One thing you’ll rarely hear me complain about is summer. It is my favourite season – fruit is ripe and flowers are blooming, everything seems brighter, fresher, happier even. And that’s just nature!
But summer can wreak havoc with hair. In summer we all want our hair to be glossy and lustrous, but the truth is, summer sunshine combined with humidity, salty sea-water and chlorine-filled pool water (if we are lucky enough to get away) can often leave hair dry, frizzy and brittle. Or just fuzzy and unruly in the case of humidity. I have A LOT of hair. It’s long and there is lots of it. It’s not coarse, but I am toldby hairdressers that it is very porous, so I tend to look like Julia Roberts circa 1980 instead of the coveted super sleek hair of Jennifer Anniston when it’s left untended. (Although we could all look like that if we were surrounded by hair & beauty teams 24/7…maybe?!)
Step forward Monet Hair - a new salon opened on Belfast’s style mile, the Lisburn Road – whose team invited me in to try the celebrity favourite, QOD 16 week blow dry treatment – an organic luxury hair treatment that “eliminates frizz, rejuvenates and straightens all hair types”. This is like manna from heaven for the girl who washes her hair only twice a week because it’s such a chore to wash, condition and dry/style it. (A 45minute chore at least.) And in fact, I rarely wash it at all – one of my big indulgences is to get a blow dry at least once a week, that’s how bad it is, so of course I jumped at the chance to review QOD.
My once/twice-weekly blow dry allows me to bring my laptop and work away in peace as I attempt to get through my never-ending to-do list. Next week I am off to London for a month and I definitely don’t fancy paying London blow-dry prices, so a treatment that promises to give me smooth and sleek hair with little work is definitely something that every girl dreams of!
Patrick Mone, owner of Monet Hair greeted me as I entered the salon. The dark green and lavish black interiors create a luxurious feeling and expert-favourite brands, including Label M and Kerastase line the walls. Make up guru Paddy McGurgan has also opened his first concession in the salon (my go-to place whenever I need glammed up - the staff always have me looking & feeling a million dollars) and with salon staff including Jade Martin, a Wella graduate and David Jenkins, Toni & Guy trained with over 15 years’ experience in the industry – I knew I was in expert hands.
My stylist for QOD was David, who told me that this is the perfect treatment if your hair is naturally curly or tends to get quite frizzy. It is also great if, like mine, your hair is very long and therefore takes a long time to wash, dry and style. Between prepping for meetings/doing the school run/making lunches/gymming or the 101 other things that suddenly ALL need to be done before 9 am, it is safe to say most of us don’t have the luxury of time to spend styling our hair. David talked me through how the treatment works explaining that it includes keratin and amino acids, this injection of protein can help repair hair, making damaged hair look and feel healthier. The innovative formula also makes hair easier to manage on a daily basis and encourages hair growth; if that is an area you struggle with.
Once David took a closer look at my hair type and length and the treatment was fully explained to me with all my questions answered (yes the treatment really can make your hair more manageable after a home blow-dry, yes, even after a particularly grueling body pump class) I was reassured and the treatment began.
First up, a deep cleansing shampoo was applied to my hair before being blow-dried until about 80% of the water was removed.
My hair was then parted into sections and a thin layer of the QOD Max Silver was applied all over and left for around 20-30 minutes, allowing me to catch up on some work. David explained to me that this time varies depending on hair thickness/condition. My hair was then rinsed, blow-dried and split into sections before each section was straightened over a very specific ten times to ensure the best results possible. The straightening irons ‘lock in’ the products and ensure they get to work for long-lasting results.
Immediately my hair was noticeably softer, glossier and certainly looked healthier. Even the colour looked brighter and just, well, NICER! The pre-treatment frizz was gone and my hair no longer looked or felt dry and brittle. David waved me goodbye with a strict warning not to get my hair wet for up to 24 hours after the treatment, I also had to wear my hair down during this time – apparently, tight bobbles or clips can create kinks and can stop the treatment from working. It is advised to wash hair between 24-48 hours after treatment, with 48 hours being the limit – and a sulphate-free shampoo is advised.
There is also no need to worry about any nasty chemicals ruining your hair as QOD is focused on minimising any levels of potent chemicals in their products while still maintaining and improving the long-lasting conditioning effect on your hair – yay!
I am over the moon with the results and can’t wait to see how much easier it makes my hair routine over the next few months. I will be following up my treatment with the QOD Silver shampoo and conditioner as I am told that this helps the treatment last longer.
Monet Hair is the exclusive provider of this treatment in Belfast and I will definitely be returning. I can honestly say, two weeks on, that the treatment has made home blow drying much, much easier! Ta-daaaaah!
For reservations
Monet Hair salon 02890682828
www.monethair.co.uk
Price starts at £140 and may vary depending on hair type, length and colour/treatment history.
Love, Cathy x