Here are some hair care empties I’ve gathered during my years of absentness. I apologize in advance for the lack of imagery as this post’s been a writing process over the course of a couple of years. Where I’ve managed to throw the packaging before publishing. Although I don’t have some of the products at the moment in my possession my thoughts and impression remain the same.
R+Co High Dive
Got this as a sample a year ago and later bought the full size! Definitely, go and read my original review as my thoughts haven’t changed much since then. I’m still much loving it and impressed at how long this tube has lasted!
High Dive is one of R+Co’s bestselling products. It’s a leave-in/styling product that can be used in both wet and dry hair. My main form of use is on dry hair to smooth out the ends, add shine and softness and make my hair easy to detangle. It simply makes your hair feel as if you just stepped out of the hairdresser! Being sort of a leave-in conditioner for medium to thick hair, it has a very lightweight texture and feel. Although I’ve come across some reviewers saying this has made their hair greasy, it’s nothing I have experienced despite my hair being on the thin side… Contrary, I’ve been able to pile this on (meaning: using it daily until my next wash) without my hair feeling heavy or dirty! But with that said, I also use a tiny amount each time.
I only have two issues with this product, one of which I’ve mentioned in my original review, it doesn’t do much for frizz in my case; My second problem is that it tends to relax my waves, making my hair straighter. The reason why I never use this on wet hair is that it makes it impossible for my hair to dry wavy/curly. I have the same issue with the Bumble & Bumble Oil Primer, it seems to soften the hair too much. Whether this is a silicone problem or just softening agents, I don’t know. I do favor these lighter leave-in conditioners with silicones because others tend to feel too heavy and can’t be used on dry hair.
But even when I put it on dry hair and brush through, my waves get more straight, than if I’d just brushed through without product. I do, however, use it mostly on my ends to protect, moisturize and smooth them out, so overall, I’m not heavily bothered by this issue. But I’d like to know what’s causing this effect and if there’s a similar product without this problem.
Repurchase? Yes and have! I did try their lighter product Waterfall. Which simply does the same thing but is more suitable for fine to medium and extra long hair. However, that one did not feel hydrating enough for my hair.
R+Co Balloon Dry Volume Spray
When R+Co announced this product I got super excited! Balloon is described to add instant volume and texture with a great finish and hold without dulling hair or weighing it down. Also said to be long-lasting and ultra-light. It’s not a texturizing spray by any means but has some similarities to B&B Dryspun.
I bought a travel size to test out and it has lasted me a satisfying amount of time. It gives good volume without feeling too gritty. But, maybe because of my long hair, I do feel like I need to use a lot of product to see a dramatic difference. I wasn’t truly wowed by it like the B&B Dryspun, to be honest. Although technically not a dry shampoo, like all kinds of texturizing and volume-boosting products, there are some similarities in ingredients and effects. I’ve mostly been reaching for this when my hair’s dried flat or it needed a pick-me-up. I usually feel like I want some volume near the next washing day. But with R+Co Balloon, it felt like it’s best used after washing or on second-hair day – as a finishing volume spray.
Despite containing silica and zeolite it doesn’t have enough power to actually absorb oil like a dry shampoo. And with the amount you need, it will add that type of grit that will make you want to wash your hair sooner than later. And beside me having long hair, I think me wanting it to work more like a dry shampoo was why I felt like I needed to use a lot of it.
Anyhow, I do think it’s a good product that delivers! I’m just a bit on the fence if it’s the right product for me personally for how and when I like to add volume. If you need a product to add more volume after you blow-dry, this is definitely it! But don’t go and force it to be a dry shampoo like me.
Repurchase? Maybe. I wouldn’t mind having it around! But I’ve realized that maybe a dry shampoo is a better fit for my personal use.
Davines Naturaltech Renewing Conditioning Treatment
After the positive impression of the Davines Melu shampoo and conditioner (review here), I wanted to venture and check out their Naturaltech-line. Compared to their Essential haircare line, Naturaltech aims more towards hair and scalp problems.
I picked the Renewing Conditioning Treatment as an accompanied conditioner to the Naturaltech Energizing shampoo – which doesn’t have a suitable conditioner – as it was the only one justifiable for its price.
