All of us are keen to look good and having the right kind of hair is the first step towards that enhanced look. For each and every woman hair is a matter of prime concern. Whilst this hair nightmare is as much a demonstration of the power of trend-television, and the astonishing marketing success of Friends and its branding, it is also an indication of changes in fashion and style when it comes to female appearance in the past decade and a half. Apart from maybe Carrie Bradshaw’s bouncing blond curls in Sex and the City, and the sort-of-wavy locks of the ever-idolised Kate Moss, modern woman seems to like her hair straight, for that sleek and well-put together look.
Hollywood is probably the source. The endless straight-haired actresses launching themselves in magazines and on red carpets, has further fuelled the Western woman’s desire for poker-straight. In the early-90s, the craze surrounding the hairstyle of Aniston’s character Rachel on US sitcom Friends has , was so popular, so desperately sought after, that it simply became known as ‘the Rachel’; what’s more, hair salons from Iowa to Inverness were in on the trend and being asked to cut them all day long.
And though a precious few may have the genes and the follicles which allow them to wake up with smooth, glossy, non-kinky hair, the majority of British ladies tend to land somewhere on the wavy-to-frizzy mark. This might explain why so many consumers have gone crazy in recent years over the advent of salon-quality ceramic hair straighteners. The sales of one particular brand, the GHD hair straighteners have created a cult following.
The use of the smoothing-and-cooling strip of cream ceramic curling over the hot tong itself means that the hair is less exposed to the crippling damage that such high temperatures can inflict. What’s more, the smoothing effect means that the whole head can be completed without going over stubborn areas several times and ironing them into oblivion. A couple of further tips will ensure a pleasing result: make sure that your hair is clean, dry and well-brushed or combed before you begin. Any knots or stubborn tangles will only become matted if clamped and straightened.
And finally, don’t over do it. The aim is for soft, smooth lines, not razor-sharp split ends. The hair straightening nightmare is the kind of electrocuted-look hair that is so straight, so charred, that it points out from the scalp at 45 degrees. And we can all agree that is not a good look.
