SMOOTHED
Smoothologie™
Before You Book
Seven chapters
We believe informed clients have the best experiences. Whether you’re new to keratin or just new to us, work through these at your own pace and come back whenever a question comes up.
A few minutes here saves a lot of surprises later.
A little understanding goes a long way. These are the questions we think every new client deserves answered before booking.
Some relaxation of your natural pattern is always possible. How much your texture changes depends on your curl pattern, hair history, goals, and the treatment strength we choose together at consultation.
Looser waves and curls generally relax more visibly than tighter coils. Tighter textures often keep more of their curl while becoming softer, less frizzy, and far easier to detangle.
The goal here isn’t automatically to eliminate your texture. We customize to balance the smoothing you want against the movement you want to keep.
Maximum smoothing and maximum curl retention are opposing goals. Your consultation is where we find the balance that’s right for you.
Yes. Plenty of our clients keep wearing their hair curly, wavy, coily, or in wash-and-go styles after treatment.
Your pattern may look softer, more elongated, or less voluminous than before. Exactly how much depends on your texture, treatment strength, hair history, and how you style after washing.
Some clients come to us specifically for the flexibility — natural one week, smooth the next.
Have Your Curls and Smooth Them Too™ means keeping your options open — not promising your pattern stays completely unchanged.
It can reduce frizz, soften texture, shorten styling time, make detangling easier, and help your hair respond more predictably to heat and humidity.
It isn’t permanent straightening, and it isn’t a substitute for healthy hair habits. Your natural texture returns gradually as the treatment fades and new growth comes in.
Some clients feel a dramatic difference after one appointment. Others take a gentler route and build results over several.
Keratin makes your own hair easier to live with. It can’t turn your hair into someone else’s hair.
You don’t need to arrive with the answers. Most clients know what’s frustrating them without knowing which result or strength fits their life.
Every appointment opens with a thorough consultation — how you wear your hair now, what you want made easier, how much texture you want to keep, your hair history, and what you actually want from the service.
Our job isn’t to pick your goal. It’s to explain your options and build a plan around what matters most to you.
You can arrive knowing only what you want to make easier. The consultation defines the rest.
It’s a good place to start if you’re unsure whether SMOOTHED is right for you, have a complicated chemical history, are worried about curl retention, or need help choosing the right appointment.
Also useful if you’re traveling in, booking for a child, recovering from damage, transitioning off relaxers, or coordinating keratin around color.
It doesn’t replace the in-person consultation at the start of your service, but it helps you feel informed before committing.
You don’t need one if you already understand the service and feel confident choosing your booking option.
Booking your first appointment shouldn’t feel overwhelming. Here’s how to pick the right Smoothologist, reserve enough time, and understand what it costs before you commit.
Start with the option that matches your curl pattern and whether you’re new or returning. From there, choose the Smoothologist and experience level that feel right.
Choosing your hair type correctly puts you with someone qualified for your texture and reserves the right amount of time.
Booking for a child? Children’s appointments must be booked with a Senior Smoothologist, plus the add-on that tells us you’re bringing a child.
Type 4C? We strongly recommend a Senior Smoothologist, plus the one-hour add-on.
The add-on reserves time. It isn’t a separate charge you’re paying on top.
Every first-time appointment is one flat rate, based only on the experience level of the Smoothologist you choose. Not your curl pattern, not your length, not how much product your hair takes.
A haircut can be added for $50. After your first visit, your Smoothologist gives you a personalized maintenance quote based on what your hair actually needed.
We reserve time generously so nobody is rushing your service.
In the rare case a service runs significantly past our maximum reserved time of roughly 3½ hours, additional charges may apply — and we’ll discuss it with you before going ahead.
Pricing reflects hands-on experience and the number of treatments each person has completed.
Smoothologists in Training offer a one-time introductory rate. These are educational appointments supervised by Kaylie or a Senior Smoothologist.
Established Smoothologists have completed more than 500 treatments. Senior Smoothologists have completed thousands and represent our highest level of experience.
Kaylie primarily welcomes new guests for their first one to three appointments before transitioning ongoing maintenance to the team.
Choose the experience level, investment and availability that suit you. Everyone here is trained in the same method.
Start with your curl-pattern category — that points you toward people trained and scheduled for your hair type.
Then consider your preferred investment, availability, experience level, and whether you’re comfortable being part of a supervised training appointment.
An Established or Senior Smoothologist is the better fit for a complicated hair history or advanced customization. A Smoothologist in Training is a good fit if you’re happy to model during a closely supervised educational appointment.
There’s no single best Smoothologist for everyone. The goal is the best match for your texture, goals and budget.
Add-ons reserve extra appointment time for hair that may need a longer service, and they help us schedule you with the right person.
The one-hour add-on is required for Type 4C hair. Children’s appointments require the children’s add-on and a Senior Smoothologist. Everyone else should add one when the booking instructions recommend it based on length, density or texture.
When you’re genuinely unsure between two time options, reserve the extra. Having more time than we need is much better than not having enough.
Yes — $50, added when you book so the time gets reserved.
