Weekend Un-Lacquered Reviews: OGX Kukui Oil Shampoo & Conditioner

I have a shampoo/conditioner review for you today! Some of the biggest issues I have with my hair are oily roots, dry ends, and the humid climate I live in. I would say for all intents and purposes I have straight hair. It's not bone straight, but it doesn't have any definable waves or curls.

The humidity does weird things to my hair. I don't know if frizzy is the appropriate world since my hair is not curly or wavy, but the ends of hair tend to get fluffy or flip up at the bottom. Whatever it is, it's not cute.

I had been using the OGX Kukui Oil  Anti-Frizz Hydrating Oil the past few months with some good results, that I decided I'd take a chance on the shampoo/condionter. The Kukui Oil formula is really made for people with dry, frizzy, and curly hair. My hair doesn't really fit any of that criteria, but I find despite having oily roots that hydrating hair products work better for me than stuff geared for oily hair that strip and dry out my hair.

I bought this shampoo and conditioner without looking up reviews which is not something I do often these days. When I got home, I looked up reviews and saw these were reviewed very poorly. People either loved it or really hated it. People mostly hated though claiming it either did nothing or dried their hair out. I almost returned them without trying them, but I decided to give them a shot.

The results? I LOVE this shampoo/conditioner.

Product Description: Sulfate free. OGX's Kukui Oil indulges your tresses with this exotic blend of kukui nut oil, an ancient Hawaiian secret used for its humidity resistant abilities, creating a shimmering gloss to smooth and repel humidity, to help make every day a "good hair" day.

Time Used: I've been using these products for a month now.

Scent: This has a warm coconut tropical scent.

Consistency: The consistency of this shampoo is very thick and I almost want to say chunky. I know that sounds unappealing, but it's not. You can actually see the little kukui oil bits in the shampoo which is reassuring that you're actually getting the product described. It does come out of the bottle easily though it's just thicker than normal shampoo. The conditioner is smooth and thick and similar to the texture of most conditioners.

Application: This lathered really nicely for a shampoo with out sulfates. I did not find I needed a lot of this shampoo at all to cover all of my hair.

Price: You can purchase this at drugstore and big box stores in the $5.50-$8.00.

Results: The midshaft of my hair to my ends is usually dry after any shampoo. I have to say the Kukui Oil shampoo and conditioner eliminated that entirely. My hair feels fully moisturized from root to tip. It's silky, shiny, and so manageable. This shampoo/conditioner combo most definitely repels humidity for me. I find after a day outside my hair hasn't done funky things at the ends and keeps its shape. I have oily roots, and I don't find this exacerbates the issue either. My hair feels completely balanced with these products. I'm a happy camper.

It goes to show you how varied the experience is with beauty products. I was not even going to give these a chance based on the reviews I read, but this turned out to be a star product for me. I can't say the same for other people. I think there are substantially more factors at play with hair care products rather than nail polish. I wouldn't let negative reviews dissuade you from trying a product that interests you. You may have a different result!

My Rating: 5 out of  5 Paint Splatters

Happy Saturday!

Weekend Un-Lacquered Reviews: Battle of the Dry Shampoos Round 2

It's time for Round 2 of my Battle of the Dry Shampoos! If you missed Round 1 please check it out here. In Round 1 I discuss my judging criteria and everything you need to know about this whole Battle of the Dry Shampoos process.

Let's get started with Round 2's contenders!

Battle Round 2: 

Pantene Pro-V Original Fresh Dry Shampoo

Dove Refresh+Care Volume Dry Shampoo

got2b rockin' it encore fresh Dry Shampoo

psssst! Instant Dry Shampoo

Pantene Pro-V Original Fresh Dry Shampoo- Price around $5 (drugstores and big box stores)

Scent: The scent of this smells like Pantene Pro-V shampoo. It's a very clean soapy scent. I really like this scent a lot.

Application: This dry shampoo has ZERO white cast at all. In fact, this dry shampoo is completely invisible. I had no application issues with this one.

Effectiveness: This dry shampoo I found to be effective minimally. This barely absorbed any oil in my hair and my hair still looked greasy after application.

Hair Texture: This did not alter my hair texture or make it feel heavy with product. My hair was still greasy after application though.

Pros: I really loved the scent of this dry shampoo. I wish more dry shampoos would go the route of smelling like shampoo rather than other scents. I also liked that it didn't have a white cast.

Cons: Well, it was ineffective. It did not absorb the oil from my hair really at all. My hair still felt and looked greasy after application.

