[HMC] Hair Mask Challenge ~ Entry #2: Marc Anthony - Repairing Macadamia Oil Deep healing Conditioning Treatment

Alright, round two! This review and the next one I will be posting later this week kind of coincide with each other since they are the same brand. Ulta was having a buy one get one free sale on all Marc Anthony hair products, so I picked up this one and the Oil of Morocco Deep Hydrating Conditioning treatment. I haven't tried that one yet, but I will within the next few days.

I also wanted to discuss something that I hear in my store almost every day. And that is the subject of sulfates in hair products. I get people in who ask me for a good sulfate-free shampoo, but when I ask them why they need a shampoo without sulfates, they almost always don't know. "My friend said it's great", or "I just heard it's great for your hair". Sodium Lauryl Sulfate (there are others, but this one is most common) is nothing more than a lathering agent, it's what gets your shampoo into a nice thick lather.

The benefits of having of a sulfate-free shampoo are mainly for those who spend hundreds of dollars on getting their hair colored either at a salon or through box colors. The sulfates can eat away at your hair color and cause your gorgeous color to fade faster than usual and in some people it may dry out your scalp. I personally have never had problems with shampoos with sulfates since as most of you know, I bleach my hair. Which brings me to my next point: I often have women come in with GORGEOUS blonde hair asking for a sulfate-free shampoo claiming that it's gonna help them preserve their hair color. What hair color? You stripped your hair of all color when you put bleach on it! If you have no hair color to begin with and want to preserve your blonde hair, sulfate-free shampoos are probably not the best option for you. That's what violet shampoos are for. But that's another subject entirely.

The reason I bring up the sulfate-free thing in the first place is because I am now noticing that companies are putting "Sulfate-free!" on some of their products that never in a million years would ever have sulfates. And it's suckering in all these clueless people to buy their products. This hair mask by Marc Anthony is not different, they have it right there on the package. This next part is important: Conditioners or hair masks of any type will not and should not have any sulfates in them, ever. When was the last time you used a hair conditioner and it started foaming up like the shampoo did? Never. That's right.

That being said.... click below to read my review of the Marc Anthony Repairing Macadamia Oil Deep Healing Conditioning Treatment!

[HMC] Hair Mask Challenge ~ Entry #1: EVA~NYC - Therapy Session Hair Mask

As previously mentioned I will be adding my personal reviews on Hair Masks starting with this entry. As an Ulta employee, I see many, many different types of hair masks. They range from branded hair care (Neutrogena, John Frieda, Nexxus, and other "drugstore" brands) all the way to Professional Hair Care (Redken, Moroccan Oil, Matrix, and other Salon exclusive brands.) The main difference in these two types of hair care products is the price: Neutrogena, Aussie, John Frieda and other similar brands are called "drugstore" brands simply because they can almost always be found at major retailers such as Wal-Mart, Target, King Soopers, and Safeway, and they only cost between $3.99 and $14.99. Professional Hair Care brands are only sold in retailers that have a salon, or directly to the salon itself and can go anywhere from $25.00 to $45.00. Although you can certainly find expensive brands such as Frederick Fekkai, Bed Head, Sebastian, and Redken in retailers such as Wal-Mart, Nordstrom Rack, TJ Maxx, or Ross.... they are not fully guaranteed by the company unless it is sold in an approved salon. Meaning that you could possibly be buying an older formula of that product, or a complete knockoff. Not saying this is always the case, but just know that there is a reason it's not being sold in the salon. Some people don't care, but for those that do, now you know!

As far as reviews go, I will examine a few key features that I think are important in a hair mask such as feel, softness, smell, etc. The rest is all up to you! Please also keep in mind, all products reviewed can be found at your local Ulta Store unless otherwise noted. They may be found somewhere else as well- but I am only buying from my own store so that is where I suggest you buy it as well!

EVA-NYC: Therapy Session Hair Mask

Price: $14.99
What size? 16.9 oz
Animal Tested? No.
Paraben Free? Yes.
Where can I buy? Ulta.com (Clicking the link will bring you directly to the product)

Click read more on the bottom right hand of this post to read the full review!

[Update] After a year of Hiatus...

It's almost been an entire year since I've updated my blog.... guess it's time for some updates!

As far as blogging goes, I am going to be focusing on three things: 1) The usual, books! Novels I've read, and maybe some parts of my own, 2) Travel, and 3) Beauty Products.

Specifically, I want to do something I am calling "The Hair Mask Challenge". I sarcastically told people at work that I was going to try every single Hair Mask that we sold, and now.... I kind of want to do it. I love Hair Masks, I love the way they make your hair look and feel, and I think that EVERYBODY should include one in your weekly hair regimen no matter what type of hair you have. Now, obviously working at a Beauty Store, there are hundreds of masks to try, so I am not going to do it all at once, I will buy them when I can or run out of the last one and post about them when I can!

Depending on how this goes, I may branch out into skincare, but for now I am focusing on Hair Masks.

I've already used some masks, so I will start with those before buying new ones, so if you are in the market for a great hair mask- watch for my posts!

I think that's it for now...

Thanks for reading!

Matthew