My product review

Here are some of my favorite products (and by no means have I tried them all) Now that I'm out of a salon and I can't get the same exclusive products we had there (or at least I'd have to pay full price for them), I'm just starting to branch out to try different ones. I'd love to hear suggestions too.

First of all, anything Kerastase is awesome, and I could recommend something in all of my categories below. It's just expensive. But if you have the chance, it's worth it. At the salon we also had the L'oreal Series Expert line, and it's also great. For the more affordable line, we had Textureline, so you'll find that's where a lot of my favorites come from - so probably mostly just from the fact that I've used them the most, not that there aren't comparable products from other companies.

*Products before drying - first, I like to put in something like this Textureline Inner Structure Treatment - it's like a light leave in conditioning spray to help keep your hair healthy, and is good for detangling.

After that, what products you use depends on hair type, of course. I have curly, dry hair which I usually straighten out, so I like to use a good smoothing product. This is what I put in:

Textureline harimix supreme smooth, and hairmix sublime shine.
They also work well for curly hair, just to help it not frizz and have some hold to it.

Although, for curly hair (or people who can make it curly with some effort or by diffusing it), my first recommendations are usually these two:

Textureline curl memory spiral down creme (helps control the frizz and dryness) and curl memory spring up curl styler (to help it curl, give it some bounce and help it hold). Use the creme first, then the spring up styler. The spray can also be used more once it's dry. I prefer to use a root booster too when I'm doing hair curly (next).

For finer hair I'm all about using a root booster to help get some lift at the scalp (or anyone looking for some lift at the scalp, not necessarily just fine hair).

Such as this root booster by Matrix amplify.

Also for fine hair (or if I'm planning on doing some style on regular hair where I want more hold or longevity of the style) some type of volumizing mousse or something is good. I like this one because it's a spray mousse (less messy and easy to get at roots):

Textureline aeromousse.

*For finishing products, I love Biosilk Silk Therapy- it seems to work well on almost everyone because it's lightweight.

Or any type of serum, or shine serum is a great finishing product. It makes your ends look healthier and more polished and helps with fly-aways and frizzies. I've also tried ones by Renewal, Kiwi, and others that all work well.

Although, my personal can't live without finishing product is the Sexy Hair shine polish. This is definitely not for all hair types because it's a very heavy product, but if I run one product through my hair to fake it on days when I don't do my hair, it's this, and it seems to work magic.


If you ever decide to try it though, start with very little, rub it in your hands and run your hands through your hair a lot to get that really polished shine. If your hair can't handle heavy prouducts, you'll probably just look like you need to wash your hair again.

And then there are more specialized finishing products, pomeades and cremes, etc. like if you want funky texture or hold. If you like to flip it out, or like just a bit of a light piecy look, I like the Textureline beach creme:

*For conditioning masks my favorites of course are by Kerastase, and this Absolut Repair by Series Expert:

But I've recently found this one by Kiwi that seems really promising and is a more readily available (and cheaper) line:

Kiwi deeptreat conditioning masque.

*Dry shampoos - these are sort of a secret trick if you're having trouble going a few days between washings. My friend first told me about these a while back when she read somewhere that Jessica Simpson is a fan. You just spray it on your roots, brush it through and it helps get rid of oils and also adds some volume.

Pssssssst (friends have found it at drug stores).


Batiste (I've found this one at Sally's).

They sort of feel like you're spraying a spray deodorant on your head or something, but hey, whatever works. And they're only like $6 or so.

*And while I'm only my beauty products soap box, I must of course speak of my love for self-tanner. Gone are my days of sunbathing or tanning. In my old age and my concern about wrinkles, I've realized if I can't spray it on or smear it on - I don't want it. My favorite is the Loreal Sublime Bronze with the instant bronze tint (I'm all about instant results, none of this wait 4 to 8 hours to see anything at all), plus it's easier to see when you're doing a bad job working it in. There's also one specifically for the face.

And for those home manicures and pedicures, I can't stand doing it without the quick dry drops. Otherwise, unless I remain perfectly still in a room by myself for an hour or so, I will inevitably ruin all my hard work.




Phew! There you have it. My picks and my favorites. It's nice to have that all written down for reference anyway, I guess. For the most part though, I'm not a big stickler about you have to use this certain brand over that one, but I am a believer in using products period. At least you see the types of products I would use in which case. Let me know what other ones you like - I'm always on the lookout!