Review: Hask Macadamia Oil Hydrating Deep Conditioner with Keratin

As you know, I am still looking for the holy grail hair conditioner for my 4a hair. I have reactions to various ingredients: the ubiquitous "fragrance", parabens, possibly witch hazel. It's difficult to know what will create a "flare up," so I am testing all types of hair conditioners. I have such a dry scalp, that nothing has relieved it so far except avocado applied to the scalp as a pre-treatment. But I continue to try various products. So here is my breakdown for this item.

Product's Benefits

• Repairs dry, damaged hair
• Enriched with Keratin
• Moisturizes hair

My Process

I used these products, in this order, with a rinse between each application:

1. Free & Clear™ Shampoo
2. Beyond the Zone Shock Therapy Extreme Clean Clarifying Treatment
3. Hair One Hair Cleanser and Conditioner with Argan Oil only applied to the back
   
4. Ovation Cell Therapy only applied to the front hairline, above the forehead.
5. Free & Clear™ Conditioner

The RATING: ★★★☆☆

This was ok at conditioning. Very shiny curls, no itchiness. I had some flaking by the end of the week. There is a scent and as you know I am sensitive to fragrance. This one is pleasant and not too heavy and it does disappear. You won't smell it the next day or on your pillow.

If you are interested, my husband's feedback: "There's a nutty aspect to the scent that makes your general scent less earthy, more nutty."

In general, this product is great as a deep conditioner unless you have allergies to fragrances and have dry scalp and dandruff. If you are like me, you would need to apply a pre-shampoo treatment. This isn't the holy grail but it's nice. I probably won't stick with it, because there are other conditioners that worked better.

Ingredients:

Water/Eau(Aqua), Cetearyl Alcohol, Cetrimonium Chloride, Lanolin, Quaternium-18, Macadama Ternifolia(Macadamia Nut) Seed Oil, Hydrolyzed Collagen, Hydrolyzed Keratin(keratin Protein), Silk Amino Acids, Juglans Nigra(Black Walnut) Leaf Extract, Simmondsia Chinensis(Jojoba) Seed Oil, Panthenol, Glycerin, Isopropyl Palmitate, Tetrasodium EDTA, Citric Acid, Propylparaben, Methylparaben, Caramel, Yellow 5, Green 5, DMDM Hydantoin, Fragrance/Parfum

Review: Philosophy Time in a Bottle

I've been wanting to pay more attention to my skin for awhile. When I was pregnant with my son five years ago, I was very sensitive to scents, as most women are. They didn't necessarily make me nauseated. Some did, but some scents just gave me a headache or feel itchy and flared up my allergies. I used to be able to use any and all types of cosmetics and creams. All of a sudden, that ended. I was sensitive to fragrances, animal smells, and my moisturizer and hair spray!(Please notice below that I've bolded the ingredients from this product in bold if they are also on the Avoid These list.

I ended up not using any moisturizer on any part of
my body for five years. The only thing that worked was a humidifier. Anyone who has been pregnant knows that your body is working so hard and that dry skin becomes a problem during this time. This is also a time when a lot of women get a bloody nose while

sleeping. At this time, you tend to slather on any and all moisturizers. I had to do something to alleviate my cracking skin and the uncomfortable dryness.

So it's been five years, two kids and I haven't been washing my face in the morning and I haven't been using moisturizer. I know, weird. Even when I was 13 I used a moisturizer. It's the one thing I always did. Wash, tone, moisturize. But here I am. Looking at my skin through the eyes of a 41 year old woman and thinking, "Oh I really let myself go!" I needed some real help. Philosophy's Time in a Bottle is one of the first things I tried.

According to the product information:
Time in a Bottle daily age-defying serum helps defy the appearance of all major signs of aging with a breakthrough dna renewal complex and high-potency vitamin c8 activator. The packaging shows a side by side view of before and after results.
*clinical study, 120 women, ages 25-55, once daily use. measurement of aging not yet visible on the surface using cross-polarized light to reveal sub-surface signs of aging in the epidermal layer.

