Listen To Your Hair

This is part product review, part me realizing that I am not paying attention to my hair!!!

This Milk Protein and Olive Oil deep conditioning treatment was given to us in the swag bag at the Blogalicious 2011 conference. I have not taken the time in a while to do any kind of conditioning treatment to my hair. Since I’ve been natural (~14 months), I’ve done maybe 2 conditioning treatments. I have done one protein treatment, but the protein treatment that I did was messy and required heat and since I no longer have a hair dryer, I have not done it again.

This is my hair before the treatment. Ignore my little gray there in the front. It’s almost time for a henna treatment. It’s just a chunky twist-out that I put into a puff as I was laying around the house. I washed with Wen Cleansing Conditioner and applied the Milk Protein and Olive Oil Treatment, as directed by the packaging. This product is currently sold in packets and I think the directions were directly ported over from that package as the directions tell you to use the entire pack. Needless to say, I ignored this particular section of the directions. I used a little over a third of the container, but I really slathered this stuff on. I probably could have used less, but I wanted to make sure every strand was well coated. I haven’t given my hair any extra care in months so I was not about to skimp, especially on a free product.

The product went on well. I really appreciate that the smell is not heavy with perfumes. It’s a medium scent with a menthol kick to it. And that menthol felt very good on my scalp. It was very cooling and that was exactly what I needed to help sooth away the final remnants of the migraine I had that morning. The white color and texture of the product made application a little reminiscent of applying relaxer. *flashback!* I didn’t dare try to detangle my hair at this point as the product suggests.

The directions suggested covering with a plastic cap and sitting under a dryer for 10-15 minutes or just covered for 30-45 minutes. I covered with a plastic bag and used my Hair Therapy Wrap for the heat. I got caught up in television when I ran across Imitation of Life (one of my favorites)! It was an hour later when I finally got up to wash it out. I think when the product is warmed under the dryer or plastic cap, it would be easier to detangle. I chose to just wash it out without the detangling.

I rinsed and immediately noticed a nice firmness to my hair that I’ve been missing for too long. It’s hard to describe beyond that. My hair wasn’t soft, but it wasn’t crunchy like it can be after some protein treatments. It felt structured as if any style I put it in would hold without falling apart while still being touchable. I styled in two-strand twists using the Olive Oil Smooth N Hold Pudding.

The next morning, I had this….

Sorry for the tired eyes. I am not a morning person and I’m going to blame some of that on the time change…no it doesn’t matter that I got an extra hour. It wasn’t enough! But my hair is happy this morning. I was definitely in need of a protein treatment and I should have paid attention to the signs some time ago.

So, product recap...

Positives

*Good packaging--I tend to through my products in a huge basket together so I feel better when products have screw tops like this one and not the snap tops.

*Nice smell--I suffer from migraines that can be brought on by strong smells and this medium scent was no problem to deal with.

*Texture--very smooth, easy to apply

*Price--This 16 oz jar is available through the website for $6.99. It is also available in 1.7 oz packets for $1.99 I’m not sure what the price point of this product will be in this size packaging (16 oz).

Negatives

*None--I will continue to use this product (maybe once every 4-5 weeks) to see how my hair reacts later. Since this is a protein treatment, you have to use your judgment on how often to use it on your hair. And of course, protein rich products aren’t for everyone.

I definitely recommend this product as a light to moderate protein treatment. Sofn’free has new products that will be hitting the shelves starting 11/11/11 (according to the rep at Blogalicious 2011). I will definitely be on the look out for them.