I know, holy wow, Syd’s back to blogging! Where has she been? What has she been up to? Well, that’s a story for another day, and maybe a book… but today I’m writing to tell ya’ll all about my hair and what it’s been up to. How often I clean it, and what I’m obsessing over currently.

Exciting time to be alive, right? Let’s jump in…

I can’t, I have to wash my hair…

5 days… the record I have set, personally, for how long between washes my hair can [read: that I’ll allow] go. And it never fails, the comments I get after I wash and style my hair – ‘OMG did you color your hair? Did you get it done?’ Nope, just took the time to be a girl, and you know observe some hygiene. Lol…

But with all the amazing Dry Shampoos out there being the real MVPs of entrepreneur and busy girl lifestyles across the world, I know there’s more than just me out there with this problem. When I don’t have the time to dive right into the Olympic event that is doing my hair.

Read more about my favorite dry shampoo here.

Scrolling, oh look an ad!

Who else is a sucker for Instagram Ads & viral Facebook videos? Well, I was scrolling one day and saw a video about shampoo bottles, the plastic involved in making them, how many bottles fill our landfills, and more… I know, that sounds like some crunchy hippie ish, right? The plastic in landfills situation is seriously a problem and another reason that Starbucks is removing their iconic green straws from their stores by 2020, so let’s get behind this no shampoo bottle shampoo. But, BUT, the biggest thing that sold me was the ad saying a single shampoo bar would last me 80 washes… and well, if you wash your hair as infrequent as me [lol], this is going upwards of for-ev-er.

As someone who is obsessed with trying new hair products (thanks to Influenster for starting this obsession!), I’m always up for trying new things items and giving my honest review. I’m forever on the hunt for the right hair products to make doing my hair easier and quicker. Here I come shampoo bar!

So, I did some research on Shampoo Bars, thanks to the video I saw, and landed on Lush Cosmetics’ website. *all the heart eye emojis!* I love a good Lush bath bomb, so I figured their products would be a fabulous ‘first try’ if i was trying anything new.

After adding all the Shampoo Bars and Conditioner Bars into my cart, I narrowed my decision down to one of each: ‘Honey I Washed My Hair’ (lol – my life story) shampoo bar, and the ‘Sugar-Daddy-O’ solid conditioner. I also got one round tin, and one oval tin for ease of traveling and popping them in my gym bag.

So, what the heck is a shampoo bar & why do I need one?

A shampoo bar is literally solid shampoo. (Think the equivalent of what a bar of handsoap is to liquid handsoap). No big bulky bottles, no wondering if you have an appropriate container to bring it with you when you travel.

‘Honey I washed my hair’ Shampoo Bar ($10.95)

Lather up with this luscious honey shampoo and immerse yourself in our best-selling honey-toffee scent. With a generous helping of real fair trade honey, this sweetie of a bar will moisturize and soften hair without weighing it down, leaving it soft, bouncy and smelling irresistible. This solid, self-preserving bar will last for up to 80 washes (that’s work of three bottles of liquid shampoo!) and requires no packaging. How cool is that?

How to use: Rub between hands to create a lather, or directly onto hair. Massage into the hair and scalp then rinse clean.

‘Sugar-Daddy-o’ Solid Conditioner ($12.95)

With richness beyond compare and a soft spot for blondes, Sugar Daddy-o is one to watch, Lighter shades will remain bright and classy (not brassy) after a few dstrokes with this pretty purple solid conditioner. It’s full of luscious linseed infusion, alongside a nourishing lineup of fair trade shea butter and Arian oil. A floral bouquet of violet leaf absolute, rose and bergamot mingles for a seductive fragrance that will last all day.

How to use: apply the bar to wet hair after shampooing and massage through. Rinse clean and enjoy your gleaming locks.

Lush Cosmetics Shampoo Bar & Solid Conditioner Review

let’s dive in…

My initial response: I LOVE THESE BARS.

Upon opening them I became immediately obsessed with the Honey I Washed My Hair shampoo bar, it smelled exactly like they described it – like honey covered toffee! I couldn’t run to the shower fast enough to try it out. It did flake apart just a bit in the initial unwrapping but it appears they may have coated it in a dusting of dry flaked soap. The size was that of a baseball in diameter and about 3/4 of an inch to one inch in thickness. Initially I was on the fence about the smell of the Solid Conditioner, and this bar was slightly larger in size comparison than the shampoo bar and felt much more dense. Think of about 1/2 the thickness of a Dove soap bar, and about 3/4 of the length.

