My LUSH Hits & Misses: Haircare

Image courtesy of lush.com.au

Image courtesy of lush.com.au

One of my best friends introduced me to LUSH a few years ago.  Since then, I've noticed several changes in the quality and prices of many of their products.  For instance, they have begun to aerate their massage bars, which means you're getting less products for the money (they weight about 1/2 or less of what they used to).  Their prices have also increased exponentially.  At any rate, the products that work are the ones I will continue to support.  There are some things I have yet to try, mostly because I don't care for the scent.  I did make an exception for Soak and Float (yes, it really does smell like a campfire, but the scent does not linger all day) because it was said to soothe itchy scalps, and it does.  The following is a chart of my personal hits & misses regarding their selection of haircare:

Shampoo (liquid/solid)	Hit	Okay	Miss
Big			x
I Love Juicy		x
Rehab	x
Daddy-O		x
Fairly Traded Honey			x
Cynthia Sylvia Stout	x
Curly Wurly			x
Blousey			x
Trichomania Solid Shampoo	x
Shampoo Bars	Hit	Okay	Miss
Seanik	x
Jumping Juniper	x
Godiva		x
Ultimate Shine			x
Squeaky Green		x
Soak and Float	x
No Drought Dry Shampoo		x

Big Shampoo

Big was interesting to try.  It was the first time I used something that was reminiscent of a body scrub as a shampoo.  I love the smell; it reminds me of hanging out on the beach, watching the sunset, and enjoying slice & some garlic bread from The Big Cheese.  Even though my hair felt quite clean due to the scrubby sea salt, it was never frizzier.  Once my hair was dry, it looked like I’d stuck my finger in a light socket.  Unfortunately for me, this was a miss.  I was, however, happy when they came out with the limited edition Big perfume.  My hair can smell like Big without the frizz.  

I Love Juicy

Unlike the title, I don’t really love it.  It smells great…like a tropical fruit salad.  After using it for a few days, I didn’t notice any changes in the look and/or feel of my hair.  I got the same results after using Alberto VO5.  I know that many people like it because I Love Juicy adds incredible shine.  It just wasn’t for me.

Rehab

I really like mint.  I mean I LOVE mint.  Tea, soap, scrubs, doesn’t matter what it’s in (for the most part).  That is a huge part of why I like Rehab.  It is cooling on my scalp, and leaves any part it touches refreshed.  The shampoo also leaves a minty scent that lasts awhile.  Overall, I like Rehab, but since it’s like any other shampoo just with some extra mint, it’s not a must-have.

Daddy-O

The idea of having a shampoo that is such a deep violet made me wonder if it would all wash out.  At the shops, they’ve said that the purple does something for the hair (but it doesn’t), and that it is great for all hair types and colors.  It is said to have brightening properties for healthy hair.  They also say it smells like violets, and I guess they’re right.  It’s one of those unique, unexplainable scents that you know when you smell it.  It lathered well, and my hair was shiner, but overall, I did not notice a significant difference.

Fairly Traded Honey

I wanted to like this.  It has loads of honey, but it smelled like rancid medicine.  After using it for a week, my hair was not different at all.  It was as soft and shiny as it had always been.  The site notes that, while the shampoo is great for all hair types, those who need added moisture particularly benefit.  This, overall, was a huge miss.  It smelled off, and did not do anything at it claimed.

Cynthia Sylvia Stout

I love stout!  Drinking it, cooking with it, and rinsing my hair in it—stout is quite versatile.  If you’re not into the scent of stout, then you may want to steer clear of this.  You won’t smell like it all day long.  It is quite strong, though, when showering.  This, of all the liquid shampoos, made my hair the shiniest.  It also left it significantly softer, and increased the healthy look of my hair.

Curly Wurly

Curly Wurly comes in the same black pot as Big.  It is studded with tons of coconut flakes and different oils and butters to hydrate the hair and scalp.  The site notes that it is perfect for those with dry, frizzy hair.  It is a bit softer than pomade, and I found that it hardly lathered at all.  When I rinsed it out, I used a shampoo comb to make sure that all of the coconut came out.  The first time I tried Curly Wurly, I thought I rinsed my hair out thoroughly...until I discovered that there were still coconut remnants left.  If you’re into trying really different things, then I’d recommend it.  Otherwise, this is something you could skip.  In my opinion, it doesn’t do much.

Blousey

When this came out, I couldn’t wait to try it.  It, too, comes in a black pot, so you can put it towards getting that free fresh facemask.  Bananas are great for softening locks, and this one is full of them.  I was hoping it wouldn’t smell like the synthetic banana smell.  My hopes were met, but with a really horrid scent.  The bit I tried had a rotten, sour scent so I could only use it once.  Maybe it was a bad batch?  At any rate, the one use did nothing for my hair.   

