Regularly bleached, coloured and heat styled to within an inch of its life - it's fair to say that I put my hair through its paces. So when it comes to caring for it, it's of the utmost importance that I choose good quality products that will nourish and protect it as much as possible. I'm always looking for shampoos and conditioners that will put much needed moisture back into my hair without weighing it down, and when I discovered the L'Oreal Botanicals Fresh Care range, it sounded like exactly what I was looking for.
If I'm honest, it was the packaging that first attracted me to this range. I would never have guessed it was L'Oreal, or indeed any drugstore brand, based on the way it looks. It really is quite sleek and beautiful - much more like a high end salon brand than something you can pick up in your local Boots. I was even more intrigued when I learned that the whole range is vegan, created from natural botanical ingredients and essential oils, and free from silicones, parabens and colourants.
There are several variations within the range: Lavender, for fine and fragile hair, Safflower, for dry hair, Camelina, for unruly hair... as my tresses could be described as any of the above, and since all the different shampoos and conditioners look and smell so delicious, it was hard to know which to choose! I started off with the Lavender masque - a lightweight yet nourishing deep conditioning treatment that I loved so much it found its way into my 2018 Beauty Favourites. However, I was keen to find something that would prolong the radiance of my freshly coloured hair between appointments, and perhaps add some shine back, so as much as I adore the scent of lavender, I decided to move on to the Geranium products.
Formulated from a blend of Geranium essential oil, Soya and Coconut oil, the Geranium Radiance Remedy products are specifically targeted to coloured hair, to hydrate, detangle and reveal shine. They are wonderful to use - the products feel creamy and yet light at the same time, and the floral fragrance that fills the shower when I wash my hair is simply glorious. When I've finished conditioning, my hair feels like silk and my Tangle Teezer glides through it effortlessly.
I have seen some very mixed reviews of these products, and my feeling is that the range is perhaps more suited to people who, like me, have fine hair. I love that it's left feeling soft, yet still has bounce and body to it. Anything richer might leave my hair weighed down and looking lank and lifeless, but perhaps if you have thicker hair, these products might not quite deliver the results you need.
Speaking for myself, I love how they make my hair look and feel. Anything that can breathe new life into my hair when it's overdue to be cut and coloured is a definite keeper in my book! I even think they have helped to restore a little shine, although my bleach treated hair is never going to excel in that department. All in all, I'm a huge fan, and will definitely be repurchasing the Geranium products as well as trying others in the range.
Have you tried the L'Oreal Botanicals Fresh Care range? What hair care products are you loving right now?
Kate x
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If you follow me on Snapchat, you might have seen that I recently took a trip to the hairdresser's "just to get my roots done", and ended up with hair blonde enough to give Daenerys Targaryen a run for her money. Well, perhaps not quite that blonde, but there was a lot of bleach involved. A lot. I've actually got used to the colour now. Turns out my hairdresser was right - I'd left it too long between appointments (mostly because I hate spending hours getting my colour done - anyone else?) and the underneath sections were starting to look pretty tarnished. It's definitely more even now, but boy did it feel dry and damaged once it was done!
So if ever there was a good time to put a new haircare range through its paces, it was in the wake of this appointment. I was very interested when I was offered the chance to try this Argan Oil range from Natural World - a London based haircare brand that creates ranges from natural ingredients from around the globe. Argan oil is widely known to be very moisturizing, and that was definitely what I needed at this point! The range is also free from a lot of nasties such as parabens, phosphates and phthalates, is gluten free and contains 95% natural ingredients including certified organic argan oil.
I was sent a shampoo and conditioner to try, along with a hair mask and two different sizes of treatment oil. Looking the products up online, I was pretty impressed with the generous sizes compared to the price. For example, I received 500 ml bottles of shampoo and conditioner, which retail for £4.99 each. That's a lot of bang for your buck. The packaging isn't the most luxurious out there but the bright blue colour is fairly appealing and for the most part it's practical enough, although I have to say I hate the packaging of the smaller treatment oil. It's a narrow tube with a screw top and just pours out into your hand, so it's impossible to avoid wastage and mess. The larger treatment oil comes with a press down lid allowing you to dispense a controlled amount of product, which is much better.
