Posts tagged conditioner
Review: John Frieda Highlight Activating Moisturising Shampoo and Conditioner
0The other day a friend commented on my hair – she asked if I’d had it dyed, saying it looked lighter and brighter. I thanked her and explained that no, I haven’t had my hair done for a very long time, but I had started using a new shampoo and conditioner that is designed to make my highlights stand out.
I’d been using John Frieda Highlight Activating Moisturising Shampoo and Highlight Activating Moisturising Conditioner (for Lighter Shades) for about a week when I had that lovely complement. The shampoo contains Jojoba oil, sunflower and white tea complex which help to bring out highlights for “maximum blonde impact”, and the moisturising formula adds shine without actually adding colour. The conditioner incorporates the sane blonde-enhancing ingredients while gently removing those residues that build up and dull the hair.
Looking at the photo what do you think I’m going to say about the packaging? If you’ve been reading Splodz Blogz for a long time you might remember I have featured John Frieda Go Blonder Shampoo and Conditioner, and I mentioned this then. It’s the labelling. The difference between the shampoo and conditioner packaging is so small that if you’ve got water in your face it’s very difficult to see which one is which. John Frieda have used different colours and I think I’ve just about remembered that blue is shampoo and green is conditioner (or is it the other way around), but ideally it should be much more obvious.
I do like this pair of products, they are nice to use and obviously work as I mentioned above. I have found, though, that the moisturising effect of these means by the evening my hair is looking flat and a little greasy. I have very fine hair and have to wash it daily, but if I’m out in the evening I am finding it necessary to refresh using dry shampoo (my favourite ever hair product!). I don’t mind that too much because I think my hair looks better in the daytime than it does with my normal choice or shampoo and conditioner, and I know my hair is very prone to looking lifeless, but it is a bit annoying that it doesn’t last 12 hours.
Disclaimer: I was sent some Shampoo and Conditioner to review. I have not been told what to say and have been no less honest as a result of receiving the product for free.
Dove Colour Radiance (Bzz Review)
0I am a BzzAgent and this is a Bzz Review…
As someone who colours her hair, I invited to take part in a new Bzz campaign for Dove Colour Radiance Shampoo and Conditioner. I was sent a bottle of each to try at home along with some samples and vouchers to share with friends.
I like Dove as a company, as a brand. They seem to have it right when making products for women, with a vision to help our self-esteem as well as look after our skin. These two products I was sent to test are designed to use on coloured hair to keep it vibrant.
Both shampoo and conditioner have been formulated to nourish and protect. They have UV filters in them which helps prevent your hair colour from fading.
I coloured my hair at home using an all-over foam colour (actually it’s the first time I’ve done it myself, I normally go to a salon to get it done) and have used this shampoo and conditioner daily since. That’s about 2/3 weeks ago now, and I’m pretty pleased with the results. The shampoo cleans my hair well and the conditioner is easy to massage in and rinses away clean. The fact this treatment is “express” is perfect – I can use it daily in the shower without missing out on the benefits – I don’t have time for long-winded conditioning treatments.
I think my hands are a tad dehydrated oh dear. Anyway, you can see a slight pink tinge on the left of the conditioner on my fingers – it comes out of the bottle like that, with a kind of stripe like you get with toothpastes. The further into the tube I’ve got the brighter pink it is – I think that means I didn’t get as much of the nourishment in the first few uses.
Here you can see my blonde hair – freshly coloured on the morning of the photo on the left, and three weeks later having used these Dove products daily on the right. I do think it’s got a bit darker, but it’s still looking ok.
I would say, though, that while I like Dove and these two products I’ve been trying out, I don’t know that they are any better than the Herbal Essences shampoo and conditioner I normally buy. My hair feels clean and bright, the products are easy to use and you only need a small amount each wash, but probably no more so than with other products. I would consider buying these Dove products again, but they go in the mix with others that also tick the boxes.
Edited to Add:
Now I’m pretty much at the end of my bottle of this Dove shampoo, I wanted to add a little niggle I have about the bottle…
The shape of the bottle, specifically the top, means it cannot be stood upside down. As the shampoo is quite a thick liquid this means you really have to shake the bottle to get the last few washes out. I wish bottle designers would consider usability – if this had a flat top I could stand it upside down in my shower and easily get all of the shampoo out of the bottle. I would imagine it won’t be long before I give up and end up chucking the bottle out with some shampoo left in it, what a waste.
Disclaimer: I am a BzzAgent and was asked to take part in the Dove Colour Radiance campaign, which meant I was sent some shampoo and conditioner to try at home in return for telling other people what I think about them. I have not been told what to write and I have been no less honest as a result.
Faith in Nature Pomegranate
0I was recently invited to take part in a trial of a new range by Faith in Nature - Pomegranate Shampoo, Conditioner and Shower Gel/Foam Bath. I was sent some trial bottles of the products and in return have filled in a questionnaire for the company to help them in their development. I thought I’d put my thoughts here on Splodz Blogz too.
I’ve got no fancy packaging to show you of course, because this was a pre-launch trial. But I quite like the science-lab-look!
I’ll start with the shampoo and conditioner. I wash my hair daily, following with conditioner two or three times a week. I found these products cleaned my hair really well, at least as good as my normal choice. Faith in Nature recommended that I tried the conditioner as a five minute treatment, which I wasn’t really a fan of, but when used as a normal massage in-rinse out conditioner it was very good.
The shower gel worked great on my body puff in the shower – lathered up nicely without using too much of the product. As a foam bath it was ok – but not loads of bubbles – this is a product I would keep for the shower over the bath.
