The Battle of the Frizz

Why can't it just come that way?

I understand the urge to tame the summertime frizz. In fact, I’m something of an expert when it comes to extreme frizz-busting measures—to such an extent that I once got bamboozled into getting a Brazilian blowout on top of my already Japanese-straightened hair. Granted, I was on a cruise—anything goes, right?—and the hairdresser who talked me into it assured me that it was no big deal. There were no harsh chemicals to worry about, he claimed; the blowout functioned solely by virtue of the magical properties of the acai berry.


If you’re thinking fruity, pampering spa treatment, think again. The Brazilian blowout consists of shellac, or maybe some sort of epoxy, which is glopped onto your wet hair and then heat-blasted into the follicle, as if your hair were being laminated. The process releases vapors that smell like what I imagine mustard gas must smell like, which my hairdresser duly assured me was simply the "tartness of the fruit." I should just close my eyes if it got "a bit stingy."

It did indeed get stingy, so much so that I kept my eyes scrunched shut the whole time, afraid that the toxic vapor would get trapped under my contact lenses and actually make me blind. I may have cried a little, not only for the scalp, eye, and respiratory system pain but also the thought of how much money I was willingly shelling out for this torture. To spare you similar agony, here are some slightly more reasonable alternatives:

The Keratin treatment provides most of the benefits of the Brazilian blowout—silky, shiny, manageable hair—with less damage and at a slightly lower cost. It lasts from three to six months, depending on how willing you are to not wash your hair with sulfate-based shampoo (aka the only kind of shampoo that makes your hair clean). $200-300

Keratin express is standard Keratin’s less expensive and overall mellower little sister. It won’t make your hair straight, but it will cut down on frizz and promote shine. Unfortunately, it only lasts four to six weeks. $100-200

The L’Oreal “Power Dose” treatment isn’t meant for defrizzifying purposes, but I get one every time I get a trim, and it seems to make my hair shinier and smoother for at least the next several washes. It’s also the most cost-effective option, in the tens rather than the hundreds.