We don’t offer standalone haircuts. Most clients prefer trimming after smoothing anyway, since the finished length and movement are much easier to judge once the treatment is done.
Add it at booking. Don’t assume it can be added once your appointment has started.
Professional keratin and hair-smoothing treatments, exclusively. A haircut can be added.
We don’t provide color, highlights, extension installation or maintenance, traditional relaxers, or permanent straightening.
Doing one thing is what lets us keep refining our consultations, customization and technique.
Coordinate color, bleaching and extensions with the right professional, and follow our timing guidance before scheduling with us.
When you book can matter as much as what you book. These are the things we wish every first-time client knew before picking a date.
If it’s your first keratin treatment, give yourself some room before an important trip.
Most first experiences are wonderful, but every head of hair responds differently. Booking ahead gives you time to complete your first wash and learn how your hair behaves before you leave town.
Especially worth it if your trip involves swimming, ocean water, humidity, frequent workouts, or professionally styled hair for photographs.
Where you can, book your first treatment at least a couple of weeks before major travel. Later treatments feel far more predictable, because by then we both know how your hair responds.
Some clients notice a temporary sulfur-like scent once their hair gets wet after a treatment. It doesn’t happen to everyone, but we’d rather you know it’s possible before booking.
When it does happen it’s usually most noticeable while hair is wet — washing, swimming, rain, humidity, heavy sweating — and it typically fades over subsequent washes.
Since we can’t predict who’ll experience it, a first treatment may not be what you want immediately before a wedding, photoshoot or once-in-a-lifetime event.
If avoiding every possible surprise matters for an upcoming occasion, leave enough time for several washes first.
Yes. Salt, chlorine, frequent washing and heavy sweating all shorten the life of a treatment.
If you already know you’ll be in a pool or the ocean for days, training for a race, or doing hot yoga right after your appointment, book the treatment afterward instead.
Your treatment needs to stay on the hair for at least 24 hours and can stay up to seven days. Choose a date that lets you avoid heavy sweating for the first 48.
Get your workouts and swimming out of the way beforehand. Picking the right date protects both your time and your investment.
Yes. Color and keratin work well together, but the order matters.
Keratin can lighten, pull or shift artificial color and sometimes expose extra warmth. If you color darker or cover gray, most clients prefer to do that after their keratin so the color is freshly corrected. Darker color can generally be scheduled after your first wash.
Highlights and bleach are different. Freshly bleached hair is vulnerable, so allow roughly two to four weeks between highlighting and your keratin. We also don’t recommend highlighting straight after keratin, because bleach breaks the treatment down.
If your color is currently perfect for an important event, think about whether you’re comfortable with keratin possibly shifting its tone before you book.
Sometimes the most responsible advice is to wait.
If this is your first treatment and your wedding, photoshoot, reunion or graduation is days away, there may not be time to complete a first wash and learn how your hair responds.
Your results may be exactly what you hoped for. But a first treatment carries variables that become far easier to predict once we’ve worked with your hair — color may shift, your pattern may relax more or less than expected, and there may be a temporary scent when it gets wet.
We’d rather build a long relationship with you than encourage a risk before something that can’t be repeated.
If the event is less than two weeks out and you’ve never been treated here, waiting until afterward usually offers more peace of mind.
When you can actually experience it without immediately working against it.
Pick a stretch where you’re not flying out tomorrow, swimming every afternoon, training for a race, booking fresh highlights, or getting ready for something big.
Give yourself time to complete a first wash, see how your hair behaves in your normal routine, and ask questions. Your first appointment teaches both of us how your hair responds — and every treatment after gets adjusted based on what we learn.
The goal isn’t to fit a treatment onto your calendar. It’s to pick a date that gives you the easiest possible introduction.
Keratin, color, bleach, previous smoothing treatments and extensions all need planning. Getting the order right protects your hair and gets the most from every service.
Yes. Darker color, glosses, toners and gray coverage can generally be scheduled after your first wash.
Keratin can lighten, pull or shift artificial color and sometimes expose warmth, so many clients prefer to do keratin first and refresh color afterward. That way your colorist corrects any tonal shift and you leave with color freshly finished.
If your color is already perfect for an event, consider whether you’re comfortable with keratin shifting it before booking.
Bleach breaks down and removes a keratin treatment, so we don’t recommend fresh highlights straight after your smoothing appointment.
You invested time and money in the treatment, and bleaching too soon significantly shortens how long you enjoy it.
If highlights are part of your regular routine, plan both services together so they aren’t working against each other.
Enjoy the best part of your keratin before scheduling fresh highlights, wherever possible.
Highlights are generally best done before keratin, but freshly bleached hair needs recovery time before another intensive service.
Allow roughly two to four weeks between highlighting and your keratin appointment. The right timing varies with the condition and chemical history of your hair.
We can’t safely treat every freshly bleached head the same way. Your in-person consultation decides whether your hair is ready and how gently to work.
Fresh bleach and fresh keratin shouldn’t be stacked closely together. Give the hair time in between.
Working over relaxed or previously smoothed hair is safe, and in most cases you’re still a candidate. There’s no waiting period and nothing to grow out first.
