March 2013: Hits or Missess

I'm not sure about the new Jane Carter Refresher spray from the hydrate line. I tried it last night right before a shower. My hair felt dry afterwards and definitely shrunk a lot more than I expected. It contains protein so I was wary.

I might try the spray from the restore line instead. It had a couple of butters as well as the ingredients from the other spray. But it's a weird milky consistency.

Hit:
Claudie's Hair Frappe - I love the scent (tropical fruity) and although it is very thin it leaves LASTING moisture for dayssss. My hair has been soft (I literally can't stop touching it) for 2 days now. I was having problems holding moisture and getting softness and that just stopped once I clarified and started using Claudie's! (cone free also!)

HIT: naturally silk elements nourishing deep conditioner. Lots of softness and shine after using this. Decent slip. Smells amazingg

HIT: Sally's Cure Care Conditioner.

I was shocked and distrubed to learn that Aphogee reformulated their Green Tea and Keratin Restructerizer which has been my go-to, can't live without, protein treatment for the past year.

But when you've been in the hair game for a minute, you quickly learn to regroup and move on to a new product because, reformulation or not, the hair show must go on and keeping your hair healthy is a must.

So enter the Cure Care Conditioner. A few years ago, I used this to replace Ovation since the CCC has hydrolyzed keratin as the 4th ingredient and doesn't cost nowhere near $60 dollars to purchase. I remember liking the results but because, like Ovation, I really didn't want to add a step to what I felt was already a complicated wash/DC regimen, I quit using it. But once Aphogee broke up with me, I came back. And all Cure Care said was, "Baby, what took you so long?"

This conditioner is outstanding for what I use it for: a(n) (overnight) protein treatment. If you are protein sensitive, this is not for you. If you are looking for moisture, please, look else where. But if you want or need serious detangling and some strong, soft hair, then THIS is your product. Please know that you should follow it up with a moisturizing product or treatment to moisturize and balance your hair and in my case I used my Texas Natural Supply Whipped Shea Aloe Emulsion.

I also love that it's unscented and can be used as a lotion, shave cream and make-up remover although I have only used it as a conditioner and hand lotion (it's ok. Not super moisturizing but it's better than nothing after washing my hands.). Because it is super thin and runny, and provides excellent slip, it would also make a good co-wash conditioner, too.

And the price? At $9.89 for a GALLON it's awesome!

So in review, Sally's Cure Care Conditioner is outstanding as a protein treatment and co-wash conditioner IF YOU ARE NOT PROTEIN SENSITIVE! And after reading some reviews on MUA, some folk even use it as a leave-in (I don't know who they are but those folk must have strands of steel!). Cure Care Conditioner is offically in the line up!

Here are the ingredients: Water, Cetyl Alcohol, Cetrimonium Bromide, Hydrolyzed Keratin, Polymethoxy Bicyclic Oxazolidine, Methylparaben, Propylparaben, Citric Acid.

*Fingers crossed that Sally's doesn't reformulate or discontinue it!*

V05 Moisture Milk Passion Fruit.....Whoo Hoo!!!

I bought a few bottles of these because someone on the "What's on sale..." discussion mentioned that they were on sale and everyone was raving and rushing out to buy them. So I jumped on the bandwagon, but I didn't have much faith because some people raved about the Suave conditioner and my hair hated it.

But I cowashed tonight and my hair felt amazingly soft, moisturized, and it practically detangled itself. I am just speechless because I did not expect these kind of results.

On the fence: Naturelle Grow Herbal Cleansing Conditioner - The smell to me is slightly unnatural ..I wpuld have preferred a more herbal smell. I applied it after using prepooing with Claudie's Vere Oil and Queen Helene cholest. when I rinsed my hair felt a bit stripped and dry. It did cleanse my hair though so it def does what it says! I rinsed with Claudie's Mango Creme Rinse and my hair was soft and cottony again! I love the smell of the Claudie's so herbal-y!!

Revisited Hits that have now turned into holy Grail:

ORS Creamy Aloe Shampoo
Organix Macadamia Oil Shampoo and Conditioner
Ion Extreme Moisture deep conditioner mixed with honey
Nairobi Humecta-Sil deep conditioner mixed with honey
Cantu Shea Butter leave in
Chi Silk infusion
Lacio Lacio leave in
Last but not least.....My steamer

Miss never to be used again:
One N Only Argan oil products, it makes my newgrowth dry and brittle.

