Hair Treatments

It's a fair bet to say that most people have tried some sort of hair treatment in their lifetime. There's no shortage to choose from, including natural remedies that would look more at home on a menu! Who hasn't cracked a raw egg over their crowning glory or smothered it in avocado?

In theory, if we all ate a healthy balanced diet and used best quality products, we wouldn't need professional hair treatments. In reality, however, our busy lifestyles, poor food choices, harsh environments and overuse of chemicals and heat appliances have a huge impact on our poor locks.

With all the best will in the world, you're going to need occasional intensive hair treatments to keep your hair looking gorgeous. There are hair treatments for conditioning and for straightening, as well as for specific conditions.

Hair Conditioning

A monthly Deep Conditioning Treatment offers many benefits for your hair. Firstly, it gives your hair a major moisture boost. We all know sunshine and swimming can leave our hair dry and brittle but so can cold winter weather. The extreme elements, combined with dry indoor heat, really pull the moisture out of your hair. A deep conditioning treatment provides moisture and nourishment.

Many deep conditioning treatments contain keratin, an essential component of hair that keeps it strong and shiny. This will help prevent split ends and breakage.

Anyone who regularly uses heat styling tools and chemicals should book regular conditioning treatments. Heat and products can leave your hair dull and frizzy. A good conditioning treatment will penetrate the hair cuticles, greatly improving the quality of your hair. Your locks will regain natural shine and lustre, and become soft, smooth and shiny. It will also become easier to style.

Keratin Treatment

Keratin treatments are super popular now - and for a very good reason. Our hair naturally contains keratin but much of this can be lost due to over-styling, chemicals, pollution, extreme temperatures and ageing. When this happens the hair develops porous spots where moisture can get in, turning your once lustrous locks into a tangled up frizz.

You can boost your body's keratin levels by taking supplements and improve hair health with regular keratin treatments. A professional keratin treatment can take up to three hours, depending on the length and thickness of your hair. After shampooing, the hair is partly dried before the keratin product is applied to the hair and left to process. The treatment finishes with rinsing, sealing and straightening.

Remember that keratin is a smoothing treatment not specifically a straightening treatment. It will gradually wash out over time and you will need to book in again.

Straightening Treatment

Whilst a keratin treatment will give the appearance of shiny, smooth straightened hair, it is not classed as a straightening treatment. However, there are several straightening treatments available to help tame wild hair. It's all about finding the best one for your needs and hair type.

One such treatment is thermal reconditioning or Japanese Hair Straightening. This works by chemically altering the hair bonds. You see, it is the protein bonds in our hair that determine whether it's straight or curly. By reconfiguring the curly hair bond to straight, you'll get the smooth straight locks you dream about.

This treatment works for most hair types. However, the curlier your hair is, the more often you'll require treatment. A word of warning: you will see DIY hair straightening treatments advertised but try and resist. You can do irreparable damage. Best to leave it to a professional.

Hair Repair

The type of hair repair treatment you'll need depends on a few factors. How badly is it damaged? What caused the damage? What hair type do you have?

You may have damaged your hair by using heat and chemicals to style it. Or perhaps you have bleached your hair, leaving it dry and brittle. Leaving your hair in tight braids for too long can also cause damage. So, too, can illness, certain medications, even pregnancy.

There are some very good home conditioning products but nothing beats an in-salon treatment for real results. The added benefit here is that a professional has assessed your hair and the damage, and knows exactly what product to use.

Scalp Treatments

When we talk about scalp treatments people instantly think dandruff. Whilst this may be one reason to book an in-salon scalp treatment, it is not the only one. A regular scalp treatment is actually the best way to promote healthy hair growth and condition.

An in-salon scalp treatment usually incorporates a head massage and this alone is highly beneficial. A scalp massage stimulates blood flow, allowing nutrients to reach your hair follicles. A massage will also unclog the follicles, allowing your hair's natural oils to do their job.

Lice Treatment for Children

Did you know that up to 30% of all primary school-aged children in Australia get head lice at least once a year? Contrary to popular belief, head lice like clean, not dirty hair.

Whilst many parents carry out lice treatments at home there are also salons that can help.