Garnier Olia Hair Color

Let me start off by saying I have quite a bit of experience with box hair colors. As I posted a few months ago, I was most impressed with L'Oreal Sublime Mousse and have been faithful ever since - I've never had such a mess-free hair color experience, nor such a pleasant coloring process. However - I was excited to learn that I was going to be included in the Garnier Olia BzzCampaign because I have always been a fan of Garnier products. They are a solid brand and I thought the quality of this hair color would be a no-brainer, it was obviously going to be a smash hit. Plus, it's ammonia free, oil based hair color - how can you go wrong? However, I was less than impressed.

Finding the hair color was easy, I went to the local CVS and there it was, in a cute black box. I chose 6.60 Light Intense Auburn, after doing a little "poll" and Facebook and getting a lot of suggestions for RED. I came home and opened the box immediately, unpacking the directions (which included a pair of BLACK gloves - CUTE!), a teardrop shaped applicator bottle, developer, colorant, and conditioner. I read over the directions carefully - pretty run of the mill (basically mix the solution, put it in your hair, let it sit, and rinse it out - nothing too crazy). I was shocked that in the era of 10-minute hair color, Garnier Olia takes a whopping 30 minutes to set!! First surprise.

My opinion of the presentation is that the developer comes in a tube that is ENTIRELY TOO BIG. It's just a waste of plastic AND space in the box - and it's hard to squeeze out all the contents, when the same amount of solution could fit in a much smaller, more environmentally-friendly tube. The applicator bottle, which seemingly brilliant at first, is rather disappointing. The round shape gives the feel of being in control of the application, but it easily slips from your slimy grip after applying the hair color for a few moments. I did like that the conditioner came in a tube, as opposed to a packet, because it makes it easy to save and reuse the leftovers.

The hair color is almost odorless, with a light, fruity, barely-there scent. My color solution was bright orange and contrasted well with the gloves, it was really neat to see. Though my hair is very long, one box of hair color covered everything. Once I got in the shower to rinse after 30 minutes, it took forever for my hair to rinse clear - and once it did, I conditioned, and it started rinsing orange again. Every day for almost 2 weeks my hair rinsed orange - it behaved much like semi-permanent color, staining my white hair towel orange. On the bright side, the conditioner smelled GREAT!

Not only was the rinsing an annoyance, but my hair is multi-colored. Previously, I had bleached my hair underneath and colored the top "Darkest Brown," which is my natural color. Now, underneath is a bright red with some caramel, while my roots are a bright red, and the "Darkest Brown" portion is still mostly "Darkest Brown" with a tint of red in the sunlight. The red is vivid and beautiful in the light, and despite the multi-colored state of my hair, I DO get many compliments. However, I would love it if my whole head (minus underneath - I understand that light hair will adopt lighter color, that's just the way it is) were the same shade of this beautiful, vivid red.

Also - as most of my friends know, my hair is my pride and joy. It's very healthy, no split ends, never dry, always shiny. After using Garnier Olia, I had the worst case of static I have ever had in my life. I never have static in my hair unless I'm wearing a sweater or I rub a balloon on my head. Never. My hair was SO dry from using this hair color, that I had static for almost a week - and it was unbearable. Even my bangs were sticking flush to my forehead and no matter what I did I got no relief. I put lotion in my hair, leave-in conditioner, used a dryer sheet, spritzed with water and hairspray throughout the day, to no avail. The only thing that finally brought relief was Aussie 3-Minute Miracle Conditioner (which I HIGHLY recommend)!  

So, overall, I am not a fan of Garnier Olia - I can't say I'll ever purchase it in the future, unless the formula changes and the public is made aware of it. I will just stick to what is tried and true - L'Oreal Sublime Mousse.

P.S. If you want to get the low-down yourself, visit Garnier USA - Garnier Olia Hair Color to get more information.

Glade Expressions!

 

Everyone that knows me knows that I loveeee, as I call them, "smell goods." I'm a sucker for a great perfume or body wash, I love candles, air fresheners, potpourri, sachets, etc. I even have scented pens. To say that my taste in scents is refined would be an understatement.

I have tried just about every kind of air freshener out there. On top of that I've used all kinds of candles, oil diffusers, wax burners, scented plug-ins, etc. I know what works and what doesn't - and usually, in this category - you get what you pay for. 

Now that I've introduced my know-how on the subject, allow me to introduce you to Glade Expressions. Glade is one of the GREATS when it comes to great smelling, odor eliminating products. Now they've gone one step further and made a line of products that fit into your (already beautiful and established) home (or office) decor. Above, you see a picture - on the left is an oil diffuser. Yeah, I know, it's pretty. I have an oak-colored one which fits in beautifully on top of my entertainment center. If I didn't tell you, you wouldn't know it wasn't just a decoration. It's pretty AND it smells fabulous. I have a townhouse and I can the oil diffuser (which is in the living room) upstairs in my bedroom. I chose Pineapple Mangosteen, so I feel like I'm in the Caribbean when I walk into my house. On the right of the picture are air fresheners. These aren't just normal air fresheners, though. You can peel off the label and suddenly they look almost like a vase - a piece of abstract art. However, they spray out an incredible scent whenever you need to freshen up your house. Mine is also in my living room, and I chose the Limited Edition scent Vibrant Bloom. It smells rather like a rose garden and I absolutely love it. The smell sticks for what seems like forever, too. The best part about BOTH of the products? They're refillable!

