Simply Argan Argan and Violet Infused Shampoo and Conditioner

This is a really lovely pair by Simply Argan for the hair costing either £11 each or £17 for the pair at 250ml each – current prices (on sale).

I’ve been using this set for about two months now and have loved using it, it is almost finished and I will be repurchasing (after all the other shampoo and conditioner sets have disappeared.)

The shampoo contains argan oil and vitamin E, the only not so great ingredient (that I’m aware of) is sodium laureth sulphate. I haven’t spotted any not so great ingredients in the conditioner though. The shampoo foams up wonderfully and seems to be quite gentle, both smell very luxurious too. The shampoo cleansed my hair very well and the conditioner adds moisture and detangles, they both feel very luxurious, almost comparable to Macademia Oil products, although not quite the same.

My hair is definitely softer, smells amazing, stays lovely and soft for a long period of time and I love that the conditioner detangles successfully! It also makes my hair shiny and lessens the natural frizz a bit.

Have you used any argan oil based products? What are your thoughts?

Dead Sea Spa Magik Hair Magic Serum Review

Source

This is a conditioner/hair mask type product by Dead Sea Spa Magik, sorry for the stock image, I've left my battered, almost empty bottle in my uni bathroom, but as it's practically finished I thought I'd better review it quickly before I forget! This was generously sent to me absolutely ages ago so I'm also sorry for the late review. But enough now and onto the review!

It costs £17.25 for 150ml and is available at Holland & Barrett, I've also spotted it in department stores like John Lewis. It's a thick cream that you apply onto shampooed hair and leave on for a few minutes before washing it off. The very first thing I noticed was the smell, it's not pleasant at all. Well I didn't think it was, I'm sure someone would like it. You can also use it dry as a serum, I didn't use it this way because I don't like having product in my hair generally after it's been washed and conditioned, but even if I wanted to use some, it just looks too much like conditioner for me to want to put it on dry hair.

I've nearly used the entire thing, it's essentially finished and ready for the bin but I want to try and squeeze out  as much as I can for one more use. I didn't like the smell, but I love how it works. It didn't take long for it to soften and detangle my hair, and it also stops any frizziness. That's pretty much all I'd want from a conditioning product - and a nice scent. I don't want to fixate on it, because I think it comes from all the good stuff, minerals etc in the product that actually make it work.

Overall, I definitely think this is worth trying if you have damaged, dry or even normal hair to rehydrate it and give it a boost, making it feel stronger too, personally I don't think I would repurchase because even though it lasted me about two months I think £17.25 is a lot for a product I would use very frequently and I dislike the scent, even though I know it's probably just from all the good stuff in the conditioner! I also found it difficult to get all the product out of the bottle, a squeezy bottle or one with a pump may be more useful I think.

Would you be interested in trying it? Have you given it a go - what did you think?

Klorane Oat Milk Shampoo and Conditioner Review

These are Klorane's Oat Milk Shampoo and Conditioner available from escentual.com, John Lewis and other stockists. The shampoo contains 200ml for £6 and the conditioner contains 150ml for £6.50. The packaging for the conditioner has changed and it now comes in a handy tube, I was going to fault the conditioner's packaging but no need to as they've already changed it! (I am very late on reviewing this so sorry for that!)

Both of these are designed for frequent use and are for all hair types, the oatmilk products are part of their ultra-gentle protecting range.

The Shampoo

Klorane say the shampoo should soften, protect and detangle keeping the natural balance of the scalp and hair fiber, it is dermatologist tested and paraben free, also that one shampoo should be enough. I found it to be of a very thin consistency and that it lathered up very well. It was gentle, no harsh scent or stinging of the scalp, it was barely noticeable. It looks a bit like milk as well! I loved this shampoo, it definitely cleaned my hair and without any issues or horrible smell.

The Conditioner

The conditioner was of a slightly thicker consistency in comparison to the shampoo, still very much like milk, maybe a cream. I found it conditioned my hair well, in the sense that it made it shiny and soft, although didn't detangle that much. I get a lot of tangles quite easily because my hair is naturally very very curly and a lot of the time I don't bother styling it because I'd have to straighten it or blowdry it straight for something to be made of it. I really like conditioners that manage to detangle my super curly hair and unfortunately this one didn't. I think as my hair has its own nature I don't want to fault the conditioner.

Overall, I really liked how gentle both products are, they would be perfect for the whole family and certainly if anyone had any hair/skin issues. I don't think they're for me particularly but I did enjoy using them. Once they run out I will not repurchase as a regular use item but will repurchase as products to use once in a while when I feel my hair and scalp need a break.

Have you tried any Klorane haircare? What did you think?

September Empties - 2011

I really like doing these posts because it makes me feel better about what I've used up! :) For the month of September I have used up a lot of samples and sachets and a few full/travel-sized products.

Starting off with some samples, I used up 2 REN face creams, one for night and the other for the day, I really liked both of these but I don't think they were a perfect match for my combination skin.

