Get great hair with a Brazilian

ands up if you go to the hairdresser’s once a week? Once a month? Every six weeks? If any of the above apply to you, then you probably spend more than £2,000 a year on your hair. Almost a quarter of British women do the same, so there’s really no need to feel embarrassed.

What might surprise you is that even though we shell out so much at the salon, only 12 per cent of women brush their hair in the morning and don’t bother again for the rest of the day. That same percentage have also cancelled a date or an outing because of a “bad hair day”, which is something we all relate to. A poll of 2,000 women revealed they woke up with unruly hair three days a week, which is the equivalent of 26 years in an average lifetime.

Twenty-six years of bad hair days is a pitiful statistic, but one I can believe as I’ve spent a large part of my life with a scrunchie round my wrist so that when the inevitable rain/humidity/wind/lack of time strikes, I can tie up wayward frizz/lacklustre locks and look better.

I still do it, but of late much less so because of my Brazilian and no, I’m not talking South American stylist or waxing preferences. My Brazilian is a permanent blow dry that allows me to take summer holidays without excess tonsorial tools and marathon drying sessions. The keratin solution relaxes waves, eases frizz and makes self-styling a breeze.

The process takes up to two hours , which is a long time for one who struggles to just sit. But I chose the salon carefully from a tick list that stipulates: 1)Swanky, but not intimidating; 2)Entertaining and relaxing as I like to gossip and read.

Gloss Hair and Beauty fulfils that criteria as it is bright and airy, the clientele is diverse (designer Katherine Hamnett is a regular) and owner stylists (Drew and Liz) don’t ask if you have any holidays planned. Other salons offering the Brazilian in cool environments are David Rozman — voted best salon in Manchester 2012 — and the Upper Cut salons in Chigwell and Gants Hill, where the treatment is available from £129.
At Gloss you can get a beauty treatment in the chair, though it could be tricky during a Brazilian as once the solution is on, the hair is roughly blow dried and then straightened with irons in small sections.

It’s arduous, but for those who find their hair unmanageable and get arm-ache attempting a sleek finish it’s a miracle damage-free treatment that doesn’t take the guts out of your hair or entirely remove the kinks you like. The result? In a nutshell (appropriately) — the Brazilian makes styling simple and hopefully averts more bad hair years.

Gloss Hair and Beauty London N7 0BT (gloss-hair.com) 020 8616 5191
David Rozman Manchester M2 5HX (davidrozman.co.uk) 0161 832 0179
Upper Cut (uppercuthairgroup.co.uk) 020 0208 500 0022