John Frieda Sheer Blonde Lightening Spray

I use this in-between dying my hair (which is usually quite a long time!) I try to avoid dying my hair as I don't want the condition to go downhill. My hair is in pretty good condition all the time which is great! I usually only dye my hair to brighten it up, and tend to go for shades quite similar to my natural one (perhaps a bit lighter).

So it's been a while since I last dyed it, and I've been using a range of different blonde products, such as 'touch of silver' which is a purple shampoo designed to get rid of any brassiness in blonde hair, and stop the 'ginger' tinge that it can sometimes get. That shampoo is great, smells quite weird... but in a nice way? ;) The only thing is that my scalp is quite sensitive, and I find that it aggravates this leading to an itchy and flaky scalp... so I use this not very often. My hair never has very noticeable roots, as my natural colour isn't dark, but you can definitely tell sometimes that it's due for a bit of colour!

No roots :)

Roots?!    

As you can see on the first picture (me: right) I have my fringe pinned back and the underneath of my hair, and roots are looking considerably darker than the rest of my hair! Nightmare! I assure you that I've only been using the John Frieda Go Blonder Lightening Spray & have not been dying it! Result! As you can see, it really does work! I can't speak for every shade of hair, as I know that many people have extremely dark roots, but it can certainly tone them down a bit in-between dying! Also excuse the second picture, no idea what I'm up to! haha....

Hair routine when using Lightening Spray:

- Wash hair with Aussie Mega Shampoo & Conditioner
(light conditioner leaves no residue and therefore doesn't weigh hair down) I like to use this combination of products as I'm spraying my hair after washing it, so I don't want too much greasy stuff on there to make it oily!
- Towel dry hair & spray evenly Go Blonder Lightening Spray on to roots. I also spray some on my brush and then work it through my hair for a more even finish.
- Dry hair
- Straighten or curl hair (the spray works off heat, so ideally both DRY & STYLE with heat)

It does take a few times to see a significant difference, but if you're a bit more impatient, then you can also use Superdrug Colour effects wash in wash out hair colour! (really cheap, £1.19 or 2 for £2) to boost your colour!



Hope this review has been helpful :) feel free to leave me a comment or anything and I'll get back to you!

Lucy xx

tips for glossy manageable hair!

Tips for glossy manageable hair! 

& Hair products I'm loving at the minute

Recently a few people have commented on how shiny and bright my hair has been looking, and I put it down to my current hair care routine and the wonderful products I've been using! I stumbled quite by accident on each of these items, mainly due to them being on offer I have to say! Always looking to save the £'s :) But they are really good products! Here is a recent picture of my hair after using these products. I really like how it looks on pictures and in real life, it's not just the flash that's making it so shiny, promise (although it does accentuate it!)

First of all, I try not to wash my hair too much. Washing your hair every day strips it of it's natural oils and can leave it greasy! You may think that you're washing the grease away, but by getting rid of the oils, your hair has to work over time to keep it replenished, and you end up with too much oil!

I have fine wavy hair, which tends to be flyaway (wind is the bane of my life!!) too many products weigh my hair down and leave it looking dull, so I try to steer clear of these and just use the essentials, shampoo, conditioner and occasionally hairspray (hairspray used in the picture above to set my loose curls!).

Products I'm using currently 

Tresemme Moisture Rich Shampoo
This shampoo is great, and is great even when used without conditioner! It's really moisturising and I actually noticed that my hair was looking more glossy even when using this alone as I'd run out of conditioner. I bought this from Superdrug and it was a real bargain! It's a large bottle, and was £2 I think at the time, which is really good for a large Tresemme! It's lasted ages and I'll definitely be buying it again! It really seems to moisturise the hair, and makes dead ends less visible as it helps with the dryness associated with split ends!

L'Oreal Elvive Nutri-Gloss Light
I don't use too much conditioner, as my hair is fine and it either makes it greasy or weighs it down. I have tried Elvive colour protect shampoo and conditioner (I sometimes colour my hair) and I found that it's TOO moisturising for my hair, and leaves it feeling like product is still in my hair after i've rinsed it! Nutri-gloss Light is great though! I decided to use light, as it's for hair that gets greasy or weighed down easily, and it really works! It works so well along side my Tresemme moisture rich shampoo, they are the perfect team for my hair! It washes out really easily and leaves my hair feeling super soft and looking shiny!

V05 Strong hold weather resistant hairspray
I have to admit first of all, that I don't buy hairspray often at all, and my absolute favourite is actually Asda's own brand hairspray. It's super light and smells AMAZING! It's perfect for holding my fine hair in place on a night out :)
This V05 stuff however, was on offer and me and my friend bought it to try it out (we were most probably in need of some hairspray for that night...) I have to say I do not care for the smell at all, it doesn't smell good! However, it holds curls, or loose curls all night long and provides the extra shine! I find that hairspray can often be too wet for my hair, making it look greasy and dark. This however goes on lightly and you can build it up to get the desired hold! Really good stuff minus the smell, it's not too overpowering though, and I just spritz some perfume around my hair and the smell is gone :)

These are the products I'm using at the moment to make sure that my hair is always shiny and manageable :) hopefully the picture shows this for you! I'd really recommend these products, especially the shampoo and conditioner! Please feel free to comment below, thanks for reading!

