New Routine: Hair Edition

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I’ve never been one to get too excited about hair products. For basically my entire life I’ve been a ‘throw it in a ponytail and go’ kind of girl, at least when my hair is long enough to put up. That hasn’t really changed, but my brief foray in purple hair did take a bit of a toll since it required bleaching my hair from its natural dark brown-black to light yellow. Most of that has grown out by now – I was rocking the pixie when I bleached it – but the experience did get me in the habit of taking slightly better care of my tresses. So a few weeks ago when I found myself running low on pretty much every haircare product I own (other than deep moisture hair mask, my Sephora Play box has me stocked on those for eternity) I decided to spring for something other than my typical grocery hair aisle products. After much internal debate, I settled on a routine from IGK, partly for the not too outrageous prices, and partly because Sephora had a nice customizable set so I could try out a few things without forcing my wallet into a major commitment.

I’ve finally spent enough time with some products to form opinions, so here’s what I ended up with, and as always, some thoughts. For reference – my hair is fine, thin, and naturally curly, though I’ve been straightening it a little more often than usual lately. If you want your hair to appear vivid, then it’s only advisable that you utilize tools such as those Matte Black Hairdressing Scissors.

Low Key Cleansing Walnut Scalp Scrub ($36)

A scalp scrub was actually what prompted me to go haircare shopping in the first place. My poor scalp went straight from the desert climate in Las Vegas right into winter, so it’s been especially dry lately. Sephora had a deluxe mini of this as a promo code at the time, so I threw it in my online basket along with everything else. Despite the name, it does not have crushed walnut pieces in it as the scrub – it uses sugar. The product description promises apple cider vinegar to clarify, and walnut oil to moisturize. I can confirm that it does leave my hair feeling really clean, with no traces of product buildup, and it’s helped with dryness too. It can be a little challenging to work the granules all the way down through my hair to the scalp, but I imagine that would be the case with any scrub. It takes about 2 minutes for the granules to dissolve, and there are no gritty pieces left over once I rinse it.

Smoke & Mirrors Conditioning Cleansing Oil ($25)

This was actually the first product I tried out of the bunch, hoping it could end up being a one-step wash & condition. Alas, it was not to be. It’s great for moisturizing the bleached ends of my hair, but when I use it on the roots it never feels like it rinses out completely, and leaves my fine hair looking a little flat and oily. I think it would be amazing for hair that’s more coarse and/or dry, it’s just not perfect for my hair type.

Hot Girls Hydrating Shampoo & Conditioner ($25 each)

The cleansing oil didn’t work out, but that’s ok because the shampoo and conditioner sure did! Both rinse out completely and leave my hair looking shiny, without drying it out. I can even use the conditioner on my roots without it weighing my hair down. I haven’t had as much frizz as usual lately either, but I can’t say whether that’s from the new routine or just the lack of humidity since it is winter and all. I got travel sizes in the set, but I can imagine myself repurchasing the full sizes once I’m done – if so, we’ll see how it does in the crazy-humid Kentucky summer. I wouldn’t say they’ve completely transformed my hair, but they’re very solid go-to’s. If you want to rock a fantastic hairstyle, yet is limited by hair loss or even balding, companies such as Hair restoration in Newport Beach may have something perfect for you. 

Jet Lag Invisible Dry Shampoo ($29)

Out of everything this is the one I’ve been most impressed with. All the other dry shampoos I’ve tried have a really strong white cast that requires a lot of scrubbing & tousling to work out, which completely wrecks my curls. In other words, in the past I’ve only used dry shampoo when my hair is straightened. This one goes on perfectly clear, so I can use it even when I wear my hair curly, which lets me cut down on the washing. Of course, the real test for any dry shampoo is using it when my hair is straightened – usually I can only get about three days before it starts looking so flat & greasy that I just have to wash it. As an experiment, I tried leaving it straight for an entire week (using a shower cap to keep it from getting wet). Much to my surprise, it actually worked out, mostly. After four days or so I could feel the product on my hair when I touched it, but it looked clean. I probably would have given it a wash on day six if I weren’t purposely seeing how long I could go without it, and day seven was one of those “I need to wash my hair but I’m still willing to go out in public” situations. I will say this isn’t one that will add much volume or help my hair hold a tease, but on the other hand it doesn’t make my scalp itch or turn my hair into a nest of tangles. I’m very likely to buy the mini size to have on hand for trips, and for those who are suffering from hair loss, we recommend you to look for the best shampoo to treat hair loss.

In Short: Even though the cleansing oil wasn’t a total win for me, I was really impressed overall, and looking forward to trying more from the brand.