My personal word of advice for other black women (and people with "black hair") is to get a home dryer system and deep condition every week. Most of the conditioners we use have a "for more conditioning, use plastic cap and sit under dryer for 5 minutes" type message. If you do this, follow the directions and DO rinse it out. (Your hair will be jacked up if you leave it in.) Then, use a foam hair wrap product to smooth that bad boy into the direction you'll be wearing it. Sit under the dryer and paint your toenails for 30 min or until your hair is dry, dry, dry. Break out the flat iron and voila! I don't have to put any other product in it and it is SHINY and light. (At the same time, I'm still trying to figure out what that magic substance silkener is that my hairdresser uses...)

I realize not everyone will be up for such a weekly ritual but my stubborn hair will not submit to anything less. The whole process takes about two hours. Good luck!

SUMMARY:
1. Shampoo
2. Deep condition
3. Foam wrap
4. Solia flat iron!

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I work in an upscale salon and this is a product we can't keep on the shelves. My hair is long, Fine, Colored and hilited with bleach. Trust me when you use this once you'll never be able to live without it! My hair feels like silk and looks so darn healthy! It's called ID CARE Heat Silk Lotion from CREDE(Japanese straightening). ID care Rejuvenates hair to the heathly condition and promotes hair from drying and Ironing with the moisturizing effect of silk protein. It protects your hair from blow drying and Ironing. It is amazing!!! This with Bio Silk silk therapy on damp hair blowdry and your Solia Iron is the only way to go! Your gonna love me!

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The best thing to keep your hair straight is to make sure it's as healthy as possible. I keep mine very healthy with very little (if any at all!) split ends.

1. I get my hair trimmed every 6 weeks. This, I've noticed, definitely makes my hair feel better and look healthier because (of course) I'm cutting off "damaged" or "drier" hair. This helps maintain the length I want, because instead of letting it grow out and get split ends (which, if not getting cut, can split your hair even more! So much that you need more than 1 or 2 inches cut off!) I get it trimmed a bit, but not so much that I can't grow my hair out.

2. I use a moisturizing shampoo. John Frieda's Brilliant Brunette Shine Release Moisturizing Shampoo- Amber to Maple Brunettes- works really well for me. After I wash my hair in circular motions on my head and massage it (to hopefully increase blood flow, therefore quickening hair growth...) and rinse out, it feels really nice. It almost feels as if you are using a 2 in 1 (shampoo AND conditioner!) but really, it's just shampoo.

3. After I shampoo, I wash my body and such... (you know, the basics) and let water get out all shampoo residue so I can apply conditioner. I then squeeze out most of the water in my hair and apply conditioner (1 and a half tablespoons for me) to my hair. I use John Frieda's Frizz-Ease Extra Strength Conditioner...which works reallly well for me. I let the conditioner stay in my hair for a minute or so, then I take a wide-tooth comb and comb through my hair while the conditioner is STILL in so it can condition all my strands. After 3 more minutes I rinse out with warm, and then COOL or COLD water (it helps seal the hair cuticle for a nice finish!) and finish showering.

4. Every week I will deep condition. This is an absolute must to keep healthy hair! I use Garnier Fructis Sleek and Shine 3 Minute Deep Conditioner. I love the smell, and I actually apply it in the shower, then I turn off the water and let it stay in my head for 10 minutes while I quickly shave my legs. (I still combed through my hair after a minute, though. Don't forget to do that! It'll help get rid of tangles and conditoner more strands.) I rinse out and my hair feels smooth and soft. Rinse with cool water and finish .

5. After my shower, I BLOT my hair with a towel, and try my best just to lightly squeeze water out, NOT rub it with the towel (which can cause frizz!). Then wait about 5-10 minutes for my hair to get not-so-wet, and apply BioSilk Silk Therapy. This stuff is so great! It's like an oil that seriously makes your hair feel great, not oily. I have long hair, so I put about 2 or 3 drops in my palms, lightly rub my palms together to make the oil seem like a lotion (that way when I apply it to my hair I won't have yucky spots of too-much-product and such). I apply it to my lower layers first, and then my top layers.

