RoundBrushHair! > Dominican Hair Care Blog

Tons of our RoundBrushHair.com Members in the Dallas, TX area have been dying for a Dominican stylist! We recently updated our Dominican salon locator with Carmen Tarazez who has a salon in Keller, TX which is just outside of Dallas!

RoundBrushHair.com Team Member Diana Flecher talked to Carmen for the inside scoop on what brought her to Texas, how she relates to clients and of course - her favorite Dominican hair products!

RoundBrushHair.com: Carmen, congratulations on being our featured Dominican stylist for the month of December! Give us a little bit of background information about yourself…

Carmen: Thank you for choosing me! Well, I was born in Santiago in the Dominican Republic. I’ve been doing hair for about 30 years in the United States; I graduated in 1981 in NYC of (estilista/stylist) so I have 28 years of experience doing hair.

RoundBrushHair.com: That’s a long time. So you studied in NewYork? What prompted the move to Texas?  That’s a pretty big move.

Carmen: Yes, I know it’s a huge change, but after my kids got married I decided to move to a more peaceful area. Also, New York is  very cold during winter and life is “fast” all the time.  I love the weather we have here in Texas – nothing like New York. And I love the friendly people and the sense peacefulness here.

RoundBrushHair.com: Just talking to you makes me wish I was there – you make it sound like a paradise. And now that winter is here with all this cold weather, I really wish I was near some sunshine! Your salon is actually located in Keller right? I know Dallas is the closest major city to you – about how far away is it?

Carmen: Yes, Dallas is the closest major city to me. It takes about 30 minutes to here from Dallas, it depends on traffic but it usually takes about 30 minutes. Keller, is a really nice area, it has parks, nice malls, and the structure of its buildings is pretty, and you can find lots of restaurants mostly Tex-Mex. There are people from everywhere…so you will see lots of cultures. 

RoundBrushHair.com: Speaking of different cultures, do you work with a wide range of hair textures? Does that make recommending products difficult?

Carmen: I work with a lot of different textures. But before recommending a product I first check for two things with a person’s hair: 1. See what texture they have 2. See if it’s damaged. If the hair is damaged I recommend a trim immediately. People need to know that even if they use conditioners and oils and the hair is extremely damaged they still need to cut off the ugly hair and split ends so they can have better results when using the conditioners. After accessing those two things, then I decided which product I should use. I care about the health of hair first and always. For example, many people ask me why I do the rolos if it takes more time than a regular blow out. They just know it’s the Dominican technique, but I like to explain that it’s worth the extra time and that is not just a technique. The rolos under the heat are less harmful for the hair, because your hair is just sitting there drying up with no “pulling” like some stylist do. I don’t do my job just for the money or to just get a costumer for 1 day, I like to have clients that come regularly. I love what I do for them and in return they bring more people to the salon to have the same experience they had.

RoundBrushHair.com: So coming from a stylist who obviously cares a lot about the health of hair rather than the overall style. What are your thoughts about the Keratina Straightening Treatment? A lot of salons are starting to offer this service? Are you offering them to clients as an alternative to relaxers?

Carmen: Well it depends on the hair’s texture. The Keratina Treatment is a miracle, no doubt! But is not for all hair textures and I don’t recommend it to everyone…its good for very curly hair and it helps with dryness because it moisturizes and makes your hair soft. It differs from a relaxer because the Treatment can last for about 3 to 4 months.  The most important thing about the Treatment is that you have to go to a place with a license to use it. It’s for professional use only.

RoundBrushHair.com: I’m still out on the verdict with the Keratina – I’ve heard a lot of things about it, but I’m just not sure how I feel about it. But one this is for sure, if I were living in the Dallas area I would come in and have you look at my hair! But since I can’t, let’s offer some help to women and men like me who do their hair at home but need help choosing the right products. I created a “mini-game” where I’ll shout out a “hair issue” and you say one or two Dominican hair products that are good for that issue. Sounds good?

Carmen: [laughing] Ok!! It sounds fun - but let me first remember all the products because there are so many!!

RBH: Damaged Hair                 Carmen: Emergencia Conditioner.