My Rating: 2 out of 5 Paint Splatters

Dove Refresh+Care Volume Dry Shampoo: Price around $5-$6 (drugstore and big box stores)

Scent: This has a sweet and powdery scent. It's definitely a cleaner type scent, but I find it a bit too sweet smelling for my tastes.

Application: This applied easy, but it did have a gray cast when it is first applied.  I did find this brushed out easily though. I also found it was a bit heavy handed.

Effectiveness: This was a bit more effective than the Pantene one, but not by much. This did absorb some oil, but not enough for my hair to not look greasy.

Hair Texture: I felt this was slightly heavy on my hair. It felt like I had some type of product in my hair, but it was minimal. It was noticeably, but not anything off-putting.

Pros: I liked that the gray cast it left on my hair could easily be brushed out.

Cons: The scent, minimal effectiveness, and the way it left my hair feeling were definite minuses for me.

My Rating: 1.5 out of 5 Paint Splatters

got2b rockin' it encore fresh Dry Shampoo: Price around $6-$7 (drugstores and big box stores)

Scent: This dry shampoo has a refreshing clean citrus scent. It's uplifting and not overpowering.

Application: This applied easy without any noticeable trouble. This does leave a white cast on the hair, but I found it was easy to brush it out.

Effectiveness: Out of all the dry shampoos I've tried so far this has been the most effective. This absorbed the oil in my hair really quickly and well. My hair looked clean and looked as close to freshly washed as possible with this dry shampoo.

Hair Texture: This did not weigh heavily on my hair or alter the texture of my hair.

Pros: Great scent and very effective. I like how this didn't just absorb the oil, but made my hair look really fresh and clean too.

Cons: The initial white cast on application isn't ideal and maybe more troublesome for people with darker hair color.

My Rating: 4.5 out of 5 Paint Splatters

psssst! Instant Dry Shampoo: Price around $6 (drugstores and big box stores)

Scent: This has a very straight forward powdery scent. The scent is neutral and non-offensive. I don't dislike this scent, nor do I like it. It's fine, and would be a nice option for people who don't like scented dry shampoos.

Application: This has as pretty heavy handed application, and boy did this leave a major white cast! I was able to brush it out though.

Effectiveness: This is the OG of dry shampoos, and it is effective. This absorbed oil well and quickly. My hair was grease free.

Hair Texture: This is where this falls short for me. When I touched my roots it felt like I dumped a whole bottle of powder on top of my head. It just has this weird powdery almost grainy feeling to my hair. You couldn't see it, but I felt it. Honestly, it felt pretty gross.

Pros: This dry shampoo is effective at absorbing oil and doing it's job. It has a neutral scent that maybe preferable to some people.

Cons: I couldn't stand how this made my hair feel. It felt like I had a ton of product on it.

My Rating: 2.5 out of 5 Paint Splatters

Rank:

1. got2b rockin' it encore fresh Dry Shampoo

2. psssst! Instant Dry Shampoo

3. Dove Refresh+Care Volume Dry Shampoo

4. Pantene Pro-V Original Fresh Dry Shampoo

Sum Up:
This wasn't a good batch of contenders, but there was one winner in the bunch. got2b dry shampoo really impressed me. It's not a brand I'm really familiar with unlike the others which had me worried. This one out ranked them all by a landslide though. psssst! came in second for me, and if it weren't for the way it made my hair feel I would of ranked it higher. I would definitely repurchase got2b's dry shampoo though out of all of them I've tried so far. I'm still holding out hope for one that will out rank that one, so there will be more dry shampoo battles! Stay tuned next month!

Happy Sunday!

Weekend Un-Lacquered Reviews: The Body Shop Camomile Sumptuous Cleansing Butter

One of the wonderful things I've been introduced to over the past year are cleansing butters and oils. I had never considered using these types of products to cleanse my face because I have oily to combo skin. My first inclination was why would I want to add oil to my already oily skin? I have learned the products I used in the past to strip oil were only making it worse.

Let me tell you, ever since I've been cleansing my skin with oils or butters, my skin has been less oily. I'd say my skin has shifted from oily-combo to combo-normal! This cleansing butter from The Body Shop has been a great find for me.

Camomile Sumputous Cleansing Butter

Product Description: This cleanser is an indulgent make-up remover for the whole face. It gently and efficiently melts away make-up and impurities, leaving skin feeling clean, refreshed and pampered.

• Gently melts away make-up
•  Leaves skin feeling clean and petal-soft
• Removes all types of make-up
• Suitable for sensitive skin and contact lens wearers

This is what the product looks like inside the tin. I've had this for around two and half months. It's clear from this image this will last me a few more months!

Scent: This a very faint and pleasant camomile floral scent. The scent is not overpowering, strong, or perfumey at all. 

