There are three things the decrease the effectiveness if the perm taking:
1) Lightening your hair (most stylists won’t even try)
2) Excessive damage
3) Hair that is too soft (read: some Caucasian hair)
Now my stylist said that he wasn’t sure mine would take because it was too soft. In fact, he said that he wouldn’t even try if he had an older generation of machine. So he used small rollers and said to hope for a body wave….well, he was WRONG! My hair is now super curly. TOO curly, if you ask me. But I guess there is no way to know on your first round.
Also, find out which generation of machine they have. The 3rd generation is the newest, and they are far more effective with much lower heat temperatures. He said my hair was only heated to about 75 degrees (compare that to curling iron/straightners that get to 420!) This is a fairly low-damage perm.
Bring a picture! I made the mistake of not doing that.
Don’t freak out until you give it a few weeks…it does relax.
Enjoy!
