The Savvy Sleeper

After a long summer of sub-standard hair care (since I don't torture the whole salon by dragging the kids with me if I can help it), I was really looking forward to getting another keratin treatment which makes my hair smooth and shiny and straight.

I am long-time friends with the salon owner and barter my copy writing and social media managing skills in exchange for free hair, which is an awesome deal for me. They asked if I'd be the guinea pig for a new type of keratin treatment and I said sure, because when you get stuff for free, you shouldn't be picky. I also know that she values my opinion because I'm always completely honest with her, even if she wishes I wouldn't be.

Usually the keratin makes my hair too straight--it's a nice problem to have for someone with naturally curly hair that frizzes in the humidity but I get tired of it looking so lifeless for the first few weeks. We've been experimenting with different ways to keep some body while keeping it manageable.

This time was a dud, though.

I've got this one patch in the back that refuses to behave and if it is not chemically treated to the brink of death, it is a wild, unruly rat's nest. I guess we didn't get quite to the brink of death point, because it's a mess. I pointed it out to my hairdresser.

"We've been fighting that spot for years," she lamented. "Did you blow dry it straight and this happened?"

I admitted that I didn't blow dry it. She pointed out that it was pretty good for not being blow dried, other than that one spot. She reminded me that the point was really more to reduce frizz and drying time and that it wasn't intended to be a straightener, necessarily, even though it did do that on some hair types.

I explained that the real problem now was that I actually had to brush my hair, several times a day even. She paused in running her fingers through my hair.

"You don't like the new keratin because you have to brush your hair? Ashleeeeeey."

"I'm not saying I don't brush my hair! I just like it better when it's optional for the bus stop at least because that's so early. There's a lot of brushing needed now, so I put it in a ponytail."

She hates it in a ponytail. She sighed."What if you just blew it out, like, twice a week? You shouldn't do more than that anyway. And a ponytail on weekends?"

"I see, maybe, 3 people a day. Is that worth a blow dry? Eh." She agreed that it wasn't. She's lazy like me. (But she does brush her hair willingly, I think.)

She offered to redo the keratin but I dislike the process, so I said I wasn't ready yet. She pointed out that I would just have to brush my hair and maybe break down and blow dry it until I was ready to come in and do it again. I said yes, and ponytails. She shook her head and sent me off to be blow dried by her assistant.

And the next morning, I still woke up with the wild, wavy patch in the back even with a professional blow dry. Such a waste of time.

Soon after this, I was sent a Savvy Sleeper to review (the backlog/turn-around time on product reviews/giveaways right now is ridiculous and I apologize). It's marketed as a satin pillowcase with anti-aging, hair protecting properties but I was mostly looking forward to a nice cool pillow at night. I had already given up on my hair until its next treatment.

So mostly by accident, I went to bed one night with flat-ironed hair (because I had somewhere to go where more than 3 people would see me) and I woke up...with flat-ironed hair. I don't know if it was the lack of friction or the lack of sweat that helped soothe the crazy patch into compliance, but the crazy patch was straight and silky.

I've tried this a few other times, even with a half-assed blow dry and no flat ironing...and I still wake up with it looking like it did when I went to bed, with no crazy patch. Between the Savvy Sleeper and the stronger keratin, I might never have to brush it again.

(Just kidding.)

(No, I'm not.)

Also, the pillowcase feels lovely. Maybe it's a Florida thing but to wake up feeling cool and dry instead of warm and damp is already such an improvement that I don't even care if it keeps my skin young and makes my hair beautiful. The quality is very nice. I was a little concerned because I had a bad experience once at a rental house with faux silk sheets, but this material feels and looks rich. There's also a secret pocket--I've had all kinds of fun thinking of interesting things one might need in their secret pillow pocket. I love it though, I'll put something in there some day. Mr. Ashley fell asleep on my pillow the other night and I wrestled it out from beneath his sleeping head, because I wasn't going without it.

So I think I've skipped the midlife crisis and officially graduated into one of those house wives who goes to the salon for a once a week blow out and sleeps on a satin pillowcase and keeps her hair perfectly intact until the next blow out. I'm going to need a small fluffy dog, a head kerchief, and a convertible Cadillac.

Okay, I wanted those things anyway.

Savvy Sleeper has offered one to you all as well, so if you'd like to brush your hair less, or feel cooler while sleeping, or want to save time in the mornings by doing your blow dry at night and having it stay that way, you have the chance to join me in my satin-y slumber by entering the rafflecopter contest below. There are two ways to enter, I don't care which way you pick (or both!):

a Rafflecopter giveaway