Application: You absolutely have to apply this to your skin with clean and DRY hands. I always clean and dry my hands first before using this. Your face must be absolutely dry too! The amount you use I think is dependent on how much makeup you have on your face. I think it's always better to overestimate than under. If you do not use enough product it will not remove all of your make up properly. I use about a quarter size maybe teensy bit over a quarter size amount.

I then rub this between my hands, and it instantly melts into an oil. I rub this onto my entire face, while paying extra attention to my eye area for a good minute. This melts your makeup away and it's a process you can watch. This does not sting or burn your eyes at all. I love that about this because I can really see it removing my eye makeup. I don't have to guess. I know when it's gone! 

Removal: I personally remove this just with water. I get my hands wet and start working the water into my face. This causes the product to turn into a slight frothy and milky consistency on the skin. Once you reach that consistency I put my face over the sink and wash the rest off using more water from the faucet. Viola! You could also remove this with a washcloth if you wish. 

Skin Feel: This leaves me skin feeling very soft and hydrated. I do not detect any greasy or oiliness after using this cleansing butter. 

Results: This removes all of my makeup very well. It's gentle and easy to use.  I will say that in the beginning I did not use enough product, and I was left with some mascara residue. As I mentioned before it's best to overestimate how much you need than underestimate. That being said, you can see from my tin now, I still have months of product left, so I don't feel I'm using up the product quickly. 

Price: This is $16 at The Body Shop, however, The Body Shop is always running some sort of B3G3, B2G1, X% off sale, so you really don't have to pay full price!

Overall: I really like this cleansing butter. I think it does its job. It's gentle, removes all of my makeup, and I like how my skin feels afterwards. 

My Rating: 5 out of 5 Paint Splatters

Happy Sunday! 

Weekend Un-Lacquered Reviews: OGX Kukui Oil Anti-Frizz Hydrating Oil

I think I have discovered an HG hair oil for me! Before, I get into my review let me tell you a little about my hair type.....

I have for the most part naturally straight hair. I don't have bone straight hair, but my hair doesn't have any defined waves or curls in it. I do have to flat iron my hair to smooth it out because I will get flyaways, fluffy/frizziness on the ends, or some of my ends will flip up or curve under.  All of this on top of living in incredibly humid Florida.

I'm not sure if frizzy is the proper term for people who have straighter hair? I know I hear frizz with wavy or curly hair? I think my hair gets frizzy in the ways I described above especially in summertime with this humidity. I have tried other types of oils to combat this argan, macadamia, and Moroccan oil. Some of these work OK, but they're not doing the job I really want them to. Then I came across OGX Kukui Oil.

Description: Indulge your tresses with this exotic blend of kukui nut oil, an ancient Hawaiian secret used to for its humidity resistant abilities, creating a shimmering gloss to smooth texture and repel humidity, making every day a "good hair" day.

Scent: This has kind of a warm vanilla type fragrance to me. It's not a bakery overly sweet vanilla, but rather a more exotic and sexy vanilla scent. I like the scent, but did not find it overpowering or long lasting in my hair. This is a good thing.

Application: Easy application. I adore these spray oils. They are lightweight and give you even coverage. . I apply a few sprays (approx. 3-4)  all over my head after I get out of the shower. I also do a light spritz (1-2 sprays) focusing just on the ends before I go to bed.I did not feel this made my hair greasy or weigh my hair down.

Results: This truly repels humidity and tames my hair better than any other hair oil I've tried. It also lasts all day in the Florida humidity. Weekdays, before dinner I shower after exercising. On weekdays, I typically just get straight into my PJs because I rarely have anywhere else to go for the night, so I'd rather not have to heat style my hair.

Previously, I'd have to blow dry my hair after showering these nights or my hair would turn into a fluffy frizzy mess using other oils.. When I use the OGX Kukui Oil after these early evening showers,  I can let my hair air dry without having any frizz at all. My hair dries smooth without frizzing or fluffing out. I can wake up the next morning with the same result. I still have to flat iron my hair to get it completely straight, but I do not have any frizzy flyaways or puff ball hair at all.
On weekends I shower in the morning and do follow up with blow drying, and have the same long lasting and anti-frizz results.

Price: This is around $8 in drugstores, Target, Walmart, and Ulta. I recommend purchasing from either CVS or Ulta who typically have monthly sales on OGX products.

Overall: Highly recommend this product especially if you live in a humid climate! I'm very pleased with my results with this product after 3 weeks of use.

My Rating: 5 out of 5 *Golden* Paint Splatters

Happy Saturday!

