Hair Straightening Dominican Hair Alliance

A Bad Wrap: Is The Doobie Damaging To Your Hair?

by DHA's DIY | Apr 17, 2022 | Dominican Blowout, Ends Care, Doobie/Wrap, Hair Straightening

Doobie doing you wrong?

The Doobie, also known as the Wrap, is one of the main elements of the Dominican Blowout.

By stretching and holding your hair, it keeps your straight look intact for the week.

But when you wrap your hair could you be doing your hair harm?

The Final Wrap…

After your hair is washed, deep conditioned, roller set and blown out, the Doobie is the final element which needs to be in place to ensure the signature silky swoosh of your Dominican Blowout. The Wrap helps your hair to fall correctly, hang and move more like naturally straight hair. Its stretching action also works as a straightener, particularly if you leave your hair in a wrap overnight after leaving the salon; the effect is more potent while the heat is still in your hair, setting it in place while your strands are still flexible from the heat.

Making sure to mold your hair into a Doobie at night before bed also works to extend the life of a Blowout or press. Keeping the hair stretched, wrapped and held in place counters the effects of shrinkage which happen over time as your hair slowly absorbs moisture from the air, products and handling.

A Doobie means you don’t have to overexpose your hair to the pressures of heat by getting touchups in the week to lengthen how long your straight look sticks around.

It also means your straightened hair is instantly styled every morning when you wake up; the rolling action created by the Wrap adds shape and form to straight hair and your parting was set in place the night before when you wrapped your hair. You’re free to just let down the Doobie and go!

Downsides to the Doobie. . .

Wrapping can have its difficulties, just like any other method. Here are the usual pitfalls and how to avoid them:

Overbrushing: Sometimes, people can get a little carried away when they are brushing their hair. It’s easy to forget that brushing is a styling method which, over time, inevitably puts pressure on the hair.

If you don’t brush too much, the damage will be minimal and and your hair will not look or act damaged. Overbrushed hair, on the other hand, gets weak, sparse and unruly due to all of the friction.

So brush your hair efficiently and be sure to use gentle bristles like boar and flexible plastic, rubber or silicone (these last three textures are for the separated style of bristles as seen in the picture on the right) and avoid nylon bristles.

Overuse: Beware the phenomenon known as styling fatigue: repetitively relying on the same style will put some strain on your hair. While wrapping is a styling method, a means to an end, remember that it is a style in and of itself – reminiscent of the 1960s Beehive. Thus, just as continually pulling your hair back into a ponytail will cause wear from the friction and tension it takes to create the style, so can overly-used Doobies, as a styling method which also requires continued tension to stay in place.

So mix it up while you are wearing your hair straight; for example on some nights, opt for bunning, particularly if you are not wearing your hair down.

Wrapping it too tight: This is the biggest reason for damage from Doobies. People wrap their hair too tightly and it strains the edges, overstretches the strands and, overtime, causes thinning and weakness. So don’t pull your hair too taut in a bid to get it extra sleek. Instead, make sure you brush your hair as smooth as possible first, before wrapping it. If your hair comes loose easily, then opt for more bobby pins rather than more tension to keep it in place.

Staying aloof of these all-too-common errors means you can be secure in the knowledge that you are causing no Doobie-related damage to your hair.

Instead, you can have hair that balances being straight when you want it to be, with the ability to swing back to full-blown, bouncy curls in the next!

To steer clear of heat damage when you straighten your hair, always check your Heat Damage Thermometer Printable first, to know the correct, safe heat levels for your hair type or straightening method.

Image credits:
Brent Borreson
Daniel Kulinski
Gabriel C
Lyre Lark

One New Way To Prevent Heat Damage: Set Your Flat Iron To THIS Temperature

by DHA's DIY | Apr 17, 2022 | Heat, Blowout, Hair Straightening, Silk PRESS

Want to straighten your hair and prevent heat damage, but scared you won’t see your curls again after you flat iron?

Heat damage and curls that won’t revert are the stuff of nightmares when you love your naturally curly hair.

But scientists have figured out the exact temperature setting to straighten curly hair and get curl reversion every time.

Lack of curl reversion = heat damage

How things change. Once upon a time, curl reversion was the enemy. The quicker your curls came back after straightening with irons or a blowdryer the more of a nuisance they were.

Having hair that didn’t revert all the way back after a press or blowout was a good thing. It meant you had successfully ‘heat trained’ your hair or, even better, you had that ‘good hair’ that didn’t nap back up like the less fortunate.

Fast-forward and, thankfully, people are way more educated about their hair. These days, pretty much everyone knows what a lack of curl reversion after straightening is: heat damage.

losser curls due to heat damage get curl reversion

Telltale signs of heat damage on curly hair: looser curls and thinned out ends. Image by Tubarones Photography.

And, after decades of work from the pioneers of the natural hair movement to undo centuries of miseducation on African hair, natural hair is mainstream.

Nowadays, it’s common for people with naturally curly hair to wear their curls most of the time, even if they dabble in the occasional blowout or silk press.

Pressed or blown out hair has gone from being the main styling option for people who chose not to relax their hair to something some naturals do once or twice a year, as a length check or temporary change of style.

When curly is your default style, “heat-trained” hair with its limp, lifeless curls is no longer an option. Instead, a new ritual has installed itself.

Once the straight look has run its course, it’s time to jump in the shower, douse your hair with water and wait anxiously for that moment of truth:

“Will my curls come back?”