RBH: Hair Loss                        Carmen: Cinnamon Oil and Conditioner.

RBH: Dry Scalp                        Carmen: Coco Conditioner, La Bomba with Avocado Conditioner.

RBH: Split Ends                        Carmen: Emergencia Conditioner, Avocado Oil.

RBH: Dry Hair                         Carmen: 10 en 1 Conditioner, La Bomba with Avocado Conditioner

RBH: Thin hair                         Carmen: Emergencia Conditioner, Apretadora Conditioner

RBH: Weak hair                       Carmen: La Bomba with Avocado, Olive Oil Conditioner

RBH: Color Treated                 Carmen: 10 en 1 Conditioner

RBH: Shedding                        Carmen: Emergencia Conditioner, Olive Oil Conditioner

RBH: Growth                          Carmen: Crema de Seda Conditioner, and La Bomba Conditioner.

RoundBrushHair.com: You were fast! Out of these products you named, do you have any favorites?

Carmen: I love two products: The Emergencia and the 10 en 1. They treat dryness, damaged hair and colored hair. They also give shine, moisture and much more. I recommend the 10 in 1 if you are looking to hydrate your hair, and if you use a lot of heat in your hair, you must use the Emergencia.

RoundBrushHair.com: Well Carmen it has been a pleasure talking to you. Thank you so much for taking time out of your busy schedule for this interview. I know everyone who will read this will find it very helpful!

Carmen: No problem! And I thank you.

 You can check out Carmen at Legacy Day Spa:

1530 Keller Parkway Blvd.

Keller, TX 76248

(817) 637-5892 (Call for appointment)

For directions to this salon, please use our Dominican salon locator and type in your zip code

 

       

Last weekend RoundBrushHair.com attended the WPGC 95.5 Expo in Washington, DC to introduce Dominican hair products and salons with live blowout demonstrations by Sintia’s Dominican Salon!

We had a ball, but instead of reading about it - see for yourself:

And for a limited time, you can purchase the Sampler’s Set of products that was used on all of our hair models and sold at the event!

Sampler’s Set includes:
Aceite Bomba Pre-Shampoo Oil
Miss Key 10 en 1 Shampoo
Halka Baba de Caracol Deep Conditioner
Lacio Lacio Leave-In
D’Fina Vitamin E Ampolla
Instructional Usage sheet

As you may or may not know by now, we’ve discontinued the Color Shower’s Cellophane (if you didn’t know this, you need to join our Newsletter). There’s been a lot of anticipation about which brand would replace the Color Showers. A few days ago we announced that we were replacing them with the Original Color’s Cellophane by Stoken Gold!

The reason we decided to switch brands is very simple and can be explained in this short story:

     Once upon a time there was a great cellophane brand called Color Shower’s that came in a simple black and white bottle. It was 100% natural, thick, vegetable based, covered grays, didn’t leak on sheets & clothes, etc.

     Then one magical day the bottle changed – it was bright and colorful (to the naked eye, this seemed like an improvement). Ah, but the truth was that along with the bottle it seemed as though the formula had changed. :–(

     We called the manufacturers and they assured us that the formula was “lo mismo” (the same). But the ladies of RoundBrushHair.com are no fools! The thick consistency of the cellophane was no longer there – it was more like a runny, messy [insert any fitting noun of your choice here]. It was still coloring hair, but not like before!

     In the end, I took a trip down to the good ol’ DR in March of 2009 and started my journey on finding a new line of cellophanes to carry. The End!

So in March while in

Santo Domingo, I talked to a few friends, family members, stylists and strangers (with beautiful hair of course) and found myself applying the Black Original Color’s Cellophane to my hair at home. Here’s the bucket and products I picked up from the local market and lugged back home in el carro público to do my hair:

 

 

The whole process of doing my hair took about – ummm, I can’t remember. But the application of the cellophane was very simple. After washing my hair, I put about ¼ of the 16oz bottle on my hair (making sure it’s saturated from the roots to ends). [The amount of cellophane you use will vary with the length of your hair.] I sat under a hooded dryer for 30 minutes then I rinsed it out with warm water!

