Review: Giovanni Invigorating Tea Tree Triple Treat Shampoo and Conditioner

It's been quite a bit since I've done a review, but that's not because I haven't tried any products worth reviewing, it only because I haven't had the time to write up any!

Today I will be reviewing Giovanni Tea Tree Triple Treat Invigorating Shampoo and Conditioner. This review is based off of using the sample sizes.

It is always a struggle for me to find decent shampoo. When I was young, I developed a scalp fungus (of all things!), and even though the scalp fungus was healed, I have been battling with severe dry scalp since then. And when I say sever, I mean really, really bad dry scalp!

I've tried everything, including Head and Shoulders, but nothing really helped, until now. My mom is into natural things now, so she suggested I try this Giovanni shampoo with teat tree, since tea tree oil is good for cleansing your skin and removing impurities. I had been steadily using Head and Shoulders, which obviously wasn't working, so what could I lose. This product changed my life!

The Shampoo

Description from website:

• Invigorating ingredients deliver unmatched clarity and rejuvenation for hair and scalp
• Increases scalp circulation for a refreshed, renewed feel
• Strengthens hair with a three-organic-oil-blend to stimulate, condition and clarify
• Alleviates dry, flaking scalp with organic tea tree botanicals
• Lauryl and laureth sulfate free

First, I love that the shampoo is clear. It doesn't really lather up a lot and it does smell a little like menthol, but after washing it out,the smell doesn't linger on your hair. As for the flakes and dry scalp, after using this shampoo along with the conditioner twice (I usually wash my hair every other week). I noticed that there were significant less flakes in my hair the week in between washings. As an added benefit, my scalp did feel very clean and clear, and my hair was shiny and hydrated, even without using a moisturizer or oil sheen!

The Conditioner

Description from website:

• Increases scalp circulation for a refreshed, renewed feel
• Strengthens hair with a three-organic-oil-blend to stimulate, condition and calm
• Alleviates dry, flaking scalp with organic tea tree botanicals
• Encourages natural shine and resilience

The conditioner is very slippery, but rich, so you get pretty good hair coverage. As with the shampoo, there is a menthol smell, but it washes off with the conditioner. My hair is pretty thick, so it's a pain to comb anyway, wet or dry, but this conditioner did seem to help to make my hair easier to manage after washing.

Conclusion

I would definitely recommend using both of these products. I used both the shampoo and conditioner samples for about two months, and my hair looks and feels great! Best of all, these products help keep down my dry scalp and flakes a billion times better than even Head and Shoulders!

*Disclaimer: All products have been purchased by me for my own personal use.*

Review: ORS Incredibly Rich Moisturizing Hair Lotion

*Disclaimer: All products have been purchased by me for my own personal use.*
 

Image from ORS website

Hair is a big part of African American culture, especially for women (for better or worse). Whether you're into extravagant weave or not, you can't show up somewhere with your hair looking a hot mess.

Not only that, but it takes a lot of time, effort, and products for African American women to take care of their hair, from moisturizers, to hair oil, to gel, to relaxers. As much of a demand as there is for hair care products, it's actually pretty hard to find products that work the way they say they do.

Most African Americans have naturally dry hair, so we have to use moisturizers and oils so our hair doesn't become too dry and brittle. Way back when, the only thing that did the trick was hair grease, which is what it sounds like, grease that you put in your hair. Nowadays, there are a ton of hair moisturizers to choose from.

I've tried a lot of hair moisturizers, but the best is ORS Olive Oil Incredibly Rich Moisturizing Hair Lotion. All of the ORS products, including the relaxer, have olive oil in them for natural moisture retention.

First off, the thing I like about the hair lotion is that it has a subtle, non-offensive smell. Some hair moisturizers, especially the ones with natural ingredients, can smell horrible. The ORS hair lotion has a subtle smell that does not have a lot of fragrance so that people think you've dumped a bottle of perfume on your head.

Secondly, the lotion itself is thick and rich, but it doesn't leave your hair weighed down, and it absorbs quickly, so there is no build up and no residue when you touch your hair. It also gives your hair a healthy shine.

The bottle says to use a small amount, but since my hair is very thick, I use about double the amount specified. Depending on how dry your hair gets, you can probably get away with only using this hair lotion every few days (I usually moisturize my hair once a week, but that's only because I'm pretty bad at moisturizing my hair frequently enough).

I would definitely recommend ORS Olive Oil Incredibly Rich Moisturizing Hair Lotion as a hair moisturizer. It's thick and creamy, but isn't heavy once you put it on. It also does a great job of moisturizing. When I use it regularly, I notice that my hair isn't as brittle, and I have less breakage (meaning not as much hair in the sink after combing)!

Retro Hairstyles

From Marilyn Monroe to Katy Perry, the hairstyles of the 40's and 50's have withstood the test of time. Retro hairstyles add a touch of class, elegance, and sexiness, while at the same time being so old that they're avant garde! I've been dying to try out some retro styles to go along with a couple of retro themed outfits I have! If you're really interested in retro hair styles for yourself, YouTube is brimming over with video tutorials of many different retro hairstyles! Still, I have no idea how women used to keep these hairstyles up day after day!

Up Do's

Every since I started growing my hair out, I've been able to put my hair up in ways that I couldn't before when I was getting it cut regularly. Up do styles have a cornucopia of benefits (okay, so I probably didn't use that right in the sentence, but you still get the idea). For one, up do hairstyles are always in style, and can easily be transformed into elegant or classy styles, as well as casual ones. You can't go wrong with wearing your hair up, so expect tons of compliments; I actually get more complements on my hair when I wear it up than when I wear it down! Secondly, wearing your hair up really does help with keeping you cooler in the summer, trust me on this. When my hair first started growing out a few months ago, I used to wear it down almost everyday, but by the time I would get to work, my head would be hot and my face and neck would be all sweaty and oily. But then I started wearing my hair up, and the excess heat heat and sweating stopped completely! Even when I'm indoors I can tell the difference between my body temperature when I have my hair up vs when I have my hair down. Lastly, wearing your hair up deters creepy old homeless guys, and I speak from experience with this! When I wore my hair down, this creepy old homeless guy actually came up to me when I was standing at the trolley stop and asked me for my number because he had been watching me and like my hair! You can imagine how freaked out I was by this, so since then I don't wear my hair down when I'm out. This method has apparently been working, since the instances of creepy old men flirting with me have dropped completely (I have always thought this was quite perverted considering the fact that most people think I'm 12 or 13 anyway, and these men are obviously way over 30)!

Since I'm actually very bad with styling my hair, I have to rely on web searches and Youtube to find new hairstyles and how to do them. Here are a few of my favorites.

Big Hair

I have always had a fascination and love for big, puffy, curly hairstyles (must be a Southern thing)! I don't know what it is, but big hairstyles always remind me of a strange mixture of regalness, coyness, and childish cuteness. I try not to use hair extension myself, but when I do create a curly hairstyle I always feel like the perfect little princess (so what if I am a little old for playing dress up). Curls are also great for adding a little sexiness and flirtatiousness to any occasion, and can be easily dressed up or down. 

The world of high fashion practically reeks of big hairstyles. Every time I see a fashion magazine with some of those fanciful locks, I always think, "I could totally recreate that style and pull it off even better!" Of course, if I did manage to recreate it, I would just look ridiculous walking around like that, but it's still nice to dream a little! Here are some big hair pics that I found that I'm adding to my "if-anything-were-possible-and-could-actually-get-away-with-this" style wish list. Actually, it was unbelievably hard to find pictures of big hairstyles, so I couldn't get as many pictures as I wanted.