Hey there! This is my very first blog post here on Everything Emily! First off, welcome to my blog. I'm so happy to have you here! I wanted my first post to be something I was truly passionate about, which is of course hair care. Whether your hair is becoming dry and damaged, too thin and flat, frizzy, or getting greasy super quickly, you've come to the right place. Here is a small round up of my hair care favorites, which all happen to be relatively affordable options, as well as some tips and tricks on how I use them!
I wanted to quickly mention that my hair is naturally straight and probably somewhere between thin and thick. I look for products that will naturally nourish my hair, because dryness, dead ends, and dandruff are my main issues. So these products work for me, but of course not all hair is the same.
*Click on the pink text or the images below to shop each item mentioned*
Acure Shampoo & Conditioner
This is probably my favorite shampoo and conditioner, and for good reason. They're around $8-$13 per bottle, but they do go on sale sometimes, unlike high end hair care brands. Obviously, there are plenty of products that are the same price that will get you more than 12 oz., but what I love about Acure is that they're all-natural, sulfate, and paraben free. To be honest, I was initially drawn to this shampoo because of the packaging, but since my mom had already bought it for me, I gave it a try. I was immediately impressed with how the shampoo lathered up so nicely. Also, an added bonus, it smells like marzipan! I know everyone says that you can't always judge a shampoo's quality by the suds and lather, since many brands will add chemicals that create more suds in the soap. But with this shampoo, I could definitely tell the quality was there and it just felt like such a soft, luxurious lather against my scalp. After doing some reading, I learned that this shampoo + conditioner provides its lasting moisture using Omega 3, 6, and 7. These fatty acids make for a nourishing, reparative hair product. Honestly, I think this is the only shampoo + conditioner under $15 that has made a difference on my hair. After thoroughly shampooing, I gently squeeze out the extra water and moisture in my hair, then leave my conditioner on for at least 5 minutes. Those last two steps have really helped my hair. Conditioning is such a crucial step, and all this time I've been unintentionally diluting it by not ringing out the water in my hair. During the 5 minutes of allowing conditioner to soak into my hair, I'll shower the rest of my body/wash my face, so it's not a bother to let that conditioner soak in for awhile. I feel like this shampoo really does thoroughly clean my hair and moisturize it. I've also tried their "Simply Smoothing" coconut & marula version, which I did enjoy. After trying many different shampoo/conditioner brands, this one has by far been my favorite and comes through every time. My only complaint would be that the bottles are on the small side. @Acure make jumbo sizes for me!! Shop the shampoo + conditioner here.
Nexxus Keraphix Shampoo & Conditioner
Alright, onto the next one! I can't remember why I insisted upon buying this at Target but I did lol. If you're wondering why only one bottle is pictured, I ran out of the conditioner and only have a little of the shampoo left. The 13.5 oz. size I'm holding here is $16.99. I also saw the jumbo size for a really great price at my local Costco the other day. I have a bad habit of straightening my hair a couple times a week, so I was interested to see if this shampoo would help me out since it claims to be for severely damaged hair. And yes, I know I mentioned earlier that I have naturally straight hair, but I still straighten it sometimes because of the bends that happen in my sleep. I'm sure I'm not the only one that has desperately googled "how to get rid of dry hair" or watched 30 minute YouTube videos about supposed products and remedies. During this desperate "research" of mine, a lot of people said that keratin was something to look out for if you want to help your damaged hair. This shampoo contains keratin and black rice. I used this for maybe 6 months (or until I ran out) and I did really like it. I think I prefer the conditioner to the shampoo. The conditioner made my hair smoother and shinier, also more manageable, and my hair already felt amazing as I was rinsing it out! I loved their mask treatment and it definitely made a visible difference, but it felt impractical for me to buy a 1.5 oz. packet for $3.99 which I only got two hair washes out of. Anyways, I will say that the shampoo + conditioner definitely made a difference, I always felt like my hair was smoother, softer, and shinier after washing. Shop the shampoo here, the conditioner here, and the mask here.
It's a 10 Miracle Silk Smoothing Balm
Moving onto a leave-in product....
