Doing a down perm at home: can you skip the neutraliser?
On FMKorea's fashion board, someone planning a DIY down perm (the Korean technique that flattens puffy side hair) asked two things. They had bought a salon-style straightening cream (step 1). Do they also need the paper strips salons press over the hair? And can they just apply step 1, rinse, and skip step 2, the neutraliser?
What the replies said
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The first answer: paper helps if you have it, but without it the result wasn't very different. Applying enough product evenly and timing it matter more.
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One person using a different product applies step 1, covers it with paper, waits about 20 minutes, then shampoos.
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Another said they skip the neutraliser because it's a hassle, and noticed little difference over two months.
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If you do use it, one reply said, it usually sits for less time than step 1; follow the time printed on the box.
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The mood leaned towards 'skipping is fine', but the original poster signed off saying they'd try step 2 next time.
Desk note: Korea's Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (MFDS) explains that perm products work in two stages: step 1, a reducing agent such as thioglycolic acid or cysteine, breaks bonds inside the hair, and step 2, a neutraliser such as sodium bromate or hydrogen peroxide, re-forms them. It advises following each stage and its timing as written, wearing gloves, keeping the solution off the scalp and face, and rinsing right away if it reaches the eyes or face. It also recommends leaving perms to a skilled stylist where possible. Forum experience is a data point; the product leaflet is the instruction.
If you've done a DIY down perm, do you follow the leaflet's steps and timings to the letter?
Original thread: FMKorea fashion board — DIY down perm neutraliser question · Source: CosInKorea — MFDS advice on perm products
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