Hijack alert:
JNSQ your hair makes me
...♪♪weak at the knees, I can hardly speak...♪
What you, OP, describe is what used to happen to me when I pressed my hair until I discovered the controversial wet-to-dry pressing.
I don't blowdry before I flat iron, so I don't think that's necessary. I stretch my hair without heat either by letting it dry in braids or lately, using Curlformers. I also believe in wet-to-dry flat ironing and when I used heat protectants instead of just water, I had a wonderful press.
I DC'd with Giovanni Magnetic and AO GPB on dry hair then shampooed with Garnier (I was thinking of strengthening my hair as much as possible). Then I started my heat protection process:
- First I conditioned with CHI Infra Thermal Treatment, applying it as if it were relaxer on very small sections at a time and combing through with a fine tooth comb. Left that on as long as instructions say then rinsed leaving hair wet.
- Next I airdried/stretched in CFs before starting my WTD press but instead of using water as I have always done, I used a wet heat protectant spray by John Frieda which I made sure to coat each strand VERY well. And passed the iron once on each CF section and got a blown-out effect.
- Once all sections were done, I started from the back working on very narrow sections that I made sure were coated very well with heat protectant serum to seal and passed the iron once again.
I had NO smell of burning hair any time during the process or even after. And my hair looks thicker and more tightly coiled than yours.
This was where I started:
And this was where I ended up:
As BlackCardinal said, it takes practice.
DON'T QUIT
When things go wrong, as they sometimes will,
When the road you're trudging seems all uphill,
When the funds are low and the debts are high,
And you want to smile, but you have to sigh,
When care is pressing you down a bit,
Rest, if you must, but don't you quit.
Life is queer with its twists and turns,
As every one of us sometimes learns,
And many a failure turns about,
When he might have won had he stuck it out;
Don't give up though the pace seems slow--
You may succeed with another blow.
Often the goal is nearer than,
It seems to a faint and faltering man,
Often the struggler has given up,
When he might have captured the victor's cup,
And he learned too late when the night slipped down,
How close he was to the golden crown.
Success is failure turned inside out--
The silver tint of the clouds of doubt,
And you never can tell how close you are,
It may be near when it seems so far,
So stick to the fight when you're hardest hit--
It's when things seem worst that you must not quit.
- Author unknown