Sunday, April 22, 2012

Sunday Spotlight: Macadamia Natural Oil


Welcome to my new series! I've been trying out various products (hair, makeup, even foods) that I've been falling in love with, so I'm feeling up to sharing them all with you. Every Sunday, I will post something that I love and the reasons why I love it. These posts are non-sponsored and are driven by my trial-and-error mentality. Enjoy!

MACADAMIA NATURAL OIL PRODUCTS
Let me start off by admitting my absolute stupidity. I went blonde last summer and since I had dark hair, it took three or so bleach sessions to get to where I wanted to be. Of course, that was not enough for me, and I chemical straightened my hair, against my hair stylist's recommendation. What's worse, is that I did it myself with a friend's help. UGH. Don't EVER do that. I beg you! Within 6 months, I bleached my hair three times, colored it a few times, and chemically straightened it. I am an idiot, and my hair is now breaking left and right, is extremely difficult to manage and is very dry and thin. Ew, gross. This is the reason I've been looking around for moisturizing and repairing products for my hair. For a while now, I don't buy anything without reading at least a few reviews, so I went internet-traveling and reading up on hair care. I'd come across a few YouTube and blog reviews of Macadamia products and I was intrigued. The products that interested me the most were the Healing Oil Treatment and the Deep Repair Masque.

HEALING OIL TREATMENT




Comes in four sizes: 0.34oz - $6.50, 1oz - $13.50, 4.2oz - $39.95, 10oz - $75.00
Personally, I thought it was incredibly expensive and tried to find a place where I could buy this cheaper. I ended up buying it from Drugstore.com, where I got the 4.2oz for $30.40, which is the best deal so far. Ulta seems to sell them as well, but their coupons do not count towards Macadamia products...*sigh*

It claims:
- intense nourishment for tangle & frizz free hair
- hair that is ultra-smooth, manageable & shiny
- natural UV protection extends the life of color treatments
- reduced drying time by an amazing 40-50%

Personal experience:
- Nourishment wise, it's pretty amazing. My ends are all over the place without it, but after using this on the ends and the rest of the length, the split ends seem to disappear. Please note that there is no way to repair split ends completely, but this gives an illusion of healthy hair and the ends do not break off, which is GREAT!
- Smoothness and shine are definitely there! The trick is to get some of the treatment on your hands, and work through the whole hair length, then brush through with a widetooth comb, otherwise you may end up with clumps of hair that have the treatment and clumps that do not.
- The UV protection is one thing that I cannot vouch for. I had my hair dyed red at some point and this did not really prevent it from washing out. Although, I should note that red is the hardest color to keep in, especially on such porous hair, so it may not be able to keep that promise on such damaged hair.
- Reduced drying time is something I was really excited about and I definitely got it! It may not have been 50%, more like 25%-30%, yet it's still quite helpful! It's also been easier to brush my hair through without any breakage while using this product. LOVE!

Overall, the quality of the product is amazing! I love it! The price point is quite high, but the product does what it claims, so I decided to swallow the price. Would I repurchase it? Honestly, not for a while. I think I will keep looking for something that does a similar job for less. However, if I don't find anything that comes close, I will repurchase this product!

DEEP REPAIR MASQUE




Comes in four sizes: 1oz - $4.00, 3.3oz - $15.00, 8.5oz - $33.00, 16.9 - $49.00
Like with the Healing Oil Treatment, I thought it was a bit pricey and went off to Drugstore.com to purchase mine from there. I got the 8.5oz for $25.60, which is a much better price.

It claims:
- combines Macadamia & Argan oils with chamomile oil, aloe and algae extract
- deep nourishment & long-lasting conditioning
- ultra-conditioning hair reconstruction

Personal experience:
- This is a real luxury! The product smells great, leaves your hair soft as a baby's and temporarily heals split ends. The downside is that you have to keep it on for a while (it is a hair MASQUE), and it can be bothersome. I used it about once a week, left it on for about 20 minutes at a time and then my hair would be soft for the following 2-3 days.

Did the price point prove worth it? In the beginning, I loved this product, but then I realized that I could do this with almost any conditioner and add some Healing Oil to imitate this product at least a bit. Since I used quite a bit of it (most of the length of my hair was damaged, so I had to use more than most people), I ran out pretty quickly, in about 3 months. Do I regret buying it? No. However, I don't think I will be repurchasing it again.

In closing

If you're interested in testing out just one product out of the line, I suggest it's the Healing Oil Treatment. Because it comes in such a variety of sizes, if you are unsure, get the smaller size and see how it goes. A little of this product goes a long way, so use it sparingly! For an extra spa-treatment-feel, add a few drops of this treatment to your conditioner and leave it on for a while, and you'll see how soft your hair becomes. Please note that once you stop using these products, your hair will go back to it's original state.

Have you guys tried anything from this line? If so, which products and what did you think of them? If anything, I think I will re-purchase the Healing Oil Treatment in the future.

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