I also used up my Tropic Body Smooth Refreshing Polish from my Boudoir Privé box this month quite quickly, I thought this was pretty good, it's like a sugary scrub but once applied to the skin the scrubbing parts seem to melt into the formula, smells strongly of lemons and leaves skin moisturised after use too.

I'm so glad I finally used up this Neutrogena concentrated hand cream, I found it to be extremely moisturising to the skin but didn't love the texture very much after a lot of use, it lasts for donkey's years though. I love the scent of this Ted Baker bodyspray I tend to carry it around with me and spray it all day because it's so lovely!

I've been using The Body Shop's Seaweed Mattifying Moisture Lotion SPF15 for ages, it's a great moisturiser for combination skin although sometimes my skin can get very oily after about 6 hours of having it on, also glad I finished this!

I used up 2 Lush Fresh Face Masks, technically only one because I had to bin the Love Lettuce mask due to mould constantly forming on it. Way before the expiry date and afterwards. The BB Seaweed mask had the same issue but once I took the layer of mould off it didn't reappear, so I wasn't too dissapointed with it. However the Love Lettuce mask was basically throwing away £5.50 for nothing.

The Brilliant Brunette Shampoo and Conditioner travel sized items by John Frieda are amazing and I loved them both, you can read a more in depth review here.

I also finished one of three Dove Intensive conditioners, they came with Marie Claire and I can safely say I loved it and it's a great product for taking away frizz and making my hair feel nourished, unfortunately I threw it into the plastics before I had a chance to take a picture!

Thank you for reading x

Please Allow Me To Introduce...Klorane

Hi!

I'd like to talk a bit about a brand I learnt so much about at a fantastic event I was fortunate enough to be invited to. I was also given a few products to try and I'll be reviewing them as soon as I can.

Klorane Laboratories is a company with a simple concept, the usage of one plant to treat one specific hair condition. They specialise in haircare but have also recently added eye makeup remover products.

Klorane use a unique plant production system which guarantees a constant quality of the selected plants and therefore products, this allows for optimum choosing of plants, cultivation methods and best of all no fertilisers or pesticides are present throughout the entire process. Klorane is such a recognised brand that celebrities use and love it too! - Especially the award winning dry shampoo!

Klorane have chosen the specific plants for individual hair conditions and they are as follows:

For Coloured Hair - Pomegranate from Morocco

For Dry & Damaged Hair - Mango Butter from India

For Normal Hair - Oat Milk from France

For Blonde Hair - Camomile from Egypt

Klorane are available in the UK in John Lewis and many online stores. I'll be putting up many more posts reviewing Klorane's haircare and eye makeup removing products with more information on each.

Have you tried Klorane? What are your thoughts?

GlossyBox - September 2011

I received my GlossyBox in the post today and here's what I got!

HD Brows Eye&Brow Palette - Full size - £24.95

Nuxe Huile Prodigieuse - 10ml sample - £2.75

Rahua Shampoo and Conditioner - 2x 10ml and 8ml samples - £1.60 and £1.37

Plum by Mary Greenwell - 1.5ml sample - £1.80

Omorovicza Thermal Cleansing Balm - 5ml sample - £4.60

Total Value: £37.07 

Amount Paid: £12.95

Saving: £24.12

I've looked at and already used some items and here are my thoughts.

I really appreciate the addition of a full sized HD eye&brow palette in this month's box because I don't own anything for my brows at the moment and wanted to experiment with them. My eyebrows are very dark though so I'm not entirely sure if I would benefit from this palette for my eyebrows, however I may use it as an eyeshadow palette too - which is also one of the recommended uses.

The Nuxe multi-purpose dry oil is something I've been wanting to try for absolutely ages, so I'm very glad I got this in my box! I wish it had been slightly larger though, but it's fine!

The Rahua (pronounced RA-WA) Shampoo and Conditioner sachets haven't really gone down very well with me, I took one of the sachets into the shower and it was nowhere near enough the amount of shampoo and conditioner I would usually use, I also found it didn't lather very well. This may be because there wasn't enough product for my hair, so I can't really give a full opinion on this, but my first impressions aren't great. The scent of both products is lovely though.

Plum by Mary Greenwell is the signature fragrance of celebrity makeup artist Mary Greenwell, when I smelt this in the bottle, to me it was a wine made from plums, however now that I've worn it all day, it smells different to me, I really like it and I think it's very unique. It lingers on the skin for ages and the scent is quite noticeable, even with a little application.

Finally, the Omorovicza Thermal Cleansing Balm, by a Hungarian brand. I opened it and it's black! I was a little horrified because I don't think I've ever seen or used anything that looks quite grimy to cleanse my face. It is an award winning balm and created with minerals, so naturally I'm excited to try this.

Overall, I really like this month's GlossyBox, I admit that I would have liked to try a salt scrub or a hair treatment, but my box was great. I award this month's box 8/10. It would have received a 9/10 if it wasn't for the random addition of £2.95 P&P charge for the September box and future months! (Yes, I am still sulking about that. It wasn't advertised initially.)

