Forget glass skin! We tried the latest #GlassHair treatment to see if it lives up to its hype.

When glass skin took over the skincare world, everyone went nuts. The trend from Korea featured smooth, hydrated-looking skin that just looked all around healthy and gorgeous, and without the use of makeup too!

When we received the invitation for the #GlassHair treatment, we were fascinated but also curious as to how one could achieve a #glasshair look without looking too oily? Colour us intrigued!

The #GlassHair service is one out of three groundbreaking new innovations by state-of-the-art salon Chez Vous, in collaboration with professional hair care brand Goldwell. The other two services are the #RightColourMatters and the #FakeAsh. While we could at least visualise how the results of the other two would realistically be like, #GlassHair remained a huge question mark.

Needless to say, I made an appointment immediately to get my #GlassHair on.

My hair before it became #GlassHair

My hair cut is pretty simple – I have short bob, long fringe, and I clip that up every day so it doesn’t get in my line of vision when I’m doing work.

While my hair used to be frizzy when I was younger, it has since calmed down a lot – not least because I made it suffer through countless rebonding sessions as a teen. Now, the frizz is minimal, although I still feel the need to clip or tie it up so I don’t look completely out of control.

Eugene Teo, brand director at Chez Vous, was my eager and helpful photographer. He positively brimmed with energy as he explained to me all the ins and outs of the #GlassHair treatment. “Your hair is already considered very obedient,” he declared as he analysed it. “But it could be better.”

In a nutshell, the #GlassHair treatment is meant to flip the tables on your average hair treatment service. While regular hair treatments make your hair feel wonderful right after it’s done, the magic is rinsed off completely within the first or second wash.

The #GlassHair treatment, though, will make your hair feel a little stiff and uncomfortable for the first 48 hours after the service, but the magic begins only after your first wash, and sustains itself no matter how many times you wash it, for up to 2 months.

The #GlassHair treatment is fuss-free and doesn’t take long

I don’t know about you, but I sometimes dread hair services and treatments because of how long I’ve to sit in the chair without moving, going to the washroom, or stretching my legs.

The #GlassHair treatment was surprisingly never the case. The entire service only takes five steps, and everything was finished in about 1.5 to 2 hours.

First, I enjoyed an extremely therapeutic shampoo and head massage by the Chez Vous stylist, complete with calming Lavender Essential Oils. It’s not very common to have a hair salon provide you with a head massage while shampooing, so I appreciated the touch.

After my hair was clean, the stylist used a serum blend of Glyoxylic Acid, the key ingredient behind the #GlassHair treatment, Collagen, and Peptides.

Chez Vous says that Glyoxylic Acid Technology acts like “mini-styling products” that are infused into the hair and remain dormant. They are activated by heat, so when you blow-dry your hair in a downward motion, the ingredient helps to hold hair in place for 24 hours, keeping it calm and frizz-free throughout the day.

The Collagen and Peptides act as plugs for tiny holes on your hair shaft caused by damage and friction. By plugging those holes, moisture and water cannot seep into the hair shaft, and your hair doesn’t frizz up as much when it’s humid.

After the serum comes a potent dose of Hydrolyzed Silk. This acts like a much more intense version of your conditioner, except that when it’s heat-activated, it closes your cuticles and smooths it down, making your hair look healthier after blow-drying.

Then, the stylist applies a Cell Membrane Complex (CMC). These are like “mini-sponges” that improve the hair’s ability to remain hydrated while not being damaged by moisture at the same time.

With all this goodness in your hair, heat is then applied with a state-of-the-art hot iron so that all those ingredients can stay locked in place, while not damaging your hair at the same time.

The aftercare for #GlassHair was more simple than I expected

To make your #GlassHair effect last the longest possible duration, Chez Vous recommends using their curated selection of home haircare products. These include:

• Goldwell Kerasilk Control Shampoo
• Goldwell Kerasilk Control Conditioner
• Goldwell Control Smoothing Fluid

There isn’t any fancy products that you need to go out of your way to use in order to make sure your #GlassHair is protected for as long as possible. Simply replace your existing hair care products with these ones, and you’re good to go.

I took the chance to ask Eugene how long one should leave hair masks and conditioners on the hair while they are bathing. “It doesn’t matter how long you leave it on,” he answered. “The purpose of the conditioner is to smooth down and close your hair cuticles after shampooing. If you simply apply it by scrunching it into your hair, you can leave it on for ten hours and it won’t have any effect.”