What we do need is your history. That includes Brazilian Blowout, Cezanne, Keratherapy, Keratin Complex, Peter Coppola, Enzymotherapy, Japanese straightening, relaxers, at-home kits — anything.
Different products change the hair in different ways, and previously straightened lengths can behave very differently from untreated new growth in the same appointment. Bring the product name, the date, and anything you remember about how your hair responded.
A virtual consultation is worth booking first if your history is complex or you’re transitioning away from permanent straightening.
If you don’t know what was used, tell us everything you do remember. Complete honesty about your history is what lets us make safe decisions for the hair in the chair.
No. We don’t perform keratin treatments over any type of extension.
That includes tape-ins, K-tips, I-tips, fusion, hand-tied and machine wefts, sew-ins, beaded rows, microlinks, clip-ins, halos, installed wigs, box braids and every other system.
Your extensions must be fully removed before your appointment, and your natural hair must be free of all residue — tape adhesive, glue, keratin bonds, silicone, beads, thread, removal product and any leftover buildup.
Even a small amount interferes with sectioning, combing, application, rinsing and safe heat styling. If a comb won’t run cleanly from roots to ends, the hair isn’t ready.
Recently removed extensions also leave trapped shedding behind. That needs removing and the hair needs detangling fully before you arrive.
If you arrive with extensions or residue still in, we won’t be able to perform your treatment, and we can’t use your reserved time for removal or extensive detangling. You’d need to have it professionally removed and rebook.
Don’t assume removal is complete just because the visible hair is out. Check the roots and lengths for adhesive, bonds, buildup, thread and trapped shedding.
Bond-repair products are useful for hair that’s recently been bleached or chemically compromised, but they aren’t automatically necessary for every keratin client.
Keratin already deposits strengthening protein. Layering strong protein and bond repair on top when your hair doesn’t need it can leave it stiff, dry, coated and harder to work with.
Use them based on the actual condition of your hair, not because they’re marketed as stronger.
More strengthening product isn’t better. Moisture, protein, bond repair and keratin need balancing against what your hair needs right now.
Start to finish, here’s what actually happens. Type 1–2 hair usually runs about an hour and a half to two and a half hours. Type 3–4 runs closer to two to three and a half. A haircut adds about fifteen minutes.
Your consultation 15–20 min, with the wash
We want the full workup: your hair history, your short-term goals, your long-term goals, what frustrates you, what you love, and what you want to keep. If Kaylie is in house she steps into almost every consultation, unless she’s deep in a client of her own.
The consultation is the skill. Being able to have that conversation well is a large part of what makes a stylist senior here, and it’s a real difference between experience levels.
Your before photos
Your stylist decides how to approach your treatment — the strategy, the application, the processing time. Then you’ll head to the front window for before photos and video.
We film every client for our records. If you’d rather we didn’t post yours, just say so and we won’t. Booking with Kaylie means being on camera — as of September 1, if you’d prefer not to be filmed, please book with another Smoothologist.
The shampoo
Thorough, but not a scrubbing shampoo — we’re working with a chemical that day, so we’re not using nails or digging into the scalp.
Which means you need to arrive with a genuinely clean scalp. If you’re prone to buildup, take care of it before you come. Clean hair for keratin, always — the best treatments go onto the cleanest hair we can get.
Application 20–30 min
Back to the chair. Some of our treatments go under heat and some don’t. Some are applied fully, some only partially. It depends entirely on your hair that day.
If you stay with us, you may have several treatments where we do something different each time. That’s not inconsistency — that’s the customization.
Processing 30–60 min
Most of our brands need processing time. This is your downtime — bring a laptop, a book, or just sit.
Rinse 5 min
Quick. Then straight into the finish.
Blow dry and flat iron 60–90 min
Everyone leaves with fairly smooth hair. But if you’re keeping your curl, you may not get a perfect silk press — and that’s deliberate.
You might leave with ends that still feel textured. That doesn’t mean the treatment didn’t work. It means it did exactly what we wanted, and your curls will be there when you wash.
If you need very smooth hair for an event, get treated well beforehand, wash once, then book a professional blowout. Please don’t plan something important for the days right after a first treatment — we don’t yet know whether your hair smooths easily or needs a gentler hand with heat.
The haircut 15 min · $50
This is usually where we try to talk you into one. Our happiest clients get haircuts, and honestly the work looks best when we can finish it properly.
Going home
Your stylist walks you through what to expect over the next few days and sends you home with a pamphlet of the rules. Emails and texts follow with more detail, timed to land when you need them — and that’s when you’ll be prompted to book your next appointment.
A few days later, you wash. And you have smooth hair.
Say yes to the emails
Keratin isn’t like color. You’re not showing us a photo and watching us copy it onto your head. It’s a treatment that keeps changing quietly after you go home, and gets better with every appointment.
Over a decade of doing this, the thing Kaylie noticed most was how many clients simply didn’t know what to expect — and how unsettling that was. So we walk you through it. The rules after keratin, when and how to do your first wash, how to care for it going forward.