Even a couple of strands that won’t curl back up can cause alarm. Fervent naturals have been known to break out the scissors immediately if their curls don’t pop. Tanisha is one of them.

The last time she overdid it with the flat iron, she realized a deep trim had to happen. “From the way it flopped back on my forehead after the first rinse, I knew it. Once it was dry, I started counting all the crazy half-straight strands. I just went in and cut out the damage.”

After chopping four inches off her fine afro-textured hair, which reaches the middle of her back when straightened, Tanisha says she thinks it was worth it. “Definitely. I spend all this time and money to have healthy hair. I didn’t want the heat damage spreading up through my hair.”

curl reversion prevent heat damage woman with curly hair in blue sky

Curl reversion is important to naturals who try to avoid heat damage. Image by Rodolfo Quiros.

A stress-free way to prevent heat damage

But what if it didn’t have to be so stressful? What if you could tell in advance exactly what temperature you could flat iron at, get sleek, straight hair and still be sure your curls would be there after?

Temperature tips for hair straightening are all over the Internet, from professional stylists and bloggers alike. Unfortunately, very little is based on science per se. A lot of the recommended temperatures are very different too, which only adds to the confusion.

But if you’ve been growing your hair heat-free for the past couple of years and want to straighten your curls without heat damage, we’ve got some good news for you.

Can you really heat straighten without damage?

Yes. Scientists have found out exactly what temperature you can safely flat iron your hair at without losing curls.

And guess what? One of those studies focused specifically on tightly curled hair types, which tend to get very little light in the hair science literature – though that is changing.

Working with these hair types allowed researchers to see if the protective benefits of a low temperature setting, observed in another study on looser curly hair, also applied to tightly-coiled hair.

Oh, and in another sign of changing times, this study actually namechecks the natural hair movement, crediting it as the reason women now expect to get their curls back after heat styling.

How they found out the perfect temperature

In this study, researchers looked at the effects of two heat settings: 185 degrees Celsius (365° Fahrenheit) and 220 degrees Celsius (428° Fahrenheit).

Before straightening, they classified the tightly curled hair types, using the L’Oréal hair typing system.

The hair samples chosen were Types V, VI and VII, which roughly correspond to types 3c, 4a and 4b in the Andre Hair System.

curl reversion prevent heat damage woman with tight curls

curl reversion prevent heat damage woman with afro hair

curl reversion prevent heat damage woman with tight curl afro

Hair types in the curl reversion heat test. Anticlockwise from top: Type V, Type VI and Type VII by Tubarones Photography.

To get an idea of how repeated heat straightening would affect the hair, the team ran straightening irons on each sample at both temperatures 50 times to reflect long-term exposure at each heat level.

Then, they rewet the hair, let it air-dry and waited to see what would happen.

Results: What temperature is safe to straighten your hair?

When they checked the hair over at the end, this is what they found:

37.5% of individual hairs ironed at 220°C were unable to revert to their natural curl pattern.
Overall, only 25% of hair bundle samples exposed to that temperature were damage-free.
The total number of supercurly Type VI and VII strands fell after straightening at 220°C. At that temperature, there were more type V strands which were the loosest curls in the original sample.
After 220 degree heat, there were even some type III and IV – wavy and loosely curled hair types like the picture below – that were definitely not present before using the straighteners.

curl reversion prevent heat damage woman with curly hair

Heat damage turned some tightly curled hair into loose curls and waves. Image by Tubarones Photography

So does curl reversion mean no heat damage?

That strong curl reversion is a good sign for anyone who likes to rock straight hair every once in a while, but wants their curls back once the straight look is done.

On the looks of the hair alone, it seemed like heat damage didn’t happen at 185°C. But that wasn’t enough evidence. Heat damage isn’t always visible to the naked eye, and that’s why curl reversion doesn’t necessarily mean zero heat damage. So what happened when the hair was tested with advanced scientific equipment designed to detect hair damage? It’s all in Part 2, which you can read right here at DHA’s DIY.

prevent heat damage prevent heat damage prevent heat damage prevent heat damage prevent heat damage prevent heat damage prevent heat damage prevent heat damage prevent heat damage prevent heat damage prevent heat damage prevent heat damage prevent heat damage prevent heat damage

You can get the list of scientifically proven temperatures it’s safe to use heat on your hair in this guide.

Why Roller Sets Are Great For Straightening Your Hair

by DHA's DIY | Apr 17, 2022 | Dominican Blowout, Roller Setting, Straight Hair, Hair Straightening, Rollerset, Silk PRESS, Thicker Hair

Roller sets: Why is it that Dominicans insist on rollersetting hair, when they could just straighten it with a blowdryer?

The lofty place of los rolos in the famed Dominican method of hair straightening is not without reason.

Roller sets give your straightened hair that extra edge, volume and vitality. Here’s how. . .

Roller sets = Less heat

Using rollers as a step in straightening your hair means your strands spend less time in contact with direct heat, which is the most damaging form of heat for your hair.

The rollers stretch your hair out and smooth it out as it dries under the hood dryer, allowing you to build in straightness before you go toe-to-toe with the blowdryer, and possibly the flat iron.

Blowdrying hair from wet is a no-no in the Dominican tradition. In contrast, when you roller set first, by the time you use the other tools, a lot of the straightening has already happened, meaning you need less direct heat time to achieve your desired look.

