Product Review*: Pureology SuperStraight

Ok. So, I've never been a cosmetics snob kind of girl. In fact, I've always believed that your regular ol' drugstore cosmetics usually work as well, if not better than their high-end competitors. And even if the pricier stuff is better, the difference would be so minimal that paying 3x for the product would just be downright silly. While a cushy MAC lipgloss might make me feel all splurgy and special, I do most of my buying from my friendly neighbourhood Shopper's.

But -- there's nothing wrong with free samples of ridiculously priced products, right? WRONG! I believe drug dealers are familiar with this marketing tactic.

Last night, I found these samples of Pureology's Super Straight Shampoo & Conditioner in my make-up bag. Acutally, they had been there in full sight for god knows how long (we're talking years here), but I never bothered to rip them open. I guess I was feeling adventurous last night, so into the shower they went.



The shampoo didn't look like anything special... in fact, I've already forgotten what it looked like. It lathered ok, and smelled all organic and botanical and shit. Like... lavender? [EDIT: I sniffed the remanents of the sample. Lavender? I don't know what I was smoking... it smells like fizzy cola. Maybe fizzy, organic, and botanical cola, but there's a definite cola zing] Normally, I'm not a fan of lavender or other herby smells, but I recently had my very first facial, and the botancially-smelling stuff they used on me made my face feel so damn good that positive associations were instantly formed. Connectionism is a wonderful thing.

Right, Pureology. So I rinse out the shampoo, and then put the conditioner on. There wasn't a lot of product in the sample (my hair eats up conditioner), so I had to use add bit of my regular conditioner to cover all my hair. Same smell as the shampoo, but this looked a bit thicker than regular conditioners.

When I rinsed it out, my hair was lacking that egg-yolk slip you get from the silicone-loaded deep conditioners I know and love. Bummer. But I did feel all vindicated: see? The $20 products don't do anything more than my freakin' Thermasilk! This stuff is highway robbery! And with that cheerful thought, I went off to bed.

Fast-forward to this morning. Even before I had straightened my hair, even before I'd passed so much as a comb through it... I could see that it was SHINY. That kind of deep glow that you see from strong, dark hair. It actually made my hair look a bit darker. Neato.

I continued with my usual routine of shine spray + straightener. When I was done, I was again surprised by the amount of shine... I probably didn't even need the shine spray. Also, my hair was not that "wimpy" kind of soft that I usually get from drugstore products. You know the kind... it's silky, but kinda flat and floppy. Nope... this time, my hair felt soft, but also strong and nourished. And I still smelled all botanical goddess. Strangely, I actually found my hair a bit harder to straighten. Not in an annoying way, it was just as if my hair was standing up for itself (see above re: wimpy hair). But oh, the shine!

So shit! Of COURSE the shampoo/conditioner that I fall in love with is a bajillion dollars. (Or $25. Whatever.) Of course. And now I don't know what to do. I love shiny hair, but I also love food. Plus, if they cut off my water, how the hell would I use my lovely new hair stuff? Such a conundrum.

For now, I shall make peace by going to look at my shiny swingy tresses. Enjoy it while it lasts, hair. You probably won't be getting a treat like this again for a while.

* Let's not kid ourselves. Product reviews are no longer 'random' -- they have become the raison d'etre for this blog. Why keep up the pretense?