The Naturaltech-conditioners, or the whole line for that matter, offer quite simple formulas compared to the price and what you get off the Essential Haircare line. While Naturaltech is more about targeting concerns, unless you’re looking for something specific, you’re actually better off pairing their shampoos with conditioners from the Essential Haircare line. This conditioning treatment was hard to come across in a travel size, but I managed to find one store that offered it.
This had a lot of positive reviews so I was very excited to try it! I imagined it to be similar to the R+Co’s Palm Springs pre-treatment mask in the sense that it can be used in several ways.
Now, I’m glad that I put the effort into finding it in travel size because, unfortunately, this was a huge letdown!
I’ve tried using it in several ways. As a pre-treatment mask, as a regular mask, and as a regular conditioner. But overall, I haven’t been impressed by the results. The pros are that it has a light formula which makes it suitable for applying to the scalp. And I feel like, the only way to get any benefits of the anti-aging formula, it needs to touch the scalp. The con is that it’s just not enough to hydrate and soften my hair.
The anti-aging claims are hard to comment on as I feel like I would need to spend at least a year to evaluate a difference. Overall, I felt like this wasn’t softening or detangling enough for my hair. And I also can’t see how any of the other Naturaltech conditioners would somehow be better if a “conditioning treatment” can’t seem to do the job.
Repurchase? As you might’ve sensed, no. But I’m not against the shampoos and other treatments from the Naturaltech-line.
The Ordinary Multi-Peptide Hair Density Serum
I bought this back when Deciem offered 50% off on this hair serum and their new Marine Hyaluronics. I bought two bottles of the hair serum as looking at the reviews and being awarded, I was sure I was going to love it.
It took me about 5 months to finish the hair density serum, used it almost daily from November to April (2019). And during those 5 months, I basically noticed nothing in my hair’s density from using this serum. If anything I was losing more hair than ever. However, I’m not quick to jump that it was this product’s fault. I seem to usually lose more hair during wintertime anyway. What I am saying though, is that this didn’t seem to help with that problem. Considering it’s supposed to support hair health. And how do you get thicker hair? First and foremost, by preventing the loss of hair!
Something I noticed and contemplated was that a lot of reviews are written within a month of use, and claim to feel a difference (or sometimes just commenting on the products themselves and not the results). Now, if I massage my scalp I also indirectly tease my hair. This results in the hair both looking and feeling thicker. So it’s not so much the serum doing the deeds, but more your fingers, and it can be achieved without a serum. I felt my hair feel fuller when using this product. But it was mostly because of the above statement.
Now, I know I should’ve made pictures. But unfortunately, I didn’t think that far ahead so you just have to take my word for it. But overall, where my scalp has the thinnest density I have not seen much improvement; whether it’s the density of the strand itself or the amount of hair growing per cm2. Nor could I document that my hair was growing faster than usual from it either.
I do think – with any hair product – that we need to be more critical. Hair grows in a rate of about 1.25 cm/month, so any difference shouldn’t be noticed until at least +4 months. People writing reviews within 1 month or 2 should be taken with a grain of salt.
I ended up selling my extra bottle as I felt like trying something else to compare. Also, this serum is a cheaper dupe of the Grow Gorgeous Density Serum – a brand originally from Deciem. And they claim that the use will help increase the thickness of each hair strand by 13% and to give the appearance of more hair strands. I’m guessing 13% is like on the top of best results? And note that they say “give the appearance”. The Ordinary is more reserved about their claims on their website. They’re just giving you a product, saying, these ingredients are supposed to help with x.
With all of this said, I’m not hating on the product as much as it sounds like it. In a sense, I can buy that it’s a serum for hair health, just like a peptide serum for the face. I might give it another try. However, it did feel like my hair got a lot thicker when I finally stopped using it and jumped on other methods and products. It’s somewhat hard to say if I finished it up just as it was starting to work on me, or my winter hair-loss cycle was finally ending, or if the new stuff I’ve implemented is doing the trick. Quite the coincidence… Therefore I would consider testing it out again in the future during another time.