Roller sets = More volume

The big curl given by the rollers (for a traditional Dominican Blowout, your stylist will use the biggest size roller your hair can take, in order to maximise stretch), imprints your hair with volume, all the while temporarily smoothing away your natural curl. This tension-based, more 3D method of straightening – as opposed to the flattening effect of the flat iron – conserves and builds in body, leaving your hair as full as it is smooth when done.

Roller sets = More smoothness

Getting the hair to lie tautly stretched over a roller as it dries has a strong smoothing effect that just can’t be replicated with a blowdryer or a flat iron.

Done right, rollersetting is tension-based straightening that takes advantage of your hair’s flexibility when wet, allowing the roller set to mould your hair into straightness – as opposed to nearly melting it and deforming it, which is what direct heat styling tools do.

Just make sure you avoid common rolling mistakes and use the right methods and products to ensure your hair lies smooth on the roller – and the right rollers to maximise the stretch, with minimum impact on your hair.

Roller sets = Hair with movement

Rollers give your hair some serious bounce and flow! The curved shape which the rollers form your hair into comes with its own spring. And not only that: using a roller set beforehand preserves precious moisture, and moisture = movement.

Straightened hair can often suffer from lack of movement when achieved by blowdryer, flat iron or pressing comb alone.

This is largely because the hair loses so much moisture after sustained straightening at higher, direct heat, which has a stiffening effect.

An authentic Dominican stylist will lay your hair in rollers under the dryer before even contemplating the blowdryer. And by the time she unravels the springy roller set, your hair has some serious movement to it, most of which will stay intact during the blowdry phase, as, in the Dominican Blowout – despite the name – this part is kept to a minimum, reducing the stress on your hair.

Roller sets = Straighter hair

Even if you’re pressing your hair old-school with a hot comb, getting some of the curl out beforehand with the rollers means you can get your hair more straightened before it reaches the point of resistance, which most of us know only too well.

After a certain amount of time under the blowdryer, flat iron or pressing comb, healthy hair tends to reach a point where it refuses to be straightened any further. Usually, when this happens, you have to hit it up again the next day – meaning more heat, which is not good at all for your tresses.

Rollers are just about the best way to stretch out your cur beforehand, meaning you start the manual straightening process with hair that’s already partway straight.

Stretching your hair beforehand means you get to maximise the impact of the time during which your hair is straightened with direct heat, since you give it a little headstart. It also means you spend less time using these tools in your tresses – a very hair healthy bonus.

Using a combination of methods always gives your straightened hair more mileage. When a Dominicana rollersets your hair, blows it out and then wraps it into el Doobie, your hair gets imprinted with a multilayered straightness, allowing it to stay straight for longer. A Dominican Blowout can last a good 1-2 weeks, especially if you know the right way to stretch your Blowout. A whole lot of that longer-lasting straightness is due to the amazing stretching powers of a roller set.

Ready to see what a good roller set can do for your hair? Check out our step-by-step guide on how to rollerset your hair. Happy rolling!

Image credits: Anna Maria Liljestrand | Steve Hodgson |Naomi Stelrose |Drew Heron

How to Use Silicon Mix (5 best steps)

by DHA's DIY | Apr 15, 2022 | Conditioning, Dominican Blowout, Heat, Straight Hair, Blowout, Deep Conditioners, Dry Hair, Hair Straightening, Silk PRESS

The Perfect way to use Silicon Mix

What’s the best way to use Silicon Mix? If the only thing consistent about your hair lately has been its dryness and resistance, then this Silicon Mix-atrActiva combo might be exactly what it needs.

This Silicon Mix-atrActiva treatment combo is designed for distressed, damaged or rebellious tresses. If you’re lucky enough to have tresses that don’t currently fit any of those descriptions, you can use it as a preventative measure to make sure your hair stays happy, or even to revitalise that bundle of Remy hair you were hoping to reuse. Whichever reason, this treatment combo gives such deep conditioning moisture that it carries you through the week.

The penetrating nutrients, hydration and slip that atrActiva-Silicon Mix delivers and seals in, makes your hair healthier, more elastic, more manoeuvrable, and thus easier to style.

It works because Silicon Mix is the ideal sealing treatment, created to form a protective layer over damaged tresses, smoothing uneven cuticle layers along the way. By locking in the nutrients and moisture needed for strong healthy hair, Silicon Mix acts like the haircare equivalent of that final coat of sealant on a freshly painted wall.

Silicon Mix Tratamiento awards blog SMALLER

For all the acclaim it gets on its own, to really put Silicon Mix’s super-sealing powers to work requires an equally powerful underlying deep treatment, one which can provide the healthy nutrients and vital moisture that Silicone Mix is designed to lock in.

Enter: atrActiva’s Multivitamin Treatment, La Reina of long-term moisture. atrActiva’s Multivitamin Treatment’s plentiful nutrients (it includes Vitamins A, D, E and K) make it the ultimate, nourishing underlayer.

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Not only that; it’s formulated for longlasting hydration of dry, damaged, hard-to-smooth hair. If you’re struggling to find a conditioner that actually absorbs into your low porosity hair, atrActiva Multivitamin is it; its silky micro-emulsion is designed to sink into resistant textures that most conditioners fail to penetrate.

like paint…

To get the best out of these two conditioners, you don’t mix them; you treat them like paint and layer. While mixing won’t result in flaking or clumping, these two Dominican conditioners work best together when you plaster your hair with one on top of the other. Since atrActiva Multivitamin Treatment is a super-moisturizer, and Silicon Mix is a super-sealer your hair gets the most benefit when layering Silicon Mix over atrActiva, on freshly washed wet hair. This way you’ll be moisturising with atrActiva Multivitamin Treatment, and sealing with Silicon Mix Treatment.

