The Dita Description:- The Dita look is another style foundation method using a classic perm wind. In the 1940 s and 1950 s it was very common for women to use a curly perm as support for roller setting and pin curl techniques. These roller sets and Pin Curls created the famous Pin Up look of many Hollywood film stars of the day. The 2010 s have brought about resurgence for the Pin UP style and the Dita is the definitive version of this particular look. For The Dita you will also require setting rollers in order to achieve your finished Dita look once the perm has been completed. To achieve the The Dita you need the following items:- 4 packs of Curl Rods (or 40 rods in total) Sectioning clips. 2 packs of Pin-up Perm (large box) 1 tail comb Clarifying Shampoo Pin Up Pre Perm Treatment Plastic Bowl Cling Film Large Setting Rollers Step One Preparation Wash the hair several times in the Clarifying Shampoo and towel dry gently. Comb the hair fully before commencing the perming treatment. After clarifying, commence your perm immediately whilst the hair is still wet or damp. Step Two Sectioning The winding technique used to achieve The Dita is a known as a classic Nine Section Wind which means prior to commencing the winding (of your perm) you need to section the hair off into nine parts. The Sectioning should be done in the following formation:- Top of head = 3 sections Sides of head = 2 sections per side Back of head = 4 sections (including crown section) The idea is to work on the winding of each section at a time and can choose whether to start winding from the nape section or the front hairline section. As a general rule, begin winding at the back/nape section if you feel your arms may tire mid-way through the winding process. For the purposes of this guide the winding of the perm will commence at the front (hairline section). 1 P a g e
Step Three - Winding Take a section of hair (1.5 inches in length) from the very front of the hairline (directly above the nose). If you have natural (untreated hair) you can pre-dampen each section with Waving Lotion and Pin Up Pre Perm treatment as you wind. To do this, firstly spray the combed section with a little Pin up Pre Perm Treatment and comb through, then pour a little Waving Lotion into a plastic bowl and carefully saturate the sponge. Shake off any excess drips from the sponge into the bowl and then (using the sponge) apply the waving lotion to the section about to be wound around the rod. Once you have applied the waving lotion, comb smooth and apply a perm paper to the end of the section. Now take a Curl Rod and begin winding the ends of the hair around the rod with tension and downward toward the scalp. Remember to wind the rod firmly and keep it even holding both ends of the rod as you wind downward. Check the rod is sitting firmly on your scalp and directly between the eyebrow area before fastening the rubber band. PLEASE NOTE Only pre dampen each section with Waving Lotion (before winding the Curl Rod) if the hair is natural (untreated), resistant or has been subjected to only semi-permanent hair colour. If your hair has been treated with regular permanent colour only wind the rods (on the Dita technique) using water. If your hair is fine or highlighted use only Pin Up Pre Perm Treatment to wind your perm and do not apply any Waving Lotion until the entire head has been wound. This technique is known as Post Dampening. 1.1 Winding Top Section After winding the first rod (at the front hairline) take a section of hair immediately behind the first rod you have just wound and repeat the above process. One you have fastened the band, you should have two rods sitting one directly behind the other. Now take a third section immediately behind the second and repeat, creating three rods in close succession positioned directly over the nose area. Remember to ensure each rod section has been combed smooth before winding and always wind with tension. Wind your first sectioned area of the nine in the above way, always directing the hair around the rod and backward. Once you have wound your first section, unfasten the second (at the top of the head toward the crown) and repeat with the above winding steps. 1.2 Winding Back Section Continue the winding technique going backward and over the head and moving down into the back sections. The rods should form a continual back to back effect starting from the front hairline and working down all the way to the back hairline. All the back sections need to be wound in this way. 1.3 Winding Side Sections The principle of winding the side sections is similar to the front, however you must start at the top of the side section (directly underneath the top rods already wound) and work the hair (and rods) down the head so the ends of the rod sit directly along the front hairline. These side section winds should also follow the same formation with one rod positioned immediately after another. With a Nine Section wind, you can sometimes find a very small area of hair between the side and the back sections which has not been wound as the section fitted into 2 P a g e
neither the front nor the back areas. If this occurs simply wind these sections downward and in immediate succession just as you have the rest of the hair. Step Four - Applying the Waving Lotion With the Nine Section wind it s a good idea to place a roll of Cotton wool along your hairline (front and back) securing underneath the Curl Rods you have just wound. This prevents drips from the Waving Lotion running onto the face. If you haven t already been post dampening with the Waving Lotion, pour the contents of the Waving Lotion bottle into a plastic bowl and gently saturate the sponge. Ensure any surplus (from the sponge) drips into the bowl, before carefully dabbing along each rod to coat in Waving Lotion. The cleanest method is to wrap a towel around your shoulders and start at the crown section and work your way down to the nape. This way the lotion will drip downward onto the rods sitting directly underneath. Once you have applied lotion to the back section, move onto the side sections and starting at the top of these sections dab the Waving Lotion from the top of the side section, down to the bottom on both sides of the