Reader Mail: Will a Partial Perm Give Me Volume?
Friday May 29, 2009
I recently received an email from a reader about partial perms. Pam writes: "The sides of my hair are about down to my chin and the back is a little shorter. I guess you could say that it is an inverted bob. The problem I have is that my hair looks flat to my head on top. I really need a little height and volume. Could I get a partial body perm on top so that my hair won't be weighed down? Thanks for any advice you can give me."While Pam's idea is perfect in theory, it often fails in execution. Perms change the texture of the hair, and often, when doing a partial perm, you'll find that the texture doesn't match up with rest of your hair. You'll likely find that your hair will be left with a bunch of frizz or too much curl in the partially permed area that you'll just spend hours trying to remedy.
So what to do? Well, you could try a body perm all over your hair, but if you wear your hair straight, I'm afraid you'll just find yourself spending a lot more time trying to combat curl, and you likely won't end up with the volume that you sought after in the first place. And there goes the cost of an expensive, time consuming, and possibly hair damaging perm. Oh, and by the way, now you get to grow it out too. That's fun.
The answer is probably as simple as a haircut, Pam. The next time you get a haircut, ask your stylist to add some texture in the top of your hair. She will likely use a razor or thinning shears to remove some of the longer hair on top of your head. Now, before you assume that I'm off my rocker, because after all, you said that you were looking for FULLER hair, not thinner hair, hear me out. Texture will create shorter hairs at the crown of your head. These smaller hairs can be used to push up the longer hairs, creating more air and volume in your style.
Your blow drier can help with your problem as well. Try using a volumizing spray (I love the CHI Volume Boost and my new favorite is THERMAfuse's Boost Thicking Spray) or mousse at the root of your hair, blowdry with your head tipped upside down, and then style as usual.
I hope that helps your problem, Pam! I would be willing to bet that you aren't the only one out there with this issue.
If you have questions about your hair, please send them to me at womenshair.guide@about.com!
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Comments
Good article – very helpful.
That helped me out! You need to do more of these answer question things
thank you for all the helpful hair tips. As a hairstylist in pasadena i love reading other hair sites!