I think I figured something out

[Toneahh]

My sister has recently enrolled and begun her journey in hair styling at Toni and Guy Academy. She is now what they call a sophomore and for the last couple of Saturdays has needed a model to practice on and to show her instructors that she has been learning. Because this whole thing is so new to her people have not volunteering their glory, but me being the big sister I have gone all 3 weeks. I have gotten a cut, a color and a roller set. I must say she is doing a great job, but I don't tell anyone because I want to continue to get a free hair do. LOL.

Now to what I have learned. All of the times that I have gone she had flat ironed my hair. Because I'm just not a straight hair kind of girl after 2 days I washed it out. But each time I washed it out I have had BEAUTIFUL curls. They have all that I find good in a curl, such as definition, bounce, hang time (as much as it can be at my length), and body. I have come to the conclusion that with a proper flat iron my hair shaft becomes smooth henceforth eliminating frizz.

What do you guys think? Have you experienced this as well?

[LadyLibra]

no.  it's usually the opposite for me - straightening my hair causes a terrible disruption in my usual clumping pattern, so the first wash after a flat iron usually gives me a frizzball unless I do a protein treatment.

hmmmm, but I wonder if the strands themselves are smooth even though my hair isn't clumping into curls...

[jazzi]

no.  it's usually the opposite for me - straightening my hair causes a terrible disruption in my usual clumping pattern.

This happens to my hair too.  Instead of honeycomb-like clumps, I get individual stringy waves that take more than a few washes to bring back.  Other than reversion, its the main reason I choose not to flat iron. 

I hope you're not confusing heat damage with curl definition boo!

[Toneahh]

I hope you're not confusing heat damage with curl definition boo!

No, that's not the case at all. I have been natural for a loooooooooooong time. My hair is extremely fine so when there is heat damage my hair become flat and lifeless. That is not the case at all these days. Maybe it’s the protective products that she is using. I don't know, but all of the good stuff that I'm looking for in a curl I have been finding these last few weeks effortlessly. Maybe it's a fluke. I don't know.

[Kinkerbelle]

Interesting.

When my hair is "protected" for heat styling, I get a mass of H.A.M. the first couple of washes after the straightening.  Probably takes me two good washes + conditioning to get the frizz/puff ball tamed.

I kinda side with Jazzi a bit on this one.  When I was straightening my hair a lot several years ago, my hair would "bounce back" from the presses with an almost silky finish, which I didn't realize at the time was a product of the heat.  Might not be heat damage now but over time, the culmination of presses might surprise you and all of a sudden you'll be saying, "wow, curls are really hanging now"...and then it is over. 

But that was just my bad experience

[gmw]

Yeah I wonder if it is the precursor to heat damage, for some folks hair. My daughter's hair does that. But she is careful not to use heat often because she has seen my disastrous results.

I get this type of thing happening from just a blow dry alone, will all kinds of heat protectant up and through my hair.

Everyone's hair is different. I can not take heat on my hair, which is really pissing me off because I want to try a different look every now and then, but an iron is not something I want to play with (as I search for all kinds of irons to buy online. I am in denial, I know) because of how my hair responds to it. Where as my daughter and mother can get there hair done every week, and nothing detrimental happens to their hair except for what Toneah initially described.

[lsubabiedee]

interesting.  i've only flat ironed my hair twice, but i noticed after both times, i had much more shrinkage than normal after the water hit it.  like extremely coily...

i thought my hair was just rebelling b/c of all the heat protectant i use

do you think it's like that not because of the smoothing from the heat, but from the smoothing of all the products used?

[Vegan@Genesis]

Toneah,
My hair does the same thing. I have beautiful CURLS after I've flat ironed my hair, but it has to be with the right products (either Giovanni Straight Fast, which gives elongated curls or Mizani products which seems to "tame" my hair). I don't generally have a problem with frizz (I do now from experimenting), it's eliminated after I've straightened with either of these products. After a few wases my hair goes back to normal but seems smoother- not damaged at all...as if the heat smoothed the cuticle of my hair.

I use a Royale flat iron (like the ones they try to sell you at the mall)-it is the best one I have ever used.