Features and Benefits:

• transforms your skin inside and out at any age by targeting the source of aging: your skin's dna
• helps skin appear radiant, poreless, even, wrinkle-free, smooth and firm
• fresh-pour system triggers the highest level of activity and potency by mixing the serum and activator prior to first use

My Usage and Rating: ★★★★☆

I did not have to mix the contents for this sample of product. If you purchased the full size, you would mix the two liquids and must use it within a certain amount of time. 

I applied this at night after my evening shower for several nights in a row, about 10 days. I saw visible results. I really liked the product because I saw a smoother texture, looked better rested and saw that other products were proving more effective as well. I can honestly say I look much younger.

This is exactly what I was looking for. One of the problems with this product is that it lists some ingredients that are on my MAY-POSSIBLY-CAUSE-IRRITATION list. See below for the ingredients list. (I have marked in bold the offensive items)  So overall I would give this a Rating of 4 stars for myself. If you are especially sensitive then this might not be for you. I did not have a real problem with it, but I have since found some other items that I like just as well. The other problem with this product is the price point. It's about $74. For me this is a deal breaker. For some of my friends, it isn't. For this mom of two on a budget, this wasn't something I could get used to.

Suggested Usage:

-Prior to first use, pour the entire vial of high-potency vitamin c8 activator into the serum, and fasten pump to the bottle. 
-Shake well for 20 seconds. The serum will turn light pink, indicating it is ready to begin transforming your skin. 
-Use morning and/or evening by applying to clean, dry skin. 
-Follow with moisturizer, if needed. 
-Use within three months after mixing for best results. 

Ingredients:

serum: aqua/water/eau, dimethicone, alcohol denat., bis-peg-18 methyl ether dimethylsilane, cyclopentasiloxane, peg-8, butylene glycol, polyethylene, glycerin, dimethiconol, methoxy peg-18, camellia sinensis leaf extract, coffea arabica (coffee) seed extract, pongamia pinnata seed extract, angelica archangelica root extract, citrus aurantium amara (bitter orange) peel extract, punica granatum fruit extract, plankton extract, ptfe, bifida ferment lysate, peg-40 hydrogenated castor oil, acrylates/c10-30 alkyl acrylate crosspolymer, hydroxyethyl acrylate/sodium acryloyldimethyl taurate copolymer, squalane, ascorbyl palmitate, silica dimethyl silylate, tocopherol, polysorbate 60, lecithin, sclerotium gum, hydrolyzed soy flour, retinyl palmitate, propylene glycol, caprylyl glycol, micrococcus lysate, bacillus ferment, magnesium aluminum silicate, maltodextrin, trisodium edta, hydrolyzed vegetable protein, disodium edta, sodium phosphate, sodium hydroxide, potassium phosphate, potassium chloride, sorbic acid, adenosine, sodium benzoate, citric acid, parfum/fragrance, 1,2-hexanediol, silica, xanthan gum, ascorbic acid, lactic acid, sodium chloride, alcohol, acetic acid, phenoxyethanol, bht, mica, titanium dioxide (ci 77891).
activator: butylene glycol, 3-o-ethyl ascorbic acid, aqua/water/eau, fd & c red no. 4 (ci 14700), d & c red no. 33 (ci 17200).

Review: Hair One Olive Oil Hair Cleanser Conditioner For Dry Hair

If you've read my previous hair product blogs, you'll know what I'm dealing with here. To read some previous posts on similar items, check out this post on Mystic Divine Argan & Monoi Oils Nourishing Mask.

My Process

I used these products, in this order, with a rinse between each application:

1. Shampoo - Finesse Clean + Simple
2. Beyond the Zone Shock Therapy Extreme Clean Clarifying Treatment
3. Hair One Olive Oil Hair Cleanser for Dry Hair
4. Ovation Cell Therapy
5. Free & Clear™ Conditioner

The RATING - ★★☆☆☆

I compared this to the Hair One Argan Oil product. This one was not as good at moisturizing. My curls were shiny, but did not seem as moisturized. My scalp was still itchy afterwards and flaked near the end of the week. The scent was okay and tolerable, but it still did not please me. The product did not impress me enough to try again. It would work fine for someone who had just moderately dry hair. But if you have extremely dry scalp, are prone to eczema, have dense African American hair like I do, this may not be enough for you. Applying avocado straight to the scalp before washing may be better.