Weekend Un-Lacquered Reviews: Revlon Color Burst Lip Butter- Wild Watermelon

I wanted to share with you today one of my "go-to" lip colors for summer. This is one I've already started wearing a couple days a week, and I can only see that continuing. I wore this one a lot last summer too. This one is part of Revlon's Color Burst Lip Butter line. I love this line so much as I find this the perfect medium in between a lipstick and a tinted lip balm.

Wild Watermelon

Swatches:

Color: This is a beautiful mix of a juicy red, pink, and coral shade. I'd say this definitely leans toward a red-coral shade. What I like about this color is it's very wearable. The color pay off on this lip butter is excellent. It's not heavy handed as it's a sheerer wash of color, but it's definitely more pigmented than a tinted lip balm.

Formula and Feel: Excellent formulation. This feel very moisturizing on the lips without being heavy or sticky.

Application and Wear: This glides easily on the lips and there is no need to layer it for more pigmentation. This wears well too. I only needed to reapply this after eating or drinking.

Price: This can be purchased in the $4.50-$8.00 range at major drugstores, big box stores, or Ulta.

Overall: This is a beautiful juicy lip color for summer. I love the pigmentation and how wearable this color is . The formula is great and it feels very comfortable on the lips. I definitely think this is a must have in your lipstick collection for sure.

My Rating: 5 out of 5 *Golden* Paint Splatters

Happy Sunday!

Weekend Un-Lacquered Reviews: Battle of the Drugstore Dry Shampoos Round 1

I've been on a mission the past few months to find my HG (holy grail) drugstore dry shampoo. Dry shampoo is an absolute must for me. My hair is the type that gets greasy on the scalp, yet is dry on the ends. I don't want to wash my hair daily and dry out my ends more, but I don't want to walk around with a greasy scalp either. I need a dry shampoo!

I'm not new to dry shampoo, but over the past several years of cycling through many I haven't found a favorite. There are many I haven't tried in years and others I haven't tried at all. I decided to start with a clean slate and try as many as possible over the next few months. I figured I'd share my results with you all while I'm at it.

How It Works:

• Dry shampoo has to be able to found at a major drugstore or big box store.
• Dry shampoo has be under $10
• I will test the dry shampoo in 2 separate uses. I know this may sound like very little, but dry shampoo unlike some other beauty products doesn't seem to improve over time or with more use. 
• I will test/review 4 dry shampoos per post.
• The winner from each testing period will battle it out with other winners in a final post. 

How I'm Reviewing: 

• Scent-What the dry shampoo smells like, and my reaction to the smell.
• Application- My experience with how the dry shampoo applies. Is it easy? Is there a gray cast?Etc.
• Effectiveness- How effective the dry shampoo is upon application and after a full day of wear.
• Hair Texture After Use- How this dry shampoo made my hair feel after I used it. 
• Pros- What I liked about the dry shampoo.
• Cons- What I didn't like about the dry shampoo. 
• Paint Splatter Rating
• Ranking & Sum Up- The end of each post I'll rank them, name my favorite, and sum up my overall experience. .

How I Use Dry Shampoo: 

• When using dry shampoo, I lift the roots of my hair and spray it on my roots. I rub it in my hair and let it sit for 2-3 minutes before brushing out.
• For reference I do have medium-dark brown hair. 

*Please note that these are my own personal experiences and opinions. Some of these I may hate and you may absolutely love or vice versa.  I'm not dictating how you should feel about these products, but rather sharing my experience. 

Let's get started!

Battle Round 1:

 Suave Refresh & Renew Dry Shampoo

Batiste A Hint of Color Medium & Brunette Dry Shampoo

L'Oreal EverStyle Energizing Dry Shampoo

 Herbal Essences Color Me Happy Instant Clean Dry Shampoo

Suave Refresh & Renew- Price around $2.50-$3.00

Scent: This has a strong tropical fruit scent with a slight minty undertone. I'm not a fan of this particular scent, but I know others might like it. To me, this kind of smells like rotting fruit. It has this kind of musty smell to it. It's not horrible or revolting, but not pleasant either. I find this scent really lingers on the hair too. I would catch whiffs of it all day. 

Application: This applies easily, but it leaves a very stark white cast on your hair. This did brush out of my hair easily though. I found it blended in and didn't leave a gray cast. 

Effectiveness: I thought this dry shampoo was very effective. It absorbed the oil, and my hair felt and looked clean after use. I also found that it lasted well throughout the day.

Hair Texture: This made my hair feel a little straw-like and dry. It wasn't bad at all, but it was harder to run my hands through hair at the roots because of this. 

Pros: This dry shampoo was very effective at absorbing the oil and lasting all day. I liked how my hair looked clean and fresh after use. 