HIT
Curl Junkie Beauticurl leave in
makes my hair very supple which is hard to come by with a leave in

MISS FOR MY HAIR BUT IS A HIT FOR MY FEET: Texas Natural Supply No Petroleum All Natural Gelly.

This mug is THICK and not soluable in water so back to the Blue Magic Coconut Grease I go! I even mixed it with 3 different oils and it was still too thick!

But it is great for softening my feet and hands! I'll use this before bed every night for both!

Ingredients: Castor Oil and Castor Wax

Hit: Dax green pomade is very nice.

This is definitely a keeper for my ends only since it's very thick!

A Hit thats been hitting, since been hittin', since been hittin'....YASSSS!!!!!:

My Slippy Detangling Mix:

I did a post on this on my blog, but I had to come here and sing my praises as well. Y'all words can never explain how happy I am that I made this stuff. It was so simple and yet my comb literally glides through my hair in the shower.

What it contains:

1. 1 cup of Giovanni 50:50 Balanced Hydrating Calming Conditioner
2. 1 1/2 cups of V05 Moisture Milks Strawberries and Cream Conditioner
3. 1 cup of Tresseme Naturals Nourishing Moisture Conditioner
4. 1 tablespoons of all of the following: Olive oil, Coconut oil, Rice Bran oil, Castor Oil and Vitamin E oil (Preservative)
5. 10 drops of rosemary essential oil (Another Preservative)
6. 2 tablespoons of Honey (Agave Nectar is also good)
7. 4 tablespoons of steeped and strained Slippery Elm Bark
8. 4 tablespoons of steeped and strained Marshmallow Root

It works like magic and I seriously CANNOT (and would not) detangle my hair without it. It truly is my hair crack and I can't wait to start cowashing with it during the summer. Not only does it detangle my tangle prone type 4 fine strands, but it softens them also.

..... The love I have for this stuff is that deep .

Hit:
Schwarzkopf Osis Thrill fiber gum- best edge product I've used so far.

Alfaparf Semi Di Lino Essential Oil Vial- Really nice! Smells nice too. I like it in my spray bottle.

Dudleyss PCA- Best moisturizer I've used ever. It actually does what it says.

Semi Hit: Loreal Oleo Keratin Condish and styling cream- Horrible for straight hair. Surprisingly left natural hair very shiny,defined and controlled.

Rusk Being Gutsy Thickener: Did make hair look thicker when blowdried and flat ironed but again made curls so super defined. I feel it is better for hair left natural.

Not sure:
Alfaparf Semi di lino Cristalli Liquidi- very nice and light serum. Smells strong yet expensive. Not sure it is meant for my type of hair though.

Miss: Alter Ego Garlic hot oil treatment- Reduced shedding but left residue on scalp and on tub after rinsing. Did not seem to help with breakage but made hair feel soft and moisturized. Smelled strange and does not have multi use functionality. Will not repurchase.

Bioinfusion Keratin infused straightening spray- Smells Medicinal. Defines curls like amazeballs yet left straightened hair hard and coated. Will revisit when natural as a curl definer.

HIT: NEUTRAL PROTEIN FILLER AS A LEAVE-IN "RESTRUCTERIZER"

Now, let me begin by stating that I am a SUPERFINE, low density, 4a Natural. So my hair NEEDS and WANTS keratin protein to achieve it's full potential. My needs were met by Aphogee Green Tea and Keratin Restructerizer but since the new formula contains cones and I'm not about that life, I needed to find an alternative.

I remember reading a review of this product on Little Golden Lamb's blog and when you've been in the hair game for a minute, your powers of recall are EXCELLENT. So when browsing the shelves at Sally's, I remembered reading about this product, read the ingredients list and decided to try it in place of my once loved Aphogee.

I mixed 4oz of the NPF with 2oz of distilled water per the instructions on the back of the bottle and refrigerated it. I used it after my DC and followed up with my protein-free leave-in/styler and sealant. Through out the week, I sprayed with my protein-free moisturizing spritz, applied my protein-free leave-in/styler and sealed. I think it is worth noting that I did not use any additional protein all week long to ensure my hair was not getting too much of a good thing.

My hair is soft, strong and has CRAZY curl definition. And when detangling/rinsing during co-washing, I lost VERY little hair and saw virtually no short hairs in my comb or on the floor of my shower indicating breakage.