None of that is on this website. The aftercare method is Kaylie’s, and we share it with guests only. Make sure your email and phone number are correct in our system — it’s the one piece of admin that genuinely changes your result.
We’d rather hold your hand than hand you a mirror and wave.
Whether you’re driving across town or flying across the country, knowing what to expect makes the day easier from the moment you arrive.
Most first-time appointments start with a three-hour reservation, but every head of hair is different. Length, density, texture, condition, detangling needs, chemical history and how much customization is involved all affect it.
Type 1–2 often finishes within the standard block. Type 3–4 may need longer, and Type 4C and children’s appointments require the add-on so the time is there if needed.
Please don’t schedule a flight, dinner reservation or childcare cutoff too close to your expected finish.
We won’t rush the hair in the chair to accommodate plans made afterward.
Yes. Plenty of clients bring a laptop and work through parts of their appointment.
There’ll be stretches where you can answer emails, read, study or take a quiet virtual meeting. There’ll also be times your Smoothologist needs your attention, needs your head at a particular angle, or needs access around your chair.
It’s a shared space, so please use headphones for calls, music and video.
Be as productive as you like — just avoid anything that needs uninterrupted privacy or full control of your camera angle.
Complimentary Wi-Fi, yes. An outlet may be available near your chair, but placement varies.
Arrive with your devices charged where you can, and bring your own cables. We can’t guarantee a compatible charger for every device.
Download anything important before you arrive, in case your work needs a particularly strong connection.
Yes. Arrive well fed and hydrated, especially for a longer appointment.
You’re welcome to bring a drink and a simple, low-mess snack. Please avoid strong odors, anything needing setup, and anything that could spill near tools or product.
When you can eat depends on which stage we’re at, so your Smoothologist may ask you to wait for a better moment.
Treat the appointment as a long block of time for yourself. Eating beforehand makes it far more comfortable.
Something comfortable that you wouldn’t be upset about coming into contact with professional hair product.
We work carefully to protect your clothing, but salon services always carry some risk. Skip expensive white, delicate fabrics and anything sentimental.
You’ll be sitting with us for a few hours, so pick something you’ll enjoy wearing the whole time.
Save your favorite outfit for after your appointment, not during it.
Street parking throughout North Park. Availability varies with the day and time.
Arrive ten to fifteen minutes early to find a spot, gather your things and get settled.
A few extra minutes makes the whole appointment feel less stressful.
To keep the salon comfortable for everyone, we generally ask that only clients receiving services stay in the space unless arranged in advance.
If someone’s driving you or traveling with you, North Park has excellent restaurants, coffee shops and boutiques to explore while you’re with us.
Consider treating it as a few uninterrupted hours entirely for yourself.
Our treatments generally have pleasant fragrances, and most first-time guests are surprised how different the experience is from what they expected.
Like any professional salon service, some vapor is produced during application, drying and heat activation. We’re built around airflow and ventilation, with fresh air moving through the space continuously.
Sensitivity is individual. If you’re especially sensitive to fragrance, let us know before your appointment so we can make the visit as comfortable as possible.
Formaldehyde-free doesn’t mean fragrance-free. Everyone experiences scent differently.
Don’t worry about memorizing any of this.
Before your appointment we’ll send detailed preparation instructions specific to your hair type — how to arrive, what to avoid, and what to expect afterward.
Just read the emails we send and follow them. We’ll guide you the whole way.
The goal was never perfect hair. It was to make your everyday routine easier — so you spend less time thinking about your hair and more time on everything else.
The first wash is where you start learning how your hair behaves outside the salon.
Most clients notice less frizz, faster drying, easier detangling, softer texture and a routine that takes less effort. Your natural pattern may look softer, more elongated or less voluminous than before.
It won’t necessarily look exactly as it did leaving the salon — that finish included professional blow-drying and styling. Your post-wash result reflects your own texture, products and technique.
The first wash is the beginning of understanding your results, not a test you need to pass.
At least 24 hours after your appointment, and no longer than seven days.
Leaving it on longer doesn’t give you a stronger result. Pick your wash day within that window based on your schedule and your Smoothologist’s instructions.
If your hair gets wet from sweating or swimming before you meant to wash it, it’s better to go ahead and wash than to let the treatment repeatedly dampen and dry.
Minimum 24 hours, maximum seven days. Your aftercare email will have the exact instructions for your appointment.
No. The treatment is meant to give you options, not another exhausting routine.
Type 1–2 hair often looks its most polished with leave-in conditioner, heat protectant and some heat activation after washing. You can still air-dry when it suits your day — the finish will just look more natural.
Type 3–4 hair can air-dry, wash-and-go, or diffuse. Lightweight leave-in and curl products are usually enough, and heavy products often aren’t needed anymore.
Your treatment gives you choices, not one required way to wear your hair.
No. Keratin is temporary smoothing, not permanent straightening.
Results soften gradually as you wash, sweat, swim, use product and move through life, and new growth arrives with your untreated texture.
Most clients don’t get the harsh line of demarcation you see with permanent straightening. The treatment fades and your natural texture becomes more noticeable over time.