Cons: The scent as effective as it was I don't think I can get past it. The was strong scent, not  pleasant, and lingered throughout the day. The way my hair felt after application wasn't horrible, but didn't feel entirely natural either.

My Rating: 3 out of 5 Paint Splatters

Batiste A Hint of Color Medium & Brunette Dry Shampoo- Price $8.99

Scent: This had clean and powdery scent. Powdery scents are not my favorite either, but this was very neutral. I didn't love it, but I didn't hate it either. This is lightly scented and it wasn't overpowering. 

Application: This is a colored dry shampoo. I will say even though it's colored if you do over do it, it does have a dulling effect on your hair color. This comes out as a darker brown color, but did not alter or darker the color of my hair. This applied easily too. 

Effectiveness: I thought at first this was a fail. I did not have instantaneous results with this Batiste dry shampoo. This one took about 10-15 minutes to take effect after application. This absorbed the oil well, and looked very natural in my hair. I did feel at the end of the day my hair wasn't as greasy as when I started, but the effects did wear off a bit. 

Hair Texture: This dry shampoo did not alter the texture of my hair after use at all. My hair still felt like my hair, and I could easy run my hands through it without detecting any product or change. 

Pros: Blended naturally with my hair color, did not alter the texture of my hair, and was effective and absorbed oil for majority of the day. 

Cons: It took a little longer to absorb oil than other dry shampoos, wore off a bit throughout the day, and the scent wasn't a a winner. 

My Rating: 4 out of 5 Paint Splatters

L'Oreal EverStyle Energizing Dry Shampoo- Price $6-$7

Scent: This dry shampoo had a very pleasant, clean, and fancy salon shampoo scent. This smelled like luxury shampoo. You know the shampoo that is like $30-$50 you can't afford, but smells heavenly. Needless, to say I LOVED this scent of this, and it was my favorite scent of the bunch. 

Application: This applied easy, and with zero white or gray cast. This actually sprayed on completely clear. 

Effectiveness: This is where this disappointingly goes south. I so wanted this to be the "it" dry shampoo. This had the opposite effect as the previous Batiste dry shampoo. Upon application this instantly absorbed the oil. I thought this was a winner, but 20-30 minutes after application my hair looked greasy, and I'd even say greasier than it did before I even applied it. I tried this on more than 2 occasions with the same exact result. 

Hair Texture: I don't feel this initially altered the texture or feel of my hair. It blended in naturally, but like I said before 20-30 minutes later my hair felt greasy again. 

Pros: Spectacular scent and no gray/white cast.

Cons: Everything else that makes a dry shampoo worth it. This was completely ineffective for me. My hair was greasier than it was prior to use. This dry shampoo had zero staying power, and I'm completely bummed about it. 

My Rating: 1 out of 5 Paint Splatters

Herbal Essences Color Me Happy Instant Clean Dry Shampoo- Price $5-$7

Scent: This has that classic floral and clean Herbal Essences scent. I can't describe it or put it in words really. I love this type of scent though, it's not as great as the L'Oreal dry shampoo scent, but it's good. 

Application: This applies pretty heavily. A lot of product comes out when you spray. This also does leave a slight white/gray cast, but not nearly as strong as the Suave one did.

Effectiveness: This was very effective, almost too effective, which I'll get into next. This sucked all the oil up instantly in my hair and lasted throughout the day. This sucker is strong! My hair definitely looked clean after use. This does say color protection on the bottle. I'm not sure how a dry shampoo can color protect though?

Hair Texture: This is where I found this too effective. This really made my hair feel sticky and dry. I had trouble running my hands through my hair, and overall my hair just didn't feel like my hair. 

Pros: Great scent and extremely effective at lasting oil absorption. 

Cons: Heavy handed in application and left my hair feeling straw-like and unnatural. This maybe due to how heavy this product applied. 

My Rating: 3.5 out of 5 Paint Splatters

Rank:

1. Batiste A Hint of Color Medium & Brunette Dry Shampoo

2. Herbal Essences Color Me Happy Instant Clean Dry Shampoo

3. Suave Refresh & Renew Dry Shampoo

4. L'Oreal EverStyle Energizing Dry Shampoo

Sum Up: 

The only one here that I really had terrible results with was the L'Oreal one, which was the most disappointing since I loved the scent. I didn't have any real winners here either. I don't feel a strong desire to repurchase any of these unless I really can't find a favorite dry shampoo after all of my tests! I did have the best results with the Batiste with the Herbal Essences coming in a close second. 

I will have Part 2 up in the next 2-3 weeks! I'll be posting a preview of Part 2's contenders on my Instagram in the next few days! 

Happy Saturday!