Let’s wash that hair!

I hopped in the shower and couldn’t drench my hair fast enough. I was oddly excited to get to rub this shampoo bar all over my head lol… HOLY LATHER, Y’ALL! Seriously, 3 ‘back and forth’ scrubs of this bar in my hair and my whole head was Bert & Ernie level bubbles. #impressed. I did have to add a bit more up underneath of my hair (in the nape of my neck area), but I have a ton of thick, long hair. After I had a sufficient lather, I scrubbed and did the ‘normal’ washing my hair things. Then rinsed it out. Omg. The smell was amazing, and I was already planning on when I was going to wash my hair again. [wow, right?!]

Side Note: After washing, I placed my shampoo bar in the shampoo bar tin, and it fit almost too perfectly… So perfectly, actually, that I couldn’t get it out next time. So, be sure that your shampoo bar is fully dried before packaging away in the tin — OR get Lush’s square tin so there’s extra ‘grabbing’ space on the sides.

Conditioner time!

Less satisfying than the shampoo bar due to no suds, the conditioner bar was more difficult to use. This product took me a few more uses to figure out how best to phenagle proper application, but after a few trial attempts, I figured out it is best to submerge under the shower, rub between hands to start the process, then slide the bar down your hair from about 3/4 of the way up- all the way down. As Lush’s website stated the purple bar helps vibrancy of blondes, and I do believe this helped! It may be part of the reason I was asked if my blonde was brighter! WIN! I left this conditioner in my hair for about 3 minutes until I was finished washing up and shaving (I went all out on this shower!), and rinsed.

Side Note: The oval tin is too big for the Conditioner bar, but works.

Now to style…

Usually when I try random hair products, the true testament is in how easy (or difficult) it is to style my hair afterwards. As I mentioned before, I have a lot of hair, and sometimes frustration sets in, which is why it doesn’t get styled all the time. This time, after toweling off my hair, I used Eva NYC’s Mane Magic 10 in 1 primer all over my damp hair. I wish blog posts could smell, ya’ll, because wow… This post would be sending your senses into absolute LOVE. The Mane Magic smells abso-freakin-tastic! It has a dry-oil feel to where it makes detangling and pre-styling a breeze, as well as nourishing your hair to prevent damage from the heat we use to style. (Look for another blog post with more love for this brand coming soon.). The pictured travel size bottle, courtesy of Influenster. Scroll all the way to the bottom of this post for a shop-able Amazon cart.

When I blow dry my hair, I use a round brush, a paddle brush, and my babyliss hair dryer with condenser, and fun fact – it usually takes me about 35 minutes to have a fully dried head. No change in time to dry after utilizing these new products, but wow, not too much extra styling was needed after round brush drying! Which is huge since I typically have teenage Simba hair similar to what his looked like after getting pushed off the log during Hakuna Matata…

Tack on about 15 minutes of flat ironing my course textured hair, and voila… Soft, smooth, silky, and not feeling at ALL weighed down. This trio of products gets HIGH remarks!

The Verdict

Product promises: 5 stars

Product smell: 5 stars (4 for the solid conditioner)

Product Price: 4 stars

Dynamic Life ‘Ability’: 5 stars

Would I recommend: YES! Absolutely!

The grand verdict of this review is that YES, you should absolutely try these bars. My only draw back is the promise that these bars would last 80 washes. MAYBE that is the case for someone with short hair, and I will state that I have about 2 heads worth of 2 foot long hair… So, I’m definitely accounting for that here! My bar is about at it’s half-life after about 1.5 months of use, totaling at approximately 30 washes (guesstimated), which in the grand scheme of things is pretty good, but I can get that much life out of a bottle of shampoo, too, for less than $12. The smell of the Honey I Washed My Hair shampoo bar is TO DIE FOR, it’s my favorite scent to date and I love it.  It’s not too overpowering but still enough of a scent to give you a little pep in your step. If you live a fast paced life, one where you’re constantly on the go and maybe always have a gym bag packed, get these. Get a few of them. They will change your life!

Be sure to subscribe to my blog, join my FB VIP group, & follow me on Instagram for all the updates on new products I’m trying! Like the Orange Shampoo bar & Hidrate Spark water bottle coming in the mail soon!

As always, if there are any products you want my honest opinion on, I am always up for collaborations or suggestions!

xoxo,

Syd