Review: Organix Hydrating Macademia Oil Conditioner

Ulta: $7.99

Found on organixhair.com

This conditioner is meant to “drench your strands in a luxurious formula to instantly hydrate and smooth parched, dry hair while mending split ends for a luscious, vibrant mane with brilliant shine”. It is formulated with macademia oil, bamboo extract, and sugar cane extract.

Ingredients:

Aqua (DI Water), Behentrimonium Chloride, Cetyl Alcohol, Glycol Stearate, Glycerin, Dimethicone, Ceteareth-20, Parfum, Macadamia Ternifolia Seed Oil, Saccharum Officinarum (Sugar Cane) Extract, Bambusa Vulgaris (Bamboo) Extract, Theobroma Cacao Seed Butter (Cocoa Butter), Cocos Nucifera (Coconut) Oil, Persea Gratissima (Avocado) Oil, Aloe Barbadensis (Aloe Leaf) Extract, Panthenol, Tetrasodium EDTA, Methylchloroisothiazolinone, Methylisothiazolinone, Red 40, Yellow 5.

So I had two major complaints with this product: first and foremost the conditioning properties, and secondly the smell. This conditioner did pretty much nothing for my hair. I had reasonably high expectations for it because of my experiences with the argan oil conditioner and what I had heard about other macademia oil products, but it really failed to impress. I don’t think that my hair was any more softer or moisturized than it would have been had I not used a conditioner at all, and was only a bit more detangled. This was especially disappointing due to the price. Though it is by no means salon brand, it is still around double the price of other drugstore conditioners. There are so many other brands that are much cheaper and perform very well. My second gripe is the smell. It smelled strongly sugar, which I assume is due to the sugar cane extract in the product. In another product maybe it would be ok, but for haircare to my nose it was just too much. Now, this is a very subjective thing, my sister happens to love the smell so maybe you would too.

 

Overall, I would not recommend this product at all, even if you like the smell or not, as it doesn’t really do much. Don’t waste your money, if you would like something from Organix I would highly recommend the argan conditioner, it works well and smells wonderful. In short, it is what I wish this product was.

 

Rating: D

Review: Aveda Be Curly Conditioner

6.7 oz/200 ml

Aveda US: $21

Aveda UK: ₤18.50

Aveda DE: €24

http://www.aveda.com/product/5293/16724/Hair-Care/Conditioner/Be-Curly-Conditioner/index.tmpl

http://www.aveda.co.uk/product/7415/16724/Hair-Care/Hair-Concern/enhance-curls-or-waves/Be-Curly-Conditioner/index.tmpl

http://www.aveda.de/product/5218/16724/Kollektionen/be-curlyTM/Be-Curly-Conditioner/index.tmpl

Found on Aveda.co.uk

This conditioner uses wheat protein and organic aloe to “enhance curls, combats frizz, and boosts shine”. Apparently the wheat protein/aloe mix “expands hair is wet and retracts when dry to enhance curl or wave”. The fragrance is described as a “citrus aroma”, and the conditioner contains certified organic lime, lemon, bergamot and orange among other scents.

Ingredients:

Aqueous Extract: Aloe Barbadensis Leaf, Glycerin, Steryl Alcohol, Castor Isostearate Succinate, Cetearyl Alchohol, Cetyl Alcohol, Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Seed Oil, Palmamidopropyl Trimonium Methosulfate, Behenamidopropyltrimonium Methosulfate, Biosaccharide Gum-1, Behentrimonium Methosulfate, Babassuamidopropyltrimonium Methosulfate, Tapioca Starch, Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein, Tocopherol, Guar Hydroxypropyltrimomium Chloride, Fragrance (Parfum)*, Limonene, Geraniol, Linalool, Citral, Eugenol, Cintronellol, Sodium Gluconate, Sodium Benzoate, Phenoxyethanol

*Aveda’s Own Pure-Fume Aroma with Certafied Organic Lime, Bergamot and Mandarin

I was really disappointed with this conditioner. It didn’t really emphasize my curls any more than other conditioners. It did hardly anything to combat frizz. It made my hair reasonably soft, but really not more than any other conditioner. I guess it didn’t make my hair really brittle or anything so that is something, but I think my hair was not as soft as it was before simply because it wasn’t getting the moisture it needed. It was sad because I really wanted to love this conditioner, because it smelled so darn good. It really reminds me of Rivella, a Swiss soft drink which I LOVE. I think it’s the bergamot in it. Anyway, it left my hair smelling really good, but it wasn’t enough to make me like it. Coupled with the fact that it is so expensive for a conditioner, I was not happy with this product and will not purchase it again.