Trichomania Solid Shampoo

I don't understand why they don't make this a shampoo bar, since it is essentially the same thing.  Trichomania is a coconut-scented solid shampoo.  It lathers incredibly well, and is very moisturizing.  When I lathered my hair in Trichomania, I was transported back Hawai’i.  I coupled it with a bit of the Monoi from The Body Shop, and my hair was shiny, silky, and healthy, without any frizz.  It is also wonderful to take when traveling (as are the shampoo bars) because they won’t take up any room in the ridiculously small quart-sized bag.

Seanik

Seanik contains a bit of sea salt, Irish moss seaweed, and nori, and is said to provide volume, shiny, and turn locks into silky smooth tresses.  Seanik does not make my hair frizzy (unlike Big).  It smells nice, like the scent of tropical flowers coming off of the sea air, wafting into a condo overlooking the beach at sunset (or sunrise, if you prefer).  My hair is always soft and shiny after I use Seanik.  I’ve purchased this several times, and will continue to do so. 

Jumping Juniper

Jumping Juniper is my second favorite shampoo bar.  It was the first one I purchased, and I fell in love.  The scent is floral with a slight hint of citrus, and my hair loves it.  The roots of my hair tend to get quite a bit oily, and after using this for a week, I didn’t have that problem.  My hair was shiny, soft, and clarified.  Jumping Juniper has a sprig of lavender right on top, which is cute, but becomes a pain when you’re getting down to the end of the bar.  The last thing you want are bits of lavender falling out when you’re combing through your hair.   

Godiva

Godiva smells like Lust.  For those of you unfamiliar with Lust, it smells just like jasmine.  Godiva is a 2-in-1, full of butters and nut oils to condition the hair.  Godiva left my hair soft, silky, but at the end of the day; it was a bit too much for the roots of my hair.  The top part of my hair was greasy by the time I got ready for bed unlike the rest.  Godiva also contains bits of flowers, which can get stuck.  It has been over 10 years since I’ve had long hair.  When I used Godiva, I was combing out pieces of jasmine flowers and decided to blowdry my hair (I don’t normally) to make sure they all came out.

Ultimate Shine

Ultimate Shine was incredibly non-descript.  Perhaps it was a bad batch, but it didn’t have memorable scent.  My hair was left dull and lifeless, and by the time I was ready for bed, it was stringy.  This was definitely a huge letdown.

Squeaky Green

Squeaky Green left my hair clean, refreshed, and shiny.  The scent is very herbal and earthy, with tea tree and peppermint notes.  Its biggest con is all of the fragments of herbs that come out when using the bar.  When I tested it out, as much as I liked the end result, it felt like I had run through a thicket.

 

Soak and Float

I must preface this with saying that they are absolutely right.  Soak and Float smells EXACTLY like a campfire that had just been put out.  Yes, your bathroom will really smell like it the first couple of times, but you won’t— at least, not for long.  The scent, luckily, dissipates after a bit.  Its main goal is to soothe flaky, itchy scalps with cade oil.  Marigold petals are strewn throughout each bar, which (as I’ve said with the others) is irritating.  They tend to come off and can be difficult to rinse out.  When I had shorter hair, it was less of a pain.  Despite the cons, I continue to purchase Soak and Float because it works.

No Drought Dry Shampoo

I’ve tried several dry shampoos, including aerosol and loose powder forms.  This is okay for what it is.  No Drought has a tart, citrusy smell, which I liked, but it didn’t “wow” me.  It did the same as any other dry shampoo.  Since I have brown hair (w/gold & red tones), I had to be careful with how I applied it, otherwise I would look like I had powdery patches throughout my head.  In my opinion, it is not worth the price.

Conditioner (liquid/solid)	Hit	Okay	Miss
Veganese	x
American Cream		x
Retread			x
Happy Happy Joy Joy			x
Big (solid)			x
Jungle (solid)		x

Veganese

Veganese is one of my favorite conditioners outside of larger brands.  It is heavy enough to condition, but lightweight enough for me to use without my hair becoming greasy.  It contains lemon oil and lemon juice, which both help to make hair shiny.  Veganese also has a nice earthy, citrusy scent.  When I use it, I think of camping in the fields and spending time with my grandparents in Canada.

American Cream

American Cream is really popular, but I find it just okay.  It contains loads of vanilla and strawberries, yet it doesn’t really smell like either.  American Cream is heavier than Veganese, but not as heavy as other conditioners.  It didn’t weigh my hair down nor make it greasy.  It just wasn’t as effective for my hair type as Veganese.     

Retread

Retread smells floral with a hint of orange blossom, but is not overpowering.  It comes in a black pot (add it to your stash for a free face mask), and a little goes a long way.  It is their thickest conditioner; filled with oils to help the most damaged hair.  It was far too heavy for my hair, but the next time you’re in the shop, pick up sample.  It may become your new favorite.

