Mother who sprayed hair with Gorilla Glue flaunts short new 'do for Valentine's Day

The Louisiana mother who famously sprayed her hair with Gorilla Glue has undergone her first styling session since the adhesive was stripped from her locks by a plastic surgeon in a four-hour-long $12,5000 procedure.  

Tessica Brown, 40, became a viral sensation earlier this month when she revealed to the world in a TikTok video that she had set her hair with permanent adhesive after running out of hairspray – only for the glue to remain stuck in her rockhard hair for more than a month, despite her making numerous efforts to strip it from her locks. 

After finally getting the glue dissolved by a plastic surgeon in Los Angeles, Tessica has now had her hair styled and trimmed for the first time – just in time for a Valentine’s Day date. 

New images show the mother-of-five modeling a freshly-styled ‘do after visiting local Louisiana barbershop Below Zero – which happily coiffed her natural locks for free in celebration of her tresses finally being freed from the glue.  

Valentine's Day 'do! Tessica Brown, the mother who famously sprayed her hair with Gorilla Glue, is showing off a short new 'do after finally getting the adhesive removed

Valentine’s Day ‘do! Tessica Brown, the mother who famously sprayed her hair with Gorilla Glue, is showing off a short new ‘do after finally getting the adhesive removed 

Fresh start: The 40-year-old mother-of-five had her short locks coiffed by a local Louisiana barber ahead of a Valentine's Day date, after a plastic surgeon stripped the glue from her hair

Fresh start: The 40-year-old mother-of-five had her short locks coiffed by a local Louisiana barber ahead of a Valentine’s Day date, after a plastic surgeon stripped the glue from her hair

Waiting game: Tessica's scalp will need six weeks to heal following the procedure, and during that time she cannot wear wigs or get extensions

Waiting game: Tessica's scalp will need six weeks to heal following the procedure, and during that time she cannot wear wigs or get extensions

Waiting game: Tessica’s scalp will need six weeks to heal following the procedure, and during that time she cannot wear wigs or get extensions

In the photos, her hair is seen slicked back from her face, with the short locks trimmed in a neat, sleek style around her ears. 

The ‘do marks a fresh start for Tessica, who chopped off her long, thick ponytail in a failed bid to get the Gorilla Glue out of her hair and has been told she cannot wear wigs or get extensions for at least six weeks while her scalp heals from the chemical treatments used to remove the adhesive.   

However she will no doubt be incredibly grateful that she had hair left to style, after it was suggested she may have had to have it all shaved off in order to remove the glue once and for all.  

Her styling session came just two days after Tessica underwent a lengthy procedure to finally dissolve the glue from her hair, which was done using a custom mix of chemicals and natural substances. 

Shortly after the treatment – which was given to her free of charge by Beverly Hills plastic surgeon Dr. Michael Obeng – Tessica joked that she needed to visit a hairstylist as soon as possible because she already had a date lined up for Valentine’s Day. 

Thankfully she scored an appointment just in the nick of time, with Tessica visiting Below Zero on Sunday morning.

According to a source familiar with the situation, the business owner is ‘feeling better’ but is still ‘healing from surgery’ and is now waiting for her scalp to recover so she can begin experimenting more with her choice of hairdo using wigs and extensions.  

Tessica’s styling session came just as she revealed plans to donate a large portion of the money raised via GoFundMe in the wake of her story going viral.  

On Sunday, the mom announced that she would donate $20,000 of the $23,000 raised to the Restore Foundation, a charity started by her plastic surgeon Dr. Obeng, which helps those who need reconstructive surgery.  

The rest of the money will cover an ER visit she was forced to make after using the glue and her travel expenses to fly to LA for the surgery, her spokesperson added to TMZ.   

Piece by piece: Plastic surgeon Dr. Michael Obeng used a custom formula to dissolve the glue in Tessica's hair, slowly pulling apart each strand with tweezers in a four-hour procedure

Piece by piece: Plastic surgeon Dr. Michael Obeng used a custom formula to dissolve the glue in Tessica’s hair, slowly pulling apart each strand with tweezers in a four-hour procedure

Viral: The mom, from Violet, Louisiana, first went viral earlier this month when she posted a TikTok video in which she detailed her month-long struggle to remove the glue from her locks

Viral: The mom, from Violet, Louisiana, first went viral earlier this month when she posted a TikTok video in which she detailed her month-long struggle to remove the glue from her locks  

Oh no: In the clip, she explained that she had used Gorilla Glue after running out of hairspray, but was left horrified when she realized she couldn't remove the permanent adhesive

Oh no: In the clip, she explained that she had used Gorilla Glue after running out of hairspray, but was left horrified when she realized she couldn't remove the permanent adhesive

Oh no: In the clip, she explained that she had used Gorilla Glue after running out of hairspray, but was left horrified when she realized she couldn’t remove the permanent adhesive 

Mom-of-five Tessica’s ordeal went viral after a TikTok video in which she explained she had been left with rigid, immovable locks for more than a month.

