Bastiste Shield My Locks, Heat & Shine Spray

Price - £4.45 (Boots)

Pros

• Easy even application
• Cruelty free
• Keratin & Inca Inchi Oil
• 230°C Heat Protection
• Adds volume

Cons

• Not travel-sized
• Slightly drying

Cruelty free, affordable hair products are one of the hardest things to find on the high street, so when I received my June 2017 Glossybox, containing Batiste’s Heat & Shine Spray, I was over the moon to discover this well known cruelty free brand made a heat protection product. Luckily I’m blessed with naturally wavy hair which occasionally forms it’s own ringlets, so I rarely need to style my hair, I’m also incredibly lazy with my locks. However, on the odd occasion I do straighten my hair, whether it’s for a night out or to simply get another day out of it, I am insistent on the use of heat protection.

First of all, I was incredibly impressed with receiving the full sized version of this product in my June Glossybox, so a big thank you to them. However, the downside to the size of this product is it’s not the easiest to transport around and it doesn’t currently have a travel-sized option. As a 22 year old who loves a good boogie but lives in the countryside, I often get ready for a night out in the bedrooms of friends who live in the city. So naturally any products, that I don’t use daily, with a travel sized option would be perfect for those of us who are always the guests at pre-drinks. However, if you’re often the host or style your hair daily, then the size of this product is ideal as it will last you well.

What sets this product apart from other heat protection products I have used in the past, is that it’s an aerosol rather than a spritz. Personally, I find this far easier to apply and achieve total coverage before styling, it also seems to soak into the hair quicker than a spritz, so you can get to styling a lot quicker without frazzling your locks. As the name suggests, not only does it protect your hair against the damage heat styling causes, but with the help of Keratine and Inca Inchi Oil, this spray gives your hair that added shine. An added bonus to this product is the volume it gives to your hair, much like Batiste’s offering of dry shampoos. The only draw back in terms of how this product works is I felt it left my hair feeling kind of dry, I’m not sure whether this is because it’s an aerosol, it’s not fully protecting my hair or another reason. However, it doesn’t dry up my hair enough to put me off using this product.

So far, I am a fan of this product, however I am open to trying out other products that are more hydrating than this one, but as I mentioned, affordable cruelty free hair products can be a challenging feat. For now, Batiste is a reliable cruelty free brand and £4.45 is definitely a reasonable price to pay.

Derma v10 Pastels Hair Colour (Paradise Pink)

Price — £1.99 (Home Bargains)

What’s in the box?

• Colour Cream tube
• 2x Conditioner sachets
• Application Brush
• Instruction Leaflet
• Pair of Gloves

Pros

• Cruelty free
• Vegan
• Cheap
• Easy to apply
• Accurate colour indication
• Recyclable packing
• Ammonia free

Cons

• Not much product in the tube
• Strong smell

As an avid self hair colourist with a soft spot for pastels, Derma V10’s semi-permanent Pastels range naturally jumped right off the shelf at me, with the bright, graphic packaging and generous price, it would have been rude not to investigate further. Upon picking up the box, I immediately searched the information for their philosophy, which, to my delight is vegan and cruelty free. Another nice touch to add to their planet friendly philosophy is that they have made their packaging recyclable where possible. On top of all this, it works!

Instantly sold on this product, in the cosmetics aisle of Home Bargains, I opted for the shade Paradise Pink. This was partly a safety choice as I know pink is a good colour for me and if it turned out horrendous, I knew it would fade easily. A couple days before using this product, I touched up my roots using Jerome Russel’s Bblonde Maximum Blonding Kit No.1, my favourite bleaching product. This prepared my hair for optimum pastel pink results.

The first thing I noticed when I opened the box was the colour cream tube is not particularly sizeable, and this became even more apparent throughout the application process. I’m not one for thoroughly following the instructions all the time, instead of the suggested method of application using the brush provided, I went for a more free-handed scrunch and hope for the best option. Although this may not be the ‘correct’ way, it definitely utilised the product more effectively as the cream would not have gone as far using the brush method. This said, I still needed to call upon the rest of my go-to pink Jerome Russel bBlonde Maximum Colour Toner to get close-to full coverage. Although I have quite a lot of hair, it is still short enough to only require one box of dye.

Once the 30 minute development time was up, I hopped in the shower to wash the dye out and followed up with a 3-minute conditioning hair mask (White Hot Intense Lustre Mask) to refresh and nourish my locks after subjecting them to bleach and dye within a matter of days. After drying, I am incredibly happy with the result, due to the pastel nature of the product, any areas I missed during application blend in and add slight dimension, rather than it being a block colour.

Overall I loved this product, one box would be the perfect amount for most dip dye styles, however if you’re looking to colour your full length (mid-length to long), you will almost certainly need at least 2 boxes, but hey, at £1.99 a box, you’re still saving!

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