6. Here's the thing that will save you *SO* much damage... let your hair air dry! Blow drying can seriously do some damage to your hair. If you just let it dry naturally, you will save yourself a lot of hair-repairing-products money. =)

7. Once my hair is air dried, I apply Redken's Smooth Down heat protective gloss, which is a must in my hair routine. Even though the Solia doesn't really do a lot of damage as would metal straighteners, the heat does damage eventually, and using a protective gloss helps! I use about one full squirt and then a little bitty half-a-squirt (because my hair is long) and put it on my hands like a lotion (Note...I don't apply ALL over my hands like a lotion, just my palms!) and apply it to my bottom layers and then top.

8. Now for straightening! I first make 2 sections. I part my hair from ear to ear, sort of making an n shape (literally, it should look like a lower case n if you part your hair from ear to ear properly!) Then I clip the bottom portion and keep holding the top with my hand. THEN... I take the top and make THREE more parts. The topmiddle part should be about 2 inches wide or 3... and leave you with equal topside parts. Clip your topside parts (left and ride of your top part... if that makes sense) and your topmiddle part (the middle section of your top part...) Start straightening your back part. Then do either your left or right toppart, and finish with your hair at the top center.

9. I finish with with a glossing and shine spray to make my hair keep out humidity and keep my pretty straight strands. I use Redken Vinyl Glass Mega Shine Spray... I love it.

10. Every month... since product use will produce build-up on your hair, I use a clarifying shampoo (Pantene Pro-V Clarifying Shampoo) to get rid of residue and make hair squeaky clean again for another month's daily use of products. And that's it!

I know it was VERY long... but my hair is so healthy and I'm so proud of it! Haha. Well, I hope this worked. It totally worked for me!!

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like most of the other tips here mentioned, it's best to use a product like the biosilk silk serum, but to add to your hair's health you can leave your conditioner in for about 10 minutes while your in the bath tub/ shower (just leave it in while you shave and stuff and rinse your conditioner out last). this really helped repair my hair.

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alot of people say that garnier fructise products work good with a flat iron but what is really happening to your hair is that the fruit oils are being melted into your hair, which causes missed patches if you ever dye your hair, chemically relax it, etc... i learned this from my aunt, she's a professional hair stylist... hope this "warning"
isn't too late

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I love my Solia iron, however I've found that an iron without the right kind of product just isn't the same! I've used a number of them now and I have formed an opinion, here it is. USE ONE, never iron unprotected, your hair just won't look as good, especially if you have damage.
1.I have tried BioSilk, loved it, great stuff, expensive though. Walmart sells a knock off of this, same exact results for me.
2.Garnier Fructis Long and Strong anti split ends treatment, now this one smells AMAZING and works well while never seeming greasy no matter how much i use, I'd recommend it for slightly less damaged hair than my own though(damage from coloring, is no worse at all from the iron).I still use it, just with the addition of something a bit heavier on my ends.
3. My current favorite straight n smooth cocktail recipe. Silk Elements Glossing Polish(5.99 at Sally), great stuff, smells good, works as well or better than biosilk for me. I put this in when my hairs wet and let it air dry. Then i add a few pumps of Beyond The Zone Turn Up The Heat Flat Iron Protection Spray(5.99 at Sally), aiming for the ends.This is a very effective product but use lightly, if you go crazy with it you might find it to almost feel oily, but the spray means no more goopy hands! I iron my hair while this is still wet and my end result is light swingy SILKY hair every time with no fried look on the ends.
So, in my humble opinion you don't have to spend a fortune to smooth, protect, and maximize your iron's performance.It seems to me that there are probably dozens of products that would work great when you're already starting with a great iron like the Solia.

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I've had my iron for 5 months, and this is what I have learned.

First, I have very fine, thin, and fragile hair. I have it highlighted to hide the gray, and it is damaged. I LOVE this iron, and I have experimented enough to come up with what is right for me, and hopefully it might help you.