 

The color was beeeeautiful! And talk about shine!! Here’s a picture of my hair after roller setting and blow-drying it straight:

   

I sooo wish I had a before picture to show you. :–(  The Original Color’s Cellophane is very similar to the old bottle of the Color Showers: it’s 100% natural, thick, vegetable based, and I haven’t had any problems of messy sheets/clothes)

Now I need your help! I have a great idea: I want to do another blog entry about the new cellophanes, but next time I want to do a tutorial on how I apply it. Sooo, which color would you like to see me apply?

Ambar / Amber                  Castaño / Chestnut              Miel / Honey

Bronce                             Chocolate                            Negro / Black

Café / Coffee                    Clear                                   Rojisimo / Red

Canela / Cinnamon            Cobre / Copper                  Rojo Vino / Red Wine

Caoba / Mahogany            Gold                                   Uva / Grape

Majority will decide! This should be interesting. (Oh, and you can choose for me to mix colors too) Please don’t set me up! lol

 

Update: Thanks to all who voted. I applied the Rojimiso and love it! I will post the pictures soon. :–)

 

We’ve been getting some emails from ladies asking us to feature some Dominican stylists in more “remote” areas where finding a good Dominican salon is more difficult. So this month we’re featuring one of our newest affiliated Dominican salons – Sandra of Sandra’s Dominican Salon in Roanoke, VA!

 

RBH: Sandra, we’re so happy to have you as our Featured Dominican Stylist this month! I’m sure our members in South-Western Virginia and Eastern Tennessee are happy to know you’re in the area.

 

Sandra: Thanks for featuring me! I have known about RoundBrushHair.com for over a year now.

 

RBH: I have to be honest; I had no idea where Roanoke, VA was located before looking it up on mapquest.com. That’s a shame because I’m from Washington, DC and I’ve never heard of Roanoke. From the map, it looks like you’re close to Richmond right?

 

Sandra: Actually, I’m about 5 hours from Richmond – I’m closer to Tennessee than Richmond, Virginia. The state of Virginia is about 7 hours wide [driving], so it’s a big stretch.

 

RBH: Wow, you’re right, that’s quite a stretch. How long have you been in the states? How did you end up in an area like Roanoke?

 

Sandra: I was actually born in the states – New York. Both of my parents are Dominican and I worked in my aunt’s salon for 15 years in New York before moving to Roanoke. I ended up in Roanoke because my husband’s truck driving job moved us here. It took some time getting use to, but I really like it. It’s a quite, close knit community and a great place to raise children.

 

RBH: With it being such a close knit community you must be a jewel out there!

 

Sandra: I guess you could say that since I’m the only one out here. A lot of women go to JC Penny’s to get their hair done where they can pay up to $65 to get their hair done and I only charge $32 for a wash and set and that includes a deep conditioner. I keep the prices low so women can get their hair done every week or two weeks.

 

RBH: So I’m guessing you know all your clients by name and are regulars right?

 

Sandra: Yes, and I get a lot of clients from the colleges/universities in the area – Virginia Tech, James Madison and Washington Lee.

 

RBH: Do you deal with a lot of different textures of hair?

 

Sandra: Yes, both natural and relaxed. I promote natural hair – I just put that hair on a roller! I’m dark skin with thin, curly hair – like cotton. My mom’s hair is silky and thin but I got most of my hair traits from my dad whose hair is more cottony. I’m really into the health of my customer’s hair. I tell my customers all the time ‘lengthy damaged hair is no hair’ so I make sure the health of their hair comes first.

 

RBH: What are some of the things you do or teach to promote healthy hair for your clients?

 

Sandra: A couple of things:

 

1. I alternate conditioners every two weeks with my clients. I write down which products I use and make sure to alternate them. If you use the same conditioner all the time, it looses its effect.
2. For dry hair, I will apply oil to their hair before shampooing.
3. I use tea tree shampoo with mint to activate hair follicles once a month.
4. I only cut hair on a new moon – that’s when your hair starts its next growth phase.

