A few years ago, Japanese Magic straightening perm was invented. Ever since I was introduced to it, I get it done ever so often. But it’s always been a love – hate relationship.

Before / After of MAGIC (Image from: OZHAIRNYC)

Why I LOVE Magic?

- the convenience. I never have to blow dry my hair or brush it.

- hair does not get tangled.

- I have a full head of hair and the flatness of magic weighs it down. (if you have fine hair then magic may be too flat on your head)

Why I HATE Magic?

- it’s too flat at the ends so not a lot of stylists know how to add layers to the hair without it looking choppy. (ex. found in pic above)

- DAMAGE

- it can be really expensive. Depending on the length and thickness of hair, I’ve been charged anywhere from $200 – $400.

Basically, the process of MAGIC perm takes anywhere from 2 – 6 hours (depending on how much hair you have) of adding chemicals and flat ironing with 500 degree heat. My longest experience was about 6 hours when my hair was the longest. (my regular salon in NY, Kim Sun Young best explains the actual process HERE.)

The great thing about KIM SUN YOUNG is that they send out coupons every now & then and it so happened that they sent one to me over Labor Day. I jumped on the coupon as my opportunity to get my Magic touched up.

But as soon as I told the owner, she totally refused to do Magic on me ever, for the rest of my life (as she eloquently put it). After what my hair’s been through with the bad highlighting job, she was afraid my hair will snap in the middle and I will be left with a head full of burnt hair.

Remember this:

look at all that healthy un-bleached hair and the rest of my poor hair trapped in foil =(

TADA! the subtle highlights I asked for. (INSERT SARCASM) >=T GRRRRRRRRRR!!!!! How she thinks yellow highlights look good against black hair still disturbs me!!!!!

She totally sold me on getting the BRAZILIAN KERATIN HAIR STRAIGHTENING CONDITIONER.

The difference between MAGIC and the BRAZILIAN KERATIN is very subtle but makes a world of a difference.

- does not use chemicals but treatments and conditioners

- the ends aren’t as flat as MAGIC

Image from: here (not a pic of me)

The above is not a pic of me. My hair is so long and BLACK now that none of my pictures were reflecting how awesome it looks!

Kim Sun Young has locations in Los Angeles, New York, Chicago, Australia, and Seoul Korea.

But the one I usually go to is the NY (Bayside) location.

1st off, they’re service is impeccable.

They are super professional and are the only stylist in all of the earth that know how to cut my stubborn hair.

All the stylists in the salon are so fashionable & trendy so it’s easier for me to trust their taste!

The salons all come with a mini PC station where you can surf the internet while you wait for your hair treatment to marinate.

OVERALL: totally sold on the Brazilian Keratin Treatment and KIM  SUN YOUNG~

CLUB IB in Flushing, Queens (NY) is another salon I would highly recommend for straightening treatments

16330 Northern Blvd
Flushing, NY 11358-2645
(718) 886-6880

& here is CLUB IB’s demo reel of Japanese Magic Straight.