Ladies and Gentlemen(if any) I am pretty much excited to bring you this 2 in 1 review of my pioneer, Shea moisture products. These two products launched me into the brand’s amazing product line, and while I now have a wide array/ perspective pertaining natural hair products, these two would forever hold a special place in my heart.
I hope I am not being too obvious about my love for them. Worry not, illd still give you honest reviews regardless.
Before I go further let me share with you the Shea moisture story, as seen on the product package.
The Shea Moisture story
Soft Tucker started selling Shea nuts at the village market in Bonthe, Sierra Leone in 1913. By age 19, the widowed mother of four was selling Shea butter, African black soap and her home made hair and skin preparations all over the country side. Soft Tucker was the grandmother of the current manufacturers, and Shea moisture is her legacy.
Her grand children have continued to Honour her vision by continuing to formulate with raw Shea butter handcrafted by women in Africa. Through Community commerce, this brand has helped to empower disadvantaged women to realize a brighter and healthier future.
I would like to add my unpopular opinion. The product packages clearly state that the Shea moisture brand has been in existence since 1913 and was Infact established that year. That piece of information blew me away, we are talking about more than a century Fam. I dare to say that for any brand to stand the test of time for this long, they are certainly worth paying attention to. There is no doubt that the owners of this brand are on top of their game and know exactly what they are doing.
Let’s get into the individual reviews shall we?
Shea moisture Jamaican black castor oil strengthen and restore Leave in conditioner
Appearance
Now let’s start with the name of this product, boy is it super long! Just so you know, the full name on the container goes thus;
Shea Moisture Jamaican black Castor Oil, strengthen and restore Leave-in Conditioner with Shea butter, peppermint and Apple Cider Vinegar.
Most times I just shorten it to “Shea moisture’s Jamaican leave in. “
Looking at the name of this product alone, you know it is fully packed with hair growth essentials such as Jamaican castor oil, Shea butter, peppermint and Apple cider vinegar which are its major constituents. They all play their role in keeping your hair healthy. We would talk more about this in a bit.
The container as can be seen in the picture is a transparent container covered almost totally by a bold cream ‘stick-on’ which has all the product information needed. I won’t call it the most gorgeous product package I have ever come across, but it works to please the eyes and get you remotely interested. It has a net weight of 11 oz/312g
Smell
Where smell is concerned, I would say that it is nothing too strong but more of a medium subtle fragrance, almost fruity. I would say that the apple Cider Vinegar scent overshadows those of the other ingredients. (This is my personal opinion).
Ingredient Line up
Thankfully, the ingredients of this product are well listed and botanical names are properly translated in English. This is always a plus for me. I don’t like putting products without clear ingredient line ups on my hair. Sometimes, we could be oblivious to the harmful constituents of even trusted products. For this product however, I believe all the ingredients are pretty much safe and I have no reservations.
The big Question (Does the Leave-in deliver?)
One very important aspect of rating any product is the authenticity of its claims.
This product claims to be a reparative leave- in conditioner that softens and detangles hair while controlling frizz. It is also said to be perfect for those who regularly colour, straighten, perm or heat style their hair. It is formulated with Jamaican black castor oil and Shea butter to nourish, moisturize and support elasticity so that hair resists breakage while detangling. It has an add on of peppermint which stimulates the scalp for an invigorating experience.
Direction for use says to apply to clean, towel dried hair and work a generous amount in from roots to ends, with your fingers or a wide tooth comb. We are also told to leave the product in as a rinse out isn’t necessary.
My verdict for Shea moisture’s leave in.
Now in my opinion, and from my personal use of the product, it does soften my coils once applied, however using this product alone to detangle, isn’t something I would jump at. I would rather use a proper detangler to avoid any trouble with knots. I must say though that the pepper mint add on truly does give the scalp an invigorating experience. I usually feel the pepper mint effect when applied to my scalp. Initially, this feeling was strange to me, and I wondered what it was until I read the product package. It felt pretty nice, I must add.
Now as for the up keep of my hair, this conditioner pulled its weight along side my other hair care products to help my hair thrive with less breakage. For every period that I used it, I saw hair progress.
Another thing to note is that this product is great for its ability to cater to all hair genres including the natural coilies, those with chemically processed hair, and those who regularly colour and heat style their hair. Not many products are all encompassing, so I give them kudos.
