Aveda Be Curly

I know that most of the products I post about are good products in my book. This is because I spend a lot of time researching products on other blogs before I purchase them, so it is quite rare for me to buy a something that I really dislike. However, this is a range that I had asked for as a gift, so perhaps I added it to the gift list a little too hastily...

I have heard a lot of good things about Aveda - both about their products and their salons. I haven't been to any of their salons yet (maybe when I'm rich and famous), so I can't comment on that, but I can say that I am very disappointed with the range of products that I have tried.

I have very long, thick, wavy dark blonde hair, so it is often difficult to find products that are heavy enough to control it, but light enough that I don't have to wash my hair every day. That said, these things have a hefty price tag so I was expecting the very best.

I was given the shampoo, conditioner, curl enhancer, and style-prep. The shampoo and conditioner both smell amazing: very spa-like and clean. But that is where the good stuff ends. I persevered with these right to the bottom of the bottles (well you have to for that price!), but even right after I had blow-dried my hair, it felt lanky, lifeless and lacklustre. The shampoo didn't clean my hair enough, so after two days things were looking greasy, which is very rare for me, and the conditioner, although very conditioning on the ends, really weighed my hair down and just made it look a bit dull.

I was more sceptical about the curl enhancer and style-prep from the start. My hair doesn't usually like cream products in it post-wash pre-dry (usually just a bit of heat protectant and some serum will do) so I only put a little of the curl enhancer in. As expected, it just made my hair look kind of damp and clumpy when dry - not something that suits me. The style-prep is a little nicer, as I used it instead of my usual serum, but I definitely wouldn't turn it in for my Paul Mitchell. It did control frizz, but again, it just seemed to drain the life out of my hair.

So overall, sorry Avene, but I'm not impressed. I am so pleased I didn't ask for big bottles of the stuff as I usually do (my hair is long), but I am also pleased I have tried it as I can now confidently tick it off my lust-after list.

Which hair products are you loving at the moment? I've been trying the new L'Oreal ones for a couple of weeks now, and so far, so good. But more on that later. Let me know if you have any recommendations - I'm always on the look out for decent hair products.