There’s no single correct maintenance schedule. Come back when the time and effort your hair takes stops fitting your life.
Yes. You can swim and live your life. You just need to understand the tradeoff.
Chlorine, salt water, repeated soaking, sun and frequent shampooing all shorten the life of the treatment. One swim won’t destroy it, but regular exposure makes it fade faster.
Before swimming, wetting your hair with clean water and applying leave-in helps it absorb less pool or ocean water. Rinse thoroughly afterward.
Never let protecting a treatment stop you enjoying a vacation or a beach day. It just means choosing your life over maximum longevity — which is completely fine.
Sweat contains salt, and repeated heavy sweating shortens the life of a treatment.
The first 48 to 72 hours matter most. Get strenuous workouts, hot yoga and sauna visits done before your appointment wherever you can.
If you have to do an intense workout soon after, wash the treatment out first rather than letting it get repeatedly saturated with sweat. After that first wash, return to your normal routine.
Protect the first 48 to 72 hours. After that, live your life and come back when your hair starts asking for more effort than you want to give it.
That’s everything
If you’ve read this far, you already know more than most people do walking into their first appointment. Book when you’re ready — or send us photos first and we’ll tell you honestly what we’d recommend.
Informed clients have the best experiences. That’s the whole reason this page exists.
SMOOTHED · 3436 30th St, San Diego, CA 92104
SMOOTHED
Smoothologie™
Before You Book
Six chapters
We believe informed clients have the best experiences. Whether you’re new to keratin or just new to us, work through these at your own pace and come back whenever a question comes up.
A few minutes here saves a lot of surprises later.
A little understanding goes a long way. These are the questions we think every new client deserves answered before booking.
Some relaxation of your natural pattern is always possible. How much your texture changes depends on your curl pattern, hair history, goals, and the treatment strength we choose together at consultation.
Looser waves and curls generally relax more visibly than tighter coils. Tighter textures often keep more of their curl while becoming softer, less frizzy, and far easier to detangle.
The goal here isn’t automatically to eliminate your texture. We customize to balance the smoothing you want against the movement you want to keep.
Maximum smoothing and maximum curl retention are opposing goals. Your consultation is where we find the balance that’s right for you.
Yes. Plenty of our clients keep wearing their hair curly, wavy, coily, or in wash-and-go styles after treatment.
Your pattern may look softer, more elongated, or less voluminous than before. Exactly how much depends on your texture, treatment strength, hair history, and how you style after washing.
Some clients come to us specifically for the flexibility — natural one week, smooth the next.
Have Your Curls and Smooth Them Too™ means keeping your options open — not promising your pattern stays completely unchanged.
It can reduce frizz, soften texture, shorten styling time, make detangling easier, and help your hair respond more predictably to heat and humidity.
It isn’t permanent straightening, and it isn’t a substitute for healthy hair habits. Your natural texture returns gradually as the treatment fades and new growth comes in.
Some clients feel a dramatic difference after one appointment. Others take a gentler route and build results over several.
Keratin makes your own hair easier to live with. It can’t turn your hair into someone else’s hair.
You don’t need to arrive with the answers. Most clients know what’s frustrating them without knowing which result or strength fits their life.
Every appointment opens with a thorough consultation — how you wear your hair now, what you want made easier, how much texture you want to keep, your hair history, and what you actually want from the service.
Our job isn’t to pick your goal. It’s to explain your options and build a plan around what matters most to you.
You can arrive knowing only what you want to make easier. The consultation defines the rest.
It’s a good place to start if you’re unsure whether SMOOTHED is right for you, have a complicated chemical history, are worried about curl retention, or need help choosing the right appointment.
Also useful if you’re traveling in, booking for a child, recovering from damage, transitioning off relaxers, or coordinating keratin around color.
It doesn’t replace the in-person consultation at the start of your service, but it helps you feel informed before committing.
You don’t need one if you already understand the service and feel confident choosing your booking option.
Booking your first appointment shouldn’t feel overwhelming. Here’s how to pick the right Smoothologist, reserve enough time, and understand what it costs before you commit.
Start with the option that matches your curl pattern and whether you’re new or returning. From there, choose the Smoothologist and experience level that feel right.
Choosing your hair type correctly puts you with someone qualified for your texture and reserves the right amount of time.
Booking for a child? Children’s appointments must be booked with a Senior Smoothologist, plus the add-on that tells us you’re bringing a child.
Type 4C? We strongly recommend a Senior Smoothologist, plus the one-hour add-on.
The add-on reserves time. It isn’t a separate charge you’re paying on top.
Every first-time appointment is one flat rate, based only on the experience level of the Smoothologist you choose. Not your curl pattern, not your length, not how much product your hair takes.
A haircut can be added for $50. After your first visit, your Smoothologist gives you a personalized maintenance quote based on what your hair actually needed.
We reserve time generously so nobody is rushing your service.
In the rare case a service runs significantly past our maximum reserved time of roughly 3½ hours, additional charges may apply — and we’ll discuss it with you before going ahead.
Pricing reflects hands-on experience and the number of treatments each person has completed.
