Hair Heaven: Lee Stafford Argan Oil

Lee Stafford Argan Oil - £11.99

As I have said in previous posts, I'm not blessed with naturally beautiful flowing locks, my hair is curly, it has gone through years of bleaching and colouring and a shed load of heat abuse! Because of all this I find I need to really work at keeping my hair in good condition, using conditioning masks and the new holy grail - hair oils!

Lee Stafford Argan Oil is one of many hair oils on the market, many of you will have heard of Moroccan Oil but it is very expensive, the Lee Stafford oil is a bargain in comparison. It is a silicone based oil but it also contains a high percentage of natural Argan Oil, so it is both a styling oil and a nourishing one. Many people believe that silicones are bad for your hair, and indeed they are in some cases, particularly conditioners, are they coat the hair root to tip, however in hair oils, a bit of silicone can really help to maintain the hair condition, as it is only on the ends, it is not preventing moisture accessing the hair shaft. If you use a clarifying shampoo once a week it prevents the silicone building up and causing lack lustre locks!

I like to apply a small amount of this to the ends of damp hair before blow drying, it speeds up the drying process and leaves my hair smooth and manageable. This can also be used in small amounts on dry hair to give an extra smoothing effect. The pump gives the perfect size amount for my hair, but bare in mind I do have dry hair, if your hair is in better condition a smaller amount will be needed. This also smells amazing, typical of Lee Stafford products of which I am a big fan!

Lee Stafford Bleach Blondes Shampoo and Conditioner

I mentioned in my blogger awards post that I use the Bleach Blondes range by Lee Stafford so I thought I would do a quick review!

I'll quickly describe my hair so you can have an idea of what I'm working with. I'm naturally a mid-ginger to auburn hair colour but I have been getting blonde highlights (bleach and colour) for the last 6 years (so my hair is not in the best condition), it is also naturally curly so I tend to blow-dry and straighten it after washing it. I also only wash my hair every second day as it gets dry if I do it more often.

 

The shampoo is a purple shampoo which cancels the brassy tones that often come hand in hand with bleach based blondes! It is quite an alarming dark purple but don't be put off by this. Apply like a normal shampoo and allow it to sit for a minute or two before rinsing it out and then follow with the conditioner as normal. It does not lather up as well as I would like but the effect it has is worth it, and it does leave your hair feeling clean! I would recommend using this 2-3 times a week and alternate with another shampoo that you like that doesn't contain purple pigments otherwise you run the risk of going grey. It smells amazing, like passion fruit, which lasts on your hair all day long!

The conditioner is lovely and I think it is quite moisturising, I like to use a mask once a week, usually the Wella SP repair mask, just to keep my hair lovely and soft, but for day to day this conditioner is perfect!

They are priced at £6.49 each but are often on 3 for 2 at boots so I stock up when I see that offer on. I think it is worth spending about £6/7 on shampoo and conditioner as I think that little bit more gives you a much higher quality product. I've also used the John Frieda purple shampoo and conditioner which is a good product but not as effective on my hair.

You can see here my natural colour is sitting up against my neck (full head of highlights but there are always bit not coloured) and because I have such a warm colour it can be difficult to stop the blonde going brassy, but I hope you can see here that the actual blonde in my hair is a soft, not yellowy, blonde.