As most women I’m always on the hunt for  makeup, skin and hair products that are of good quality at affordable prices. I prefer to pay a bit more (not a La Praire price but not drugstore either) as skin and hair should be well taken care off. But sometimes you find a product that works wonders for a budget price and I find that a real treat!

Today I want to share my budget hair secrets with you. Most people now me with straight hair but my secret to that is NO budget price (I use a CHI hair straightener). My hair is curly and frizzy and my scalp is dry and flakey leaving my hair  greasy  at the root, but those days are over! At the end of last summer my hair was sun damaged, dry and greasy at the same time. I couldn’t properly handle my hair anymore. My drugstore shampoo (which I still used then) seemed to make it only worse. I was fed up with it so I began to do some research and stumbled upon the Morrocan oil hair line (with argan oil). I felt like it would be the answer to my hair problems but I found their price line a bit too high for a product I just wanted to try. So I continued my research and found my Holy Grail in shampoo world: Cream of Nature Argan oil moisture and shine shampoo.

WOW. Where do I begin?? Cream of Nature is an American hair brand for African hair women. The bottle contains 354 ml of product versus 250 ml (moroccan oil) and prices are 5.50 euro versus 19.90 euro (!!!!!) Well I’m hoping you all just did the math ;). This shampoo for me does the job as it says on the bottle (though I don’t need to follow the exact instructions as I don’t have Afro hair). It contains no sulfates and my hair feels really clean, soft and even lightweight afterwords. A treatment that I like to do before hand is massaging my scalp with coconut oil. This helps to get rid of the greasiness and dirt and moisturizes the scalp whereas a (drugstore) shampoo for greasy hair tends to strip off too much ‘oils’.  I really am a big fan of pre cleansing my hair/skin and even make up brushes with oil.

Oh did I mention the budget part regarding coconut oil? The price for this jar is 6.95 euro (500ml) and a little goes a long way and it’s also a multi use product too! Ok so this is my hair regime:

1. Once a week or less, depending of the condition of my hair (there is such a thing as over moisturizing) I massage my scalp with coconut oil and I rub it in the tips of my hair. I leave this in all night, yes and don’t worry as it actually penetrates into your hair  and doesn’t leave stains on your pillow.

2. I wash my hair with the Argan oil shampoo.

At this point my hair feels hydrated enough so I think could skip the use of conditioner but I still do it because it´s in my system  to do so.

3. I use a hair serum to soften and protect my hair against heat. I rub it in when my hair is still wet. As shown in the picture above I use Schwarzkopf Miracle oil but somehow nothing tops Farouk’s Biosilk. A good serum will cost you around 20 euro for 150ml but lasts 18 months.

4. Another option I use to give my hair a boost is animal placenta by Hask (also American). I started using it when my hair was damaged and I could not believe the boost it gave my hair. It’s a leave in treatment which you apply after washing it. The price for the spray bottle is 5.50 euro. The placenta and coconut oil really balance the PH level of my hair. I don’t use them at the same time, I choose what comes in more handy when I want to give my hair something extra.

Personally I’m really happy with my new and improved hair regime, good quality products with affordable/budget prices. Currently I´m letting my hair grow long and I feel that the extra treatments I give it really help to keep my hair in good condition.

For my Dutch readers click here to order online both Cream of Nature Shampoo and Hask Placenta.

Tell me about your hair regime!

Love,

Tanimara

Update edit: After a few weeks I discontinued using the Argan oil shampoo and conditioner as it began to have a counterproductive effect on my hair because the PH level got balanced enough. I now only use it when I need ‘extra treatment’. I would advise to do the same if you don’t have Afro hair. Hask Placenta is also a very strong booster which you don’t need to use very often I find.