Saturday, June 16, 2012

Science-y Hair Blog's Gelatin Protein Treatment

This is a homemade recipe made with gelatin.  You can find the recipe here.

8 comments:

  1. 2b•fine•normal/low porosity•normal elasticity•PROTEIN SENSITIVE

    I stress the fact that I am protein sensitive because this is the treatment that taught me this about my hair. If you don't know whether your hair is protein-sensitive or not, you might try out a more gentle treatment first, or only do a strand test (clump test) before trying this on your whole head. Also plan to ALWAYS, IMMEDIATELY follow-up with a deep conditioning treatment.

    My hair is healthy. I keep it well conditioned, and I've been sulfate-free and silicone-free for over 2 years. I seldom use a flat iron or a curling iron. I have demi-dyed it 3 times in the past 14 months and I did blow-dry it 2-3 times per week in the winter, but most of the time it was air-dried. I only started diffusing regularly in the past 5 or 6 weeks. I don't have any split ends, that I am aware of. All this is to tell you, that my hair doesn't need a big hit of protein to combat a lot of abuse and damage.

    I used this treatment twice before I was certain that I was protein-sensitive. The first indication that my hair didn't like it was that upon rinsing it out, my hair felt like it had never had less slip. My hair felt eager to tangle up in a way that was entirely new to me. I did a deep-conditioning treatment right after I rinsed the gelatin out. The conditioner gave me enough slip to comb out my hair. When I rinsed the conditioner out, my hair returned to that same unmanageable feeling.

    Once my hair was dry, it felt stiff, dry and rough. The ends of my hair were swift to tangle up. You might say my hair behaved a little like velcro. It took another deep-conditioning treatment and about a week of regular conditioning to get my hair to feel soft and manageable again.

    A week after the first treatment, I tried it a second time, with less geletin (after encouragement from other fine wavies). This time my hair had the same result, but I also realized my hair had become brittle. I have a lot of broken-off hairs now. It took another week of lots of conditioning to make my hair smooth and manageable again.

    I guesstimate that I am possibly only mildly protein-sensitive. I am able to use styling products that have a little protein in them. I recently did a strand test with Ion Effective Care Treatment from Sally Beauty Supply. I left it on for 5 minutes (and followed with a deep conditioning treatment) and my hair didn't seem to freak out. I consider this gelatin treatment to be very heavy-duty and not a very good starter-treatment. I advise you to use it only if you know your hair loves protein.

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  2. My hair is 2b, fine, thin, porous, dry. My more moisturizing version of this recipe is in this link. My version adds conditioner and oils among other things.
    http://pedaheh.blogspot.com/2012/05/gelatin-protein-treatment.html

    My routine before Science-y Hair Blog's gelatin PT was:
    Overnight coconut oil prewash every time I washed, spritz and condish method every time, and cowash most days. I did this summer and winter. Even with all this effort, my hair was barely moisturized in summer and almost moisturized in winter.

    After doing Science-y Hair Blog's PT for a few months:
    In winter (low to very low dews) I only have to do an hour-ish of coconut oil prewash. I can also skip a day if I want, and I couldn't before. I no longer spritz and condish. My hair is properly moisturized.
    In summer (normal dews) I don't use coconut oil very often, I don't spritz and condish, or cowash and my hair is still moisturized. I can also use a less moisturizing conditioner in the summer.

    This PT has just made my life so much easier. I was working so hard to keep (or almost keep) my hair moisturized before. Now I feel like I'm off the hair treadmill. I know that the credit goes to IAgirl's/Science-y Hair Blog's PT because I was CG for a year before trying this PT. My hair had already had time to recover from sulfates and heat styling.
    Thanks Wendy of Science-y Hair Blog for creating this protein treatment.

    I usually low poo first, although the gelatin PT works just as well for me when I cowash first. I apply this PT and leave it on for about an hour. Rinse. Follow with a DT or moisturizing conditioner.

    The blow dryer version is great when you need a hard hit of protein. I find it works just as well as Aphogee 2-step, but without the horrible stench of the aphogee. I don't have issues with scents, but Aphogee 2-step smells just awful. When you rinse out the gelatin PT-blow dryer version, it feels like it will never rinse out. You have basically set jello in you hair. It takes a little time for the gelatin to rehydrate. Once it is rehydrated, it rinses out with a little work. I love the blow dryer version when I need it.