Now, you are ready to begin

For best results, there are 5 steps to take when using Silicon Mix:

Step 1: Cleanse
Step 2: Rinse
Step 3: Apply atrActiva Multivitamin Treatment
Step 4: Apply Silicon Mix Treatment
Step 5: Rinse

Step 1: CLEANSE

Sometimes conditioners, grease, gels, leave-ins, pomades and even certain shampoos leave residue on our hair shaft that prevents us from getting the ultimate benefit from deep treatments. So, the first step of reaping the benefits from your deep treatment is to thoroughly clean your hair.

You’ll know your tresses are thoroughly clean when water droplets run clear from your hair (non-coloured hair only), there is no hint of a layer of grime on your scalp, and your strands feel free and move with ease.

The best way to ensure that your hair gets thoroughly clean, (and to prevent tangling) is to section your hair. Wind it up it into 4 parts, and shampoo each section separately (big twists, or slide-in clips usually facilitate ease in unwinding and help hold hair well).

Step 2: RINSE

Rinse for longer than usual, ensuring that all shampoo suds have been washed free. Use warm water and remember to maintain your hair’s sectioning; by taking one section at a time, carefully opening it up to rinse through it thoroughly, before winding the section back up, and moving on to the next.

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atractiva multivitamin treatment best moisturising for dry hair in grass

Step 3: atrActiva Multivitamin Treatment

After using a towel to blot the water droplets out of your freshly shampooed hair, start with your first section and generously apply atrActiva Multivitamin Treatment along the perimeter of the section, from scalp to tips, squeezing it through the section before taking smaller subsections, and gently working it through. This way, atrActiva begins detangling your hair before you divide the sections further. Continue to ensure atrActiva is applied from the root to the ends of your hair.

Then secure this section before moving into the next.

Step 4: Use SILICON MIX

2 minutes should have passed in between layers. Waiting a little before you start applying Silicon Mix Treatment gives atrActiva time to soak into your hair and moisturise your strands inside out and generate serious slip.

If you have been sticking to the 4-part method, then there is no need to wait an additional 2 minutes; simply start with the first section you applied atrActiva to, and in small finger length and width sections, slip a coat of Silicon Mix over the lengths of your hair, from root to tip.( As you already have atrActiva underneath apply only a thin layer of Silicon Mix).

Then move on to do the same to your second, third and fourth sections.

Comb through each section, and massage* scalp for up to 5 minutes. Then cover with a plastic cap for at least 15 minutes without heat, 10 max with heat. Silicon Mix Tratamiento 300x300 1

(*Skip the massage, if you have high blood pressure or have been advised accordingly by your doctor.)

Step 5: RINSE AGAIN

Rinse thoroughly and enjoy your super moisturised, super smooth, super fortified hair! Using these two superconditioners in combo should leave your tresses sublime for up to a week. Repeating this treatment weekly will allow your hair to accumulate the benefits of each treatment, for longer, stronger, shinier tresses.

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From step 5 on, it depends on your styling plans; if you are blowdrying or straightening, then protect with atrActiva Shine Drop Serum first. If you’re letting your hair air-dry, then try your favourite pure oil on wet hair first, before adding leave-ins when dry.

This Silicon Mix-atrActiva Multivitamin Treatment works fantastic on Remy hair as well, so if you want to extend the life on your weave then keep a lookout for your step-by-step post coming soon.

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For a mini-course and FREE printable on straightening without heat damage, look here.

Silicon Mix Bambu vs Silicon Mix: Which is best?

by DHA's DIY | Mar 30, 2022 | Blowout, Deep Conditioners, Dry Hair, Hair Growth, Hair Straightening, High Porosity, Low Porosity, Natural Hair, Porosity, Super Low Porosity

These days, Silicon Mix Bambu Treatment is almost as popular as the shine-amplifying Silicon Mix original. But what’s the difference between these two Dominican superconditioners and which one is best for your hair type?

What is Silicon Mix Conditioner?

Unless you’ve missed the Caribbean wave of hair products that’s swept the beauty world in recent years – from Jamaican Black Castor oil to Dominican superconditioners – you’ll already have heard of Silicon Mix.

Hailed for its services to blowouts, silk presses and weaves everywhere, Silicon Mix is a line of conditioners, shampoos, leave ins and stylers from the Dominican Republic – the Caribbean island nation famous for its exports of rich, exotic conditioners. There are actually four lines under the Silicon Mix name: the original Silicon Mix (Hidratante), Silicon Mix Argan Oil, Silicon Mix Proteina de Perla, and Silicon Mix Bambu.

Silicon Mix is best known for its conditioners or more accurately, its conditioning treatments: rich, creamy formulas with tropical scents and tons of slip that leave hair gleaming, no matter how damaged, dry or brittle it was before.The original Silicon Mix treatment has become the stuff of hairdressing legend. Once the Dominican salon’s best-kept secret for creating mirror-shiny blowouts on hair textures other salons couldn’t straighten, it quickly spread out to other stylists in cities like NYC, with strong connections to the DR, and

is now used around the world.