If you had different results or want to share your experience, please post a comment below.

Ingredients:

Water (Aqua), Cetyl Alcohol, Cetearyl Alcohol, Glycerin, Amodimethicone, CID 157846, Olea Europaea (Olive) Fruit Oil, PEG-60 Almond Glycerides, Prunus Amygdalus Dulcis (Sweet Almond) oil, Persea Gratissima (Avocado) Oil, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein, Chamomilla Recutita (Matricaria) Flower Extract, Rosmarinus Officinalis (Rosemary) Leaf Extract, Coffea Arabica (Coffee) Seed Extract, Vaccinium Myrtillus Fruit Extract, Rosa Roxburghii Fruit Extract, Panthenol, Butylene Glycol, Propylene Glycol, Stearamidopropyl Dimethylamine, Guar Hydroxypropyltrimonium Chloride, Menthol, Polysorbate 60, Citric Acid, BHT, Disodium EDTA, Potassium Sorbate, 1, 2-Hexanediol, Hexylene Glycol, Caprylyl Glycol, Sorbic Acid, Phenoxyethanol, Fragrance (Parfum)

Review: Every Drop Beauty and Lip Spatulas

I was just going through my makeup and skin products, realizing that I have a lot of unused product. I found some very expensive moisturizer that was housed in a glass bottle. I really like the product, but was using the pump tube, to get the rest of the product out of the bottle. There are some suggestions online to get extra product out of tubes and plastic bottles, but it's difficult to remove this product out of a GLASS container.

There are a couple of options out there, but I wanted to try something fairly inexpensive first. Here are the options, I was looking at:

SEPHORA COLLECTION Bottom’s Up Beauty
ProBeauty Tools
Every Drop Beauty Spatula

I opted for the Every Drop Beauty and Lip Spatulas because they were at the Container Store and I was already there. But I believe you can get them at Walgreens, on Amazon, etc. for a comparable price. 


I found that using them together for the glass moisturizer bottle worked best. I needed the larger one to get the sides and the bottom of the bottle. I used the smaller one intended for lip gloss, for the area behind the neck of the bottle. the results are below. 

Bottle after product is removed. 

What you see in this pot(right) is only a portion of
what I got out of the bottle. I took this photo
2 weeks after I used the spatulas. So you are seeing
this after I used two weeks of product. 

I've since used this with three bottles of lotion and toothpaste and have extended my regular usage by additional two months. For plastic bottles, I can easily cut them open and scoop the remaining product into a jar or a wide mouth travel bottle. Once you cut open a plastic bottle, the remaining lotion or product tends to dry out, so you need to have a clean container on hand. Hope this helps!

For more useful reviews on hair products or other beauty products, please go to Chardonnay's Reviews!

Review: Mystic Divine Argan & Monoi Oils Nourishing Masque

Still in a quest to find a the holy grail of curly hair deep treatments, I tried a Mystic Divine Argan & Monoi Oils Nourishing Masque sample. I did not clarify this week, because I hadn't been using a lot of product.

For the last few weeks, I have been applying fresh avocado to my scalp, leaving it on for a half hour prior to washing. This is just some background, so that you know what I was starting with.

Hair Type:

3c, 4a curliness, SUPER dry hair with DRY SCALP, not colored, shoulder length, brown. Washed once a week, due to SUPER dry skin and hair. I used this product in conjunction with Finesse Clean + Simple Shampoo.

Product's Listed Benefits:

•     Eliminates Frizz
•     Restores Shine
•     Conditions and smooths dry damaged hair

Application Instructions:

Place a small amount of Mystic Divine Nourishing Oil Treatment in hand and smooth evenly through wet or dry hair.

