Review: Mark Hill Intensive Conditioning Mask

Every other hair wash, I slap on something thick, gooey and nourishing on my hair. A hair mask or deep conditioner is as deeply embedded in my beauty routine as filing my nails when they break off. As my hair is naturally quite dry and bleaching it makes it extra brittle, it's not a step I could ever imagine skipping. As a result, I've tried a lot of products that claim to bring back your hair from the brink of near-death, from budget to high end (but mainly on the budget side of things).

As such, this is one that sits very snugly in the middle. It's got a very satisfying scoopy texture... you know, when you just get a nice feeling scooping it up with your hands...? ...no? I guess what I'm trying to say is that it's neither too runny, so you don't have to worry about it dripping out of your hair, nor so thick that you can't spread it evenly. It's got a sweet and fruity scent but by no means is it overpowering.

One thing I do really like about this is that it only takes a few minutes to get to work. None of that wrapping hair in a towel, waiting for half an hour and then getting back in the shower faff. This I just slap on, then I do my showery-exfoliatey-shavey things and it's ready to be rinsed off again.
It's more of a quick fix, however, than a long term solution. Post shower, my hair is left soft and silky, but without having the ingredients right here in front of me, I can almost swear blindly, that it ought to be down to some silicone magic - so it's not one for you if that's an ingredient you avoid in your hair products!

Personally, while I do try to shake it up a little from time to time, silicones are not an ingredient that I avoid altogether, though I do make an effort to go on silicone breaks to let my hair breathe occasionally. As far as other drugstore masks go, I'd say this is definitely superior to other cheap and cheerful options, such as Herbal Essences, albeit I wouldn't recommend it as a long term solution if your hair is brittle and damaged.

Review: John Frieda Sheer Blonde Conditioning Treatment

As a (quite heavily) bleached blonde using a deep conditioner or hair mask every other wash isn't just an option - it's an absolute must. I got this John Frieda hair treatment as part of a 3 for 2 offer when I was stocking up on shampoo and conditioner. To be honest with you I didn't expect a lot - just another high street hair mask that has way too much silicone in it to even stay on the hair long enough. But as it turns out, I was mistaken and ended up pleasantly surprised with the results.

Upon first inspection it really doesn't seem that different from every other hair mask you'll find in the beauty aisles of a supermarket. The texture is very smooth and slippy, albeit slightly on the thicker side and it's got that typical sweet haircare scent that you get in so many products.
But when it comes to results I really couldn't have asked for anything else from this. My hair was visibly nourished, dried a lot quicker and felt soft and smooth. On the other hand it also managed to be light enough not to weigh down my strands or make them feel greasy. It didn't wane in efficiency, either - it was just as good the day I opened it as it was when I feverishly scraped the last bits out of the bottom of the tub.

It says to leave this on the hair for 15 minutes and to be honest I don't think I ever hit that target time. I'd just apply it as I got into the shower, left it on while I did all my other shower-related stuff (including just standing there for a few minutes because hot water in the morning just feels SO GOOD) and then washed it off - probably after 10 minutes at the most. I still got great results, however, so I'm not complaining!

The John Frieda Sheer Blonde Conditioning Treatment is available for £5.99.

Neal & Wolf Ritual and Harmony Review

It's been a while since Neal & Wolf sent me a few of their haircare products to try out and review. I'm not entirely sure what took me so long to finally write up this review, as the two products I'd like to talk about today are genuinely brilliant and were an absolute joy to use!

Let's start with the Ritual Daily Cleansing Shampoo. I'll be honest with you right away and admit that I did not use this every day - but that's because I never wash my hair daily for two reasons:
1) It's not that great for my hair type to wash every day.
2) I'm way too lazy for that.

The shampoo has a very pleasant, slightly sweet salon scent (I get a good whiff of almond in there), though the smell does not linger on the hair once it's been washed out. It lathers really well and while there's normally not much I'd say about a shampoo, I do have to admit that this is somehow better than my usual cheap drugstore varieties. While it gets my hair perfectly clean, it doesn't make it feel stripped or straw-like like it often does with other shampoos. My bleached and treated hair wouldn't forgive me, but I reckon that with a normal hair type you could get away with skipping conditioner every once in a while and still end up with soft hair.