The best bit about all three products was the scent – I really love the smell of pomegranate and it works well in shower products – it’s strong, fruity and is great for waking you up in the morning. And that of course comes with the Faith in Nature promise of naturally sourced ingredients, no artificial colourings etc, which is becoming more and more important to me.
You can see the current range of products offered by Faith in Nature on their website. I hope the new Pomegranate range will be added soon!
Tara Smith Haircare
0I have been testing some of the new Tara Smith haircare range over the last week or so.
This is a new range combining the professional expertise and professional performance of high end haircare, with natural and organic ingredients and no harsh chemicals.
“It was important to me to develop a salon-quality product line based on natural plant ingredients and accessible to everyone at a realistic price tag. I have made sure my products are as natural as they can be without having to keep them in the fridge because I believe that what we put on our body is as important as what we put in it.” Tara Smith
There are a variety of shampoos and conditioners for different hair types. I, of course, went for the “Straight Away” for my long blonde straight hair.
Straight Away Shampoo – 100ml £3.75 & 250ml £6.50
For squeaky clean sleek and shiny hair with Ginkgo Biloba extract. Ginkgo Biloba has long been taken internally for its anti stress properties and in this shampoo it is combined with Marine Algae extract to moisturise and condition dry and damaged hair.
Straight Away Conditioner – 100ml £3.75 & 250ml £6.50
For manageable sleek and shiny hair with Wheat protein. A combination of Marine Algae extract to soften the hair and make it easy to comb and Wheat, Corn and Soy proteins to bind moisture to the hair shaft and improve gloss and vitality.
First of all… aren’t these just the cutest bottles around?! I love them. And the yellow is like sunshine. I know, little things, but when you open an envelope and the product inside makes you smile because of the design, that’s good product design!
I’ve used the shampoo and conditioner for about a week, expecting good things based on the descriptions above. Between them they are designed to give shiny, straight hair as well as condition, moisturise and repair my hair.
One of the criticisms I’ve had in the past of organic professional level shampoos is that they’ve been runny and don’t go very far – making them an even more expensive choice than you might think. But not with this Tara Smith duo. The shampoo was light and left my hair completely clean, and the conditioner was thick and nourishing. I was more than happy leaving my hair to dry naturally as it looked light and bright, and after blow drying it had that shine I was hoping for.
I have also been using the Top Coat Glosser (£8.99) which is supposed to add shine and also give a light fragrance of Sweet Orange in the process. This finishing spray is just brilliant – it acts like a really light hairspray, but feels much nicer than the stuff you get in a can, and did indeed give my hair a nice shine – perfect for when I wanted to make extra effort (although I’m not sure how often I would actually make that extra effort – I’m normally more than happy with my hair sat long and straight as it is naturally).
Tara Smith Haircare is available from Cult Beauty. You can also read more about Tara Smith on her website.
Liz Earle Botanical Shine Haircare
0A quick review for you here… I got sent a sample of Liz Earle Botanical Shine Shampoo and Conditioner (for normal hair) with my last Liz Earle order (I generally use Liz Earle skincare when I’m not testing anything else).
It’s actually very difficult to test a product thoroughly with just one use, which is what this sample gave me, but I have to say I really liked it. It cleaned my hair really well, the conditioner was lovely, and they both had a really subtle but refreshing scent. The shampoo did it’s work no problems and the conditioner was easy to rinse out – I really hate conditioners that leave a residue.
And yes, I know that using a different shampoo/conditioner as a one off can really make a difference to how your hair looks, but I’ve been using all sorts of different small tubes and pots this last week while I’ve been away so it wasn’t just the change from using one regularly. I didn’t dry my hair today and it still looked fine, even after getting wet twice in the rain.
These products are £7.95 for a 200ml tube of each so more than your normal high street brands but not as much as some of the others I’ve tested. I need to decide whether this is worth it to use regularly – the sample has really tempted me I have to admit.
Have you used this shampoo? What do you think?
mypure Review – Balancing Shampoo/Conditioner
1This is the last in my current set of reviews for mypure. You can read the other two here:
http://splodzblogz.wordpress.com/2010/09/01/mypure-review-lovea-bio/
http://splodzblogz.wordpress.com/2010/08/15/my-pure-inika-mineral-foundation/
This review is for Living Nature New Zealand Balancing Shampoo and Conditioner, which I have been sent in travel size bottles.
http://www.mypure.co.uk/living-nature-b87/balancing-natural-shampoo-p582
http://www.mypure.co.uk/living-nature-b87/balancing-conditioner-p584
The bottles I’ve been testing are 50ml each so should be plenty for one night away (would have been happy taking them for a weekend), however I found I needed to use a lot of each product. I’ve washed my hair three times and they are practically empty. I know my hair is long but I don’t normally need to use as much of a shampoo or conditioner. The bottle does say use a small amount, but it didn’t feel like it was spreading through all my hair, so I chose to use a fair amount.
However I have to say I really like what these products did to my hair. I tried the shampoo and conditioner before blow drying my hair and also before allowing my hair to dry naturally, and it had a nice finish both times. My hair feels smooth and very clean (I did use a lot of the shampoo!), and was smooth when combing through when wet.
Of course the main reason that people purchase products from the mypure website is that they only sell things that are completely natural, which of course these Living Nature hair care products are. Trying a selection of these products out after the last few months has really opened my eyes to the ingredients in some things and I do now take notice – although sometimes cost and habit do take over.
But back to this particular shampoo and conditioner… Overall I do like these products and I wouldn’t mind doing some more testing under normal “home” conditions to see how it compares to my usual choice over a week or two.