Smoothologists in Training offer a one-time introductory rate. These are educational appointments supervised by Kaylie or a Senior Smoothologist.
Established Smoothologists have completed more than 500 treatments. Senior Smoothologists have completed thousands and represent our highest level of experience.
Kaylie primarily welcomes new guests for their first one to three appointments before transitioning ongoing maintenance to the team.
Choose the experience level, investment and availability that suit you. Everyone here is trained in the same method.
Start with your curl-pattern category — that points you toward people trained and scheduled for your hair type.
Then consider your preferred investment, availability, experience level, and whether you’re comfortable being part of a supervised training appointment.
An Established or Senior Smoothologist is the better fit for a complicated hair history or advanced customization. A Smoothologist in Training is a good fit if you’re happy to model during a closely supervised educational appointment.
There’s no single best Smoothologist for everyone. The goal is the best match for your texture, goals and budget.
Add-ons reserve extra appointment time for hair that may need a longer service, and they help us schedule you with the right person.
The one-hour add-on is required for Type 4C hair. Children’s appointments require the children’s add-on and a Senior Smoothologist. Everyone else should add one when the booking instructions recommend it based on length, density or texture.
When you’re genuinely unsure between two time options, reserve the extra. Having more time than we need is much better than not having enough.
Yes — $50, added when you book so the time gets reserved.
We don’t offer standalone haircuts. Most clients prefer trimming after smoothing anyway, since the finished length and movement are much easier to judge once the treatment is done.
Add it at booking. Don’t assume it can be added once your appointment has started.
Professional keratin and hair-smoothing treatments, exclusively. A haircut can be added.
We don’t provide color, highlights, extension installation or maintenance, traditional relaxers, or permanent straightening.
Doing one thing is what lets us keep refining our consultations, customization and technique.
Coordinate color, bleaching and extensions with the right professional, and follow our timing guidance before scheduling with us.
When you book can matter as much as what you book. These are the things we wish every first-time client knew before picking a date.
If it’s your first keratin treatment, give yourself some room before an important trip.
Most first experiences are wonderful, but every head of hair responds differently. Booking ahead gives you time to complete your first wash and learn how your hair behaves before you leave town.
Especially worth it if your trip involves swimming, ocean water, humidity, frequent workouts, or professionally styled hair for photographs.
Where you can, book your first treatment at least a couple of weeks before major travel. Later treatments feel far more predictable, because by then we both know how your hair responds.
Some clients notice a temporary sulfur-like scent once their hair gets wet after a treatment. It doesn’t happen to everyone, but we’d rather you know it’s possible before booking.
When it does happen it’s usually most noticeable while hair is wet — washing, swimming, rain, humidity, heavy sweating — and it typically fades over subsequent washes.
Since we can’t predict who’ll experience it, a first treatment may not be what you want immediately before a wedding, photoshoot or once-in-a-lifetime event.
If avoiding every possible surprise matters for an upcoming occasion, leave enough time for several washes first.
Yes. Salt, chlorine, frequent washing and heavy sweating all shorten the life of a treatment.
If you already know you’ll be in a pool or the ocean for days, training for a race, or doing hot yoga right after your appointment, book the treatment afterward instead.
Your treatment needs to stay on the hair for at least 24 hours and can stay up to seven days. Choose a date that lets you avoid heavy sweating for the first 48.
Get your workouts and swimming out of the way beforehand. Picking the right date protects both your time and your investment.
Yes. Color and keratin work well together, but the order matters.
Keratin can lighten, pull or shift artificial color and sometimes expose extra warmth. If you color darker or cover gray, most clients prefer to do that after their keratin so the color is freshly corrected. Darker color can generally be scheduled after your first wash.
Highlights and bleach are different. Freshly bleached hair is vulnerable, so allow roughly two to four weeks between highlighting and your keratin. We also don’t recommend highlighting straight after keratin, because bleach breaks the treatment down.
If your color is currently perfect for an important event, think about whether you’re comfortable with keratin possibly shifting its tone before you book.
Sometimes the most responsible advice is to wait.
If this is your first treatment and your wedding, photoshoot, reunion or graduation is days away, there may not be time to complete a first wash and learn how your hair responds.
Your results may be exactly what you hoped for. But a first treatment carries variables that become far easier to predict once we’ve worked with your hair — color may shift, your pattern may relax more or less than expected, and there may be a temporary scent when it gets wet.
We’d rather build a long relationship with you than encourage a risk before something that can’t be repeated.
If the event is less than two weeks out and you’ve never been treated here, waiting until afterward usually offers more peace of mind.
When you can actually experience it without immediately working against it.
Pick a stretch where you’re not flying out tomorrow, swimming every afternoon, training for a race, booking fresh highlights, or getting ready for something big.
Give yourself time to complete a first wash, see how your hair behaves in your normal routine, and ask questions. Your first appointment teaches both of us how your hair responds — and every treatment after gets adjusted based on what we learn.
The goal isn’t to fit a treatment onto your calendar. It’s to pick a date that gives you the easiest possible introduction.