I sincerely LOVE the Expressions line. Glade did a wonderful job. This was something else I got for free from BzzAgent. I'm not paid at all to post a good opinion, either. I already got my free stuff! If I wanted to hate it, I could do it publicly, but I truly don't. Quite the opposite actually. I'm already planning to get two more oil diffusers -  one for my desk at work, and one for my laundry room!

There are online coupons for these things, so if you're interested, come see me on Facebook and I'll lead you to the savings!

The Schick Hydro Silk Razor!!

 

Oh, the daunting task of shaving. Don't you just love it? 

Yes. I'm being sarcastic.

The Schick Hydro Silk razor gives me a reason to at least LIKE shaving! I received one free from BzzAgent, and have been charged with the task of reviewing it (HONESTLY - no hype, no fuss - just my true-to-life opinion). My reaction? I like the feeling of my skin when I'm finished shaving with the Schick Hydro Silk razor. I never use shaving cream (okay, not never, but VERY rarely), just soap, so the moisturized feeling I get when I'm done shaving comes from this razor. It has moisture-activated moisturizing serum and let me tell you, they're not kidding! Moisturize it does! There's a reason the word "Silk" is included in the name. Try it yourself and you'll see exactly what I mean.

Another huge plus is, there are 5 blades (big whoop, right? WRONG!) and they are curve-sensing blades! You know what that means? It's easy to get in all the nooks and crannies without cutting yourself and getting a ton of razor burn. I've never used a razor that I can shave two days in a row with and not have razor burn on, at the very least, my knees. Yes, I have sensitive skin so that might be extreme, but that makes this razor even greater in that I have NEVER gotten razor burn from using it and I have shaved every day since it arrived on my doorstep.

It's also shaped nicely enough that it's comfortable in your hand and also doesn't slip out of your wet, soapy grip. Plus, it comes with a cute little holder that suction cups to the wall in the shower. GREAT INVESTMENT. Needless to say, I'll be holding onto mine and stocking up on cartridges in the near future. I've never had a better shave!

Plain Chicken: Better than Jim 'N Nick's Cheesy Biscuits

Plain Chicken: Better than Jim 'N Nick's Cheesy Biscuits: This is our new favorite cheesy biscuit recipe - it is SOOO good.  I am just going to say it - these just might be better than Jim 'N Nick'...

Dove Clear Tone Skin Renew Deodorant

I'll start by saying "my armpits are sensitive" and I can ONLY use Secret Deodorant or my armpits literally break out and itch. I can "try" deodorant if I only use it once or twice, so that's what I did with Dove Clear Tone Skin Renew Deodorant. I've tried other Dove deodorants, to no avail. However, I used this once with no mishaps - so then I used it the next day, still feeling fine. I used this deodorant sample every day for 2 weeks before I ran out and my armpits felt fine. As far as the claim that it "evens" your skin tone, I can't really attest to that because my armpits are pretty much the same color as the rest of me, LOL. It IS good deodorant, it has a fresh floral scent and it kept me dry all day long, and all night.

I'm a die-hard Secret fan, but I would buy this deodorant IF it was on sale. LOL.

Airborne Chewables

I usually like chewable pills and vitamins. I like the grainy, fake fruity taste for some strange reason - especially Flintstone Vitamins. Anyway, I was excited when I saw that Airborne had chewables and the sample is a little packet of 4. Well, they're good for you so I opened it up and popped one in my mouth immediately.

Oh. My. Gosh.

I almost spit all over the table. The taste is OVERPOWERING. They're berry but it's TOO MUCH. They're sour and too sweet all at once. It's really a nasty combination. I definitely won't be buying those. I'm hoping that the other samples I have taste better so that all is not lost for Airborne, in my book.

Clear Shampoo and Conditioner - 2 types

I know that I once said Loreal EverCreme is the best shampoo/conditioner I ever used. It held that title for about 2 weeks until I tried Clear Ultra Shea Cleanse & Nourish Shampoo and Conditioner. First of all, the samples were a nice size. They were in bottles as opposed to the little packages so I seriously used them every day for about a week and my hair was worshiping me.

http://www.clearhaircare.com/

I also got a sample (in packets) of Clear Total Care Shampoo and Conditioner. I was equally as impressed.

My hair was silky and shiny. I have to straighten my hair to get any kind of shine out of it if I let it down - normally... with Clear, I didn't have to. I brushed it and let it do the natural wave thing and it was still soft and had mega shine. I was more impressed than I can express. If you're way into your hair, like me, you should definitely try it!