In short, this product is a keeper and I will continue to use it as a twice monthly "restructerizer." I'm considering adding some SAA to boost its moisturizing properties, too, so if I do, I'll keep ya'll posted on the results!

But so far, Neutral Protein Filler is a huge HIT!

HIT: Elasta QP Olive Oil & Mango Butter Leave-In Conditioner

Continued Hit:

Oyin Hair Dew - my hair loves this very mucj
Darcy's Botanicals Pumpkin Seed Conditioner as a deep conditioner and leave-in

Napp I use Alfaparf Semi di lino Cristalli Liquidi as a serum after roller setting. I really like it and it gives great bling! I don't use it on air dried or non-heat styled hair. It doesn't seem to have the same bling effect.

CONTINUED HIT:

Pomade Shop: Growth Fundamentals Coffee Pomade

Miss- KBN moisturizing leave in

Not worth the $22 I spent on it. It smells good but I didn't feel any difference in the softness or moisture in my hair

Possible hit- Komaza Care Shea butter lotion- made my sons curls pop! Its thick and I like the smell! I can't wait to try it on Saturday!

Babygrowth

I'm so glad I didn't get that.....

IDareT'sHair said:

Babygrowth

I'm so glad I didn't get that.....

Click to expand...

Girl :rollseyes: hmph! I was sooo excited about it too!

Babygrowth

Girl...I would be Twenty-two Dollars worth of furious.

IDareT'sHair said:

Babygrowth

Girl...I would be Twenty-two Dollars worth of furious.

Click to expand...

I'm trying to keep my cool but trust me steam is blowing out of these ears! I'm trying to sell it. I don't know what else to do!

Miss - flaxseed gel. I so really really wanted to like this but it didn't really do anything for my hair. I bought quite a lot though so I turned it into a hit for my stomach. I ground it up and started mixing it into my smoothies every night. Tastes delicious and nutty.

Babygrowth

It gets really great reviews.

You should start a Thread in the Exchange Forum as well as that Dump Your Products Thread.

Some people never look in that one.

IDareT'sHair said:

Babygrowth

It gets really great reviews.

You should start a Thread in the Exchange Forum as well as that Dump Your Products Thread.

Some people never look in that one.

Click to expand...

Thanks T! I will! I thought for sure it would blow me out of the water! not even close!

Hit:

SheaMoisture Coconut & Hibiscus Co-Wash Conditioner Cleanser - leaves my hair and scalp feeling clean and smelling so good. Detangles like a dream. I know the SM Black Soap Purification Masque gets rave reviews but I never thought it was all that great as a detangler, especially considering how runny and slippy it feels out of the jar. The Co-Wash blows the Purification Masque out of the water for cleansing/detangling purposes IMO and smells a lot better too. A little annoyed that it's $11.99 for that "skinty" lil bottle, but it's definitely possible to stretch it out if your hair is super thick/dense and you alternate with other cowashes or shampoos.

Hit:

SheaMoisture Coconut & Hibiscus Frizz-Free Curl Mousse - smells great, easy to distribute (mousses usually are) and works fantastic layered over the SM Smoothie. My curls were soft, fluffy, ringlety, and elongated. Absolutely no crunch. I'm curious to see if it performs as well in warmer and humid weather.

Possible Miss:

SheaMoisture Kids Extra-Moisturizing Detangler - I expected this spray to have a lot more slip considering the slippery elm and marshmallow root extracts, but honestly it's operates more like sweet-smelling water. I'll give it a few more chances but I don't think I'll be repurchasing this one.

Miss:
- ORS Mayo on freshly washed hair, my hair prefers its on dry hair
- L'oreal smoothing conditioner, hair was extremely stiff
- ORS smooth and hold pudding (my hair look dull and had no hold)

HIT:
- Naturelle Grow Healthy hair moisturizer
- LCO Method
- ORS creamy aloe shampoo
- SM curl enhancing smoothie
- Eco styler gel

Border line:

Naturelle grow intense DC, maybe I'll try it on dry hair
Tea rinse, I need to do this consistently for a month to see if I'm benefiting from it

Neutral:
Bee Mine DC. Leaves my hair pretty soft and moisturized. I like it, but like HV sitrinillah and SD conditioners better. Plus for that price I need some above and beyond results. I'd need a GOOD sale to repurchase

HIT

GSO
LCO Method

Claudie's Renew Protein Conditioner

Claudie's Hair Tea Spritz

Claudie's Hair Gel



oops...wrong thread...bought these not hit/miss