I know what you’re thinking.. Why on earth would I perm my already naturally curly hair??
Here’s the thing. At 39, I have only recently discovered my naturally curly hair. Crazy right? I always knew there was some texture there - my hair never behaved and getting it straight was nearly impossible! Growing up in the 90's where straight hair was desirable, my hair was more of a 'situation' that I had learned to manage.
Today, I've come full circle and with the right techniques and products, my frizzy hair, has been brought to life! 5 years ago I stumbled across the curly girl method and I've never looked back.
This begs the question why would I get a perm when my hair already has pretty great curls. Here’s the thing. My hair has multiple patterns and like most curlies it can be crazy and inconsistent and while I love so many things about my curly hair, I still get a lot of curl envy when I see women with big bouncy voluminous curls... (And if i'm honest some fellas' hair makes me have green eyes too!).
'My hair isn’t bad, and it’s certainly not ‘lacking.’ But some days, I find myself longing for more ‘oomph’ in its volume and texture.'.
So it’s a little bit of vanity & a little bit of curiosity.
- I'm curious to see if a perm will give me more definition and volume to my hair, and help to hide one of my biggest problem area’s (a bit of thinning in the back).
Last year when I first read about perming naturally curly hair, I wrote a blog about it. You can read it here. I was fascinated by the concept and the response was mind blowing. I knew I wasn't alone in my pursuit for a more consistent curl pattern and since then I’ve decided to “put my money where my mouth is” and take the plunge. I've booked in for a perm and you can follow my journey every step of the way.
Step 1: Perm Consult
I'm certain today was the windiest day in July.
I booked in for my consultation with Jenna from Maiden Hair Salon in Nowra. Maiden Hair specialises in curly hair cutting techniques and they've been cutting my curls for a few years now. Jenna is their go-to perm expert.
Because it was windy, and my hair needed a wash, I opted to apply some products instead of leaving it ‘ala-natu-ral’ because I had a busy day and needed my curls to hang in there till the evening. It also gave Jenna a chance to see what my curls can do at their very best- generally.
- It's recommended to go with your hair washed and free of products so your stylist knows exactly what they're working with.
I made an executive decision that I hope doesn't backfire!
What Happened In My Consultation?
The consultation only took 10-15 minutes. (Okay maybe a bit longer because I'm “chatty”..) But we discussed my vision for my curls. We talked about the challenges I was having with my hair and essentially what I wanted to achieve from a perm. Jenna then came up with a plan for my perm, and after making my booking for two weeks later, I went on my merry way.
Points Worth Mentioning
- I had a hair cut this week. I have been trying to grow my hair out for a while now. My hair is fine, but there is A LOT of it. So it gets weighed down easily and loses definition quite quickly. I've learnt regular haircuts help maintain its shape and volume.
- My hair also has multiple curl patterns. I have straight pieces, wavy pieces and curly pieces.
- The hair on top of my hair and around my face is quite curly, whereas underneath is pretty limp and straight from the roots. Some of the ends of my hair get loose spirals, however the definition only begins half way down the shaft. So the top areas usually look pretty flat. Especially in the back.
- What I've noticed through growing my hair longer is that when my hair is short (bob length) my curls are springy and voluminous, however when my hair gets longer the curls struggle to curl from the scalp because my hair is too heavy.
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The back of my hair is quite flat. I struggle with volume and definition in the roots (even when styling upside down). I also have an area on the crown of my head that unfortunately due to life stressors now has some significant thinning. (I call it a bald spot! It's not, but I'm very self conscious of it). I would love to have more volume here and ideally hide it.
The Vision
- A more even curl pattern
- Natural looking curls - more natural, less poodle.
- More volume overall (especially in the under pieces)
- I'm hoping a perm will encourage me to continue growing it. My hair has a lot of potential but I'm very impatient.
Step 2: The Plan
Because I'm perming naturally curly hair - and my hair is quite curly on top and the underneath is a bit straight/wavy, Jenna has decided not to perm the top pieces of my hair. They're really curly and get some nice volume in the front. I’m a bit nervous about this- but trusting the process because I don't want to damage my already amazing naturally curly hair pieces, and I definitely want to add some definition where it's needed.
Step 3: Perm Day
Between my consultation and “perm day” I have had a few moments of hesitation.