Keratin, color, bleach, previous smoothing treatments and extensions all need planning. Getting the order right protects your hair and gets the most from every service.
Yes. Darker color, glosses, toners and gray coverage can generally be scheduled after your first wash.
Keratin can lighten, pull or shift artificial color and sometimes expose warmth, so many clients prefer to do keratin first and refresh color afterward. That way your colorist corrects any tonal shift and you leave with color freshly finished.
If your color is already perfect for an event, consider whether you’re comfortable with keratin shifting it before booking.
Bleach breaks down and removes a keratin treatment, so we don’t recommend fresh highlights straight after your smoothing appointment.
You invested time and money in the treatment, and bleaching too soon significantly shortens how long you enjoy it.
If highlights are part of your regular routine, plan both services together so they aren’t working against each other.
Enjoy the best part of your keratin before scheduling fresh highlights, wherever possible.
Highlights are generally best done before keratin, but freshly bleached hair needs recovery time before another intensive service.
Allow roughly two to four weeks between highlighting and your keratin appointment. The right timing varies with the condition and chemical history of your hair.
We can’t safely treat every freshly bleached head the same way. Your in-person consultation decides whether your hair is ready and how gently to work.
Fresh bleach and fresh keratin shouldn’t be stacked closely together. Give the hair time in between.
Working over relaxed or previously smoothed hair is safe, and in most cases you’re still a candidate. There’s no waiting period and nothing to grow out first.
What we do need is your history. That includes Brazilian Blowout, Cezanne, Keratherapy, Keratin Complex, Peter Coppola, Enzymotherapy, Japanese straightening, relaxers, at-home kits — anything.
Different products change the hair in different ways, and previously straightened lengths can behave very differently from untreated new growth in the same appointment. Bring the product name, the date, and anything you remember about how your hair responded.
A virtual consultation is worth booking first if your history is complex or you’re transitioning away from permanent straightening.
If you don’t know what was used, tell us everything you do remember. Complete honesty about your history is what lets us make safe decisions for the hair in the chair.
No. We don’t perform keratin treatments over any type of extension.
That includes tape-ins, K-tips, I-tips, fusion, hand-tied and machine wefts, sew-ins, beaded rows, microlinks, clip-ins, halos, installed wigs, box braids and every other system.
Your extensions must be fully removed before your appointment, and your natural hair must be free of all residue — tape adhesive, glue, keratin bonds, silicone, beads, thread, removal product and any leftover buildup.
Even a small amount interferes with sectioning, combing, application, rinsing and safe heat styling. If a comb won’t run cleanly from roots to ends, the hair isn’t ready.
Recently removed extensions also leave trapped shedding behind. That needs removing and the hair needs detangling fully before you arrive.
If you arrive with extensions or residue still in, we won’t be able to perform your treatment, and we can’t use your reserved time for removal or extensive detangling. You’d need to have it professionally removed and rebook.
Don’t assume removal is complete just because the visible hair is out. Check the roots and lengths for adhesive, bonds, buildup, thread and trapped shedding.
Bond-repair products are useful for hair that’s recently been bleached or chemically compromised, but they aren’t automatically necessary for every keratin client.
Keratin already deposits strengthening protein. Layering strong protein and bond repair on top when your hair doesn’t need it can leave it stiff, dry, coated and harder to work with.
Use them based on the actual condition of your hair, not because they’re marketed as stronger.
More strengthening product isn’t better. Moisture, protein, bond repair and keratin need balancing against what your hair needs right now.
Whether you’re driving across town or flying across the country, knowing what to expect makes the day easier from the moment you arrive.
Every appointment starts with a thorough consultation. Before we pick a product or begin, we’ll talk through your hair history, current routine, goals, concerns, lifestyle and how much natural texture you want to keep.
Your Smoothologist evaluates the hair in front of them and builds a plan around what it needs that day.
The service may include cleansing, application, processing, rinsing, drying, heat activation and finishing. The exact sequence varies with the system chosen for your hair.
We treat the hair that’s in the chair. Even returning clients get a different treatment, because hair, goals and circumstances change.
Most first-time appointments start with a three-hour reservation, but every head of hair is different. Length, density, texture, condition, detangling needs, chemical history and how much customization is involved all affect it.
Type 1–2 often finishes within the standard block. Type 3–4 may need longer, and Type 4C and children’s appointments require the add-on so the time is there if needed.
Please don’t schedule a flight, dinner reservation or childcare cutoff too close to your expected finish.
We won’t rush the hair in the chair to accommodate plans made afterward.
Yes. Plenty of clients bring a laptop and work through parts of their appointment.
There’ll be stretches where you can answer emails, read, study or take a quiet virtual meeting. There’ll also be times your Smoothologist needs your attention, needs your head at a particular angle, or needs access around your chair.
It’s a shared space, so please use headphones for calls, music and video.
Be as productive as you like — just avoid anything that needs uninterrupted privacy or full control of your camera angle.
Complimentary Wi-Fi, yes. An outlet may be available near your chair, but placement varies.
Arrive with your devices charged where you can, and bring your own cables. We can’t guarantee a compatible charger for every device.
