that cut their own hair.. but do u guys do it =.=” its freakin hard

    1. Thanks for the update.

      It’s nice to know that people are getting good results from k3g. (I might grow my hair out again next year and may be looking for a place again).

      However, I think my next haircut will be very short (pretty much shaved) since the weather is getting pretty hot!

      1. Yo nick well like im of mixed race so my hair is like freaky. Do you or anybody else here think this straitening method will work 🙂

  79. I went to k3g today. My hair is super thick and curly, and it worked a treat on me. However it’s only the first day, so i won’t assume it has worked until a week or two from now. I would also recommend Kai at k3g, he’s a pro! works so quick, and is really precise.

  80. Had my hair chemically straightened at Aliah Hair, located on corner of Lonsdale St and Elizabeth st in Melbourne. Looks great, 2 weeks later and not a curl in sight. Cost $200 and worth every penny!

  81. If anyone plans to get their hair straightened and are also planning to visit an asian country soon (thailand, hong kong, etc) you should get it done there. The price you pay is a fraction of what people pay for in more developed nations. The results are as good as if not better than the $100 – $400 jobs you get from top tier salons else where. Of course you should do some research from your local friends there and ask what products they use at the salon before undergoing this procedure.

    I’m a guy and I had my hair straightened at a nearby beauty salon in Myanmar (south east asia) and the results are amazing. Ive had unmanageable crazy curly frizzly wavy hair but no more alas!

    To be honest however, Im not a big fan of straight hair and much rather prefer my natural hair texture (call me crazy, I know), however as I’m growing it out to shoulder length, an afro on an asian guy isnt exactly sexy. For now, I’m waiting for my hair to grow out and return to its ‘normal’ state when it reaches the desired length. But who knows, I really do like how straight hair is superbly easier to manage so I might go back for a touch up. And if anyone is wondering, I paid less than $20 for my rebonding. Go global south countries!!

  82. I love pin straight hair but I don’t like chemicals, are too damaging for hair. I prefer straighten my hair with the Karmin G3 Salon Pro, it works pretty good, removes static and leaves my hair silky and shiny, and it’s less damaging than chemical treatments.

  83. Hi

    My hair is fine and almost the one length – in a short bob which I slip it around my ears about an inch length there.

    So would I be a suitable candidate for hair straightening?

    Cheers
    Monique

  84. I went to K Three G in Pier Street today. What a great experience. Kai is a flippin magician! My hair is streaked but he used a weaker solution and my hair came out looking great. For an intense conditioning treatment, permanent straightening, cut and dry it was $250. They even through in a gloss to take home. Fabulous service.

  85. I’m considering get my son’s hair done ..he hates his curly hair…you look great..and you seem more confident actually on the after picture. =) good job!

  86. my questions is how to take care of rebonded hair..??i got rebonding along with keratin smoothening done day before.waiting for your reply..

  87. i forgot to ask one more thing and that is after how many days should i wash my hair.?and can i use shampoo in my ist was..??or do i have to wash it with only water or conditioner..??

  88. Anyone thinking about doing this, stop hesitating. I’ve been going to Dreamix for 6 years at least. I have long hair and get the roots done every 4 months. Costs around $280 which is expensive, but this saves me from blow drying and straightening my hair every day an gives me an extra hour every morning. And it means I don’t have to be one of those girls worried about getting their hair wet. I don’t even have to comb it in the morning.
    The chemicals themselves don’t really get on your scalp, so if you have sensitive skin like me you should be ok, just tell them. And for three days after the treatment you can’t get It wet, tuck it behind your ears or pin it back. After that just wash & shampoo as normal.
    It’s well worth it. I’m going today.

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