L'ORÉAL ELVIVE EXTRAORDINARY OIL LOW SHAMPOO {REVIEW}

After spotting the L'Oréal Elvive Low Shampoo overseas last year,

I was keen to give it a try, but coming in a large and heavy 400ml pump container 
it was just too cumbersome to bring back to SA.

Luckily I came across it in Clicks recently and having used it now for 
several weeks and using well over half the container, 
I've decided that it's not for me.

Just a quick reminder - my hair is long with blonde highlights, 

so therefore it's both dry and fragile and needs ongoing TLC.

This type of Low Shampoo Gentle Cleansing Cream sounded perfect

on paper, but once I put the product to the test I found it to be a 
Shampoo of Contradiction.

This Low Shampoo is the first to come out of the L'Oréal Laboratories 

and falls under the Elvive franchise and is

tailor-made for Dry hair and they do have two other hair type options.

Low or No shampoo, shampoos are a relatively new thing, hence why there

 are not too many on the market.

This Low Shampoo" contains No Sulphate Surfactants (chemical detergents),

it's also Paraben free,but it does contain silicones, which provide slip to the hair for

ease in rinsing.

As we all know chemically treated hair can often be left feeling dry, brittle,

and rough, rendering it fragile and prone to tangling and breakage.

Unfortunately I know all too well how damaging the dreaded 

de-tangling process can be.

This product is formulated to both cleanse the hair and condition

in one easy step and has a 

consistency similar to a facial cream cleanser, 

or a conditioner rather than a conventional shampoo, which I must say

I liked and enjoyed.

However using a Low Shampoo does take a lot getting use to,

as you're using just 

one dual purpose product that doesn't foam.

It's important with Low or No shampoos to massage the scalp well in order to 

remove the oils and dirt. 

It's believed that the sulphates in regular shampoos strip the natural sebum 

on the scalp and results in the scalp becoming dry, which in turn causes 

the sebaceous glands to produce more oil to alleviate the dryness and this 

constant cycle results in an oily scalp n roots but dry hair situation , 

which can be difficult to treat.

(its a similar cycle you can encounter with with the use of incorrect 

oily skincare products)

L'Oréal advise 10-15 pumps of the product applied to wet hair, 

now let me pre-warn you this is a lot of product and it does feel totally alien 

to apply so much to the hair and scalp.

The next step is to massage the product evenly through the hair

 from roots-ends.

Leave for 3 minutes rinse and finger comb.

Use 1-2 times per week.

(The pump dispenser is great and I wished more shampoos came 

packaged this way)

My dislike doesn't lie with the actual product, but more with the effort 

and agitating of the scalp to get that clean scalp feeling.

My first few washes were a disaster, as I didn't use enough product

 and I felt that my hair was still dirty which resulted in me washing my hair 

more often and to me seemed counter productive when your hair is 

long, fragile and tangles easily.

The product rinses well, but I quickly realised that despite being enriched 

with 6 Flower Extracts for conditioning, I still needed to use a 

conditioner, as using alone just left my hair more tangled than ever.

That overall feeling of unclean hair only led to me washing my hair more often,

which resulted in more tangling and more breakage,

hence my reference earlier to a 

Shampoo of Contradiction.

If however your hair is shorter, less processed or you have a sensitive scalp

or want to use a low chemical shampoo, then you may love this product,

but I'm giving it a "miss" for now.
I'm not too sure how popular these types of Low Shampoo will become,

 I do know, that I'm happy to return to my tried and trusted

'Professional Salon Hair Products"

Let me know in the comments below if you've tried any Low Shampoo product

 and whether you enjoyed or not...

L'ORÉAL ELVIVE 

EXTRAORDINARY OIL 

LOW SHAMPOO

400ml 

R

99

£

6.99

Available at Clicks countrywide