Let’s get one thing straight from the get-go – I’m not anti-curls. I love them. On other people.
I’m in awe and incredibly envious of women (and men) with naturally glossy, perfectly-formed cascading curls. Unfortunately, what I inherited from my Welsh father was distinctly frizz-prone follicles instead.
While tightly coiled curls and ringlets may have looked cute on me back in my primary school days, hitting puberty unleashed the dark side – AKA the frizz – and it’s been my life’s mission, and major financial commitment, to fight it ever since. Believe me, the stakes have been high.
It was the frizz that made me drop out of my first university. Rain and drizzle were a never-ending meteorological constant in Swansea. After spending the first term shielding and protecting my hair under my parka’s massive hood, like some rare hothouse orchid, I left with absolutely no regrets.
The following year, after researching ‘UK’s driest counties’, I enrolled at the University of Kent and packed a suitcase full of John Frieda Frizz-Ease.
But, as the frizzy-haired know in our hearts, there really are no miracle products. Most are an expensive exercise in optimism and hope over experience.
Which is why in 2000, I took drastic action. I stopped washing my hair and attempting my cack-handed, hours-long, arm-aching DIY blow-dries.
For the past 25 years, I’ve had a weekly blow-dry and never felt guilty about it. It’s cost £40,000 or thereabouts. Currently, my annual blow-dry bill (minus tips) is just under £2,000.
But as a working mum of two daughters (both frizz-free, huzzah), one at uni for the next few years and the other studying for GCSEs, but with an expensive SpaceNK/Sephora habit, my blow-dry budget is being heavily squeezed by household outgoings and rising bills.
But hair is everything, and I’m not giving in to frizz. Not after all these years and expense.
So I’m delighted to try out a treatment that promises to banish the frizz not for a single week but for months at a time – ‘hair botox’, which I’m having at the Mayfair salon of Jo Hansford, the hairdresser to Queen Camilla.
As a huge fan of the royal family, I arrive at the chic and spacious salon dreaming of a brush with Her Majesty but also equally excited about my treatment. Starting from £400, ‘hair botox’ can last up to four months and could very well be the way forward to keep me on the straight and narrow, both follically and monetarily.
Full disclaimer: I had a few hair-straightening keratin treatments years ago. Although they were super effective at minimising frizz, enhancing shine and promoting luscious waves, I stopped having them as I was worried about chemicals and potential hair damage. There’s nothing to worry about with Jo Hansford’s ‘hair botox’ treatment, which is chemical and odour-free. Ingredients include vitamin B5, collagen complex, hyaluronic and amino acids – a cocktail they call ‘the ultimate superfood for your hair’.
I can’t wait to get started with the salon’s ‘hair botox’ queen, Ansha Iqbal, a witty, glamorous woman, who’s a walking ad for the hair-smoothing process. Her hair is in great condition and needs only a quick rough dry first thing to look its best.
First up, it’s time for two hair washes using clarifying shampoo with her lovely assistant, Millie. After the first wash, Millie leaves the second dose of shampoo on five minutes longer.
She tells me I must use sulphate-free shampoo and conditioner or the effectiveness of the treatment will be negated. Ansha then gets to work, drying it before separating it into sections and brushing on the treatment from root to ends.
For the next 40 minutes I sit under a hi-tech climazone heater that leaves me free to drink my cafetiere of coffee and nibble the biscuits. There’s a salon chef and kitchen downstairs but I’m too excited for the breakfast of scrambled eggs.
Next comes another rough dry with a lot of steam coming off the hair. At this point in my usual routine, my hair tends to look more shaggy spaniel than silky smooth. But now, although we’re still not finished, the frizz has…vanished.
Finally comes the last and most important step. Ansha and Millie divide the hair into small sections and Ansha heat seals in the ‘hair botox’ using straightening irons. After two hours, there’s a woman with sleek glossy hair staring back at me.
I may be biased but I reckon I could even pass for looking ten years younger than my 56. Well, that’s what my 16-year-old said – and she knows which side her bread is buttered on.
After three days of keeping it bone dry (tricky) and not tying it up or tucking behind ears (harder than you think), so as not to wreck the straightening process, I can now wash it. If I use the all-important sulphate-free shampoo, all will be fine. And it is! Ansha advised rough drying hair – and after a few minutes my hair looks amazing. Still straight, glossy and frizz-free. The magic works – and is still working.
As for the maths, at £400 for four months, ‘hair botox’ is more affordable than four months’ worth of blow-dries at £672. Straight up, my life’s mission is complete!
- For appointments, visit johansford.com
- Maria Coole is deputy editor of Inspire Magazine