John Frieda Go Blonder Shampoo (review)

John Frieda Go Blonder shampoo review 

Well to start, I'll tell you that I have fine wavy blonde hair naturally (dark blonde) and I've tried a few things to try and get a fresh brighter blonde, including John Frieda Sheer Blonde. Sheer blonde in my opinion, is a great shampoo, leaves your hair feeling amazing! But it doesn't do what I buy it for, to brighten up my blonde hair :( I decided to try their 'Go Blonder' range, as I really want to brighten up my hair, without the use of hair dye! This is the product description: 

New Sheer Blonde® go blonder shampoo and conditioner, with citrus, chamomile and no harsh chemicals, gradually lightens hair to achieve a magical sun-kissed sparkle all year round

Trying 'go blonder' for the first time


The John Frieda Go Blonder range retails for around £5 each, but there are usually deals in Boots, Superdrug, Sainsburys etc where you can get two (shampoo & conditioner) for £7 which is pretty good if you like the product! 


Being a student, I can't really be splashing out £7 on shampoo.... so that's why I'm glad they have a travel size so I could give it a go! I bought the travel size Shampoo for around £1.95, still pricey in my opinion! (didn't bother with the conditioner, but perhaps the overall outcome would have been better using both together...) and I have to say, I don't like this product.....


My experience with 'Go Blonder' shampoo


I have found that this shampoo, unlike the Sheer Blonde, leaves my hair feeling very weighed down, and it almost feels like the product just won't wash out. Also, I find that it makes my dry scalp aggravated, and the flakes are more prominent and visible. I would have liked to use this shampoo for  a while, so that I could see noticeable results (lighter, brighter hair!) but the disadvantages I've just mentioned were just too unbearable for me, so I've discontinued using it! 


Advantages: none that I can mention
Disadvantages: weighs hair down, aggravates scalp, price, no noticeable results


Alternatives?
I have found that John Frieda 'Sheer Blonde' is by far a superior product! It's pricey like 'Go Blonder' but the overall result is soft manageable blonder hair :)

Another product that I have used, is Superdrug Colour effects wash in wash out colour (even though I don't really like to dye my hair) it's really cheap and gives your hair some colour (more colour each time you use it)


Please feel free to comment with your experiences with this product, perhaps it worked for you! :)

T-Gel Shampoo for dry hair: Does it work?

T-Gel Shampoo for dry hair: review


Do you have a dry, itching, flaking scalp? Well let me tell you, this product could be what you're looking for! 


Why did I try T-Gel?


Since I was put on very strong Acne medication (age 12) I have had terribly dry skin on my scalp (a side effect of the drug). At the time, the Dermatologist supplied me with Nizoral, a powerful (but pretty pink coloured!) psoriasis treatment for the scalp. Nizoral retails for about £7 (around the cost of a prescription, UK).  While this product is good, it can't be used daily, and this is what I need to keep my scalp under control.


Now that my acne is under control (I still get flare ups now and again) my scalp has improved, however I still need to have that dandruff shampoo handy, just to keep it at bay. I have tried T-Gel shampoos before, and the main turn off is the AWFUL SMELL! If you have ever tried T-Gel then you'll know what I mean! This meant that I stopped using the product, and inevitably my dry itching scalp returned......


What makes the T-Gel for Dry hair different?


So now that I'd stopped using the regular T-Gel, what could I do? I was looking around the specialist shampoo section in Boots, and came across the T-Gel for Dry Hair. It claimed to do the same as their other shampoos, but be milder and more nourishing for your hair. It does just this! The clear colour  suggests that there wouldn't be that awful smell, and yay, it has no trademark T-Gel whiff! This product is great for clearing your scalp, and you can even use it daily because it's not as harsh as their other products. It removes the flakes and excess oil gently and leaves my hair looking silky.


How do I use my T-Gel for Dry Hair?


I use my T-Gel Shampoo for Dry Hair, whenever I feel my scalp getting that little bit flaky (especially in the cold weather). At the moment, my daily shampoo is Tresemme moisture (I will be doing a review on this product) and I feel that these work great together! My routine:


1. wet hair, use a 50p sized amount and lather in to hair
2. massage in to scalp to dislodge any flakes
3. rinse well (repeat if necessary, I find once is enough)
4. follow with conditioner (I like Herbal essences 'beautiful ends')

I am glad I've found something which I can 

keep in my bathroom, in case of a flaky, itchy scalp! 

Pro's:                                                                    Con's:

- nourishes hair whilst clearing the scalp              - I can't think of any con's!

- price (around £4)

- no smell (yay!)

- suitable for daily use

                          Alternatives?

These alternative products are by no means inferior to the T-Gel I have just reviewed, but they just have more disadvantages than T-Gel for Dry Hair, in my opinion :) If you don't mind spending that extra money, then I would say that Nizoral is a good option. Also, if you don't mind strong smelling products, then I would go for regular T-Gel, which is really good too! I just prefer T-Gel for Dry Hair, because it's slightly cheaper and has no smell :)

       I hope that this review has been of some help, feel free to leave any comments regarding the product or your own experiences!