Silicon Mix Treatments. Clockwise from top left: Bambu; Hidratante; Argan Oil; and Proteina De Perla.

How Silicon Mix Treatments work

All the Silicon Mix treatments use a proprietary mix of silicones and substantive conditioning agents alongside other ingredients to create a protective layer on the hair that silkens away roughness, smooths curls and amps up the hair’s shine.

While the silicones tackle the surface, ingredients like cetyl alcohol and cetrimonium chloride make the hair softer and more flexible, as well as helping draw moisture into the strand, leaving it hydrated.

The protective, yet weightless layer it encases strands in has gained the original Silicon Mix a second claim to fame: this time for reviving wigs and weaves. Extension specialists use it to maintain Remy hair, extending the lifetime on these costly human hair extensions, allowing them to be reused multiple times.

Silicon Mix Treatment works well on weaves and wigs. Image by Tubarones Photography.

The difference between Silicon Mix and Silicon Mix Bambu

When you open up the jars, you notice the difference in these two products right away. The original Silicon Mix is white and very viscous, while Silicon Mix Bambu is yellow and a little lighter in consistency. Silicon Mix has a gentle musky scent, slightly reminiscent of Caribbean vetiver; Silicon Mix Bambu has a more playful, tropical fruit aroma.

They work differently, too. While all the Silicon Mix conditioners use a blend of silicones and fatty conditioning agents to provide intense conditioning and protection to the hair, each of the spin-offs contains its own star ingredient, designed to add a different benefit. For Silicon Mix Bambu, it’s bamboo extract, known for its strengthening abilities. There are a few other differences as well:

Silicon Mix Bambu is protein-free

The overall formulation is different in Silicon Mix Bambu Treatment vs Silicon Mix Treatment. Flip around the jar to the ingredients list, and you’ll see a number of those differences. For one, protein (keratin) is a key ingredient in Silicon Mix original. It’s partly responsible for the strengthening “shock treatment” the product delivers to damaged, brittle hair.

Silicon Mix Bambu Treatment is keratin-free, which is appealing to people with protein sensitive hair. Mineral oil is also lower down in the list in Bambu, which is good news for people with low porosity hair that doesn’t usually ‘like’ this ingredient in higher concentrations.

Silicon Mix Bambu Treatment is lighter

The lighter consistency makes Silicon Mix Bambu easier and quicker to spread through the hair, especially if you have thick or low porosity hair and like to apply your conditioners with a wet brush. That lighter formula also makes Silicon Mix Bambu a good option for people with loose curls who want to keep the curl in their hair as they blowdry.

The original Silicon Mix is designed for blowdrying hair straight which mean it can straighten a little too much on hair where the curl is not that strong. Silicon Mix Bambu delivers the trademark Silicon Mix smoothing without the straightening effect.

Silicon Mix adds more shine, Bambu is more penetrating

Performance-wise, the original Silicon Mix definitely has the most dramatic effect on the hair’s surface, slipping it into an invisible silicone envelope and creating the most intense shine.

Silicon Mix Bambu penetrates easily into low porosity 4C hair. Image by Tubarones Photography.

This is what makes it so good on weaves and wigs which start to look dull as the cuticle wears down. Silicon Mix’s protective casing makes human hair wigs and extensions look brand new again – especially when you blend it with atrActiva Multivitamin Treatment.

On the other hand, Silicon Mix Bambu Treatment is more penetrating. This means it outperforms the original on hair types that find it difficult to get products to absorb into them, and which are harder to moisturise, such as low porosity hair and 4C hair.

Is Silicon Mix Bambu good for hair?

Yes. Let’s count the ways: First, the blend of ingredients that resist heat (like dimethicone), with flexibility-enhancing ingredients (like cetyl alcohol) makes hair easier to blowdry or iron, while also reducing heat exposure. That means Silicon Mix Bambu has a built-in heat protectant component which helps shield hair, even in intense blowdrying.

Secondly, Bambu does all of this without flattening the hair or leaving behind residue – both of which are frowned upon in the Dominican haircare tradition, which prizes smooth, natural-looking hair with tons of movement.

This requirement for strong conditioning that doesn’t weigh hair down means that Silicon mix Bambu Treatment can be used on all types of hair, even fine or extremely straight hair that usually can’t use conditioners – all without a trace of greasiness.

When Dominican women straighten their hair, a flowing, silky look is preferred. Image by ElMarto.

At Dominican Hair Alliance, we do pretty extensive product testing, on hair with different textures, densities, condition and of different origins. Based on our research, Silicon Mix Bambu is good for hair that is curly, straight, wavy, natural, heat-damaged, bleached, relaxed, dyed, texturized, or Brazilian Keratin straightened, with high, low or medium porosity, from people of African, Native American, European, Asian descent.It works – and by that we mean smooths, softens, adds shine, detangles, protects from heat damage and increases manageability – on almost everyone.

No one product will work for every person on the planet. But we love the fact that it can actually penetrate and hydrate super low porosity 4C hair and yet work on fine, straight, bleached hair that needs conditioning but can’t get it from most products because of the weight.

If your hair is dry, damaged and needs a transformation, the statistics are heavily in in your favour with this versatile, super concentrated treatment.

The best conditioners work even better with consistency. To learn how to create the most moisturizing routine for dry hair, download this moisture training guide and FREE course.