 

RBH: A lot of what you mentioned, we tell our members all the time. Especially the pre-shampoo oils and alternating conditioners tip. But cutting hair on a new moon? What’s that about?

 

Sandra: It’s something I learned from my grandmother and have always done. I tell my customers I prefer to cut or trim their hair on a new moon. Now my customers will call me and say things like “Sandra, it’s the start of a new moon, I need my hair trimmed!”

 

RBH: That’s a new one for me. Lol I’ll take your word on it though. But alternating conditioners is a wonderful tip for women! What are some of your favorite conditioners?

 

Sandra: It depends on the need of the hair. For instance, with dry relaxed hair I like to use Silicon Mix and Baba de Caracol. For Naturals I like the Wheat Germ and La Plancha conditioners. If you’re looking to lock in shine, I suggest the Whale Sperm products.

 

RBH: You mentioned you have kids, are these products OK to use on their hair as well or do you prefer something else for children?

 

Sandra: No they don’t need anything different, those products work very well for children too.

 

RBH: What about women with color or damaged hair? What kind of conditioner do you suggest?

 

Sandra: I would suggest the Emergencia – but that’s a specialty conditioner that I only like to use once a month. 

 

RBH: Thanks for the tips! I’m sure our members will be taking notes and following some of your suggestions. And for the women who are in driving distance from you, what are your hours of operation?

 

Sandra: I prefer if people call me first because I’m very active in my children’s life when I’m not at the salon, but normally my hours are Wed – Saturday: 1:30pm – 8pm and by appointment only on Sunday.

 

Sandra’s Dominican Salon

5711 Airport Rd.

Roanoke, VA

(540) 400-7468

 

  

 

  

 

 

As my 3-week trip to Cairo, Egypt approaches I’ve been mentally going over which hair products and tools I should pack. While most women in my scenario would be concerned about having the right pair of shoes and enough outfits - I can’t sleep at night wondering if it makes sense to pack my soft bonnet dryer, rollers and blow-dryer! Do I take more than one conditioner…and how about the matching shampoo and rinse????

I’m literally wrecking my brain trying to figure this out. 3 weeks is a long time in the hair world - especially during the summer.  For me, we’re talking:

3 shampoos (shampooing once a week)

6 condition washes (condition washing twice a week)

21 doobies (wrapping my hair every night)

and 84 pin curl rolls (I put two big pin curls in my hair twice during the day to keep body)

I can’t imagine going on this trip and completely neglecting my hair regimen. So I think answering these set of questions will help me (and you…if you plan on going on extended trips) to pack the right hair products and tools.

Question #1: What is the weather like where you’re going?

Answer #1: Egypt is going to be HOT…I’m talking 95 degrees Fahrenheit! This means I should focus on products that will help with dryness. Here are my top picks for dryness: Silicon Mix,  12 en 1, Leche de Cabra and of course a good pre-shampoo oil for the scalp like the Aceite Bomba. I think I’ll take one for dryness and a one for emergency situations like: emergencia or baba de caracol hair mask.

Question #2: Do you plan on swimming in chlorine water?

Answer #2: ABSOLUTELY. If your trip includes swimming you definitely will want to keep a good leave-in, rinse conditioner and clarifying shampoo with you.  Wetting your hair with clean water and a little bit of leave-in or rinse conditioner before swimming will help to minimize the drying effect the chlorine will have on your hair. Your hair is like a sponge, it soaks up what it can hold until it can absorb no more (so you want your hair to absorb clean water and conditioner before entering chlorine water). You also want to make sure you’re clarifying at least once a week if you plan to swim daily. Make sure not to clarify more than once a week because clarifying shampoos are drying as well. My recommendation for clarifying shampoo is the Apretol Cinnamon and Rosemary.

Rinse conditioners are great for using before you swim! You really can’t go wrong with choosing a rinse, so I won’t recommend one over the other. As far as leave-ins, for swimming purposes I recommend using creamier leave-ins like the nacidit, lady fior olive oil and the emergencia cream leave-ins.