Talk about a shocker. So what is the proper way of using conditioner? “Use the conditioner as a smoothing agent – you should be stroking the conditioner down your hair shaft, from the middle to the ends of your hair. This helps to close up the cuticles. After that, you can actually rinse it off immediately.”

Another hair care tip from the affable brand director is to always blow dry your hair shortly after you wash it. “When you leave your hair wet and let it air-dry, the water soaks into your hair cuticles and damages it. Use a good hair oil and heat protectant, then blow dry it as soon as it’s not dripping wet,” says Eugene.

I’ve tried and tested this, and I have to say that my experiences affirm Eugene’s stance. On nights where I am too lazy or too busy to blow dry my hair, I tend to get very weird kinks and curls in my hair the next day that are almost impossible to hide. Blow drying it, especially after I’ve applied hair oil and heat protectant, really makes a world of difference to my hair.

The 36 hours after the treatment was not the best experience

Remember how Eugene said that the hair might be stiff and a little uncomfortable during the 48 hours after the treatment, when I’m supposed to leave it unwashed?

He sure wasn’t kidding.

My hair already felt a little stiff immediately after the treatment ended, as if I had some mild texturing spray in it. It didn’t look bad – in the mirror, my hair just looked straighter, smoother, and more tidy than usual. It didn’t look greasy or overly shiny at all, so I was glad for that. However, the stiffness was very tangible, even if it wasn’t visible.

Eugene was able to pre-empt me, and he told me even before I began the treatment that the absolute minimum amount of time I should leave my hair unwashed is 24 hours, if I could not last through 48 hours.

Let me assure you that leaving it unwashed for even just 24 hours was a feat. The night after I had done my treatment, I slept with a towel spread over my pillow because I got paranoid of products staining my pillowcase.

I thought things might be better the day after since I had no plans to go out and was staying home all day. Big mistake. Staying home meant I had to suffer the afternoon heat with my hair feeling heavy and thick, which made me sweat even more, and feel gross.

By the 24-hour mark, I would’ve thrown in the towel and gone to bathe if I hadn’t already made plans for a full body massage that night. It was only by virtue of that that I managed to stick it out for 36 hours at all.

It was literally magic after the first wash

I have never looked forward so much to washing my hair as I did after the #GlassHair treatment. It wasn’t just because my hair was feeling unbearably heavy, but also because I felt extremely curious to know how the effects would be like after. Would it be as magical as they had promised?

My hair has never felt so straight and smooth before. The day after, I went out with my friends and for once I didn’t clip up my fringe because I felt like it was neat and frizz-free enough to be let down.

The effect was almost like I had done soft rebonding on my hair, but it didn’t feel as unnatural or as damaging to my hair.

One month after the treatment, I still find that my hair is softer and smoother after blow-drying, but it certainly isn’t as straight as it was immediately after the treatment.

My natural curls have certainly come back, but in general, my hair still seems easier to manage – if I blow dry it diligently, that is.

Would I recommend it?

Because my hair has already calmed down the frizz since my teenage years, the difference isn’t as visibly obvious on photographs as it would have been on someone who has to face daily battles with taming their own hair every day.

I’d definitely recommend the #GlassHair treatment for people who have issues with disobedient hair, or hair that just seems to stick out in funny angles no matter what you do.

It doesn’t look quite like glass, but that’s not a bad thing – who wants hair that looks overly shiny anyway? A look that works for your skin isn’t going to translate equally well on to your hair.

One word of advice: plan your schedule around your #GlassHair treatment. Make sure you have every opportunity to be in a comfortable, even air-conditioned, environment for as much as possible during the following 24 to 48 hours.

Going out in the hot sun and sweating it out will make you feel like washing your hair as soon as possible, and that could ruin your whole experience!

The #GlassHair treatment is also having a launch special! For first-timers, you can enjoy a 15% discount off the service, starting from SGD225 depending on hair length. You can also enjoy 15% off the curated homecare set as well!

Chez Vous is located at #05-05, Ngee Ann City Podium (Takashimaya), Singapore 238872. For appointments, call +65-6732-9388 or log on to http://www.chezvoushair.com.