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Luscious
Latino Locks
The Latin American community is home to a wide- ranging
selection of hair types, it can be naturally straight, curly
or frizzy. This sets up quite a challenge to the stylist
and for years Latino hair has been thought of as somewhat
of a "problem" to tame. Thankfully in recent years this
attitude has gradually changed and the emphasis has shifted
onto embracing the hair's natural form.
It has also in turn lead to a great deal of innovation in
terms of styling and treatments. The Hispanic sector of
the hair care market is booming globally, supporting a multi-million
pound segment of the industry. No surprise then that in
recent years there has been a marked increase in brands
aimed exclusively at the Latino consumer.
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The
products and treatments are as diverse as the hair types and
textures encountered, from conditioners to relaxants to every
colour of hair dye imaginable. Colourants, for example, make
up the lion's share of sales in Argentina. Nobody can argue
that Latin American hair isn't versatile. You only have to
look at the long list of famous Latino beauties, such as Jennifer
Lopez, Penelope Cruz and Christine Aguilera, to see how to
wear beautiful hair. |
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Care For Your Hair
Most of us seem to yearn for the style of hair we don't
have naturally, i.e. if it's straight we want curly, long
we want short and so on. Therefore there is a big demand
in the Latino community for straight hair, as a large proportion
have naturally curly or frizzy hair. It seems we will go
to any lengths to get that poker straight style. One system,
entitled "the wrap" involved pulling the top hair over a
large can, then combing the remaining hair clockwise around
your head! Other less labour intensive techniques included
using straightening irons and hot blast hair drying over
round combs to get rid of those kinks and curls. Frequent
use of these techniques saw an increase in dry and damaged
hair. Therefore coconut and aloe vera based conditioners
and hair serums proved popular in protecting hair. It also
helped in achieving that important all over shine
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You've
Got Style!
Keeping Latino tresses in tiptop condition has seen a surge
in interest for quality salons. The demand is there for
hairdressers who specialize in caring for ethnic hair. Dominican
Salons in America for instance now offer the "Dominican
Style" and are flourishing. Another highly successful venture
has seen a group of Latino business women and men merge
to establish "Activate". This is a speciality brand of hair
care products tailored specifically for the Hispanic market.
New Innovations
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The
latest hair craze to sweep the salons is a technique known
as "thermal reconditioning". Surprisingly this treatment
originated in Japan but soon travelled and became popular
with Latin American customers. This is perhaps due to the
fact that it conditions, softens and adds shine as well
as straightens. It takes a lot of time and is expensive,
however the results are undeniably impressive.
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The
process essentially strips the hair's natural bonding, thus
manipulating the hair into a completely new form. Through
the use of a flat iron, application of a special solution,
followed by washing and blow drying, curly and frizzy hair
can be transformed into a straight style permanently.
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Whatever
the type of hair, whatever the texture, there seems to be
a stylist with just the right product out there to keep
your crowning glory happy and healthy for years to come.
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