The Rating: ★★★★☆

This product was way more than I expected. Having had an interesting experience with another Argan Oil product, I was not really looking forward to using it.  I am extremely sensitive to fragrances and my experience with Argan Oil was so far, less than pleasing. I was pleasantly surprised. This product had a pleasant LIGHT scent. Beyond that, it distributed easily through my dense curly hair. I separated my mass of hair into approximately six sections and applied the product to each. I could feel the hair become slippery. Sometimes items that tout themselves as detanglers, don't really appear to penetrate or moisturize while using them. This one was GRREAT! It is the next day, and I love the way my hair feels. 

I decided to wait until after one week to finish this review to see if the product held up to my usual routine. By day 6, I had extreme dandruff and itching, more than my usual. I was determined to give it a second try. This time I used my usual applications of products, not skipping any steps. I applied the masque directly to my scalp and waited 30 minutes, before washing it out. Then I used my regular shampoo, clarified with Shock Therapy, reapplied the Masque, my Ovations cell therapy (hair treatment only) to my temples, and rinsed. Then I applied my regular conditioner (Free & Clear). 

The next day, I straightened it. My hair was unusually manageable when brushing through with a Michel Mercier thick hair brush. The hair feels really good, conditioned and smooth. I am optimistic that I will have better conditioning results this time around. If your hair is less dry and you wash and condition more often than once a week, then this is for you. 

Ingredients:

Water, Cetearyl Alcohol, Behentrimonium Chloride, Glyceryl Stearate, Dimethicone, Glycerin, Argania Spinosa Kernel Oil, Behentrimonium Methosulfate, Isopropyl Alcohol, Fragrance, Cocos Nucifera (Coconut) Oil, Dmdm Hydantoin, Tetrasodium Edta, Peg-4 Laurate, Citric Acid, Amodimethicone, C11-15 Pareth-7, Linum Usitatissimum (Linseed) Seed Oil, Iodopropynyl Butylcarbamate, Trideceth-12, Laureth-9, Sodium Pca, Gardenia Tahitensis Flower Extract, Yellow 6, Red 4, Benzyl Benzoate, Hexyl Cinnamal

Review: Beyond the Zone Shock Therapy Extreme Clean Clarifying Treatment

Because I don't use any product in my hair daily, I don't use a clarifying treatment regularly. As my hair is getting longer in some areas and breaking off in others, I'm giving in and am starting to use gel to keep the stray curly hairs around my hair line, controlled. Now I find that I should probably start clarifying again. I used to make my own, but my time is scarce now, so I'm trying some samples and testing them.

Hair Type:

3c, 4a curliness, SUPER dry hair with DRY SCALP, not colored, shoulder length, brown. Washed once a week, due to SUPER dry skin and hair.

I used this product in conjunction with the following products at different times:
Finesse Clean + Simple Shampoo
Ovation Cell Therapy Hair Treatment
Hair One Hair Cleanser and Conditioner with Argan Oil

 or Hair One Olive Oil Cleansing Conditioner for Dry Hair

Free & Clear™ Conditioner

Application Instructions:

Wet hair with warm water. Open packet and pour treatment evenly across wet palm. Rub hands together while adding one ounce of water to dissolve crystals and create a rich lather. Apply evenly throughout hair, scrunching ends and most affected discolored hair. Allow to remain on hair for 3 to 5 minutes. Rinse thoroughly and follow with conditioner.
For maximum lather, shampoo prior to application. 

The Rating:  ★★★★☆

I really really like this product. I love that it's a powder and that you add water to activate it. Depending on how much hair you have, you can use as little or as much as you like. I have a lot of hair, but didn't find it necessary to use the whole packet. I felt the hair extremely clean after using it. I conditioned again after application. I dried and straightened my hair. I found that my hair felt smoother, took products applied and kept my styles well, during the week. No offensive smell. I will definitely continue to use it.