Since having my hair cut, I've had some brilliant hair days - (you know the ones where you take a bunch of selfies and you just think #nailedit.) So it got me doubting whether or not I really needed a perm. The one thing I couldn't shake though, was this annoying thin spot on the back of my scalp. It REALLY bugs me. Hair thinning can be caused by a bunch of reasons. Stress. Diet. Hormones. Age. Ex husbands. Ex wives. I knew for myself it was an area I was particularly self conscious about and really wanted to see some improvement.
When I arrived at the salon around 9am, with clean, dry hair, Jenna re-washed my hair to make sure it was completely cleansed and free of anything that could compromise the integrity of the perm.
Once seated with my squeaky clean hair, Jenna inspected my hair again and decided that we would actually perm all of it, but in a way that complimented my existing curls. She began the process of rolling my hair into perming rods. This was probably the most time consuming part because I have A LOT of really fine hair.
Once the rods were all securely attached to my head, Jenna applied the perm solution. This sat on my hair for approximately 20 minutes and was then rinsed thoroughly. After that my hair was blotted dry with a towel to remove any excess water and then a neutraliser was applied. I sat for another 15 minutes and while enjoying my cup of tea, I'll admit... I started panicking.
"What if the curls don't 'stick'”.
“What if it ruins my already amazing curls”.
“What if it's not at all what I thought it would be like”.
The panic at this point was pretty real.
After another rinse in the sink, it was back to the chair for the unveiling. To say I was nervous was an understatement.
As I held my breath and Jenna unravelled the rods, I could very clearly see that my hair was in fact VERY curly. She worked from the bottom up, starting at the nape of my neck, and because these parts of my hair are usually so straight, I could immediately see the difference.
My hair, once all the rods were taken out, reflected a bowl of freshly cooked ramen noodles. I had no idea what my hair would look like once dry at that point. Jenna then applied some curl products to help hold the curl in place. She used LOHY.’s POW Strong Hold Gel and Chutzpah Volumising Foam because that is what I use at home and she then styled and dried my hair upside down
When I flipped my curls over, I'll admit, I was equally shocked at the results and bursting with happiness. My curls were BIG!
Most of all they were uniformed. The curls at the back had loads of volume, and completely covered the thinning part of my crown that was suffering every time I styled my hair. In fact, you could barely see my scalp.
My hair was still about 80% dry when I left the salon. I opted to let my hair dry the rest of the way naturally and I went about my day (of course taking lots of photos) and by night time my hair had settled into itself. There were some noticeable straighter strands at the tips of my hair, but the rest of the curls remained intact.
- At this point it's REALLY important NOT TO WASH (or completely wet) YOUR HAIR! This will totally wreck the perm. The recommended time to wash is 48-72 hours later. My perm was done on Monday and I'm going to aim to wait to wash until Friday or Saturday.
The Following Days
Over the next few days here's what happened….
DAY 1: In the evening I could tell my hair had changed a bit. There were still loads of curls, and the top looked great but the curls at the base of my hair had dropped significantly. I wasn't sure what to make of this but decided to trust the process and hoped that a refresh would pick them back up again.
For bedtime, I put a pineapple in my hair. Not an actual pineapple!! I used a large silk scrunchie loosely tied it up on top of my head so my curls weren't overly disrupted by my sleep and went to bed.
DAY 2: When I woke up, my curls seemed a little bit more "noodley” than the day before. I refreshed my curls with a light spray of water, just enough to glaze my hands over my curls and get rid of any frizz. Jenna said this would be OK. I didn't detangle my curls because a) there weren't many knots, and b) I wasn't sure if it would damage the perm - a quick google told me this was probably a bad idea so I figured a day or two wouldn't hurt. My ends picked up a bit too which gave me some hope that they would be okay.
Throughout the day, my curls had definitely become a little less spirally… but I was hoping that when I finally wash and restyle my hair the curls might bounce back up. I’m still really happy with how the curls are looking, especially at the back.
DAY 3: I'm starting to get a bit stressed.
My curls are definitely not as defined and are lacking the lustre they had on day 1.
I am desperate to wash and restyle because I'm hoping that restyling my hair will help all those delicious curls I first saw bounce back.