Rating: C-

Review: Organix Renewing Moroccan Argan Oil Conditioner

385 ml/13 fl. oz.

Drugstore.com/Ulta.com: $7.99

Boots.com: ₤6.99

http://www.drugstore.com/organix-conditioner-renewing-moroccan-argan-oil/qxp336539

http://www.ulta.com/ulta/browse/productDetail.jsp?productId=xlsImpprod2690025

http://www.boots.com/en/Organix-Morocon-Oil-Conditioner-385ml_1222258/

Picture found on Drugstore.com

 

 

This conditioner is described as “unique precious blend of Moroccan argan oil” that “instantly penetrates the hair shaft” to strengthen the hair and “restore shine and softness”. It contains no parabens or sulfates, and is apparently safe for color-treated hair. It also claims to protect against styling heat and UV damage.

 

Ingredients:

Water Cetyl alcohol Behentrimonium chloride Cetearyl alcohol Ceteareth-20 Glycerin Dimethicone Glycol stearate Parfum PANTHENOL-DL Persea gratissima oil Theobroma cacao extract Cocos Nucifera Aloe Barbadensis Argania Spinosa Oil Tetrasodium EDTA Dmdm hydantoin Methylisothiazolinone and Methylchloroisothiazolinone, in combination

 

This conditioner did leave my hair sufficiently soft and shiny, and was no less strengthening than any other relatively good conditioner. It also smelled quite good. However, I didn’t notice any particular differences between this conditioner and any other conditioner without argan oil. And the fact that there is “argan oil” written on the label probably made this product more expensive by at least a couple of dollars.

This conditioner is my no means a bad product, it was a thoroughly acceptable, solid conditioner, I was just expecting something a little more from a product containing argan oil. I suspect that this product doesn’t actually contain that much argan oil, as it is only listed as 11^th on the ingredients list. So basically what I am trying to say is that you shouldn’t get too excited about the argan element of this product, I don’t think there is much of one.

Honestly $8 is not too bad for a conditioner, and I might purchase this product again at some point, but I wasn’t overly stunned by its performance. I had quite high hopes for this, as argan oil is really great (as you have probably heard) and this product didn’t do anything exceptional.

 

Overall

A good, solid conditioner- works relatively well, smells nice, but fails to really wow. Being made from the holy fad oil that has hit the market (or containing it, I should say, there doesn’t seem to be that much of it in there) gave this product a standard it fell short of fulfilling.

 

Rating: A-

Review: The Body Shop Rainforest Balance Condtioner

60 ml/250 ml/400 ml

The Body Shop UK: £2/£4/£6

The Body Shop DE: 3€/6€/9€

http://www.thebodyshop.co.uk/hair/conditioner/rainforest-balance-conditioner.aspx

http://www.thebodyshop.de/haarpflege/conditioner/ausgleichende-pflegespuelung.aspx

Does not contain parabens, silicones, or colorants

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Body Shop Rainforest Balance Conditioner is a conditioner specially formulated for oily hair. It is made with pracaxi oil, white nettle, seaweed, and aloe vera. It claims that it “lightly conditions to reduce excess oils for hair that looks clean and fresh all day without weighing it down. Like it’s matching shampoo, it has a very thick consistency.

Ingredients

Aqua, Kaolin, Glyceryl Stearate, Cetearyl Alcohol, Distearoylethyl Hydroxyethylmonium Methosulfate, Glycerin, Simmondsia Chinensis Seed Oil, Parfum, Hydroxypropyl Guar, Propylene Glycol, Fucus Vesiculosus Extract, Salicylic Acid, Sodium Benzoate, Pentaclethra Macroloba Seed Oil, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, Alcohol, Citric Acid, Lamium Album Extract, Sodium Hydroxide, Tocopherol.