Happy Happy Joy Joy

This came out when they introduced several new hair products.  It smells very much like orange blossom, is lightweight, and a bit runny.  It did absolutely nothing for my hair except perfume it (and even that didn’t last).  Since Retread was too heavy, I mixed the two, which created a well-balanced, perfumed conditioner.  Still, it was too heavy, and not worth the money in my opinion.  

Big Solid Conditioner

Apparently Big solid conditioner is supposed to volumize the hair, but I did not find that to be the case.  It smells a bit like the shampoo.  Big solid conditioner is fairly squidgy, and you have to form a paste to spread it.  I found it difficult to distribute the conditioner evenly, and it didn’t do anything special for my hair.  No volume, and no noticeably different shine.  I will not be re-purchasing it.  

Jungle Solid Conditioner

I really like the scent of Jungle—not sure how to describe it, though.  The instructions say to swirl it right in to your hair, but it’s difficult to determine which bits the conditioner has gotten to.  It softened my hair and left it smelling quite nice, like a fruity (but not obnoxious) tropical breeze.  Since it is difficult to apply, I either melt it down, or soften it and mix it with some coconut oil.  Since I go through it relatively fast, the added coconut oil does not compromise the conditioner.  Due to its difficult application process and lack of overall effectiveness, it is just okay, in my opinion.   

Hair & Scalp Treatments	Hit	Okay	Miss
R & B Hair Treatment and Leave-In Conditioner		x
H’Suan Wen Hua Hair Treatment			x
Marilyn Hair Treatment			x
Superbalm Scalp Treatment			x
The Hair Doctor Scalp Treatment	x
Roots Hair & Scalp Treatment		x
Shine So Bright Split End Treatment			x

R & B Hair Treatment and Leave-In Conditioner

Like many of LUSH’s products, R & B smells mostly of jasmine.  It is a leave-in conditioner/treatment, and it does work.  It made my hair soft, and it helped with the tangles.  Aside from thickness, it is like most other leave-in conditioners.  For now, I will stick with the Macadamia Oil leave-in conditioner since I’m not a fan of smelling like jasmine`.

H’Suan Wen Hua Hair Treatment

This was the first hair treatment I tried, and it was meh.  I was hoping feed my hair something that would revitalize it, but nothing happened.  It smells really odd.  I’m sure that it is due to the mix of different oils (including cinnamon), fruit, and fragrance.  At the end of the day, I could live with something that made my hair smell like a wet dog that had been trotting through a spice market if it had done something.  Alas, it did nothing.

Marilyn Hair Treatment

Marilyn was okay.  It may have made my hair shiner, but I did not notice.  It smelled mostly of lemon juice.  Perhaps this works better on blondes; I don’t know.  What I do know is that I got more of an effect after using the lemons from my backyard than I did this.  You could always get a sample to try it, which is what I recommend you do, before committing to a purchase.

Superbalm Scalp Treatment

This was a product I was really looking forward to.  It was supposed to help my scalp, but my scalp just felt like I had coated it with an oily paste—and I used it as directed.  Superbalm smells like vinegar and a little bit of citron.  After using the product over a month period, nothing changed.  I miss Snake Oil, even though it smelled like Soak and Float, because it did work.

The Hair Doctor Scalp Treatment

The Hair Doctor is in with the fresh facemasks, has to be refrigerated, and used within a timely manner.  I really liked this one.  The Hair Doctor kept my scalp flake-free and my hair nice and soft.  It does have a bit of a dirt-meets-mint-meets-menthol smell, but does not last.  It was also cooling, which was very refreshing. 

Roots Hair & Scalp Treatment

The consistency of Roots is a thin paste, which is easy to apply.  I sued it as directed and found that it made my roots far too oily.  Then, I tried it from just below the base of base of my neck, down.  It softened my hair, and smelled of light mint and neroli.  Still, it was too heavy.  If you have very dry, damaged hair, this may be the thing for you.  It just wasn’t for me.  Sometimes it would take two or three shampoos to get all of it out.  A little goes a long way, so unlike the instructions, you do not need half a pot for longer hair.

Shine So Bright Split End Treatment

Shine So Bright didn’t do that much for my hair.  It smells mostly of neroli oil.  When I used it at the ends of my hair, it looked as though I had just applied some pomade.  I had barely applied any at all!  It did not protect against nor mend split ends as the description had claimed.  Since I was quite dissatisfied, I returned it for something else I would definitely use.

I have also used Sea Spray, a texturizing seawater spray, which turned my hair into a frizzy mess.  I looked like I had been stuck in a static chamber, not like I spent the day at the beach.

Have you used any of the products mentioned in this post?  If you have a favorite, I would love to hear about it.  used something that turned out to be a "miss"?  I wouldn't mind hearing about that, either.

Stay beautiful!