As you may know, I also service clients at a nearby mall. I finally bought a new set of marcels for that location. That way, I do not have to transport tools between locations. I am especially excited about this purple set because my stove is adjustable temperature. The idea is that I can keep my irons warm without overheating them. It has been about ten months since I converted to marcel irons for heat styling, and I am fully commited to them even to the point that I am denying flat iron service requests. I would rather for a client to go someone else for flat iron services than to know that I contributed to flat iron damage. Sometimes the clients feel that they know more than the hairsylist; sometimes the client does know more than the hairstylist. Case in point: Deciding which relaxer strength to use . . . I remember telling a hairstylist to use a mild strength relaxer because I knew that my scalp was very sensitive. I probably should have told her why I requested a mild strength, but about five minutes into the relaxer application, my scalp was starting to burn. I immediately asked the hairstylist, is this a mild relaxer? Her response was "no, it looked liked you needed a regular strength relaxer." Oh my God, it was not a good day! That situation happened to me in a New York hair salon. Let me not get into my long list of my own hair horror stories. I actually am dedicated to this blog because I believe knowledge is power for the stylist and the consumer.
Unfortunately, because I was a "flat iron only" hairstylist for several years . . . I have grown many ladies' hair to mid back with quality maintenance products and protective styling aids, but I also have seen some of my hard work go down the drain with continued use of flat irons at high temperatures. It is not worth the risk to me, and for those clients who relate the flat iron usage more to "hair growth," I have an uphill battle that I am willing to lose. It took me several years to give up my flat iron addiction even after I remember being told a few times to consider going back to stove and marcels. I was not ready to receive the message, then January/February 2011 (this year), the light came on. My compounding experiences with long-term flat ironing plus what I was seeing over the years really made me go "cold turkey" and I am not going back. Knowledge is power.
