DASHU Premium Ultra Bond Gel Down Perm 3.5oz – Helps tame frizzy hair

THIS WILL NOT WORK IF YOU ONLY FOLLOW DIRECTIONS ON BOX OR YOUR HAIR IS TOO SHORT READ MORE BELOW. I will address all 1 star reviews and then add tips to make this a 5 star product for you.For my photos I have a #2 fade. My goal was to not flatten the whole side, but flatten the top part of sides (by the corners of my head) that makes my longer top hair stick out. However I have used successfully on whole sides with longer side hair (#4 fade). I have super straight hair that spikes out BAD.No, the directions are not really “complete.” They’re enough to get an ok perm and some will get bad results. In my experience (have down permed at home >10 times now), you need to shampoo your hair, use clips to pin up longer top hair while still wet, blow dry side/back hair until dry, apply product liberally (start painting downwards, then upwards, then downwards in the same spot to coat all sides of the hair strands), apply papers before it dries, wrap your head with a Velcro spa headband (cheap on AMZ) or Saran Wrap tightly, wait **60 min**, wash **WATER ONLY** (DO NOT ruffle hair, just smooth it downwards with fingers to rinse), pat gently with a towel, and hair dry warm/cool air downwards. Shampoo ~8-12 hours or more later. Directions seem to be mistranslated as they say “shampoo with water”, but should be “rinse with water.” General hair community consensus is to NOT shampoo after a perm, as it will delete it, and the word rinse fits better.No, it’s not hard to do lol. I do it every 3-4 weeks on the weekend, it takes like 15 minutes to apply. Hardest part is clipping up the top hair, but a handheld mirror. Watch some TV during the 1 hour wait or do chores. Rinse out with just water, go to bed, wake up and shower with shampoo and conditioner. A tube of this lasts me 6-7 applications almost. Your first time doing it may take you 30 minutes or more. First few times of doing anything new always takes longer. By the 3rd time you will be doing it quickly and easily.No, this product doesn’t smell bad. This PERM product SMELLS like… PERM lol. If you’re writing a one star because a perm smells like perm, then you need help. This product smells less like perm than other products on the market. It’s really not that bad it smells literally like an Asian salon, reminds me of my mom’s. After the first water only rinse, I can kind of smell it after drying. I have worn a hat and gone out to parties right after, and they can’t smell it. After 1 shower with shampoo I don’t smell it anymore (neither does my wife) unless my hair gets drenched like in the shower, and that stops after ~3 showers. You’ll want to change your towel and pillow sheet after a day or so though, the smell washes right out easily.No, the product will not make your hair super flat like in K dramas. I have very porcupine hair (the barber wears glasses to block my hair flying off during cuts lol), but other Asians have much softer hair. Softer haired Asians will get pretty flat hair, and I will get ok flat hair. That said, it’s still a MASSIVE improvement for a cheap DIY at home treatment. I have gotten a down perm at a high end famous salon in Seoul. The only way to get ultra flat like the K pop stars is to do an in salon HOT perm, where they put one of those heat helmets on you. My hair had 90 degree bends it was so flat. For my super super straight hair this COLD perm product, which is DIY at home with no heat chair, easy to use, and CHEAPER than HOT, I’ll get hair like the soft haired Asians when I use this. Not super flat but super noticeably soft and flatter and easier to style my two block, and just made it look better naturally so I didn’t have to wear a hat or do my hair when leaving the house. This cold perm product gave the same result as when I got a cold down perm in a salon in the US ($50 on average before tip, hot perm prob $80-100). If you understand the limitations of this product, you won’t really be dissatisfied. It is NOT a miracle product that can take the place of a salon $100 hot down perm, but it can take the place of a salon $50 cold perm (tube is 6x applications for me so $300 salon visits vs one tube…)No, your hair won’t stay flat against your head forever lol. Scientifically the perm will stay, but your hair keeps growing. The old permed hair is angled down but your new hair is growing out straight! So of course at 3 weeks it’ll be noticeable (but still not as poofy as before the product) and at 4 weeks you’ll def want to do it again. My expensive top Seoul salon HOT down perm was noticeable at 3 and I had it redone at 4. Hair grows that’s why we pay to go get it cut. Giving 1 star that it didn’t last is like giving your barber 1 star because your fade didn’t last a month before growing out lol.No, you need LONG HAIR for this to really work well. This will not really work well for hair that has been cut by clipper guard #2 or lower. #3 is the shortest you should go to see any change. It's not the product’s fault, it’s just physics. No salon will cold down perm super short hair either, you’ll need a hot one for short hair even then they might not do it. You’ll see the biggest effect when your hair is >0.5 inches (around clipper #4 or longer), when there’s enough weight and length on the hair to really induce a strong bend. When my hair was 0.5-1 inch long on the sides it was a very very very significant effect. NOT GREAT FOR FADES, BETTER IF YOURE GOING FOR JUNGKOOK (as of 2024) SIDE LENGTH HAIR, BUT it can help your hair look more natural if you have a fade like I did in my review photos. Worth it for me because you can see how goofy it looked before perm.No, it doesn’t fry your hair unless you already have unhealthy hair. I just did it two weekends in a row at 6x the directed time each application, hair still looks great and healthy. Just regularly condition each time you shampoo and use hair mask weekly and after perm (use only small amounts so it doesn’t get greasy) Asians also tend to have thicker hair strands that can handle more damage, so YMMV if you’re of European decent.No, you need way more than you think and you need to apply it RIGHT. Not only brush downwards but upwards to coat 360 degrees of the full hair strand root, then downwards again to put it in place. Apply LIBERALLY and take your time. Work quick before it dries, but it’s not an ultra rush. Don’t be stingy and cheap apply so your hair is like glued down. I use 12-14 pea sized amounts each time. I use a little less on the back so not as glued down. Each pea for a section, then redoing each section to get it really sauced up, then apply the papers so they can really stick. Do a good job! After each section put in the papers to prevent drying out. Make sure to apply in sections larger than the papers so you don’t miss spots.TIPSTake off your shirt before starting. Lol. But really it’s easier to wash off with two hands in the full shower than just one hand with only head in the shower. And when you wash it, rinse very well the first time, no 1-2 minute fast water rinse.Reduce the smell by washing with a clarifying shampoo (+8-12hours after water only rinse). YOU DO NOT NEED A NEUTRALIZER, this is not a high intensity perm. A clarifying shampoo will be enough, easy to find in markets. If you’re worried please spot test behind your ear first.If you have glasses, wrap the arms in Saran Wrap so you can still wear them while applying. It will prevent them from smelling like perm. While you’re at it, clear your sink space so you have extra space to put down the applicator, tube, and mirror as you’ll be working quickly and don’t want to get the perm all over other objects.Make sure hair is clean before applying so the product can work. You can use a clarifying shampoo right before, just don’t condition.Follow up with a hair mask to reduce damage and fried hair (I haven’t experienced either ever) from perming if you feel like you need it. Personally I use Briogeo don’t despair mask weekly after clarifying and living proof PhD conditioner daily after shampooing with Verb Ghost. Condition and mask with small amounts so you don’t get greasy hair.Buy more perm papers on Amazon. There’s a great deal on great papers that say “salon perm paper German technology” on the box. Box of 1000. And buy more hair clips you’ll need at least 3, and clip when top hair is wet so it’s easier to gather. And sure get a Velcro spa headband too. It’s easier to do with more equipment. Buy a handheld mirror if doing it yourself.After initial WATER ONLY wash keep hair flat as possible until it dries. That means STOP pushing the hair up and inspecting it, just let it dry as it is or use a hair dryer in low heat to dry DOWNWARDS. You can go to sleep after rinsing. I usually do it at night. Just make sure hair is dry first with blow dryer or air dry.Yes!!! You can skip hair cuts with this! I would get a #2 fade, down perm, 4 weeks later side hair is poofy again so perm again and it’s flat for another 4 weeks. Only works if you’re ok with top length for 2 months. Clean up your ear line and you’re good to go.FINAL TIP: reduce your expectations! You will not look like the BTS gang, but it’ll def be much flatter, more manageable, and less big wide head!!!! So cheap too.This product performed the same as dperm for me, although I do like the gel consistency a bit more. It feels easier to apply. Hope they never stop making this, cuz it’s great and cheaper than dperm. Someone said “there’s better alternatives,” but there’s really not.If this product doesn’t work for you, then you’re doing it wrong or have crazy expectations. It chemically and scientifically has to work. It’s like pouring water onto paper, it will soften the paper, it’s how science works. All user submitted photos I’ve seen for DIY down perms from Dashu and Dperm are pretty accurate and realistic.

