Dealing with Frizzy Hair
I used to have this beautiful, smooth, silky hair, usually down to my waist. Strangers would often approach me on the street, on buses, in stores, just to compliment me on my hair, and often to adjure, "Don't ever cut it!" (That was usually old ladies who said that part.)
I'm not a vain person, at least about my appearance, and so this was my one significant vanity. I always felt good about my hair, if nothing else. I could have zits, I could gain weight, but my hair was always pretty.
Then, in the early 2000's, the decades finally added up, and my hair as I approached 40 years old just sorta ... went kablooey. It just frizzed out all over the place, especially around my face (where it is, of course, most visible to me, in particular), and I felt like my one real beauty had vanished. I started using shampoos and conditioners specially developed to try to smooth out frizzy hair, but I saw no real results. Every time I looked in the mirror, I cringed at the sight of this insanity called "my hair." My mom hinted broadly that I should cut my hair, because once a woman gets past a certain age, her hair just doesn't look good anymore. She never said, "Cut your hair! It's ugly!" but it was clearly implied. I was kinda hurt, even though I'd known for a long time that my hair didn't look nice, and I'd been pretty sensitive and self-conscious about it.
Recently, I saw a commercial for a new product by Garnier, and on a whim I decided I would try it: Garnier Fructis Sleek & Shine Anti-Frizz Serum. (I don't work for Garnier or have any affiliation with them, but I wanted to give my opinion where other people considering such a product might have a chance to read it.) I don't normally experiment with hair products, even when the problem is really bothering me, because I don't have much disposable income ... but I guess I just finally decided that it was worth $6 to have the possibility of better hair.
My hair has been seriously frizzy for a long time, so I didn't have much hope, and I have not historically had tremendously good experiences with hair products. I tend to end up with an unattractive stiffness that feels artificial and unpleasant when I touch my hair, or a sort of greasiness that lasts all day and comes off on my fingers when I push my hair out of my face and makes me look like I haven't showered in a week.
So I used this Garnier stuff very gingerly the first time, mostly just focusing on the area around my face, where the problem is worst. Color me shocked! The stuff actually smoothed out my hair considerably! So much so that the areas I hadn't treated, which I used to think of as relatively smooth, looked noticeably frizzy in comparison. That first time, not having used "product" in a decade or so, I was a bit clumsy and applied a bit too much to certain spots, which looked a bit greasy as a result, but the second time I applied the serum more evenly, and I saw no visible greasiness, and only a remarkably improved smoothness to my hair.
I don't normally review products in my journal (and I feel a bit silly doing so now), but this stuff has had a significant impact on my life every single day since I started using it. When I look in the mirror, I don't cringe, as I have been doing several times a day every single day for several years. My hair -- these last several years -- always drew my attention because of its ugliness, because of its wildness and witchy-woman craziness, but now it draws my attention because of the simple drastic change. I guess I got oddly accustomed to the crazy hair, and now every time I look in the mirror, I'm like, "Whoa! Look at that hair! It's all normal! The wackiness is gone! I look like a regular person!"
So I thought I would let y'all know my experience, just as a sort of PSA, because I wish someone had told me about this stuff 6 or 7 years ago (though I think it's a recent product) and saved me years of painful mirror experiences. Wow ... sometimes it's actually useful to pay attention to commercials!
I'm not a vain person, at least about my appearance, and so this was my one significant vanity. I always felt good about my hair, if nothing else. I could have zits, I could gain weight, but my hair was always pretty.
Then, in the early 2000's, the decades finally added up, and my hair as I approached 40 years old just sorta ... went kablooey. It just frizzed out all over the place, especially around my face (where it is, of course, most visible to me, in particular), and I felt like my one real beauty had vanished. I started using shampoos and conditioners specially developed to try to smooth out frizzy hair, but I saw no real results. Every time I looked in the mirror, I cringed at the sight of this insanity called "my hair." My mom hinted broadly that I should cut my hair, because once a woman gets past a certain age, her hair just doesn't look good anymore. She never said, "Cut your hair! It's ugly!" but it was clearly implied. I was kinda hurt, even though I'd known for a long time that my hair didn't look nice, and I'd been pretty sensitive and self-conscious about it.
Recently, I saw a commercial for a new product by Garnier, and on a whim I decided I would try it: Garnier Fructis Sleek & Shine Anti-Frizz Serum. (I don't work for Garnier or have any affiliation with them, but I wanted to give my opinion where other people considering such a product might have a chance to read it.) I don't normally experiment with hair products, even when the problem is really bothering me, because I don't have much disposable income ... but I guess I just finally decided that it was worth $6 to have the possibility of better hair.
My hair has been seriously frizzy for a long time, so I didn't have much hope, and I have not historically had tremendously good experiences with hair products. I tend to end up with an unattractive stiffness that feels artificial and unpleasant when I touch my hair, or a sort of greasiness that lasts all day and comes off on my fingers when I push my hair out of my face and makes me look like I haven't showered in a week.
So I used this Garnier stuff very gingerly the first time, mostly just focusing on the area around my face, where the problem is worst. Color me shocked! The stuff actually smoothed out my hair considerably! So much so that the areas I hadn't treated, which I used to think of as relatively smooth, looked noticeably frizzy in comparison. That first time, not having used "product" in a decade or so, I was a bit clumsy and applied a bit too much to certain spots, which looked a bit greasy as a result, but the second time I applied the serum more evenly, and I saw no visible greasiness, and only a remarkably improved smoothness to my hair.
I don't normally review products in my journal (and I feel a bit silly doing so now), but this stuff has had a significant impact on my life every single day since I started using it. When I look in the mirror, I don't cringe, as I have been doing several times a day every single day for several years. My hair -- these last several years -- always drew my attention because of its ugliness, because of its wildness and witchy-woman craziness, but now it draws my attention because of the simple drastic change. I guess I got oddly accustomed to the crazy hair, and now every time I look in the mirror, I'm like, "Whoa! Look at that hair! It's all normal! The wackiness is gone! I look like a regular person!"
So I thought I would let y'all know my experience, just as a sort of PSA, because I wish someone had told me about this stuff 6 or 7 years ago (though I think it's a recent product) and saved me years of painful mirror experiences. Wow ... sometimes it's actually useful to pay attention to commercials!