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  3. My hair is 2c, fine, medium density, medium porosity, and low elasticity.
    This PT is hands-down the BEST thing that I have ever used in my curly journey. I was close to giving up on my curls because they wouldn't hold through the day no matter what products I used, and I still had so much frizz after months of CG. But then this was recommended to me, and I have done it basically every single week since then. What a huge difference. Now my curl pattern is so much stronger and holds all day long. My frizz is greatly reduced. My hair shines. My hair finally LOOKS healthy. I really attribute all of this to this gelatin PT.

    I usually low-poo or sometimes even use a clarifying shampoo first, then apply this to my hair. I put a plastic bag over my hair and stand under the hot water for about 5 minutes, and then rinse it out. I'll use a light conditioner just to detangle, and that's it for me. I don't need a DT.

    Love love love this! Thank you so much to Science-y Hair Blog for creating and sharing this!

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  4. Fia - fine/medium, ii/iii, medium porosity and elasticy, 2a waves.

    I use this once a week because my hair seems to like it and protein in general. I always have great hair days for a few days after doing one of these PTs. Its very easy to make and you can add in whatever your hair likes. I usually throw a little extra vinegar and some honey in. Last time I used coconut oil and that was nice too.

    When I do this I will low poo, then dunk my ends in the cup repeatedly so they're really saturated. Then I pour over the rest of my head and cover with a shower cap. I stand under hot water as long as I can stand it (usually 5-10 min) then rinse and deep condition with CJ curl rehab or JC Weekly Deep treatment. Love it!

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  5. My hair: 2b/c; texture: Fine; Density: Medium; Porosity: normal/low; Elasticity: Normal.

    I love this PT when I need a hard hit of protein. I use the version with mag. sulfate and a hair dryer. My hair is not damaged or porous, but it is fine. I have found that a good dose of protein helps support my DNA waves, and you can't find a more inexpensive and effective PT than IA Girls PT!
    As with any PT, I recommend doing a strand test prior to coating your whole head in gelatin.

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  6. 2c with 2 a & b, normal-fine, normal-thin, porous

    LOVE LOVE LOVE this. Seriously, love it. Not only is it super cheap, easy to make, can be tweaked for your hair, but works just as well if not better then aPhogee 2-step PT. If you color or use any other chemical services, have fine(r) hair, damaged hair than I highly recommend this. I recommend it to anyone who needs or wants to do a PT!
    Like Pedaheh, my hair was chronically dry. I could DT every day and the next day my poor hair would be dried out again. I started using this recipe, the blow dry version for my first time, I immediately noticed my hair felt better. My waves tightened up and took less effort. I kept using it, weekly with heat from the shower and monthly the blow dry version. My hair is now able to hold on to moisture so I don't have to work so hard at moisture. My waves are stronger, they actually hold up without product where before they just fell out after a few hours leaving me with odd poofy straight hair. It has really helped everything about my hair!
    Like Sarah said, however, it's always a good idea to test a PT on a small patch of hair 1st. Some people are sensitive to protein, and this is a pretty strong PT.

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  7. My hair: 2b, fine texture, lots of it, normal porosity, normal elasticity

    If your hair can't get enough protein, this is the PT for you. My hair acts like protein is the best thing since sliced bread, so I leave this on my hair under a shower cap for at least half an hour once a week or once every two weeks. If you aren't sure if your hair likes protein, be careful as this is a pretty strong PT.

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  8. 2B, fine, medium density, med-high porosity, normal elasticity

    I'll be honest- I don't love doing these PTs. They're messy, time consuming, and I have to get in the shower a lot (between washing my hair, doing the PT, rinsing & putting in my DT, and sometimes a separate rinse for the DT if I need to leave it in longer or blow it out).

    That being said, I need to do regular gelatine PTs. Without them, my hair becomes soft, soggy, and fly away. The gelatine PTs give my hair a little more substance, and the ability to take on a lot more moisture. My hair loves moisture; moisture makes it curl. But I need the protein first, and this seems to be the cheapest, most effective treatment for me.

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