Two things I like to put my money into are skincare and haircare. With skincare, I'm very much the kind of girl that doesn't change it up too often once I've found something that works for my problem areas and skin type. But it's a different story with haircare.
For background, I have dark, coloured, VERY thick, long wavy hair. One of my biggest concerns with my hair is because there's is quite frankly so much of it, it often feels pretty dry and stripped of moisture.
Over the years I have found some absolutely amazing products that have made my hair feel silky soft again. But after a couple of months of using these products, I'm back to square one. It's as if my hair becomes immune to them, and they just don't have the same affect as they once did.
My usual go to products for the past couple of months have been the Palmers Shampoo, Conditioner & Leave In Spray, and so far my hair has yet to become bored of them. However for the last two weeks I've introduced some new products from Tabitha James Kraan into my haircare regime. This brand focuses on premium organic haircare products suited to all your hair needs.
As previously mentioned, I have dark hair, so it seemed fitting to test out the 'Get Started for Dark Hair' set. As you can tell from how luxurious the packaging is, this set comes with a premium price tag of £59 and contains four travel sized products.
So, let's take a look what exactly you can expect to find in this set...
Amber Rose Scented Organic Hair Oil
I must admit I'm not the biggest fan of hair oils. I always find them hard to rinse, or leave my hair too greasy so I'm more likely to pick up a serum or mist. This oil is to be used before washes to maximise moisture levels, or you can use it sparingly to the ends of your hair throughout the day.
I was pleasantly surprised by this oil to be honest. Not only did it smell divine, but I actually noticed quite a bit of difference to my hair. It is actually much more of a thinner consistency than other oils I've tried, meaning it's a lot easier to rinse. I do however, prefer to use it by adding it to the ends of my hair after my hair is styled. My ends were left feeling a lot more manageable and significantly less dry.
Dry Shampoo for Dark Hair
This was the product I was most disappointed in, and just did not get on with. When sprayed onto the hair, the product comes out as a fine powder. One thing I did love was the Lavender scent of the product once applied. However, I was disappointed to see how visible the powder was in my dark hair. It almost looked like tiny grains of grey looking sand sitting on top of my hair. Even running my fingers through my hair didn't help matters and made the product feel useless.
Amber Rose Hair Cleanser
I was very intrigued by this product as it clearly labelled as 'not a shampoo' and is instead described as a shampoo replacement. Although it seems more like it's the way in which you apply the product is the difference and not too much the product itself. Instead of adding a dollop of your usual shampoo to the top of your scalp, mentally divide your hair into sections and add a few pumps of cleanser where most needed and then rinse.
This product doesn't lather up like a shampoo and is quite thin in formula and texture, which means you can end up using quite a bit if you have thicker hair like me. The scent is a little overpowering but manageable. I did enjoy using this cleanser and found it easy to apply and left my hair ultimately feeling very clean and nourished, however it can be tricky to rinse for those with thick or longer hair.
Amber Rose 4 in 1 Conditioner
My favourite product from this set has to be the 4 in 1 Conditioner. You can use it as a traditional conditioner, a scalp moisturiser, a leave in conditioner and a styling tool. I don't have and scalp irritations or sensitive areas so can't comment too much on that aspect of the product, however I've been loving it for it's other purposes.
I've mostly been using it as a styling tool as it makes my hair a lot more manageable when curled by smoothing down any split ends or fly aways. I've also been using in place of my oil sometimes. The oil is great for a more intense burst of moisture, but for smaller areas that need that something extra, this moisturiser has been a life saver throughout the day!
So the big question is would I replace my Palmers haircare products (which are also made from natural ingredients) with these more premium products? Honestly, I don't think so. I do prefer the traditional shampoo and conditioner method, which is also a lot more affordable. However, the Hair Oil and 4 in 1 Conditioner are two products from this set that I think have really contributed to the current state of my hair and so I will be continuing to use them. Haircare is all trial and error in my opinion, not every single product is going to work for you and that's okay. Find the ones that do and fit them into your current regimes.
Which of the products from Tabitha James Kraan would you most like to try?