Ingredients:

Glucose, Sodium Bicarbonate, Sodium Lauryl Sulfoacetate, Hydroxypropyl Guar, Disodium Edta, Sodium Gluconate, Polyquaternium-10, Allantoin

Review: Hair One Hair Cleanser and Conditioner with Argan Oil

Let me begin by telling you what the situation is. I have 4a curly hair. Ok, possibly 3c, or something in between the two. This is a degree of curliness (http://www.naturallycurly.com/hair-types).

Since I have curly hair, I only wash once a week. I am also used to dry scalp and occasional dandruff and/or itchiness. The itchiness was becoming so bad, that I thought I should begin to deep condition. Yes, I know. I should have been doing this regularly, but I have two little kids and a full time job. I don't even use product in my hair. Some days I'm lucky if I remember to brush my hair. (I wear it straight most days).

So I went to Sally's and bought some samples of clarifiers (see an upcoming review), and various samples of conditioner. I tried this one first as a conditioner.  

My Process

I used these products, in this order, with a rinse between each application:

1. Shampoo - Finesse Clean + Simple
2. Beyond the Zone Shock Therapy Extreme Clean Clarifying Treatment
3. Hair One Hair Cleanser and Conditioner with Argan Oil
4. Ovation Cell Therapy
5. Free & Clear™ Conditioner

The RATING: ★★★☆☆

I loved the results. Very shiny curls, no itchiness, no flakes. I did not like the very strong musky smell. It bothered me all week. I had to get it out! The smell was so overpowering that my allergies acted up, my pillow smelled musky and I was distracted. For the smell alone, this item does not get 4 stars. 

I went to look up whether Argan Oil is supposed to have a scent and all of the research said yes, but the descriptions did not describe what I smelled. I read that Argan Oil by itself had a subtler scent and that whatever I smelt was an additive. It's also possible that the Argan Oil was not pure or that this batch had gone "bad" or rancid. If you have a different experience, please post below!

So, in conclusion, if you like a musky smell on your hair, hands and pillow or you can tolerate perfume, then have at it! I just wish that I could. 

Ingredients:

Water (Aqua), Cetyl Alcohol, Cetearyl Alcohol, Glycerin, Amodimethicone, CID 157846, PEG-60 Almond Glycerides, Prunus Amygdalus Dulcis (Sweet Almond) Oil, Persea Gratissima (Avocado) Oil, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein, Chamomilla Recutita (Matricaria) Flower Extract, Rosmarinus Officinalis (Rosemary) Leaf Extract, Argania Spinosa Kernal Oil, Coffea Arabica (Coffee) Seed Extract, Vaccinium Myrtillus Fruit Extract, Rosa Roxburghii Fruit Extract, Panthenol, Butylene Glycol, Propylene Glycol, Stearamidopropyl Dimethylamine, Guar Hydroxypropyltrimonium Chloride, Menthol, Polysorbate 60, Citric Acid, BHT, Disodium EDTA, Potassium Sorbate, 1, 2-Hexanediol, Hexylene Glycol, Caprylyl Glycol, Sorbic Acid, Phenoxyethanol, Fragrance (Parfum).

Review: Roku HD Player

 Here is a partial view of my review of the Roku HD Player.

My Current Set Up: Xfinity cable box for Digital on a SD Sony TV, with a DVD.

My Rating: 4 stars
Headline: Nice addition to media system

Pros : Simple Controls, Fast Setup, No "hard drive" hum
Cons : Needs Disney Episodes

Best Uses : Home
Describe Yourself : Enthusiast
Was this a gift? : No

I purchased this after my Tivo Series2 conked out. I like that it has netflix and hulu as the Tivo Series2 does not. I also think it's going to be great when we travel to the in-laws', so my kids can still watch their favorite educational shows. I repaired my Tivo, but I still want to keep this addition, because I found some interesting channels that would never be available on regular cable. I love that there are no flashing lights (it's in our bedroom) and whirring hum like with a harddrive. It's unobtrusive and takes up very little space, it's not a huge piece of furniture like a cable box or tivo.

One thing I also noted in my review is that when you are using HuluPlus, autoplay is engaged. I suggested it be an option for the other channels. "Currently there is nothing in the settings to turn it on in the other channels. "