It’s REALLY hard to be patient at this point. But I'm determined to hang out for day 4 to wash and restyle. One thing I am still really happy about is the definition in the back- I’ve never had consistent curls from the roots in the back of my hair and that's been really nice. For now however, it's clipped up loosely with a couple of claw clips.
Step 4: Wash Day
(Day 4)
Hallelujah!! Never have I been so excited and nervous for a wash day styling sesh.
My feelings... Relief. Sheer and absolute relief.
I'll be honest, the last two days have been a ROLLERCOASTER of emotions as my hair has gone from ‘KAPOW!' type amazing curls, to quite limp and weighed down during the wait till wash day.
Patience is KEY while you wait to wash. I read that letting your curls get wet can affect the integrity of your perm so I avoided any spritzing or refreshing after the first day. The last day I'll admit was the hardest. I take pride in how my curly hair looks and letting it look less than average was hard!! But patience won out.
I washed my hair Friday morning (four days post perm) with Nourish & Flourish Shampoo and Conditioner. It's my go to every day cleanser, and after conditioning I applied a curly hair mask too.
The Result?
My curls at the front are relatively the same. Which is good, because I really liked them and the risk here was that by perming my entire head, the natural curls might have suffered and I could have lost the natural texture I already have.
1 Week Post Perm And My Feelings Are...
I am converted!!! I really love it! Every time I wash my hair, which is twice now I keep thinking my perm is going to wash out. Like it's some kind of voodoo my hair has fallen under. My hair is not suddenly perfect, but curly hair isn't, and I think that's the true beauty of perming naturally curly hair.
It doesn't LOOK permed. It looks enhanced!
Q & A's
Am I happy with the results? The back is MARVELLOUS! There is no other way to explain it. It looks SO good and I'm really happy with the results. I can now say my curl pattern is consistent, (although still looking really natural) and I have a tonne more volume all over. One thing that I will add- when Jenna applied the rods to my hair, she did multiple sized rods on the top and back and layered them in different directions (almost a herringbone pattern). This I believe helped to give the impression of more natural curls, because let's face it, natural curls aren't ever completely uniformed and my hair still seems to have a mind of its own.
Was it worth it? Absolutely!! I had wanted to do this for a really long time and I think the results speak for themselves. If you're on the fence about getting a perm, my advice is to chat with your stylist and definitely find someone who feels confident in perming naturally textured hair.
Did the perm damage my hair? I wouldn't say the perm caused any significant damage to my hair. However my hair does feel quite vulnerable and is definitely needing some extra TLC post perm. But I knew this would be the case. After washing I used LOHY.’s Drench & Quench hair mask to help rehydrate and nourish my curls just in case the chemicals had caused any damage or stripped any of the good oils in my hair.
Even after using the hair mask my hair still feels a bit dry and brittle, but I also know a few weeks of intense hair care and it will bounce back to its healthy self.
What Products did I use to style my curls Post-Perm? After washing my curls, I used a combo of Cruise Control Curl Cream + POW Strong Hold Gel and my trusty Flexi Brush. I used LOHY.'s newest brush- The Detangler and Volume+ Root Lift Combs for maximum volume while I diffused my hair.
Is it risky? Yes, there is always a risk in perming your natural curls because you just don't know how your hair will react. And everyone's hair is different. On day 3 post perm I started noticing some drop in my curls at the front, and I was worried to say the least. I would have been devastated if the perm didn't work, or if my natural curls were affected. But I also knew the risks going into it, and decided it was worth it.
Everyone is different, and everyone's hair is different. For me, this was an educated decision that I put a lot of thought into. I certainly wouldn't do it on a whim and I'm thankful (and relieved) it turned out as good as it did.
There's a lot of chatter about perming naturally curly hair, and if you think you're going to do it my one take away is TRUST THE PROCESS!! Commit to it, research it, talk to the professionals and take a lot of photos along the way. #permingmynaturallycurlyhair
- Louise’s curly hair journey began 5 years ago when she wholeheartedly embraced her natural curls. A proud wavy (sometimes) curly girl, this journey not only transformed her hair, but also paved the way for a new professional direction. Integrating her background in digital marketing with personal experience in curly hair care, Louise offers valuable insights and support to LOHY.’s curly-haired community.
