Why is it that you are never satisfied with what you have? Ladies who have straight hair want to have curly hair, and those with curly textured hair desire straight hair. No matter what your hair is like naturally, you struggle with getting it to look and feel the way you want it to.
Calming down that curly make can be frustrating. You don’t want to spend hours fighting your hair to get it just so when you need to dash out the door. Enter hair rebonding.
Hair rebonding prevents you from having a daily battle. Ladies who have textured hair often turn to hair rebonding so that their hair is smooth, sleek and shiny. With hair rebonding, your hair is more manageable. But what exactly is hair rebounding?
Hair Rebonding Defined
Hair rebonding is a process that chemically relaxes your hair. Hair is mostly made up from a hard protein called keratin. Keratin is also found in your fingernails, toenails and skin. Hair keratin is formed from amino acids. The keratin protein in hair is connected by bonds and the bonds determine the texture of your hair.
When you use hair rebonding, you break the bonds in your hair and rebuild them so that the overall texture changes. Hair rebonding creates straight hair for those who have curly hair, whereas a permanent wave creates curly hair for those with straight.
There are two steps to hair rebonding, applying a relaxant and applying a neutralized. The relaxant breaks the protein bonds in your hair and the neutralized bonds the altered hair structure.
Why Use Hair Rebonding
Ladies with curly hair have two options to straighten their locks, hair straightening and hair rebonding.
The difference between the two methods is the longevity and they type of chemical treatment. Hair straightening lasts for approximately five or six months, whereas hair rebonding lasts for a longer period, typically more than 12 months. Hair straightening does not alter the hair structure and weather conditions such as humidity or rain may affect your hair causing it to frizz.
To straighten your hair, you may use:
- Straightening combs
- Hot combs
- Hair irons
- Large hair rollers
- Hair straightening brushes
- Straightening solutions
- Straightening shampoos and conditioners
If you choose to use any of the heating methods, you can inflict harm on your hair’s health. In fact, it is possible to overuse heat and permanently damage your hairs structure.
The advantage of hair rebonding is that it lasts longer since you alter the hair structure and you can confidently enjoy having your sleek tresses for a longer period.
Purpose of Hair Rebonding
The purpose of hair rebonding is to provide you with a means to have straight sleek hair that lasts for a long time. Once your hair is straight, you can rest assured that your hair will be more manageable, and you won’t waste time fighting your hair. Having a solution that lasts is a great benefit of hair rebonding.
Warnings
Although having your hair look and feel silky for a long period sounds great, there’s some downsides to hair rebonding.
- Breakage: The process of hair rebonding uses chemicals and heat. Both can damage your hair and cause it to break. Your hair is fragile after rebonding.
- Hair Loss: Using this process on your hair may also result in hair loss.
- Burns: Another concern about hair rebonding is the potential to experience chemical burns on your hair and scalp.
- Follow-Up: Since this treatment uses chemicals, it is a good idea that you follow up the procedure with hot oil treatment.
- Expense: Going to a salon and having your hair rebonded can be expensive. The process is costly.
DIY at Home Hair Rebonding
Anytime you go to the salon for a service, you can expect to pay a hefty fee. However, if you want to avoid the expense of paying for hair rebonding, you can do it yourself. Your hair length determines the amount of time it will take to perform the process. Expect to spend 3 to 8 hours to rebond your hair.
Materials
- A hair rebonding kit which you can purchase from Amazon or a drug store.
- Flat iron with adjustable temperature settings
- A blow dryer
- Mild shampoo
- Gloves
- Applicator brush
- Hair clips
- Old t-shirt
- Large toothed comb
- Hair steamer
- Towels
- Keratin lotion
Procedure
- Wash your hair with the mild shampoo, but do not use a conditioner on it.
- Allow your hair to dry naturally or use a blow dryer t dry it using medium heat.
- Use the comb to separate your hair into sections.
- Fasten each section with a hair clip.
- Open your hair rebonding kit, read the instructions.
- Put on the old t-shirt
- Put on your gloves.
- Apply the relaxant or cream softener from the kit using the applicator brush. (Be sure you follow the kit’s instructions as they may vary).
- Steam your hair for 10 to 30 minutes using your hair steamer OR boil water and dip a town into it and wrap up your hair.
- Rinse your hair thoroughly with water. Be sure to rinse it completely out.
- Blow dry your hair using low to medium heat.
- Apply keratin lotion to your hair.
- Use the flat iron until your hair is completely straight.
- Use the large toothed-comb to separate your hair into sections again.
- Put on your gloves if you took them off.
- Apply the neutralizer from your kit.
- Allow the neutralizer to remain in your hair for 30 minutes.
- Rinse your hair using cool water and make sure you get out all the neutralizer.
- Blow dry your hair using low to medium heat.
- Once your hair is completely dry, use your flat iron to iron out any areas that are kinky.
Do’s and Don’ts of Hair Rebonding
Do’s
- After having your hair rebounded, be sure to use a shampoo and conditioner designed for straight hair each time you wash your hair.
- Gently towel dry your hair and be sure to apply a hair serum afterwards to ensure it remains shiny and does it become frizzy.
- Be sure to oil your hair regularly each week using a hair mask. For instance, mix olive oil with an egg and apply to your hair for 20-30 minutes then wash as you would normally.
- Steam your hair every two weeks by wrapping your head in a warm wet towel and apply a deep conditioner.
- Watch your nutrition. To keep your hair healthy, consume a balanced diet that includes nuts and sprouts.
- Use a shower cap for at least three days after you have this process performed. You don’t want to wash away your results.
- Maintain your hair by having it trimmed regularly.
- Use a large toothed comb on your hair rather than a brush.
- Protect your hair by using scarfs, hats and umbrellas.
- If you get caught in the rain, be sure to wash your hair as soon as you can. The pollutants and salt in the rain may damage your hair.
Don’ts
- After you have your hair rebonded, avoid using hair accessories such as barrettes or hair ties for at least a week. I recommend you wait for 30 days before using any hair accessories.
- Never wash your hair immediately after you have your hair rebounded.
- Avoid using any heat on your hair. This means stay away from using a blow dryer.
- Do not color your hair immediately after having it bonded. Using additional chemicals on your hair for the first six months is a bad idea.
- Do not use a brush on your hair.
- To keep your hair in tip top shape and looking sleek, do not wash it too often. Try to limit washing your hair to 3 to 4 times per week.
- Avoid using hot water to wash your hair.
- Don’t avoid having your hair trimmed regularly.
- Avoid environmental factors such as pollution, too much sun ad rain.
When Disaster Strikes
If you’ve rebounded your hair and the results are less than stellar, the following tips may help you.
- Go to a salon and have your haircut.
- Ask the salon if they can help you fix your hair.
- Regularly oil your hair.
- Be sure to use a hair serum regularly or a leave-in conditioner.
- Deep condition your hair every two weeks.
- Do it have any other chemical procedure performed on your hair for six months.
- Put your hair up in a loose bun.
- Wear a scarf.
Is Rebonding for You?
Making the decision to rebond your hair should not be taken lightly. Rebonding works great for some and not so well for others. Before making a decision, be sure to conduct your own research.
Also, talk to your friends and family. They will be able to provide insight. For instance, if your mother and sisters have not had great results with rebonding, genetically your hair may not respond well. However, if your relatives give it glowing reviews, then rebonding may be a process that you should try.
If you decide to go for it, be sure you remember to pamper your hair by following the Do’s above and avoid the Don’ts!
Once you experience success with hair rebonding, you no longer will look at straight hair longingly. You my dear will be the one people will look at and wish their hair was as beautiful as yours.
