Since my big chop 2016, my goal has been to grow out my hair long again. But not just letting it grow like last time, which ended in very dry and damaged hair that was just a pain to manage. Instead, this time I wanted to challenge myself to see if it’s possible to have long and healthy looking hair.
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Melu Shampoo & Conditioner | ★★★★☆
I came across this line when researching products that may help strengthen the hair and prevent split-ends. As my hair got longer, I was realizing that, my consistent trims at the hairdresser wasn’t really cutting it. I was still walking away with lots of split-ends. So I started doing weekly trims at home, where I go through my hair and only cut the strands that are damaged. The second thing I did was look for products that could help me prevent this from happening. Here’s where Davines Melu fits right in!
What it is
Davines puts Melu in their “anti-breakage”-category and markets it for long, brittle and breakage-prone hair. Both the shampoo and conditioner are infused with lentil seed extract, which is the star and active ingredient. Davines describes Lentils to be rich in serine and glutamic acid, which are two strongly reparative and nourishing amino acids that help protect and rebuild fragile hair. The lentil seed extract is supposed to improve hairs elasticity and prevent breakage.
Formulated for long hair, the duo nourishes and conditions without feeling heavy, while adding shine and softness for easy detangle.
Experience
THE SHAMPOO
The Davines Melu shampoo is sulfate-free but cleanses really well. However, if you do use a lot of styling products or dry shampoo, it may need an additional third washing to really foam up and clean. But this is very common with sulfate-free shampoos in general. And it’s not to say that you need to use a lot of the Davines Melu. Furthermore, I will always recommend having an additional “detox”-shampoo to use once a week if you’re using a lot of styling products!
This past year I’ve been trying a bunch of different shampoos and I have to say that this might be my favorite one so far! Unlike most shampoos, this one doesn’t leave the hair feeling strange after a wash and like you desperately need a conditioner. Not to say that you don’t need one. It’s just that the hair is left feeling surprisingly soft/hydrated but clean.
Being formulated for long hair, this shampoo doesn’t leave the hair feeling heavy. My hair can go 3 days before washing again, and for me, that’s all I ask for.
However, if I could wish for one thing, it would be a little more boost in volume. But that’s just me, can never have enough volume!
Nonetheless, with continued use, I feel like it has definitely improved the quality of my scalp! While I haven’t tried Dede (their basic shampoo) yet, I’d say that this is a wonderful basic shampoo for long hair that hydrates and softens without making the hair feel heavy or turn greasy too fast.
THE CONDITIONER
The conditioner is buttery and comes in a jar. Some people like to complain about the packaging. But I welcome this form of packaging, seeing as I’ve always complained about how hard it is to get the conditioner out from traditional bottles. With the jar, I’ve been able to scoop everything out to the last bit without having to dilute it! But that’s a tip for you who don’t like the jar. Just put a few scoops in a bottle, dilute it with some water, shake, and voilá!
The Davines Melu conditioner wonderfully softens the hair and makes it easy to detangle.
Something I love about Davines conditioners is that they really focus on shine! Melu gives you one of the softest and shiniest hair to the point that I do get compliments at how healthy my hair looks. And I myself am in ave at the quality I’ve managed to get my hair in within this length!
THE SCENT
The scent of both products is very soap-like. I personally didn’t like it at all at first. But it transforms into a softer scent and smells much better in the hair than right out the bottle. After a few washes I’ve been accustomed and now it doesn’t bother me in the same way.
Love Curl Conditioner | ★★★★☆
Shortly after I started to test out Melu, I found the Melu conditioner to be somewhat insufficient to define my natural waves. So I went and bought the Love Curl conditioner after hearing great things about it from a friend.
This conditioner works much better at clumping my hair together, creating the perfect condition for my waves to dry. However, compared to another conditioner that I like, the Love Curl conditioner falls a bit short. It’s good and makes the hair wonderfully shiny, soft and easy to detangle. But its clumping-ability could’ve been better in my opinion.
Because of this, I’ve been contemplating trying out the Love conditioner (purple colored), but I’m afraid it will be too heavy for my hair. The Oi conditioner is another one with similar structure that could possibly work better for my waves.
Then there’s the scent… I don’t know, but I’m personally not fond of it. The only reason I started liking the soapy scent of Melu was
Nevertheless, it’s nothing that stays or is overpowering. Just like with Melu, I find the scent of Love Curl to smell better in the hair than right out of the bottle.
Overall, I find this to be a wonderful curl conditioner that doesn’t feel heavy. Which is unusual for a curl product. Perfect for
When mixed together with the Melu conditioner I’ve actually gotten even better wave definition! But having to buy two conditioners to mix them just to satisfy my preference isn’t ideal. Therefore I will be trying out some of their other conditioners in the future. But I’m not against purchasing any of these two again!
Conclusion
Davines is definitely a brand I want to explore more of! They are somewhat expensive with more simple formulas compared to other brands. And I’m a bit suspicious that something like lentil seed extract has the same impact on hair as to using hydrolyzed vegetable protein instead. Like, can the hair use the protein and minerals that are in an extract the same way as if the protein and minerals were added separately? As they are with other haircare brands and products. It would be interesting to know the whole science behind this.
With that said, despite feeling iffy about their claims surrounding their active ingredients, it feels like the results speak for themselves! Also, the brand’s ethos and ethics, how they put an effort into sustainable packaging and sourcing of materials, makes me want to discover more.
While I haven’t experienced any problems with Melu, there has been a few things I’ve personally been missing. Or maybe it’s just me, thinking the grass will be greener in the next product or the next?
Still, I wouldn’t mind coming back to Melu, whether it’s with the accompanied Melu conditioner or Love Curl or something else. Just like with skincare, this has needed time to truly shine and show what it goes for.
And by any means, this has been one of the best shampoo and conditioners I’ve really enjoyed so far!
As for split-end, it’s hard to tell. There has been less of them, but I can’t tell if it’s the Melu shampoo and conditioner or my own trims or the combination of both. Overall, I’ve been able to maintain soft and healthy looking hair since my last professional trim almost six months ago.
I’m also sensing that the anti-breakage complex works by strengthening the hair from the root. So, only consistent long-term use can tell if the hair will become stronger and break less easily.
If you’ve used Melu for a long time, I’d love to hear your experience!
Where To Buy
Birchbox (US) | CultBeauty (EU) | Amazon | Lyko (SE)