I’ll be sharing more on hair growth, products, and ways to achieve thicker and fuller hair. I’m still figuring things out, but I’m finally getting somewhere.
Repurchase? I might. As a general hair serum, I don’t see the fault. But as in expecting miracles, I’ll be looking elsewhere. There are other ingredients that are true and tested to stimulate both hair growth and hair density. You have to keep in mind that peptides don’t have much independent research behind them. They are fairly new to be said that they actually help with hair health.
Bumble & Bumble Hairdresser’s Invisible Oil Primer
In my official review, which you can read about here, I mentioned repurchasing the full size. Although it’s not the best at de-frizzing or refreshing curls, I still grew to like it as a staple. Also, considering Bangerhead is was offering it at 40% off, you do get good value for your money compared to other primers in the same price range!
The full size did last me a lot longer than I had expected. And while I did contemplate on trying something new, I felt like no other primer or detangler could justify their price like this one can.
Repurchase? Already did.
Bumble & Bumble Thickening Dryspun Texturizing Spray
Described as a translucent dry finishing spray that instantly adds volume, lift, and airy texture. Although Dryspun Texturizing Spray may act a lot like a dry shampoo, it should not be expected to be one. While I’ve found it to help to go longer between washes, it’s definitely more of a lighter version of dry shampoo, focusing more on what it says to do, which is volume.
I believe this is my very first experience with a texturizing spray. Though I’m all for volume, I haven’t really been sold on the concept. I shy away from anything that might give hair a gritty texture and always imagined texturizing sprays would provide a lot of grit and dryness to my hair. So, for the most part, I’ve only wanted to try it more for the hype than thinking I will probably love it.
I’ve heard great things about the Oribe Dry Texturizing Spray and how this one compares. I’m yet to try the one from Oribe but I sense right off the bat that it is probably slightly better…? Not saying that the Bb. Dryspun is bad… Just that, compared to videos I’ve seen of the Oribe, Dryspun doesn’t have that instant effect with just one spray.
With that said, I never thought I’d like this one, but I ended up loving it! It gives hair thickness and volume without feeling uncomfortably gritty. And as mentioned above, it helps me stay away from washing one to two days more. I do feel though that you have to use quite a bit to get good volume. So the only complaint is that I only got about 5 uses out of this sample. Maybe that’s acceptable from 40ml? Still, compared to other travel-sized products, I expected to get at least 10 uses!
I do like this one better than the R+Co Dallas thickening spray (review here), that’s more like the Bb. Thickening spray and needs heat activation. A product like Dryspun is just more practical with my hair type and goals, as I never do a blowout.
Extra: As I managed to try the R+Co Baloon before publishing this review, I might as well comment on how the two compare. Although it’s almost been a year since I used Dryspun, I would say that I prefer the R+Co Balloon slightly more. It has even less grit to it. But overall, I found that you need to use a lot for volume in both. But in hindsight, that could be because I have long hair.
Repurchase? Yes, I definitely would!
Bumble & Bumble Repair Blow Dry
It’s a serum-in-cream blow dry product that is supposed to assist in hair looking smooth and healthy. It’s got heat protection (up to 230°C/450°F) and ingredients that help seal split ends and protect against breakage. Made for all hair textures that’s dry, damaged or color-treated. And, like most or all Bumble & Bumble products, it’s got some UV protection too.
I got this in a travel size when I bought their “Favorite Things”-set. As I’m growing out my hair I really like the split-end protection and sealing. The Bumble & Bumble Repair Blow Dry cream has a lovely scent (imo) and the texture is more on the liquid side of the spectrum. However, during the time of use, this wasn’t really the product for me; I usually let my hair air dry or diffuse and wear it wavy.
My way of using it was to use it as a serum and apply it at the ends for protection. Even though this may not be its intended purpose, I found it to work great! I even would apply some on dry hair if my ends were feeling dry. Overall I found it to be a great product, but perhaps not for me.
Repurchase? When I tested it out it wasn’t really the product for me and my needs. But as I’ve actually started to blow dry my hair with a round brush and abusing it with heat, I would happily repurchase!
