My hair sectioned and having the Keratin Complex Perfect Blow Out treatment applied. Katharine Cook
My hair sectioned and having the Keratin Complex Perfect Blow Out treatment applied.Katharine Cook

I’m pretty low-maintenance when it comes to my beauty routine on a day-to-day basis. I’ll blow dry and either flat iron or Beachwave my hair if I have a meeting or event during the work-week or going out with friends on the weekend, but nine times out of 10 for my 9-to-5, I let my hair dry au naturel and just hope for the best. That technique (with an added little prayer) usually works out well with my naturally wavy hair and some smoothing serum during the dryer, cooler seasons, but not so much in the humid Chicago summer. That’s why the opportunity to try out Keratin Complex’s new Perfect Blow Out came at the MOST perfect time.

My hair before the treatment.
My hair before the treatment.

I took a trip about an hour southeast from the office to the Gold Coast neighborhood of Chicago to Marianne Stokirk salon for a day of frizz-fighting.

Keratin Complex’s Personalized Blow Out Same Day Keratin Treatment is a customizable, zero-downtime keratin treatment that targets specific client desires to make each treatment result personal. For clients looking to smooth the hair and reduce curl, personalize with any of the Styled Finishes: Maximum Straightness, Ultimate Smoothness or Frizz Control.  Or, for clients looking to enhance and define natural curl, personalize with the Natural Curl Finish. Results can last up to three months, depending on maintenance and how often the client washes their hair.

While it has the ability to straighten the hair to reduce up to four levels of curl, I opted for more of a smoothing result instead to fight frizz, Frizz Control, on my naturally wavy hair to reduce up to two levels of curl. Is there anything dreamier than waking up with perfect, smooth beach waves in the summertime? I think not.

Ingredients good enough to eat.
Ingredients good enough to eat.

Personalized Blow Out is perfect for all hair types but particularly beneficial to clients with coarse or textured hair. Personalized Blow Out has zero downtime—the client can leave the salon that day with instant results and the style that they choose.

The service began with a wash—two actually—using clarifying shampoo each time. Hair was then towel dried until 80% dry to remove some moisture, and then sectioned into one-inch sections.

Personalized Blow Out features K-Pure Juice, a blend of keratin, botanicals and amino acids. Botanicals condition and moisturize the hair; keratin smooths and strengthens the hair; and amino acids shape and align the hair. K-Pure Juice includes yummy natural ingredients like aloe leaf juice, coconut oil, acai fruit oil, chamomile extract, shea butter and more that were laid out on a table in the salon and looked good enough to eat (although 0/10 would recommend doing so).

The treatment is applied into hair by being painted on and combed through the remove excess product. Sections are “married” and “divorced” in order to ensure just the right amount of product is saturated onto each section. Once the entire head is completed, the product processed for 40 minutes under a plastic shower cap.

After product is processed, it was combed through one last time before getting blow dried and flat ironed into hair. For my hair type, fine to normal and a two or three on the waviness scale depending on the section, the iron was set at about 370 degrees. More passes of the flat iron means straighter results, but for my desired outcome, it was four passes per section.

Quite a "lewk" don't you think? Just kidding.
Quite a "lewk" don't you think? Just kidding.

After all that labor, it was back to the wash basin for the product to be rinsed out. PicturePerfect Hair Bond Sealing Masque is the final step of the Personalized Blow Out service. It features PhytoFruit Blend, a combination of strengthening actives, botanicals and moisturizing butters. Strengthening actives help to preserve the hair fibers’ mechanical strength, condition and secure new hair shape while botanicals and moisturizing butters help to provide shine and softness. Botanicals featured in PhytoFruit Blend include the likes of aloe leaf juice, olive oil, moringa oil, macadamia oil, and avocado oil. This combination of ingredients ensures the ultimate finish by helping to secure the new shape of the hair.

After the masque sat on my hair at the bowl for 10 minutes, my hair was rinsed and then blown out. The bond sealing masque left my hair nourished with a visibly smooth, shiny finish. In a dream world, my hair would be smooth, bouncy and blown out every day. Can you say hashtag-goals?

Post-treatment.
Post-treatment.

Fast forward a few weeks and my lazy-girl morning routine has gotten that much easier. I shower at night, remove as much moisture as possible with a towel, apply smoothing serum to my midlengths and ends and go to sleep. In the morning, low and behold, I have been waking up with frizz-free waves that require no more than a little oil onto the ends for a work-ready look. Easy peasy.

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