This product does not work. Despite carefully following the directions and applying the gel to my side hair, I saw no improvements. Instead, it caused damage to my hair and the strong smell of the gel lingered for days. I would not recommend this product.

The gel does help flatten and tame frizzy or puffy hair right after application, and it smells nice too. However, the effect doesn’t last more than a day, even with minimal styling. It’s okay for a quick fix, but not a long-term solution. Works best on very short hair.

I use this for a cowlick I have right on my front bangs and this has been a game changer. My hair grows pretty fast so I do it every 2-3 weeks, and I leave it on for around 15min. The smell is not bad at all. to me, it smells like jello mix.

I think this works reasonably well if you have the appropriate expectations. First off, it doesn't smell as bad as everyone is saying in other reviews. I think people are overly sensitive. It doesn't smell great but it is consistent with chemicals that you would smell in a salon. But having some experience with professional grade versus what this product is it is considerably milder. I'd give it a 3 1/2 out of 10 in terms of bad smells.Secondly the instructions are a little bit off because you really need to apply some type of pressure to lock the hair location in place. I recommend a headband of some type.It washes off quite easily but you must be mindful of the instructions where you do not shampoo it out just rents. Your hair will feel dry but that's OK you can shampoo the next morning.The results are not that magical. The before and after photos I posted are a little bit sly because I use a very light hair cream to keep my hair laid down. Prior to the treatment this hair cream would not work and I would have to hairspray and blow dry the hair for it to lay down for only 20 minutes. With this product and very very light styling your hair will stay down throughout the day.Given the price and the results I think this product is worth it and great if you want to save a little money on haircuts or have different styling Than what you were genetically inclined to half beforeWill buy again.

Pros-Packaging comes nicelyMakes hair a bit softerThere is enough gel for many applicationsCons-Doesn’t last 4 weeksHas a strong chemical smellDoesn’t keep hair flat downSo the packaging came in nice and along with gloves, brush, hair clip, and the papers were a bonus. Keep in mind I have the stereotypical spiky asian hair. The first time I applied it I used my hand only, which only seemed to make the gel rub off like some kind of weak glue. The next few times I applied it by brush. Sadly the paper that comes with the product doesn’t stick really well unless you might put the gel on the paper then place it to your head. I usually leave it in for 10 minutes, rinse it off, and blow dry my hair down. The result isn’t as drastic on the packaging and the gel only made my hair softer. It is easier to hold down with wax or gel but without those my hair still poofs a bit. The perm only lasted for a week, but that’s because I also washed my hair since the smell isn’t that pleasant. Even though there is a hint of lemony scent, overtime you can smell the chemically pungent scent. I think the amount of gel in the bottle would last a while though.Overall, I think there are better options out there than this one.