All the products feel lovely to use, rich without being heavy, and with a beautiful fragrance. As well as argan oil, the range is also infused with a blend of cedarwood, rosemary, lemongrass and ylang ylang, and this is certainly evident in the scent - especially the orange. As most people know by now, argan oil - particularly nourishing in Vitamin E and anti-oxidants - is a popular choice when it comes to moisturising ingredients in haircare, and the blend of essential oils contained within this range is designed to gently cleanse hair whilst adding moisture and shine.
For my first hair wash post Daenerys-gate, I decided to use the shampoo and the hair mask, for an extra hit of much-needed nourishment. As directed, I left the hair mask on for twenty minutes, wrapped in a towel. When I came to rinse it out, my hair felt soft and manageable. I wouldn't go so far as to say it felt like silk, but to be fair, I don't think there's a product in the world that could make that happen, given how much bleach it's been subjected to.
Hair Mask
For hair washes after that, I've been using the shampoo and regular conditioner, switching the latter up for the hair mask once a week or so, and I'm pleased to report that my hair remains soft and relatively easy to comb through before styling, which is impressive considering the aforementioned bleach. It also seems to work very well at not weighing down my fine hair or causing it to become greasy, which is great as it means I can leave it a few days between washes - a desirable thing if you want to avoid subjecting your hair to too much heat styling, as I do.
Left - Shampoo, Right - Conditioner
As for shine, this has always been an elusive quality as far as my hair is concerned, and even more so since I became a bottle blonde. I don't find that the shampoo, conditioner and hair mask add shine to my hair, although someone with a different/less abused hair type might well find differently. I do however think that the treatment oil, when used on dry hair, adds a little. I really like the treatment oil. You can use it on both wet and dry hair, and it's so light that even if you make a mistake and end up being a bit too heavy handed with it, you can still work with it. Combined with the other products, it definitely makes my hair feel softer and smoother. Can you see the added shine in the "after" picture below? I'll admit, it's minuscule, but I do think there's something of a difference!
All in all I think this is a lovely range - effective, natural, pleasant to use and great value for money. If you're interested in trying any of the products, you can pick them up at ridiculously low prices here.
What haircare products are you using at the moment? Any recommendations?
Kate x
All the products feel lovely to use, rich without being heavy, and with a beautiful fragrance. As well as argan oil, the range is also infused with a blend of cedarwood, rosemary, lemongrass and ylang ylang, and this is certainly evident in the scent - especially the orange. As most people know by now, argan oil - particularly nourishing in Vitamin E and anti-oxidants - is a popular choice when it comes to moisturising ingredients in haircare, and the blend of essential oils contained within this range is designed to gently cleanse hair whilst adding moisture and shine.
For my first hair wash post Daenerys-gate, I decided to use the shampoo and the hair mask, for an extra hit of much-needed nourishment. As directed, I left the hair mask on for twenty minutes, wrapped in a towel. When I came to rinse it out, my hair felt soft and manageable. I wouldn't go so far as to say it felt like silk, but to be fair, I don't think there's a product in the world that could make that happen, given how much bleach it's been subjected to.
Hair Mask
For hair washes after that, I've been using the shampoo and regular conditioner, switching the latter up for the hair mask once a week or so, and I'm pleased to report that my hair remains soft and relatively easy to comb through before styling, which is impressive considering the aforementioned bleach. It also seems to work very well at not weighing down my fine hair or causing it to become greasy, which is great as it means I can leave it a few days between washes - a desirable thing if you want to avoid subjecting your hair to too much heat styling, as I do.
Left - Shampoo, Right - Conditioner
All in all I think this is a lovely range - effective, natural, pleasant to use and great value for money. If you're interested in trying any of the products, you can pick them up at ridiculously low prices here.
What haircare products are you using at the moment? Any recommendations?
Kate x
*Products sent to me for review. All opinions, as always, are my own
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