head. Lastly, apply the waving lotion to the top section, make sure you are tilting your head back and start at the crown section and move forward, finishing at the first rod on the hairline. Always ensure your head is tilted back when applying Waving Lotion to the top section as this will prevent drips running onto your face. Once you have applied the Waving Lotion to all rods, and you can see no more drips are running from the rods, you can remove the cotton wool and wrap the head in cling film. Tightly wrap all the rods in the cling film and (ideally) wrap another towel around the head to trap in the heat. Step Five Processing Refer to the processing information in the Perm Guide in order to time the development of the Waving Lotion. It s crucial you conduct a test curl before rinsing the Waving Lotion off the hair to ensure the perm has sufficiently taken. Step Six - Rinsing Once you have achieved your desired test curl result, blot all the rods carefully with kitchen paper. Blotting the rods prior to rinsing ensures any excess Waving Lotion is thoroughly removed from the surface of the hair. Begin rinsing the hair with warm (not hot) water and ensure each rod is subjected to a good water flow and patted to shake out any Waving Lotion which may be inside the hair. Rinsing of a nine section perm should take around five minutes as it s important all Waving Lotion is thoroughly removed from the hair. Step Seven - Resting the Hair After you have thoroughly rinsed the rods for five minutes, carefully wrap your head in a towel and pat all excess moisture from the rods. To give some additional hydration you can liberally spray Pin Up Pre Perm treatment onto all the rods, patting the treatment into each rod before wrapping the head back up in the towel. Leaving the hair to rest for 30 minutes prior to applying the neutraliser will allow excess moisture within the hair to dissipate and enable better neutralisation. After letting the hair rest for around 30 minutes you can proceed to Neutralising. Step Eight - Neutralising 3 P a g e
After the 30 minutes have passed remove the towel and apply the Neutraliser directly from the applicator nozzle provided. Ensure the foam covers each rod fully, once each rod has been covered in Neutraliser foam leave to develop for 5 minutes. During these 5 minutes the foam should dissipate. After the five minutes have elapsed, you can begin removing the perm rods from the hair. Start at the back (nape) section and gently unwind the rods, disposing of the end paper and placing the perm rod into the sink for subsequent washing. Work your way up the back of the head carefully removing each perm rod in turn. Once you have removed the back section, remove the rods from the side sections. Lastly remove the rods from the top of the head and the front hairline. You should now see your perm in its wet state. Apply the foam neutraliser into the palm of your hands and taking the foam gently scrunch it into your new curls, re-applying the Neutraliser foam in this way to your whole head - once the foam has been re-applied to the unwound curls, leave to develop for a further 5 minutes. After 5 minutes you can rinse your hair for several more minutes to flush away any remaining neutraliser. After this point your perm is complete. Step Nine - Setting The Dita Technique will produce a curly perm result in its wet state and whilst some people may choose to leave their hair curly, most people apply the perm to create style hold and longevity once their hair is wound on setting rollers. For best results (with the Dita Technique) it is recommended immediately after rinsing the neutraliser, the hair is lightly towel dried, combed out and wound on setting rollers. In general you can Roller set the hair with mousse or setting lotion, however on the day your perm has been conducted, Pin Up Pre Perm treatment is the recommended aid to roller set the hair with. Immediately after a perm the hair does not tend to need styling aids such as Mousse or Setting Lotion, using Pin Up Pre Perm Treatment to wind the rollers into the hair will give a softer finish to the final result and continue to hydrate the hair. To create your Pin Up Dita look:- Lightly towel dry the hair and apply a liberal amount of Pin Up Pre Perm Treatment to the hair, once applied comb the hair thoroughly and locate your parting. Working from your chosen parting, take larger sections of hair and comb smooth. Wrap the section (again smoothly) around a large setting roller. Ensure you wind with tension and smooth the hair so any crinkles or waves disappear. Work your way through the head winding the setting rollers in this way, you should aim to apply around a dozen rollers to the head. It s crucial the rollers are applied neatly and in a directional pattern, this will evoke a soft and shapely result. Once all the rollers are wound, leave the hair to dry naturally or use a hood dryer. (NB Immediately after a perm the hair will absorb water more so than usual, therefore do not be surprised if your hair takes twice the time (than usual) to dry fully. Check the rollers are 100% dry before removing.) Once the hair is 100% dry, carefully remove the rollers and use a vent or paddle brush to vigorously brush the hair out, brush the hair in various directions to break up the roller set pattern, do not worry about messing the hair up as the perm foundation will hold the set in place. To give some added shine at this stage you can use a little serum. Once you have vigorously brushed the hair (in varying directions), begin to brush and comb your hair into its desired shape. You should find the hair moulds around your hands perfectly. Once combed into place your set style should remain intact until your next wash. 4 P a g e
After washing (and in the future) you can repeat this method using a setting lotion or mousse. After the perm is several weeks old you can also use the Pin Curl method of winding. However immediately after conducting your perm, the hair is typically too curly to create the barrels required for the pin curl effect. If you require more volume, try leaving your curly perm to dry naturally and then applying heated rollers to the hair, to smooth out the curl but retain the volume. 5 P a g e