Silk Press vs Dominican Blowout: The Ultimate Guide

by DHA's DIY | Jul 26, 2021 | Blowout, Hair Straightening, Rollerset, Silk PRESS

Silk Press vs the Dominican Blowout: What’s The Difference?

Can you tell a silk press from a Dominican Blowout?

These popular hair straightening methods have a lot in common and the results – silky, glossy straightened hair – are similar. But they are not the same, and the differences between the silk press and the Dominican Blowout methods mean either process has different pros and cons for your hair.

What Is The Dominican Blowout?

The Dominican Blowout is the traditional method of straightening hair used in the Dominican Republic. It hasn’t changed much in decades and has a pretty set procedure. Called the “lavado y secado” on the Caribbean island, this “wash and dry” process is a lot more intensive than its understated name would suggest.

The Dominican Blowout straightens natural hair, leaving it bouncy and silky without chemicals. Image by ElMarto.

The 7 Steps Of The Dominican Blowout

It all starts with a clarifying shampoo to remove the buildup that gets in the way of a smooth end result. Then, the hair is deep conditioned with a rich Dominican superconditioner.

The conditioner is part of the secret to getting your hair all the way straight while minimising heat damage: many Dominican conditioners, like atrActiva Multivitamin Treatment or Crece Pelo, are so rich they smooth the hair out and make it softer and flexible, to the point where it’s easier and quicker to straighten, with straighter, sleeker results.

That’s why the deep conditioning step is mandatory for a Dominican Blowout. It’s also very nourishing for your hair.

After deep conditioning, your hair is set on rollers and you sit under the dryer. In Dominican hairdressing culture, using direct heat on wet hair is a no-no. The indirect heat of the hood dryer takes longer to dry your hair, but it’s gentler.

The rollerset stretches the hair, partially straightening it – another step which makes it easier to blowdry straight. Rollersets add a lot of bounce and volume, too. Dominicans like a lot of movement in their hair so this step is crucial.

Once the hair is dry, rollers are removed and heat protectant in the form of an oil-free, water-free silicone serum is applied sparingly throughout your hair. Then, the stylist quickly and deftly moves through the hair with a blowdryer and roundbrush until your hair is blown smooth and straight.

A flat iron is not traditionally used, but some stylists will use one right after blowdrying, if the hair has been resistant, or to lock in straightness to keep the hair smooth for longer.

The final step in the Dominican Blowout is the “Doobie” or wrap: your hair is wrapped around your head to smooth it all the way straight and infuse even more movement and flow. If you want all the details on how to do a Dominican Blowout, we break down the Blowout Process here.

What is The Silk Press?

The silk press is a temporary, heat straightening technique that emerged circa 2010. A hybrid of the original hot press or hot comb technique and the Dominican Blowout, it differs from the two methods as it relies mainly on the flat iron tool for straightening.

Detailed definitions of what actually constitutes a silk press vary. Some silk presses are almost identical to the Dominican Blowout in methodology – the movement and super-straightness on even the tightest, natural hair that Dominican hairstylists introduced to New York salons during the late 90s and early 2000s heavily influenced the silk press.

Prior to that, pressing was done with hot combs or flat irons and heavy greases or pressing creams which left the hair stiff and heavy without movement.

The 6 Steps Of The Silk Press

Originally, the silk press involved using silk products to straighten the hair. These products, with silk proteins or amino acids on their ingredients lists, were used for the special strengthening and shine powers inherent in silk. Using them helped your hair withstand heat and added extra glossiness compared to a regular press or flat iron.

Back then, the typical process involved shampooing and conditioning with a silk conditioner before blowdrying and flat-ironing using heat protectants that also contained silk.

It’s a criterion that Newark, NJ-based stylist Haj still applies today. “If you use silk products…to protect and seal the hair, then you’re getting a silk press.” she says. “If you are not using any type of silk product, you are not getting a silk press. It’s not just about what the hair looks like when it’s done,” she explains in the above video, where she silk pressing a client’s thick 4c curls.

Another typical component of the silk press was the silk wrap. Carried out after straightening is complete, the silk wrap step is very similar to the Dominican ‘Doobie’ – with one difference.

Instead of wrapping the hair and leaving it uncovered or tied with a satin scarf, in the silk wrap, hair is wrapped around the head, clipped in place and then covered with plastic wrap (cling film). The client then goes under the dryer or steamer for 5 minutes to “seal in” the look. You can see an example of this below:

Silk Press: A Look Or A Technique?

These days, there are almost as many different versions of the silk press as there are YouTube videos of the silk press process.

Not all stylists include the silk wrap or silk products in their silk presses. For most, the ‘silk’ is about the end results – shiny, silky-smooth hair, rather than a particular step or product ingredients.

It’s a look formulator Tei Brookes broke down, when asked to explain the difference between a silk press and flat ironing. “The technique [is] the same whether you’re silk pressing or flat ironing, she says. “It’s just the heat on the flat irons that yields a different result.”

To Tei, a flat iron temperature of between 375-400°F (190-204°C) gives a typical flat iron look – lots of texture, but not as much shine. “In order to achieve a silkier, silk pressed look, the flat irons have to be higher,” she says, in the range of 420-450°F (215-232°C).

Dominican Blowout vs Silk Press: What is safer for your hair?

Whether a Dominican Blowout or Silk Press is safer for your hair depends mostly on the stylists, their tools, and techniques.