This was a really disappointing product for me because I really like the shampoo that goes with it. It just did nothing. First of all, it had a strange consistency, thicker than normal conditioner with a weird almost gritty texture. It kind of felt like a mud mask in conditioner form. It didn’t condition my hair at all. On top of that, it smelled like a mix of the afore-mentioned mud mask and a chlorinated pool. Yeah, not really a good smell, and especially not a comforting smell for something you are putting on your hair! Luckily the smell doesn’t linger, so you didn’t walk around smelling like pool for the entire day.

There really isn’t much to say about this product. It didn’t work. It smelled bad. End of story. A really disappointment, I must say. Don’t waste your money! The price may have been well worth it for the shampoo, but for this it is really too much.

Rating: D

Review: The Body Shop Rainforest Balance Shampoo

60 ml/250 ml/400 ml

The Body Shop UK: £2/£4/£6

The Body Shop DE: 3€/6€/9€

http://www.thebodyshop.co.uk/hair/shampoo/rainforest-balance-shampoo.aspx

http://www.thebodyshop.de/haarpflege/shampoo/ausgleichendes-shampoo.aspx

Does not contain parabens, sulfates, silicones, or colorants

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Body Shop Rainforest Balance Shampoo is a sulfate-free shampoo for oily hair. It is formulated with pracaxi oil (whatever that is), white nettle, seaweed, Community Trade sugar (???), and aloe vera. It claims to “reduce excess oil for hair that looks clean and fresh all day”. It has a very thick consistency and a pleasant, herbal smell.

Ingredients

Aqua, Sucrose, Disodium Cocoyl Glutamate, Lauryl Betaine, Laureth-5 Carboxylic Acid, Propylene Glycol, PEG-55 Propylene Glycol Oleate, Sodium Chloride, Glycerin, Polyglyceryl-4 Caprate, Parfum, Sucrose Laurate, Sodium Benzoate, Isopropyl Alcohol, Salicylic Acid, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, Fucus Vesiculosus Extract, Alcohol, Citric Acid, Pentaclethra Macroloba Seed Oil, Lamium Album Extract, Sodium Hydroxide, Tocopherol

The two main things that you should have gotten out of the description (no, I’m not talking about the weird ingredients…) are the fact that it is a sulfate-free shampoo, and that it is for oily hair. This brings up a major question… namely; does it clean your hair properly? The answer is yes, it does. And quite well, surprisingly. For people with normal or oily hair it seems that sulfates are useful sparingly, every other day to every three days ton once a week depending on how oily your hair gets and how frequently you wash it. This is because you don’t want to use sulfates on your hair too often, as that would dry it out, but if you don’t use sulfates you may not properly break down the oils in your hair, leaving residue that would make your hair look dull. With this shampoo I don’t feel the need to use a separate shampoo containing a sulfate because it really does what it claims to do, reducing the excess oils in my hair. This is great because I can have my hair clean without running the risk of drying it out too badly. I honestly have no clue how this would work for dryer hair, but it doesn’t have sulfates in so it may work. The Body Shop does have other formulations, which I assume are also sulfate free, so you may try those.

As for lathering, this shampoo is relatively good for a sulfate shampoo. It takes a little more effort and time to get it there, but it does lather up. Obviously not as well as a sulfate shampoo, but it does do the job without too much stress. I have found that you only need a small amount of the shampoo because it is so thick. My hair is of a normal thickness, and I only need like a nickel-sized amount of product. For the Europeans and the Brits, that would be roughly the size of a 10 euro cent coin or a penny. I have found that it helps to distribute the shampoo through the roots of your wet hair and work it in as per usual, but then duck under the shower stream again and then work the product some more. I think this really helps with the lather.

Because you only need a small amount of product means that it takes forever to use up the bottle. Coupled with the fact that you have the option to get it in bigger bottles, this means that if you intend to purchase the product regularly you don’t have to run to the store so often. This is particularly helpful because you can only find this product at a Body Shop store, not just at your local Rossman or Boots. It is also a little more expensive than something you may buy at a drugstore, but I think the long life of one bottle, plus the fact that you can get the more cost-effective bigger size makes this product not that much more expensive in the long run. Plus it is sulfate free, which is sometimes a struggle to find in cheaper shampoos!

Overall, I would really recommend this product. It smells great, does a great job despite not containing sulfate, and is a quite reasonable price for the amount of product you get and how much you have to use at one time.

