Just checking in

[cleolinda]

Miscellany:

I have tickets to Midnight Harry Potter! The Lovely Emily and I have done this for years now--maybe since Prisoner of Azkaban; certainly since Goblet of Fire, I can't remember. (I think GOF was the one where she nearly killed some photo-with-flash-taking kids in the row in front of us. With her knitting needles. And if she was knitting

Comments

[randomhero2006]

You should try the olive oil shampoo and/or conditioner from The Body Shop. It makes my hair soft, shiny and very managable but it is a lil on the pricier side.

Also, do you alternate hair products or just use one brand all the time? I read somewhere that switching up products is better for your hair. Works for me! :]

[ilanka]

Same here. I stick with the same manufacturer [I've found L'Oreal does AMAZING things for my hair], but I keep the Really Expensive stuff [Expert Serie Vitamino Color in the giant bottles you can only get at salons], and I also keep the drugstore stuff, like the extra moisturizing and extra glossy version of the L'Oreal Vive Pro shampoo/conditioner. I've found switching it up between the two, with the Kerastase (also produced by the L'Oreal parents company) treatment in the greenish bottle weekly, leaves my hair really healthy, shiney, and happy =)

This is, of course, granted that I have very thick, very full heavy hair that you could probably use to sew with =P I tend to use heavier products because of that.

[ilanka]

I guess I should qualify this with: We (my husband and I use the same products) spend about $150-200 annually on shampoo/conditioner/treatments. Sounds like a lot but isn't too much considering that covers us for about a year and cuts down on hastle. We get the L'Oreal giaganto-bottles from our salon for about $50/ea (a STEAL considering that the little tiny bottles are about $30/ea); those last us about 9-12 months (with each of us washing our hair about every other day, and I trade off with the drugstore stuff). Then I spend $36 on a tube or two of the Kerastase (once every week or two). The rest is the incidental bottle of the Vive Pro from Walmart (where you can get the giant bottles for something like $5/ea

[fiberaddict]

Not to enable or anything...but you can get Lush solid shampoo on eBay for half of regular price. *cough* Not that I'd buy it there or anything (the Blonde shampoo has *saved* my golden hair - seriously. $9.....:grin:) I haven't tried the conditioner yet....I'm still thinking on it.

Also, coconut oil from the baking aisle has really saved my ends. Cheaper (in some stores) than the stuff on the hair aisle.

[1grl_revolution]

Coconut oil? So what do you do? Just put it on the ends and wait a while and then wash it out, or do you have to do more to it? Cover it up for a bit? I need some help for my ends!

Thanks in advance! :)

[fiberaddict]

Yup - I scoop a little bit out on my fingertips (I have fine hair - you might need more) and gently run it over my ends. I usually leave it in overnight - it washes out pretty easily in the morning. (And my hair soaks most of it up pretty quickly, so there's no ick on the pillow)

[1grl_revolution]

Thank you! I'll give it a try! :)

[maleficently]

Also, it's usually a pretty good idea to change your shampoo/conditioners every six months or so. If you've been using the same brand for years, you'll probably notice an immediate improvement no matter what you use. I find switching back and forth between summer/winter does wonders for me. I usually stick to mosturizing/no frizz for the winters and cleansing/full body forumlas for the summer. Not that I think those forumlas actually CHANGE much, but it makes ME feel better. ;)

[aranel13]

This.

There's also the great old standby of rinsing your hair with stale beer. Trust me, it works wonders. Also, washing your hair with dish liquid to completely strip it down and then doing a really good conditioning treatment helps, too. I have really thick hair that wants to be curly so bad, it frizzes and breaks off if you look at it wrong. Back when I actually cared how it looked, these treatments saved it.

*edited for a better icon.

[falenimortal117]

Not "better" icon - BESTEST ICON XD

[morganwolf]

Seconding tygress that it helps to switch up your formulas every few months, but I've been getting good results from Herbal Essence's Hydralicious featherweight shampoo-- I also use this on my ferret and it makes both of our hair SUPER SOFT AND SHINY. I'm also a Garnier Fructis fan. My hair's very fine, very oily, and wavy, so it's definitely fusspot hair.

I put my money into my conditioner-- honestly, shampoo is on your hair for a few seconds and it's only supposed to clean it, conditioner is where the results are. I like Matrix's Color.Smart intensive masque, which I use about three times a week alternated with a slightly less expensive conditioner.

Sorry. I could talk about hair and skin and cosmetic products FOREVER.

[jaded_lady]

I don't know how much pocket change you're willing to shell out on your hair, but if your wal-mart has a salon, they probably sell Redken products there -- I blow dry and flat iron my hair which is obviously horrible for it, and I use all Redken products - specifically the super-soft brand (it's in a gold bottle) and the heat-glide stuff for styling. It's seriously MIRACULOUS.

It's a tad more on the expensive side, but like I said - if you pick it up at Wal-Mart (CVS will occasionally have it too) then it's usually less than if you bought it at a more upscale salon.