I wash my hair with Garnier Furtis sleek and smooth shampoo, and use Pantene conditioner. These are both good products for a reasonable price. When I get out of the shower I put a dime size of BioSilk silk therepy in to help with NO tangles. Put it up in a towell for a while and then blow dry. After it is dry I put a DROP, just enought to smooth over your hand and cover, and run my hand thru my hair.

Then I iron. I take the very top and put it in a velco curler to get it out of the way,then I iron the sides, I section that back off in two layers, and iron the bottom, I find that pulling it out Vertically is easier and makes it straighter, the I pull done one side of what I have sectioned off and iron it, vertically, then the other. Then I take the velcro curler out and iron that secton, pulling down toward my face, this seems to give a little lift to the top, 7 min. and I'm done, and it is STRAIGHT. The next day it is straight, but I put large velcro rollers in and get in the shower and STEAM them in, WALLA, I have straight hair with lots of bounce and volume. I only have to straighten my hair every other day, and use the velcro curlers on the day I dont' straighten. Also, when I am done straightening my hair, if it looks kinda fuzzyy, I put another "dot" of bisilk on my hand and run thru my hair. This is what works for me. I know that there has to be some damaged done by this iron, but It is well worth it. My blow dryer and electric curlers did damage also. IF it gets too bad I will just cut it and have another hairstyle, but I will NEVER be without this iron. I have never been happier with the way my hair looks.

Hope this helps someone.

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Remember too much product on your hair is bad. So using a shampoo and conditionar that works for your hair type and a leave in conditionar should be enough, especially if your using this product regularly(straightener). Although ceramic is the best way, it's still hurting your hair. So once again, don't kill your hair by putting too much product in it, and trimming your your hair often is a MUST, it's only every 6 weeks!

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I'm half Asian/African American with very thick medium/course spiral curly hair (shoulder length). Takes a long time to straighten my hair. I find that using a blow dryer with a brush or comb attachment is much easier. I also like to wait until my hair is half way dry. I've been trying Redken's Smooth Down collection and very happy with the results. I use the Heat Glide Smoothing glosser before i blow dry my hair in sections. It helps to protect hair from heat and makes it easier to comb the tangled curls out. I apply more when i'm ready to use my flat iron. Proclaim Glossing Polish from Sally's is excellent also if you're short on cash. I was going to try Matrix Smooth and Sleek spray but after i read that one of the first ingredients had alcohol in it i put it back on the shelf, however i do like their shampoo and conditioner. I still use my Sebastian Potion 9 and Biolage Thermal Active Setting spray, pretty good products. Its good to switch products once in a while and if you're a hair beauty freak like me you've pretty much tried a whole bunch of stuff out there. I forgot to add, especially if you have dry hair, invest in a satin pillow case or wrap your hair up at night with a satin bonnet or satin scarf. This helps keep the frizz down and natural oils in your hair from being lost. Cotton pillow cases tend to suck the natural oils out of hair making it more dry and prone to breakage. I deep condition my hair once a week, its a must for people who use heat on a regular basis especially if you have color or other chemical processes. I like to use K-Pac from Joico (professional salon only), Mega Moisture from Loreal or Organic Root Stimulator Hair Mayonnaise at Sally's. Watch out though, too much protein is bad for your hair. Another tip which i'm sure many of you have heard already is to get your ends trimmed. I've heard from different people hair should be trimmed every 4, 5, 6 even 8 weeks. I go with the 6 weeks. Well hope this helps, Good luck.

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I read in one of the tips that someone used Garnier Fructis shampoo and it worked well so I bought some, I got the "Sleek & Smooth". After using this, you don't really have to use anything else before ironing. I have read several time to use a spray before ironing, I tried that but my hair "sizzled" as I moved the iron thru it, I was uncomfortable with that, seemed to be doing more damaged. This shampoo is pretty good, in fact, when you are rinsing out he shampoo, it feel like your rinsing out conditioner, but your hair wont't have an oily look or feel, which is the price I thought I would have to pay to protect my hair. The conditioner is great also, and it less than 3.00 each. I love this iron, I will never be without one.

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