That said, there are some basic differences in the processes which can affect the level of damage you get.

Most silk presses start with blowdrying on wet hair, which means the silk press heightens the risk of exposure to a kind of damage known as “bubble hair”.

“Bubble hair” happens when you expose wet hair to heat above a certain temperature. The water boils inside the hair and creates bubble-shaped cavities before it evaporates. It’s a form of damage that leads to brittleness and breakage at the point of the bubble and can happen from just one use of a heat tool on wet hair.

Since the Dominican Blowout avoids direct heat on wet hair – opting for rollersets under a dryer instead – the risk of bubble hair is low. As long as your hairdresser doesn’t start the dryer off on a high temperature, you should be fine.

The blowdry step is done on completely dry hair too, which reduces the possibility of hydrothermal damage to the hair.

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Rollersets lower heat exposure in your Dominican Blowout or Silk Press. Image by Fernando Prada.

Do Silk Presses Use More Heat Than Dominican Blowouts?

The typical silk press uses direct heat, first from the blowdryer, then the flat iron, all the way through the straightening process. This increases your hair’s overall exposure to heat and thus the risk of heat damage.

The overall heat exposure will also depend on the settings used on the blowdryer and the flat iron.

In the Dominican Blowout, direct heat is used for the blowdry portion of the straightening. This is done on dry hair, which limits the risk of damage.

Your hair’s level of resistance will determine the exposure to heat, as resistance affects how long it takes your hair to be blown straight. In some cases, the hair is almost completely straight from the roller set. The straighter your hair is post-roller set, the less blowdrying and thus heat exposure your hair will get.

What you definitely need to watch at this point is the heat level; if the blowdryer heat is too high this can cause some damage, even on dry hair.

Temperature: Silk Press vs Dominican Blowout

tools for straightening silk press vs dominican hair alliance

atractiva shine drop serum best for silk press vs dominican blowout

atrActiva Shine Drops serum protects against heat and friction when blowdrying and flat ironing.

Since the silk press is not an iron clad procedure, for the blowdry phase stylists can use different tools – some go for a roundbrush, others use a Denman or similar brush, others use a pik attachment. The pik attachment tends to create more damage than a Denman or good quality roundbrush as it creates more tension on the hair.

Rollers are used in all Dominican Blowouts and some silk presses. The smooth magnetic type are typically used for both processes and as long as they are clipped in place with seamless clips or bobby pins, they are pretty gentle to the hair.

The flat iron and blowdryer are the riskiest tools used in both processes. Some stylists use blowdryers with settings that reach excessively high temperatures. Other times, faulty devices can overheat and damage hair that way, especially if used on wet hair.

Many modern flat irons are designed to reach temperatures of over 230°C (just under 450°F) which is close to the point that hair decomposes. By 220°C (428°C) between 33% to 41% of strands will not revert, so the damage is not just internal, it’s visible on the outside, too.

It’s very easy to break the heat barrier and damage your hair without realising, especially when you don’t really know where that barrier is. The breakage or failure might only become apparent down the line – at which point it might be too late.

To prevent it, use this list of scientifically-proven maximum temperatures you can hit with different tools and hair types to prevent heat damage.

Final Look: Silk Press vs Dominican Blowout

Both the silk press and the Dominican Blowout stand out from the average blowout or flat ironing because of their results. Both methods produce smooth, glossy hair with movement. So what’s the difference?

Volume: Silk Press vs Dominican Blowout

You can generally expect more volume with a Dominican Blowout than a silk press. For one, the mandatory rollersetting step in a Dominican Blowout adds more volume to the end look.

Then there’s the reliance on the flat iron in the silk press, which produces a flatter look. That’s because flat irons compress hair to straighten, flattening the fibres with every pass, which robs hair of the volume you’d get from simply blowdrying. This is less of a problem on thicker hair, but it can make naturally thinner or finer hair look sparser or flatter when straightened with a silk press versus a Dominican Blowout.

If you aren’t wearing your silk press bone-straight, your stylist will likely curl some body waves into your hair with the flat iron or a curling iron. This will correct the flat look, injecting a lot of volume, though it does increase your hair’s exposure to heat.

Movement: Silk Press vs Dominican Blowout

When it comes to movement, the Dominican Blowout usually produces more flowing hair than the typical silk press. Most silk presses follow a process which takes the hair from wet to blowdried semi-straight, to flat ironed straight. Since there’s no rollerset, the opportunity to create movement in the hair is lower.

In the Dominican Blowout, the rollerset infuses hair with movement and volume that can’t be made up for later in the process. That said, silk presses do vary. On processes that use rollersets, the difference in movement between silk press and Dominican Blowout will be minimal if at all.

What Gets Hair Straighter: Silk Press or Dominican Blowout?

On looser curls in general (not all: there are some exceptions) there’s not much of a difference in how straight your hair gets with a Dominican Blowout or a silk press.

Straightened hair Dominican Blowout or Silk Press www.dominicanhairalliance.com

How straight your hair gets depends on various factors. Image by Candice Le Picard.

Where you do begin to see a difference is with the tightest curls. To straighten your hair, you have to temporarily break some of the bonds that keep your hair curly. Tighter curled hair in the 4b-4c range has more bonds holding its curls together. That’s because on tighter curls, there are many more curls per strand than on say, a 3b strand.

