My hair has semi-fancy taste – it’s OK with some drugstore shampoos and conditioners, but some will make my scalp scabby and disgusting for no apparent reason. I’ve never gone wrong with Sunsilk or Dove though. Here are my current favourite types:
Sunsilk Perfect Straight (shampoo and conditoner both $4.79 for 200 mL) was designed in conjunction with Yuko Yamashita, creator of the Yuko straightening system I’ve tried in the past. Sunsilk shampoos leave your hair strongly scented, which can be good or bad depending on your preference. This does leave my hair slightly straighter and tamer than usual, but since nothing changes my hair shape except blistering amounts of heat, it’s pretty impressive. I’ve also tried Longer & Stronger and Addictive Brilliant Shine sets in the past, which also played nicely with my hair.
Dove Intensive Repair conditioner inspired my first MakeupAlley review back in 2011 – whenever my hair is looking sad, it’ll kick it back into happy split-end-free bouncy shine. However, it does feel a little superficial – the hair is smooth and shiny with lots of body, but the hair still feels a little stiff. I used to mix a pump of macadamia oil into the conditioner to penetrate the strand and soften it a bit. Dove have made it easier for me now, with the Nutritive Solutions Nourishing Oil Care series (shampoo and conditioner both $6.89 for 320 mL) – it’s got oil AND my beloved silicones! It’s not as moisturising as my DIY combo, but it’s handier, and it avoids the issue of sometimes getting some oily patches afterwards because it’s impossible to mix oil evenly into conditioner in the shower.