I feel like It's a 10 is the original hair care product that went above and beyond the usual one-purpose product. If the product holds up to this standard, I love the idea of just having one bottle on my counter that can provide10 different benefits for my hair. The Miracle Silk Smoothing Balm is supposed to do these 10 things:
1) Cut down drying time
2) Natural botanical straightener
3) Create smoothness and shine
4) Assist in style hold
5) Weightless formula
6) Detangle
7) Resist against frizz
8) Build-up free formula
9) Prolong blow-out results
10) Thermal protector
I don't know that I can confidently say that this product does all 10 things, but I do really love it. I bought this a few months ago and every time I use it, I notice a difference the next day. My hair might not become smoother right after I blow dry, but the next day it's always smoother and shinier than if I hadn't applied the product. Whenever I use this product I just shampoo + condition as usual, towel dry my hair, blow dry it for a few minutes, then when the mid-shaft and ends are damp, I use about a quarter-size amount of this product in my hair. I just spread the product throughout my hair, focusing on the ends, (I don't apply leave-in products at my roots), brush it out, then blow-dry as usual. What I truly love about this formula is that it adds softness, shine, and smoothness, but never feels sticky, greasy, or heavy. It's $14.99 on Amazon which is slightly pricey in comparison to the other products mentioned here, but I really do think the It's a 10 is worth it. It's a 10's "Silk Express" line also has hydrolyzed silk infused into every product as well as white mulberry leaf extract and red raspberry seed oil. If you like to do blow-outs for yourself at home and are looking for something to smooth your hair + hold the style, or simply want a quality leave-in product, then I think you'll enjoy this one. Also, I know this is kind of unnecessary, but I love how this product literally smells like you got your hair washed at a salon. Shop the Miracle Silk Smoothing Balm here.
Not Your Mother's Dry Shampoo
Now that I've covered my favorite products for clean hair, let's talk about when your hair gets dirty! Specifically, when your hair gets dirty and you don't have the time to wash it. I have to say, I do love my Living Proof dry shampoo but it's about 3 times the price of this one, and about half the size. After using the Living Proof and comparing it to this one, I really don't think there's that much of a difference considering the price difference is so great. The Not Your Mother's Clean Freak Dry Shampoo is currently on sale at Amazon for $5.98 for 2 bottles! I have the unscented version, but the one on Amazon is the original scent. My hair is very dark brown, so I've experienced my fair share of "white cast" or powdery residue from dry shampoo. I mean come on, if my hair's already gross I don't need streaks of white powder on top of that! But unless you purchase the dry shampoos with brunette tints, they all spray out that white powder, it's just a matter of how forgiving the product is and how well it blends into your hair. That "white powder" is what's going to soak up the grease and dirt in your hair and help it look cleaner. To ensure that no white powder is visible, I lift my hair section by section and spray pretty liberal amounts in a sweeping motion over the front pieces, top of my head, then underneath/behind my ear sort of area. Basically, you can spray it like hair spray, about 5 inches away from the hair. Afterwards, I'll let my hair absorb the product for around 30 seconds, then massage it in and shake off any residue. I never spray dry shampoo on my ends, just the roots where it gets oily/dirty. I find that this dry shampoo always blends into my hair after I massage in the product, and I've never had any issues with the white streaks being visible when using Not Your Mother's. If you really have trouble with it, you can try using a hair dryer to just lightly blow off that residue, this will also help absorb some sweat/oil on your scalp! I know all dry shampoos claim to add volume to hair, but I never feel like any of mine do that for me. I don't really mind though, as long as they make my hair look cleaner. I really appreciate that the Not Your Mother's dry shampoo actually cleans your hair and never makes it feel starchy or crunchy. I've had this bottle for forever and I'm just now starting to run out! Needless to say, this is my go-to dry shampoo, and I really cannot recommend it enough. Shop the two-pack here (trust me, it's a better deal and you'll be glad you've got 2 of them).
That concludes my post for today! If you've got some favorite hair products of your own, I'd love to hear all about it in the comments, so let's start a little conversation! And of course, thank you for reading until the end.
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