Wednesday 25 January 2012

Review: L'Oreal Hair Expertise EverStrong Shampoo and Conditioner.

The Loreal Hair Expertise range has been available in the US for some time now, and it's finally making it's way into UK stores in February :) I was lucky enough to be sent this a while ago (end of November I think) as I'm a member of the Elle Reader Panel- so I've had the chance to put it through it's paces :)

There are three choices within the range, in the US they are Reconstruct (which I have) Hydrate and Bodify, and in the UK they are called Reinforcing and Vitality, Colour Care and Smoothing (though I think they are just renamed and repackaged, not reformulated from the US versions)



I think the UK packaging will look similar,
just in different colours.


The whole EverStrong range is free from sulphates and silicones (the lathering ingredients, and the things that make your hair feel shiny, but feel rubbish) and other things like salts that are not brilliant for your hair. It's also vegan friendly and not tested on animals (though I'm not sure I'm convinced by that, I know L'Oreal is usually on the 'does test on animals' lists)

As soon as I looked at the label I though this would work well for me- I'm certain that my skin reacts badly to SLS, and as I have very fine hair I get product build-up really easily (which is really obvious as I'm blonde) and my first instinct was definitely correct :)

The texture of both the shampoo and conditioner is a little unusual- they are both really thick, creamy products- they look more like thick face creams or body lotions (thick: body butter in a tube) than hair products! They also smell amazing- they contain herbal extracts (the Reconstruct range has rosemary, juniper and mint) and both products have a lovely herbal scent (though it's not overpoweringly strong, I don't think it would bother you) which would also be nice and 'man friendly'; there's nothing floral or particularly feminine here.

Look how thick the conditioner is- I can turn my hand
upside down and it still holds it's shape!


Depite not containing SLS it actually lathers pretty well- forming a thick foamy texture that reminds me of hair mousse (just as it leaves the can, not once it's dry and crispy!) The shampoo works really well to clean my hair, without leaving it feeling stripped of all it's natural oils- and I never knew how irritated my scalp was until I used this shampoo and my scalp felt 100% better, just to test I went back to another shampoo for a couple of washes and my scalp felt awful again- it definitely does not like SLS! It also doesn't leave my hair with that horrible siliconey build-up, meaning that my hair still looks and feels OK on day 2 (I wash my hair every other day) and I find myself using Batiste a lot less frequently.

Similarly, the conditioner is absolutely brilliant. I think I've mentioned before that I rarely use a conditioner, as I've yet to find one that moisturises my hair without leaving a tonne of product build up, weighing my hair down or making it look greasy within hours.... but I've found one at last! This conditioner is the first I've ever used that I actually like and I'm totally amazed! I don't really know how it compares to other conditioners, but I know that I reall love this one; it controls my flyaway hair and makes it feel really smooth and silky, without weighing it down and making it feel greasy .

My one, small, gripe with this product is the packaging; the tube is made of quite a thin, flimsy plastic (much thinner than other shampoo bottles I've used), which combined with the really thick product makes it quite hard to squeeze out the product (instead of pushing out product, the tube just sort-of collapses), and once I got down to about 1/3 of a bottle, I could no longer squeeze my shampoo out... I did decant the shampoo into a smaller bottle, but it did kind of annoy me that I had too.


Overall I really really love this range, my hair has honestly never felt so good (despite being in serious need of a trim) and when it's released in the UK I will definitely be purchasing it, and I  recommend giving it a try, especially if you're sensitive to SLS, or if you're looking for cheap, nasties-free haircare (RRP will be £5.99 for 250ml!)


Are you a fan of sulphate free haircare products? Or (like me) do you not really think about what you're putting on your hair?


                     
                                                                                                       xGretalRabbitx

5 comments:

  1. Great review! I am looking for some really good shamp/cond to switch to after my currents run out! :)

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    Replies
    1. Thank you :) Definitely try this one out- I think it's awesome!
      xGretalRabbitx

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  2. Great review. I get an allergic reaction from sulphates, and try to avoid silicones on my hair, so will definitely be trying this. I also wanted to know whether it was tested on animals - and like you I'm skeptical - but your review answered all my questions and was helpful and informative, thanks!

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    1. Thank you, I'm so glad it was useful to you. Like I said, I never noticed how badly my scalp reacts to sulphates before I stopped useing them and felt a difference! I definitely recommend this range :) (if you're in the UK it's often 2 for £9 in Boots too!)
      xGretalRabbitx

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  3. Hello there, I'm from Singapore. A friend just introduced me to this 100% vegan label. I am super skeptical about it as firstly, there is no such thing is 100% vegan. It is either vegan or not vegan. But L'Oreal is never a vegan company (just as The Body Shop) so I am careful about such claims...Thanks for airing that view too!

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