Thermal Reconditioning - A Practioner Gives The Inside Scoop by Karen M. Shelton

No doubt about it, many naturally curly folks, given half a chance, will trade in their ringlets for a walk on the straight side. Although most curly girls and guys love their Mother Nature inspired corkscrews, sometimes they just want a different look and a temporary break from daily curly hair wrestling.

The quest for chemical straightness has been the frizzy hair battle cry for decades. Hoping to temporarily ditch uncontrollable curls, many mop tops have subjected their strands to everything from the traditionally harsh chemical lyes to the current day ammonium thyoglycolates.

Karen M. Shelton
The Hair Boutique

Although the modern relaxers and home treatments made by Phytotherathrie and Rusk are much less invasive than the traditional methods, they still require the use of temporary straighteners and blow dryers to get perfect sleekness.

Enter Japan based Yuko Systems with their patented Thermal Reconditioning process based upon the principles of restructuring hair’s protein bonds. This hot new curl busting process has taken the hair world by storm.

This natural cornstarch-based hair relaxing system utilizes a more gentle form of ammonium thyoglycolate free of the traditional relaxing waxes or lyes along with special straightening irons. Developed in 1996 by Ms. Yuko, the system was designed to create a non-coating, straightening system that uses the heat oxidation process to seal in and rebuild hair from the inside out through a combination of patented chemicals and irons that reach 356 degrees to achieve sleek and silky straightness.

The majority of good Yuko candidates emerge from the treatments with almost perfectly straight strands that can last for many months between touchups. Even better, the Yuko System promises long term freedom from straightening irons and hours wrangling with hot styling tools.

A Report From A Yuko Practioner

I recently received great feedback about the Yuko process from a kinky haired Hairboutique.com visitor who had traveled from Nashville, Tennessee to the Dominic Michael salon in St. Louis, Missouri to have her hair treated by Amy Reed.

The majority of the current 20+ Yuko certified stylists (see salon list at the end of this article) are located in either the Los Angeles or New York areas. Amy has the unique advantage of being the only stylist in the Midwest that is currently certified in the Yuko thermal reconditioning process. As a result of her convenient St. Louis location Amy has many clients travel from out of town to receive the treatment.

Note: Amy is also very gifted working with naturally curly and long hair.

When I contacted Amy by phone she agreed to chat with me about her experiences with the Yuko thermal reconditioning treatment.

Amy could not say enough great things about the thermal reconditioning process even though it is “very time intensive and requires a demanding hands-on process.” She has worked with other relaxing systems in the past but Amy confessed that she was not all that impressed with previous results that left “the client’s hair feeling thick and bulky and just not quite right”. Compared to her work with previous products, “the Yuko Systems leaves her client’s hair smooth, silky, sleek and soft”.

When Amy first read about the revolutionary Yuko Systems training program in a issue of InStyle Magazine “she was eager to immediately take the training and get certified”. In August of 2001 she made her way to Beverly Hills, California to the Yuko Systems US headquarters for full training in the thermal reconditioning process.

Amy loves the opportunity to make a difference for her frustrated frizzy haired clients and has been doing the thermal reconditioning treatments ever since she completed her coursework in California.

Amy reported that the folks at Yuko Systems did a great job with training. They also do a very good job of helping her and their graduates with ongoing full support as well as offering advanced training. Amy is comfortable with the fact that whenever she encounters a question or problem during a treatment she can pick up the phone and receive immediate help from the folks at Yuko.

Karen M. Shelton is the founder of HairBoutique.com which has been featured in numerous magazines including 101 Celebrity Hairstyles, Today's Dallas Woman Magazine, WE-Women's Enterprise, The National Enquirer, American Salon Magazine and Self magazine, as well as international publications.

Karen M. Shelton was featured in DFW Tech Biz as winner of the Emerging CEO - Tech Titan award. In 2001 Ms. Shelton joined 101 Celebrity Styles & Short Cuts magazine as consumer hair editor.