What do you think of this month's box? Did you receive anything different? Are you tempted to join up to GlossyBox yet?


Click here to sign up!

Review: John Frieda Brilliant Brunette Multi-Tone Revealing Moisturising Shampoo and Conditioner

I bought both the shampoo and conditioner at £1.99 each for 50ml, and both lasted for 5 washes of my mid-back length hair, pretty good value I think. There are full sizes available too from Boots, Superdrug and supermarkets. I don't have completely brown hair, in fact I'd say it's leaning towards the more black side, but I do have dark brown and medium brown hair on my head randomly. Especially towards the front and top of my head my hair is lighter.

Using this pair for the first time I thought it was pretty average and didn't notice any change in the colour of my hair or brightness/shiny-ness. The second time onwards my hair seemed to have more colour in it, as though I'd added highlights but not as strongly to that effect of course. The natural brown tones in my hair were definitely 100% more prominent and noticeable and I absolutely loved it, I've always wanted to colour my hair and switch it up a bit but haven't done so due to various reasons as of yet.

My hair was clean and felt moisturised and healthy too which was great. To make sure I don't confuse anyone, this will not magically give you highlights or a change in hair colour, however it did reveal my hair colour's undertones and make them more visible to the naked eye - something which I really liked. My hair is pretty normal, occasionally on the dry brittle side when in need of a haircut, but not highly so ever.

I will definitely be repurchasing these in the full size when all my shampoos and conditioners run out and I would recommend it. Maybe you could pick up the one made for your hair colour and let me know what you think! Or if you've already tried it, what did you think? 9/10 for this pair of haircare! :)

Marie Claire Freebies!

Marie Claire (September 2011 issue) are giving away a choice of 2 Ciaté paint pots and 2 Dove Express Treatment Conditioners along with the sachets inside the magazine! The magazine retails at £3.60 and the nail polish alone is worth £9. The 2 shades available are a deep metallic purple with shimmer (Wait Until Dark) or a nude light peach/cream colour (My Fair Lady).

I picked up 2 of Wait Until Dark with the Dove Nourishing Oil Care Express Treatment conditioner, I did think of trying My Fair Lady but I'd just received Beach Melba also by Ciaté in my July GlossyBox, and it's a very similar shade.

I'll review and do some posts about both products and possibly even about the Sanex sachet included!

Thank you for reading!

What do you think of the shades available? Have you picked yours up yet?

Review: Liz Earle Botanical Shine Shampoo and Conditioner

L-R Liz Earle Botanical Shine Shampoo and Botanical Shine Conditioner
£7.65 for 200ml each

I bought these a little while ago when Liz Earle had their haircare offer and I've now emptied both and am onto the third bottle/tube which was the shampoo again. Using both the shampoo and conditioner about twice a week has lasted about 6 weeks, which I think is great for 200ml.

So onto the shampoo first, it contains West African Shea Butter, vitamin E, orange and apple extracts, naturally derived cleansers and no sodium laureth sulphate. I was surprised at how much I liked this shampoo and how clean it made my hair feel considering it doesn't have anything other than natural ingredients. It has a strong smell, presumably of all the ingredients combined which lingers for a few days after washing your hair. A small amount is needed to lather up your hair depending on the length, but a minimal amount lathers really well. In terms of pricing, if I was to buy these seperately I would think twice, but in the haircare offer it was a justifiable purchase. I understand that this a shampoo with natural ingredients so this may allow the price to hike up a little, it is worth it, but I think personally I'm ok using a cheaper brand because I don't wash my hair everyday.

The conditioner is fantastic, it has a very similar smell as the shampoo - if not the same, and detangles the hair as well. I got the one for normal hair because I'm not too sure which type of hair I have, there are 2 other options available, fine or oily hair and dry or damaged hair. This conditioner contains meadowfoam and yangu oils, blue seakale, apple and orange extracts and claims to leave hair glossy and ready to style. My hair was very shiny, soft and fragranced after using both shampoo and conditioner together and easy to work with.

Overall I do think that this haircare pair is great for hair but I'm still a tiny bit cautious of the price, probably because I'm still quite young, my rating is 8/10.

Thank you for reading! :)

Yet Another Liz Earle Offer I Took Advantage Of...

Yep...I've been on the Liz Earle website again...and this time I ordered their "Triple Haircare Offer" consisting of 3 full size shampoos/conditioners of your choice and free Postage and Packaging for £19.95 (saving £3). I chose exactly what is depicted above. It arrived today packaged wonderfully alongside another Clear Skin Offer. I'm not sure why I bought the 2nd Clear Skin Offer to be honest, I was thinking of giving it away because there are still so many people that haven't yet tried Liz Earle products...or I could use it myself after I'm done with the 1st one! Which to be honest, shouldn't be too long!

Thank you for reading! :)