As for the Harmony Intensive Care Treatment I've already mentioned it a few times, but I simply cannot sing its praises high enough! I use this deep conditioner once a week, apply it to hair in the shower and let it do its work while I shave, exfoliate, etc...
It leaves me with silky and soft hair that is not greasy or heavy in any way. It does not sit like a film on hair to make it smooth like silicone-heavy hair masks often can. Hair feels really, deeply nourished and I get a lot less frizz, even in this horrible humid weather.

As for the packaging, both products look very elegant and luxurious on my bathroom shelves with their sleek packaging and I'm quite happy to have them both on display.

Personally, I always struggle to justify spending money on high-end hair care, but these two products have really been a bit of an eye-opener for me. I didn't see the benefits straight away - it probably took about 3 to 5 washes until I realised that my hair condition had just improved a lot. I'm already on my second tube of Harmony and I cannot think of any hair types that I would not recommend these to. They restore and they nourish, but without being too heavy even for fine hair - something I'd been looking for and could not find in many other products for a very long time.

The Ritual Daily Cleansing Shampoo retails at £10.95 while the Harmony Intensive Care Treatment goes for £12.95 (but you can also buy a gift set containing both products for £19.95)

Beauteco Box July 13

Seeing as last month's Beauteco Box completely blew me away and managed to reignite my excitement for sample boxes, I couldn't wait for this month's choices to roll around. It's a little unfortunate that I already own quite a few of the products that came in this month's boutique (namely the Neal and Wolf Harmony conditioner and the Artdeco eyeshadow base and eye liner), but nevertheless I still made a choice that I was very happy with.

1) Neal and Wolf | Elevate

Full size: £11.95 for 200ml

Neal and Wolf were kind enough to send me a few of their items to trial a while ago, those this is not one of them. I'd never used anything by the brand before, but every single one of their products has seriously impressed me so far, so while I'm a bit gutted that I don't get to try a new brand with this month's box, I'm more than happy to give another Neal and Wolf product a go. This was one of the two products available in each of the three options.

Neal and Wolf | Harmony

Full size: £12.95 for 200ml

This is the second product that was available in all three boxes. I own one of these babies already, but I'm starting to run low and I love it so much it's actually made it into last month's favourites (here). It's an absolute god send for parched and damaged hair like mine and I would repurchase it in a heart beat. I'll get a review up soon for those who may be on the fence, but till then just trust me - it's amazing.

3) Pukka | Radiance Serum

Full size: £32 for 50ml / Sample value: £6.40

And finally, this is the third item that came in each of the three box options. There may have been a bit of a situation when I pulled the protective foil off the tube and squirted serum everywhere - whoops! It's quite runny and has a very strong medicinal smell; you can really, really smell the manuka honey in there. Pukka is not a brand I've ever purchased anything from, so I'm quite excited to give this a go.

4) Eve of St Agnes | Refining Bamboo Exfoliating Polish

Full size: £18 for 50ml / Sample value: £5.40

Eve of St Agnes had a sample in the last Beauteco box and to be honest with you I didn't think their body balm really was that great. This sample, however, seems a little more promising. The exfoliator is thick and balm like and looks smooth from the outside, but is jam packed with tiny granules on the inside. And we all know I love a good and proper scrub! The scent is not entirely my cup of tea, but I'm still keen to see how my skin will react to this one.

5) Artdeco | Clear Lash & Brow Gel

Full size: £9.75 for 10ml

Yaaaaay, I'm so happy to see Artdeco pop up in this month's boxes! Growing up in Germany this was basically our version of Mac at slightly more affordable prices. I love their foundations and their huge colour spectrum, as well as their magnetic palettes which you can fill with every eye shadow / blusher / concealer / lip colour combo imaginable. It's a shame they're so hard to get hold of in the UK. I already own the eye shadow base that came in one of the other boxes as well as a few of their eye liners - and they're all pretty good! This one looks quite promising - I'm currently using MUA's clear mascara to hold my eye brows in place and it's not quite strong enough, so hopefully this will do the trick. One word of warning, though: Don't put it near your nose, it literally smells like PVC glue.

Total value: £46.45

So, have Beauteco box done it again? I'll be honest and say that I was a little disappointed that two of the main products this month are from a brand I already know with a product I already own. But, as I've already said, they're very, very good products that I'd happily repurchase anyway, so while the novelty factor isn't quite as high as it was last month, I still feel like I got a brilliant box. Once again, they're all products that I will use (probably till I can't squeeze another drop out of them) with impressive value for money. I'm already eagerly awaiting next month's offerings.