Question #3 (which honestly should be my question #1): Will I have access to a Dominican salon? lol

Answer #3: Ummm, I’m guessing Egypt will NOT have Dominican hair salons. lol But if you’re traveling and need to know if a Dominican salon is in the area, try our Dominican Salon Locator.

Question #4: Will I have room to store these items without them being stolen (don’t mess with my Dominican hair products)?

Answer #4: I’m staying with friends and while I’m sure I’ll have no problem with 5-finger discounts, I might not have room for my bonnet dryer. Will it be ghetto to bring my rollers and dry my hair out in the sun? I mean, it IS going to be HOTT!

Question #5: Will I need special AC adapter/converters?

Answer #5: Yes, I definitely need to pack my AC converter BUT I’m not sure if I want to bring my Dominican-powered 3200 watt blow dryer with me! lol I don’t want to be the cause of a power outage while I’m there!

With a head full of rollos (I’m saying, why go to a Dominican salon and not get my hair done? lol), I had the chance to sit down and talk with the ‘king of hair’ Glynn Jackson, creator of the Golden Scissor Awards about Dominican hair salons, Dominican hair products and his Latin Golden Scissors Awards taking place this summer in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic!

Yay! RoundBrushHair.com now sells Round Brushes! I guess it’s only right since we are all about Dominican hair care right and the Dominican technique is all about the Round Brush.  Well, we now offer over 20 different shapes, styles and sizes to choose from! This can seem somewhat intimidating to those who are new to using them (we know because we’ve gotten the phone calls). So,  I’ve compiled a few of the most frequently asked questions we’ve received:

 

What is the difference between boar bristle and boar bristle brush with nylon quills?

These bristles are made from natural boar’s hair, which helps to smooth the hair without causing unnecessary damage or splitting the ends. These brushes should be used on hair that is at least 80% dry to avoid tangling and breakage as hair is at its most vulnerable state when wet. With every rotation the bristles strengthen and polish by spreading the hair’s own natural oils. This leaves a very healthy shine.  These brushes are also used for stretching the hair which is great for thick, curly or wavy types. They are able to create a firm grip to achieve the tension needed for smoothing, straightening, or curling the ends leaving a sleek finish.

            Boar bristle brushes with nylon quills, also referred to as porcupine brushes, have slightly longer nylon quills in between the boar bristles which are used to help detangle the hair simultaneously while the boar bristles are smoothing.

 Note: (Blonde Boar Bristles are softer and used for fine to medium textured hair and black boar bristles are used for medium to coarse hair. Certain Brushes may have a combination of the two.)

 What size should I use?

As a general rule, your hair should be able to wrap around the barrel of the brush at least 1 ½ times for the best results. Just as with rollers or curling irons the smaller the diameter of the brush, the tighter your curl will be and vice versa.

 How do I clean them?

Brushes can be easily cleaned with warm water and a mild shampoo. You can use either a comb or another bristle brush to remove buildup and loose hairs. This should be done on a regular basis because the dirt and debris from previous uses can be redeposited onto clean hair. Also, brushes with wooden or cork handles should never be immersed in water only rinsed and air dried.

Why are some brushes ceramic or metal?

These are both types of thermal brushes. The purpose of using a thermal brush is to quicken the drying process and to style hair. The barrels of these brushes are vented and retain heat. They act very much like a curling iron when used with a hand held dryer. You may find that some of the bristles on these brushes are tipped with tiny plastic balls. These are for separating the air which aids in more even drying and less frizziness. Just as a ceramic curling iron or flat iron these; brushes can overheat and burn your hair or skin. Always use the lowest heat setting as possible to achieve the results you desire.

When should I use the ones with the holes in them?          

These are called vent brushes. They are heat resistant and have small openings along the barrel that allow air to flow through while drying. These openings help to dry hair faster and usually have bristles that are placed farther apart than those found on other types of round brushes. These are excellent for creating volume as well as curling.

Why use an ionic brush?

            Ionic styling tools are known for conditioning and rehydrating by using negative ions to help absorb water molecules into the core of the hair strands.

I hope this small tutorial has answered some of the questions that you may have had about which brush suits you best. Let me know if I missed a burning question you have about the brushes. Also, we’d love for you to share with us any experiences, comments, or tips that might be helpful to those who are new to the art of the round brush hair.

