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Does anyone else have a wish list of products and/or brands they want to purchase? I know I do! I get excited seeing things I’m dying to try out when they are affordable and at good prices. Who doesn’t love a bargain? Maui Moisture has definitely been on my to buy radar over the last year or so. But at £8.99 per product it isn’t something I’ve entertained and bought. But since some of their hair and body care range has been only £1.99 at Home Bargains, this price has been much more agreeable in my mind and budget. So over the last few weeks I’ve picked up different items including their Vanilla Hair Butter.
Why did I buy this? I have LOTS of bath, body and skincare products, but not much in the form of haircare. I knew my hair supplies were running low and I needed some form of hair treatment and this was priced so well. AND vanilla bean? After giving this a cheeky sniff it was a must as vanilla is one of my all time favourite scents in everything.
What is Vanilla Bean Hair Butter? It’s basically a hair mask. You can either use this as a deep treatment by leaving it in the hair for a few minutes and rinsing out, or as a leave in conditioner.
What hair type is this for? Designed for frizzy and unruly hair which will include Afro Caribbean hair. I’ve seen this brand sit in sections dedicated to this hair type in various stores, which was a massive reason I wanted to try them out.
What is this supposed to do? This mask is supposed to deep condition hair. Help to control frizz, make it more manageable and therefore easy to detangle.
Packaging. 340g of hair mask is housed in a screw top lidded tub. Textured labelling, neutral in colouring e.g browns, gold and beiges. With all relevant information visible, including what this product DOES NOT contain e.g mineral oils, parabens etc.
I adore how the whole of this brand is packaged and labelled as it gives off the vibe of being quite wholesome in a natural, tropical, down to earth kind of way. It stands out for me every time!
Scent. Absolutely glorious! I am a vanilla addict so anything with this fragrance immediately wins me over. Sweet, slightly floral and undeniably vanilla. Can’t go wrong, and not overpowering either.
Texture & Consistency. A lovely rich looking pot of goodness. It looks very thick like a body butter. But when I took some out although it was thick, it wasn’t solid. I find hair masks/treatments I normally use are very much like this. And leave in conditioners the same or at least similar. This didn’t have a waxy texture to it, more thick body lotion like to touch.
How did I use this? Funnily enough I assumed this was just a mask at time of purchase. But it was only when I got home and read the label I found you could use it as a leave in. A leave in conditioner was something I had very little left of, so opted to use it purely in this way rather than as a mask.
I washed and conditioned my hair. While wet I combed it through and created large sections. I applied a generous amount to each of these sections, and within each created smaller sections and made 2 stranded twists. If any section felt as if it was drying out, I sprayed it with some water, and added a little extra Hair Butter onto it. Once all hair was twisted, I made sure my scalp was oiled and it was completed.
After use. I felt within a few hours my hair felt and looked as if it had totally absorbed this product. Normally, especially with the amount I use, leave in conditioners stay on my hair for hours and my hair feels a little weighty and still damp. Not only weighty but has a bounce to it. I didn’t get that with this. My twists looked fine, they looked defined. But feeling and looking at my hair, it felt as if there wasn’t much conditioner in it. It felt dry. Not dry as in brittle, just not moist.
My hair didn’t look wild or unruly. This doesn’t normally happen when I’ve freshly done my hair anyway, so no massive change with control or frizz. As a detangler, I used this in the same way on my daughter’s hair as I did on my own. It seemed to make a small difference running a comb through it after application before twisting it. But nothing incredible or memorable. Her hair really needed a good comb through so combed it before and after putting on the mask.
Was this for me? I don’t think so. Or at least not for the purpose I used it for. Looking at the range in full, I think this one would have been better just as a mask and nothing more. The amount of conditioning my hair needed I think was more than what this product could deliver as a leave in. Same results I found with my daughter’s hair too. But as a mask? I will have to try it out in that way and see if it’s more effective.
Recommended? Difficult one to answer because there is a vast amount of hair types and textures that fall under the frizzy and unruly title. For me, who has full on thick, proper afro hair, as a leave in conditioner? I personally wouldn’t use it for this again or purchase it for that reason. As a mask, as mentioned, I haven’t used it in this way but I think a mask is harder to get wrong. It’s on the hair for a short amount of time and gets washed off already clean hair. So all it should really do is give a temporary pick me up for the hair, like a skincare face mask would do. And once out of the hair, style it accordingly.
For £1.99 though I think it’s still worth a go. But I would use this as a short term treatment over anything else. Important to note, this range does work very hard not to include certain things such as silicones, mineral oils AND includes high percentages of natural ingredients. THAT in itself should be applauded! The range can be found in many Home Bargains stores ( stock and variety dependant on store and availability ). Or, for the full rrp price, Boots, Superdrug and supermarkets such as ASDA sell the range. * Both Boots and Superdrug have a 1/3 off the Maui range at the time of writing this post.