This Brazillian hair trend seems kiiiiiinda dangerous — don’t try it at home

Nothing seems to damage hair quite like summertime does. All those pool chemicals, the heat, the humidity, the blessed AC that sadly dries out everything it touches. PLUS we’ve got any added effects of hair styling tools we might be using, and boom — we’ve got a recipe for a split ends disaster. But to remedy this hair sitch in particular, a Brazilian technique was introduced. And guys, it doesn’t NOT look safe.

The “treatment,” called velaterapia or candle cutting, is super popular in Brazil and has actually been around since the 1960s. Today, the trend is gaining tons of attention because some of the world’s most famous supermodels are fans of the treatment — Alessandra Ambrosio, Ana Beatriz Barros, and Barbara Fialho are all over this hair trend.

Here’s what split ends look like before and after the treatment:

And here’s what the process looks like:

The benefit of velaterapia is that it allows people to keep the length of the hair while singeing off the damaged areas, thus cauterizing the hair strand, according to Laces in Sao Paolo, where Ambrosio went. The burning is typically followed by a deep nourishing treatment, while the hair is supposedly super-receptive to the nutrients.

One Daily Mail writer put the trend to the test at a Brazilian salon in NYC, and found that although she looked like a dreadlocked poodle during the process, she actually really liked the results. She apparently hadn’t cut her hair in three years because she didn’t want to lose the length, and this treatment really worked wonders for her.

So, bottom line?  If you’re going to try it, definitely do not test this one at home –the results could be disastrous! Remember, hair is super, very, totally flammable! From your entire mane going up in a blaze to potentially weakened or dried out strands, the risks are very real. Instead, go to a reputable and experienced Brazilian salon near you and trust the trained experts.

(Images via Instagram)

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