More curls = more bonds to break, so more energy needs to go into making the hair straight. That’s why the tightest curls are often resistant to heat straightening; they require more energy to uncurl them.

In fact, in every curl type, there are cases of strong, healthy hair that has never been straightened which is also very resistant: again, there are more intact bonds to break to get it straight.

If you’re getting a traditional Dominican Blowout and your stylist doesn’t have the right combination of deep conditioners + rollerset game + arm strength + straightening skills + serum, and your curls are resistant, the results after the blowdry step will be less straight.

In these cases, your stylist might finish up with a flat iron if the straightness is not up to your or her standards. Technically, that’s not part of the traditional Blowout, but it is used in some cases and the combination will get your hair very straight.

Natural hair before silk press or Dominican Blowout. www.dominicanhairalliance.com

Some tighter curls and hair that has not been straightened before may resist straightening. Image by Ree.

The silk press is usually done with direct heat all the way – from a blowdryer on wet hair (which is more malleable than dry hair) and then a flat iron once the hair is dry, which maximises heat.

Because of the high heat levels, as long as your stylist has a decent technique, it should be possible to straighten even very tight curls or resistant hair of any curl type.

There are a couple of caveats. First, increasing heat to beat resistance does also mean increasing the risk of heat damage. And, second, even when you turn up the flat iron to max, there’s still a limit to how straight resistant hair can get if it’s not been properly smoothed out with a strong conditioning treatment or stretched on rollersets first.

At some point, your hair will stop responding to the heat, whether it’s straight or not.

With the silk press, deep conditioning first is often optional, depending on the condition of the hair. But for tight curls especially, a combination of conditioning, stretching and then active straightening tends to work best at smoothing the hair.

That’s why using the right conditioners before straightening – the ones that make your hair more flexible – is so important, especially if you think you might have resistant hair. And get that rollerset, too: It’s much better to get your hair as smooth as possible before you apply direct heat to limit the amount of heat you need to use to achieve straightness.

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Treatments to use before a silk press or Dominican Blowout for smoother, faster and straighter results.

How Long Do The Dominican Blowout or Silk Press Last?

Dominican Blowouts are designed to last a week, or up to 2 weeks if you know how to stretch a blowout.

Silk presses can last up to 1 month. Again, it depends on the method used, the climate (the duration in humid conditions will be much shorter) and your own unique hair. However, it is not advised that you leave your silk press in that long because your hair will become DRY.

When hair is straightened, the water it naturally contains evaporates. For your hair to stay straight, you can’t let it get wet. At the same time, after going without water (aka moisture) for so long, hair will be dehydrated and can become brittle and break.

This is why washing your hair and removing the style within a week or 2 weeks max is advised: it’s important for your hair’s moisture levels, even if your hair hasn’t reverted yet. For hygiene purposes, it is also not advisable to go that long without washing your hair.

Wased hair, towel dry. Dominican Blowout and Silk press. www.dominicanhairalliance.com

Wash your hair within 1-2 weeks max of a blowout or silk press. Image by Curology

Why Does The Silk Press Last Longer?

Silk presses tend to last longer because of the higher heat exposure from direct heat tools. More heat = more energy = more temporary bonds broken, which means slower reversion.

Another reason for the duration is the fact that silk presses tend to be done at very high temperatures. If presses are done at the levels mentioned above, some structural damage is inevitable.

Structural damage – which occurs when the permanent disulphide bonds that lock in your hair’s curly structure get compromised – makes hair less likely to revert. This isn’t good for your hair, but it does explain why hair can stay straighter for longer.

Silk Press vs Dominican Blowout: What’s Best For My Hair?

Both the Silk Press and the Dominican Blowout have their advantages and disadvantages. We’ve summarised them below.

The Advantages and Disadvantages of the Silk Press

The main advantage of the silk press is shared with the Dominican Blowout: it can get tightly curled hair very straight and shiny with more movement and smoothness than traditional straightening methods.

The silk press process doesn’t include as many steps so is generally quicker to do than a full Dominican Blowout. It’s is also easier to carry out if your blowdry technique is not that great, since most of the straightening happens with a flat iron. Since a basic silk press doesn’t require hood dryers or rollersets you can achieve this look without having that equipment, either.

The disadvantages of the silk press include greater overall exposure to direct heat; risk of bubble hair damage from using heat on wet hair; less emphasis on deep conditioning to smooth hair; less volume and movement and possible frizz for some hair types from the silk wrap.

You can get around most of these disadvantages by using the rollerset-based silk press which is closer to the Dominican Blowout method but still includes a press.

The Advantages and Disadvantages of the Dominican Blowout?

The Dominican Blowout likewise offers a level of straightness on tightly-curled natural hair that previous methods did not typically achieve.

Other advantages include greater volume and more movement at the end than the silk press, and an overall lower exposure to heat damage, as less direct heat is used and direct heat is not applied on wet hair. The emphasis on conditioning also helps achieve smoother end results and healthier hair.

Disadvantages of the Dominican Blowout include the time it takes to complete and the shorter duration of the straight style (1-2 weeks vs 1-4 weeks for the silk press). The Dominican Blowout is also harder to achieve outside the salon since the blowdry step requires a specific roundbrush technique, plus large rollers and a hood dryer.

Whether you pick the Dominican Blowout or the Silk Press, use the Heat Damage Thermometer – a visual checklist of the highest safe temperatures you can use with different straightening methods.

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