She visited a local ER, burnt her scalp with acetone and hacked off her ponytail in an attempt to free her tresses.  

In an Instagram post on Saturday, Tessica expressed her thanks to Dr Obeng, writing: ‘Words cannot even explain how I feel about @drmichaelkobeng you really gave me my life back and I am forever grateful.’ 

Dr. Obeng, who offered Tessica the pricey treatment for free after seeing her plight online, used a custom mix of chemicals and natural products in order to dissolve the glue, having first practiced on a dummy head to ensure his formula would work.  

‘I looked up the compound, the main active ingredient in Gorilla Glue: polyurethane,’ Dr. Obeng explained to TMZ. ‘Then we figured out the science, how to break it down.’

He continued: ‘We bought chemicals that have components to dissolve the solvent, we used medical-grade adhesive remover that we use in the operating room.

‘Then we have another active ingredient, MGD. We added MGD to it – which is an aloe vera and olive oil mixture. Then we added a little acetone.’  

Helping hand: Tessica has raised more than $23,000 from a GoFundMe set up to help her pay for wigs - however she is donating $20,000 of the money to charity

Helping hand: Tessica has raised more than $23,000 from a GoFundMe set up to help her pay for wigs – however she is donating $20,000 of the money to charity  

In a video taken at Dr. Obeng’s office, Tessica – who was given a light anesthesia before the treatment – is seen lying on an operating table after the successful procedure, running her hands through her freed locks and tearing up with relief while marveling at the sensation.  

During the procedure, the mixture was applied to Tessica’s hair using a spray bottle, while Dr. Obeng used medical tweezers and scissors to try and gently pull the matted hair apart, cutting the strands of glue that were holding her tresses together.

The doctor and his tea, then ran a comb through the hair to finally remove the glue, before applying a deep conditioning treatment to protect the locks. 

Tessica was given painkillers and steroids to reduce the swelling and inflammation caused by the glue – and the chemicals that she used to try and remove it.  

Remarkably, Dr. Obeng was able to salvage much of Tessica’s hair – although she admitted after the procedure that she wishes she had visited him before asking her sister to chop off her lengthy ponytail in the hopes of removing the glue. 

‘I can scratch it!’ Tessica told the camera while running her nails along her scalp. ‘Now I wish I had waited for my sister to cut my ponytail off.’    

‘I never was going to take this to social media. The reason I took this to social media was because I didn’t know what else to do,’ she told ET’s Melicia Johnson.  

Drastic measures: Tessica finally had her hair freed from the glue by a plastic surgeon in LA - but only after she had her sister hack of her lengthy ponytail

Drastic measures: Tessica finally had her hair freed from the glue by a plastic surgeon in LA – but only after she had her sister hack of her lengthy ponytail  

Support: Surgeon Dr. Michael Obeng reached out to say he could remove the adhesive without charge. She then flew to LA for the $12,500 procedure that took four hours to complete

Support: Surgeon Dr. Michael Obeng reached out to say he could remove the adhesive without charge. She then flew to LA for the $12,500 procedure that took four hours to complete

Battle: Gorilla Glue later released a statement about the situation on Monday after it was reported that Tessica wanted to sue. She has denied the report that she had hired an attorney

Battle: Gorilla Glue later released a statement about the situation on Monday after it was reported that Tessica wanted to sue. She has denied the report that she had hired an attorney 

‘And I know somebody out there could have told me something. I didn’t think for one second when I got up the next morning it was gonna be everywhere.’ 

Tessica said she had used the Gorilla Glue before for other things and thought it would just ‘wash right out.’ When traditional shampoo failed to remove the glue, she tried olive and tea tree oils, but nothing worked. 

It was then that she turned to TikTok looking for advice.  

The morning after she posted the TikTok she went to to the emergency room at St. Bernard Parish Hospital in Chalmette, Louisiana, where healthcare workers tried removing the glue using ‘little acetone packs’ that burned her scalp.

Since then she has received plenty of support, including messages from Missy Elliott, Chance the Rapper, and Beyoncé’s hairstylist, Neal Farinah, who offered her a wig.     

Gorilla Glue released a statement about the situation on social media Monday.  

‘We are aware of the situation and we are very sorry to hear about the unfortunate incident that Miss Brown experienced using our Spray Adhesive on her hair,’ the brand tweeted. 

‘We are glad to see in her recent video that Miss Brown has received medical treatment from her local medical facility and wish her the best.’ 

source: dailymail.co.uk