Check out our round brushes

 

OK, am I the only one excited about the NCAA tournament or what? I don’t even follow college basketball, not when I was a student at the University of Maryland (GO TERPS!) and definitely not now.

But I’m excited for 1 reason only: I get to play in a basketball pool!

Every year around this time men enter multiple NCAA pools and women are kinda left out because I don’t think we care that much. We would much rather do our hair, browse new hair products or go to the hair salon right? Well, not any more! This is our 2nd Annual NCAA tournament and we’ve got some great prizes you can win while watching the tournament games:

Free Dominican hair products and Free wash & sets from participating Dominican salons!!  Basketball & hair - what a wonderful combination!

So who are you banking on winning? Where did you go to school? How are you choosing the winning team (color of uniforms)? :–)

Good luck!! Submit your brackets now through March 19th

 

 

Fast Facts:

Salon Name: Image Beauty Salon & Dominican Image Hair Salon

Salon Location: 1824 Columbia Rd, NW Washington, DC 20009; 5801-A Eastern Ave., Hyattsville, MD 20782

Salon Phone: (202) 234-4194; (301) 559-1088

RBH: Hello Mariana! Congratulations on being our Featured Dominican Stylist for the month of March!

Mariana: Thank you for featuring me!

RBH: Tell us about how you first got started doing hair.

Mariana: Well, I started doing hair back at home (Dominican Republic); I graduated from cosmetology school in 1984 then moved to the United States in 1985.

RBH: Did you immediately open up your own salon when you moved to the United States?

Mariana: Oh no. I worked at a salon called Mireya’s Beauty Salon for 12 years (1985-1992). Then I had a partnership with another woman named Francis to co-own a salon on 18th Street in Washington, DC for six years (1998-2003). It was after that partnership that I opened my first salon - Image Beauty Salon.

RBH: How do you juggle having two salons? Do you work at both?

Mariana: Yes, I work at both. I have days when I’m at Image Beauty and then other days when I’m at Dominican Image.  I work with friends that I’ve known since I moved to this country.

RBH: This isn’t a fair question, but do you like being at one salon over the other?

Mariana: No, I love them both. We are all professionals with many years of experience, and love doing hair.

RBH: Do you specialize in any hair type?

Mariana: We specialize in every hair type! Visit us today!

 

If you’re active on facebook you’ve probably been tagged at least once with the “25 Random Things” note. Reading through different lists, some were entertaining and comical while others were serious and somber. So I decided to start the “15 Random Things….About Hair”. Read my list below and share yours!! 

 

1. I never thought my hair would grow past my shoulders.

2. I thought the back of my hair would always be shorter than the rest of my hair.

3. I was in denial about how unattractive split ends looked until I started taking pictures of my hair.

 

4. Now that I have long hair I secretly want to cut it; but I don’t think I ever will because the journey to long hair took a lot time and patience.

5. Before using Dominican hair products I bought every product off the shelf of my local Beauty Supply Store.

6. I admit to trying hair growth pills (embarrassing!)

7. My grandmother laughed at me everyday for a month straight as I popped the horse-size Hair Formula 37 hair growth pills.

8. No they didn’t work. ($120 down the drain)

9. I go to a different Dominican salon every other week and tell people it’s “work related” when actually I’m just addicted to trying new salons.

10. I can never tell when white women wear weaves.

 

11. Am I the only one who was surprised to find out Kim from “Real Housewives of Atlanta” had a weave?

 

12. Speaking of “Real Housewives of Atlanta” I thought Ne-Ne’s weave was awful.

 

13. I once cried (well, not cried…but a tear rolled down my eye) sitting in a Dominican Salon because the heat from the blower was sooo hottt!

 

14. I would really like to learn how to do fishtail braids (my friend does them really well, and I think they’re so cute).

 

15. I’m so glad long hair on guys is going out of style.

 

If you’ve read my list, you’ve been tagged and now you have to create your own. :–) Oh, and if you’re wondering how my hair looks now…here’s a picture I took December of 2008: