image: Vinicius Chaves Instagram
Burn Baby Burn! Why Burning Your Hair Is HOT!
By BR Amelia
I’m sure I’m not the only person in the world to take a stray piece of hair that’s fallen off my head and hold it to the light of a burning candle, watching it wither away into nonexistence. (Ok, please tell me I’m not the only person, I feel weird now having written that.) Well it turns out candle burning your hair isn’t just something sort-of-pyros do for fun. It’s actually a hair treatment – although one that should only be done in the hands of a professional and never ever done at home by an amateur.
Velaterapia is the hottest thing to come out of Brazil since Gisele… (or the very hawwwwt Fabrizio Morretti for that matter). Basically it’s a method of getting rid of split ends by burning them away. The hairstylist takes little areas of your hair, twists them tightly and then runs a lit candle up and down the areas that are old and split, keeping well clear of the healthy fresh hair up top.
So is it for everyone? Obviously, if you’ve short hair this method of split end control is well and truly out. But if your hair is mid-length it’s something you could consider doing and it doesn’t matter what kind of hair you have either - curly, wavy, straight, dyed – velaterapia can work on any of them to achieve healthier looking hair.
Bonus! Apparently velaterapia opens up the hair follicle, so the hair can really soak up the benefits of a deep conditioning treatment. Although to be honest, I’m not sure how this works as the treatment is often also mentioned as ‘cauterising’ the hair, which I always thought closed things? But, who am I to question these things when the results speak for themselves:
Now for the ‘unbonus’. I’ve Googled and Googled and have yet to find a salon that offers it in New Zealand. I guess that means a trip to Brazil is in order… alright then, se for preciso.
So have you heard of velaterapia before? Is it something you’d get done if you could find someone to do it for you? Or do you prefer the tried and true method of getting regular trims to keep split ends under control?
(Oh and if you do find someone who says they can do it, make sure they’re experienced – SUPER experienced – because hair is flammable and the last thing you want is hot hair, literally.)
My mum used to do it when I had braids when I was little, over 60 years ago! Candle was held at least 2" away from my hair. Found this article if anyone is interested: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-2664089/Could-BURNING-split-ends-better-haircut-FEMAIL-puts-hot-new-Brazilian-trend-test.html I must admit I feel safer when hairdresser attacks split ends with scissors.