Rating: A

Review: John Frieda Frizz-Ease Daily Nourishment Leave-In Conditioning Spray

236 ml

Ulta- $5.99

Boots- £5.59 (called Daily Miracle Treatment)

Douglas- €9.95 (billiger bei Rossman oder dm, ca. €7.99?)

John Frieda describes this product as a leave-in treatment that “strengthens and helps repair hair” by using “high-potency infusions of vitamins, proteins, and supplemental moisture…”. It should “instantly detangle for smooth, silky, vibrantly healthy-looking results” and claims that “hair detangles easily for increased manageability and reduced risk of breakage and split ends”. It contains wheat proteins, glycerine, and vitamins A, E, and C, which should protect and hydrate “dry, damaged, frizz-prone hair”. It contains heat protection.

INGREDIENTS:

WATER, GLYCERIN, AMODIMETHICONE, PANTHENOL, BISAMINO PEG/PPG-41/3 AMINOETHYL PG-PROPYL DIMETHICONE, VP/DIMETHYLAMINOETHYLMETHACRYLATE COPOLYMER, TRIDECETH-12, DIMETHICONE PEG-8 MEADOWFOAMATE, DIAZOLIDINYL UREA, FRAGRANCE, POLYQUATERNIUM-59, COCODIMONIUM HYDROXYPROPYL HYDROLYZED WHEAT PROTEIN, CITRIC ACID, BUTYLENE GLYCOL, HYDROLYZED VEGETABLE PROTEIN PG-PROPYL SILANETRIOL, SODIUM CHLORIDE, CETRIMONIUM CHLORIDE, PROPYLENE GLYCOL, WHEAT AMINO ACIDS, TOCOPHERYL ACETATE, CAMELLIA SINENSIS LEAF EXTRACT, CHELIDONIUM MAJUS EXTRACT, ROSA CANINA FRUIT EXTRACT, OLIVE OIL PEG-7 ESTERS, ASCORBIC ACID, RETINYL PALMITATE, METHYLPARABEN, PROPYLPARABEN, ALOE BARBADENSIS LEAF EXTRACT

I have heard that it is really important to use a detangler or something similar on wet hair before brushing it through, as apparently hair is really vulnerable when wet and attacking it with a hairbrush when it is vulnerable is not a good thing to do. Judging from the description of the product, brushing hair without a detangler may cause breakage and split ends. As I don’t particularly want either and this detangler was on offer for €3.99 I decided to pick it up.

I have been using this product nearly every day for maybe two weeks now, and I can see a definite improvement in the health of my hair. I found this product to be very good in terms of detangling; it really does make brushing through it easier, and makes my hair really soft and shiny. It says it is for dry hair, although I have sort of oily hair and it worked nicely for me. This isn’t a product that people with oily hair should shy away from, it doesn’t make me greasy faster or anything. As for people with dry hair, this probably won’t completely solve your problems on its own but will definitely help to add a bit of moisture to your hair and keep it healthy-looking and nourished.

I especially love that it has a heat protectant in it, though I don’t normally use anything for blow-drying my hair, it is a very useful thing to have in the product and eliminates any worries regarding heat damage. I actually blow-dry my hair a lot because I think it generally looks nicer, so this will really help keep my hair safe so I don’t have to feel guilty.

As for the smell, I quite like it. Unfortunately it doesn’t smell as nice as the Body Shop detangler (another detangler that I have tried and will review soon), but it’s ok because it works better, and still smells fine, actually fairly similar. But still, this does make me a little sad and is pretty much the only downside to the product, even if it is just me bemoaning the fact that the Body Shop one smelled so heavenly but didn’t work so well on the detangling.

Overall, I really like this product and would definitely recommend it to anyone and everyone who has hair long enough to get tangled after showers. It has really made my hair look great and protects my hair very well in terms of preventing breakage and split ends caused by attacking my poor, vulnerable hair with a hairbrush when its wet, and in terms of heat protection for when I blast it with my hairdryer. One thing I have just found out that I am not terribly happy with is that the bottle runs out quite fast. Even after having used conditioner, you still need quite a bit of it to really get the tangles out. If you are paying close to 10 euros on it (well, I got it on sale, but still…) I should hope it would last a decent amount of time.

Rating: B+