#shaneeksteele

My passion for hair care is deep and I realize there are non-license hairstylists out there playing in people’s hair. I would like to share a past experience of mines. Let me take you back…..

About 2 years ago I decided to get my hair done by the Dominicans close to home. I know with all the stereotypes about them damaging African-American hair due to excessive use of heat, there was actually one particular person whom I trust. I use to go to her before I knew of HairStyling by Joseph (which is one of best and legendary salons in NYC…google them).

Unfortunately, at the time of need she was off that day. Regular Shaneek would had said “fuck it” and went home. I could do the job myself. I’m a hairstylist! But anything dealing with chemicals I feel more safe having another expert doing it. Think about it…Would a doctor perform surgery on himself? Would a lawyer represent himself in trial? …I think not.

I had a big event to attend in a couple of hours and was desperate. So I decided to have her sister do it. Couldn’t be that hard to relax a pixie cut. It only requires fast timing. Boy’ was I wrong. Starting off there was a communication barrier through the process because of lack of English. But somehow I managed to do my best in explaining how I normally get my relaxers done. I’m very picky when it comes to this because I burn easily due to what I believe I have is psoriasis.

Everything was sailing off but then suddenly took a turn. Her application was horrible. Instead of having silky soft hair, I got a dry semi-Afro. I can honestly say she texturized my hair. When it came to rinsing out the relaxer she didn’t thoroughly clean it and did one soft wash with Neutralizer. I had to beg for a 2nd shampoo and to wash a little harder. She said “ok” but end up switching the shampoo with something that was mixed with vinegar🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥. Boy' did I scream. She saw me panic and tried to relax me by saying “Mami it’s good for your hair, trust me”

I didn’t know what to believe- What I was getting myself into or did she tell me to trust her. I just wanted to get out. She did a 10min deep conditioner and afterwards sat me down to do a roller set. As I mentioned earlier my hair was short. I had a pixie. So I didn’t see the logic in that. Just wet-wrap me and put me under the dryer ma’m. 30mins later I came back to her chair for the styling. She used excessive amount of products and aggressive heat. That put the icing on the cake and it made me a victim to the stereotype. My hair didn’t look or feel the same. It was fried, dried, and toss to the side. It was thin and had no life.

My texture was completely gone. My short cut that I once had, couldn’t be styled or hold a curl. I literally walked out looking like someone’s grandma. The next day I woke up to nonstop shedding. This was a sign to a horrible application and poor washing. I still had some remain of relaxer in my hair and as a quick emergency I ran to those products in the picture above. It manage to save the little hair left on my head. Over time I was forced to cut my hair shorter and replace my daily conditioner to a deep conditioner ( which I cocktailed with 2 drops of Jamaican Castro oil). Also, with the help of the Joseph family and proper home maintenance my hair got back its full health within 6 months.