Download anything important before you arrive, in case your work needs a particularly strong connection.
Yes. Arrive well fed and hydrated, especially for a longer appointment.
You’re welcome to bring a drink and a simple, low-mess snack. Please avoid strong odors, anything needing setup, and anything that could spill near tools or product.
When you can eat depends on which stage we’re at, so your Smoothologist may ask you to wait for a better moment.
Treat the appointment as a long block of time for yourself. Eating beforehand makes it far more comfortable.
Something comfortable that you wouldn’t be upset about coming into contact with professional hair product.
We work carefully to protect your clothing, but salon services always carry some risk. Skip expensive white, delicate fabrics and anything sentimental.
You’ll be sitting with us for a few hours, so pick something you’ll enjoy wearing the whole time.
Save your favorite outfit for after your appointment, not during it.
Street parking throughout North Park. Availability varies with the day and time.
Arrive ten to fifteen minutes early to find a spot, gather your things and get settled.
A few extra minutes makes the whole appointment feel less stressful.
To keep the salon comfortable for everyone, we generally ask that only clients receiving services stay in the space unless arranged in advance.
If someone’s driving you or traveling with you, North Park has excellent restaurants, coffee shops and boutiques to explore while you’re with us.
Consider treating it as a few uninterrupted hours entirely for yourself.
Our treatments generally have pleasant fragrances, and most first-time guests are surprised how different the experience is from what they expected.
Like any professional salon service, some vapor is produced during application, drying and heat activation. We’re built around airflow and ventilation, with fresh air moving through the space continuously.
Sensitivity is individual. If you’re especially sensitive to fragrance, let us know before your appointment so we can make the visit as comfortable as possible.
Formaldehyde-free doesn’t mean fragrance-free. Everyone experiences scent differently.
Don’t worry about memorizing any of this.
Before your appointment we’ll send detailed preparation instructions specific to your hair type — how to arrive, what to avoid, and what to expect afterward.
Just read the emails we send and follow them. We’ll guide you the whole way.
The goal was never perfect hair. It was to make your everyday routine easier — so you spend less time thinking about your hair and more time on everything else.
The first wash is where you start learning how your hair behaves outside the salon.
Most clients notice less frizz, faster drying, easier detangling, softer texture and a routine that takes less effort. Your natural pattern may look softer, more elongated or less voluminous than before.
It won’t necessarily look exactly as it did leaving the salon — that finish included professional blow-drying and styling. Your post-wash result reflects your own texture, products and technique.
The first wash is the beginning of understanding your results, not a test you need to pass.
At least 24 hours after your appointment, and no longer than seven days.
Leaving it on longer doesn’t give you a stronger result. Pick your wash day within that window based on your schedule and your Smoothologist’s instructions.
If your hair gets wet from sweating or swimming before you meant to wash it, it’s better to go ahead and wash than to let the treatment repeatedly dampen and dry.
Minimum 24 hours, maximum seven days. Your aftercare email will have the exact instructions for your appointment.
No. The treatment is meant to give you options, not another exhausting routine.
Type 1–2 hair often looks its most polished with leave-in conditioner, heat protectant and some heat activation after washing. You can still air-dry when it suits your day — the finish will just look more natural.
Type 3–4 hair can air-dry, wash-and-go, or diffuse. Lightweight leave-in and curl products are usually enough, and heavy products often aren’t needed anymore.
Your treatment gives you choices, not one required way to wear your hair.
No. Keratin is temporary smoothing, not permanent straightening.
Results soften gradually as you wash, sweat, swim, use product and move through life, and new growth arrives with your untreated texture.
Most clients don’t get the harsh line of demarcation you see with permanent straightening. The treatment fades and your natural texture becomes more noticeable over time.
There’s no single correct maintenance schedule. Come back when the time and effort your hair takes stops fitting your life.
Yes. You can swim and live your life. You just need to understand the tradeoff.
Chlorine, salt water, repeated soaking, sun and frequent shampooing all shorten the life of the treatment. One swim won’t destroy it, but regular exposure makes it fade faster.
Before swimming, wetting your hair with clean water and applying leave-in helps it absorb less pool or ocean water. Rinse thoroughly afterward.
Never let protecting a treatment stop you enjoying a vacation or a beach day. It just means choosing your life over maximum longevity — which is completely fine.
Sweat contains salt, and repeated heavy sweating shortens the life of a treatment.
The first 48 to 72 hours matter most. Get strenuous workouts, hot yoga and sauna visits done before your appointment wherever you can.
If you have to do an intense workout soon after, wash the treatment out first rather than letting it get repeatedly saturated with sweat. After that first wash, return to your normal routine.
Protect the first 48 to 72 hours. After that, live your life and come back when your hair starts asking for more effort than you want to give it.
That’s everything
If you’ve read this far, you already know more than most people do walking into their first appointment. Book when you’re ready — or send us photos first and we’ll tell you honestly what we’d recommend.
Informed clients have the best experiences. That’s the whole reason this page exists.
SMOOTHED · 3436 30th St, San Diego, CA 92104