Natural Hair • Pressed • Shi Salon
Last week I left you all with a “cliff hanger” with my natural hair. I got pressed for the first time at Shi Salon in downtown St. Louis by the owner, Marie Simone.
My experience at the salon was enjoyable. The receptionist gave me a tour before my appointment, and a stylist did a quick consultation before I got started. Once Marie came out, I was taken to the sink to get my hair washed. If you want to see how I arrived at the salon check this post from last week.
After my wash, I was given a scalp massage then left to sit with the conditioner for a while. The massage was a nice touch and I remember the conditioner had a mild tingle to it. Wonderful. She used all Davines products. I then moved over to Marie’s station where she blowdried, pressed and flat ironed my hair. She used a Davines product before any of the heat styling. Here’s an amazing photo of my hair 1/2 done.
Cool huh? When my hair was relaxed it was dark brown (I assume from the years of chemicals), but this time my hair was pitch black and kinda shocked me honestly.
Here am I right before she did the last piece:
After the “press & set” was completed, Marie put me under the dryer with plastic wrap on my head. Why you ask? I shared with her that I sweat a lot in my scalp, so she was demonstrating the best way keep my hair super straight, especially at the roots. FYI, if you wrap your hair ole school style, then wrap it with clear plastic wrap (as pictured below), you can sit under the dryer for 5 minutes to bring your roots and hair back to a sleek straight state.
TADA! Here I am just before leaving the salon. I decided not to get much “set” in my “press and set”, and opted for a minimal flip and just sleek and straight.
Marie also gave me a small trim, maybe an inch maximum.
At this point I thought my hair looked entirely fake LOL! Not only that, it felt fake … just saying.
Once I was at home I snapped a few more shots of my new do.
Like I said, my hair looked and felt fake to me. I was so shocked by the results I think I was actually confused HA! I’d NEVER seen my hair this straight and sleek, even with all the years while it was relaxed. I was also shocked at the lack of bulk, it literally felt like I’d purchased some weave and had it installed. Marie did tell me that my hair was very healthy, so I’m assuming that had something to do with it … that and the products and technique that Marie used. Either way, I was totally perplexed by how my hair turned out.
That picture above is a great shot of the trim and resulting shape.
One last shot just to show you all my 17 week baby bump (finally). *tee hee*
Well it’s actually 2 weeks later and my hair is still like this, mostly because I’ve been super lazy, making sure I got my money’s worth, and had a stint down in the dumps. The next few posts will be with my hair like this so if you love it there’s more in store. I must confess I’ve been pretty underwhelmed with the straight hair but more on this later.
Until next time Glam Fam I wish you
Life, Liberty & The Pursuit of Nappyness,