Hair Straightening Kits

Straightened Asian hair
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Q: I am Asian and have normal hair that is partially wavy. I straighten my hair daily with a straightener, but it leaves my hair very damaged and I don't want to damage my hair any further. I want to have my hair straightened permanently but have a limited amount of money to have it professionally straightened at the salon, so I was wondering if at home straightening kits will work for me.
 
You guys mentioned Ogilvie and Easy Straight. Are there any other kits that do the same thing? If it does and I want my hair to be super straight, do I have to use pieces of aluminum foil and wrap it around sections of my hair while it is being straightened?
 
A: Ogilvie and Easy Straight are the two home straightening kits I am most familiar with for straightening your hair yourself. I am sure there are others, but I cannot vouch for their reliability. As for having to wrap your hair in aluminum foil as part of a straightening process, I must admit I have never heard of this.
 
Foiling is a technique used in performing targeted color and highlighting services, but not in straightening. However, if the directions of a straightening kit call for you to do something in a certain way, do so. Just because I am unfamiliar with a given practice doesn't mean it has no legitimacy.
 
My recommendation is to try the Ogilvie or Easy Straight kits, following the instructions carefully. Done properly, one of these should give you smoother, straighter hair, and will give you an idea of how best to proceed.
 
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See also:
 
How badly will straightening my hair damage it?
 
How highlighting with foils works
 
Home hair straightening kits and resistant hair
 
Is it safe to use a home straightening kit on lightened hair?