Rating: With all that has been said, illd give this product a solid 7/10
Shea moisture’s Jamaican black castor oil strengthen and restore treatment masque
Let me tell y’all a little story about this Shea moisture’s Jamaican black castor oil strengthen and restore treatment masque product. I got it by accident lol! As can be seen in the pictures, it has the exact appearance as its leave-in counterpart. The first day I made the order, I wasn’t vigilant enough to check the product name properly, all I saw was the container and I was excited to add it to my cart and proceed to payment. Little did I know that this product had an identical twin.
Lo and behold, when it was brought to me, I discovered I had ordered the wrong item. I already had my special deep conditioner, which was working just fine for me, I didn’t see the need for this particular product. However, going by my motto, no hair product should ever go to waste.
I read the package carefully and saw that it was some form of deep penetrating conditioner in masque form. Honestly, as disappointed as I felt at the time (seeing as I still had to place another order for the leave-in) I was also excited to try out this particular product.
I noted the similarities between the product and its leave in counterpart. For one, they both had the castor oil, Shea butter, peppermint and apple cider vinegar combo. However, for this product its motto was to ‘Nourish and renew’ unlike the leave in which was clearly stated to ‘intensely smoothen and nourish.’
Then again, there was a slight difference in their ingredient line up. A few add ons and a few leave outs did the trick. This product also had the English/simplified translation to the botanical/ ambiguous product names which is something that usually impresses me.
Appearance
As can be seen in the pictures above, the restore leave in conditioner and treatment masque are quite similar in packaging. The treatment masque also comes in a transparent container with a bold yellow stick on for the product information. It has a net weight of 12 oz/340g. Considering how similar they are in appearance; it is very easy to mistake one for the other. Therefore, it is important to look carefully at the words on the product container before purchase. Trust me, I am speaking from experience.
Smell
Quite frankly, the Jamaican castor oil leave in and deep conditioning masque have similar scents. However, I am more drawn to the smell of the masque. It has a fruity tinge which feels almost edible. It is quite pleasant in my opinion with no choking effect. I am convinced that the Apple cider and the coconut are the main stars of this scent.
Ingredient line up/ Direction of use
To avoid being repetitive, ill breeze through the ingredient line up by stating that it is quite similar to that of the Leave in, of course with a few add ons and leave outs. There is also a clear English translation to the botanical/ambiguously named ingredients to keep your mind at rest about the product safety.
As per the direction for use and application of this product, it is very different from that of the leave in. After all, this is a deep conditioner, and it is certainly not to be left in the hair without a proper rinse out.
The product package says to apply this product after shampooing the hair, you would be required to apply a generous amount of the product from the root to the ends. It is also essential to pay particular attention to the ends. Comb through for an even distribution and place a plastic cap over the hair before sitting under a hooded dryer for 10-15 minutes. This product may be left in the hair for up to 30 minutes without heat. Rinse thoroughly and style as usual.
I would like to add that, since I do not currently own a hooded dryer, I make use of my hand dryer to warm up the cap and proceed to wrap it with a heat retaining scarf. That’s an alternative guys.
The big question (Does the deep conditioning masque deliver?)
This deep conditioning masque is said to restore strength and resilience to damaged, brittle and chemically processed hair. Perfect for those who regularly colour, strengthen, relax or heat style their hair, and those who wear kinky, curly, wavy or natural styles.
What trips me the most about this product and it’s leave in counterpart, is the way the manufacturers thought to embrace those who constantly experiment with their hair.
I have never felt the need to change my hair colour, neither do I use heat on my curls but it is great to know that some product lines have me in mind, should I decide to follow this path.
My verdict for the strengthen and restore treatment masque
Here is the thing, for the period I used this deep conditioner, I paired it with another deep conditioning treatment which at the time was my favorite. These two products worked in sync to elevate my hair game. My hair breakage reduced drastically and I was more confident on wash day, so much so that I began to look forward to it.
The product delivered with it’s promise to provide strength and resilience to my hair, evidenced by my minimal to no hair breakage. It is a product I would definitely recommend.
Official Ratings: I would rate this a 7.5, the extra 0.5 is because I love the smell of this product a bit more than that of the leave in. They both have that fruity smell though, but this is nicer and feels almost edible.
In conclusion guys, I would love to state that both products are sulfate free with no parabens, phthalates, propylene glycol, mineral oil, animal testing or petrolatum. The manufacturers of these products are absolutely health conscious. Needless to say, that it is very essential to be pro active about what you allow on your scalp/hair. A lot of supposed ‘miracle products’ could pose serious health issues, so it is very important to stay guarded and ‘woke.’
That’s it for my review, I do hope you found this review useful. Bye guys❤️
